Shiloh, IL Fitness Showcase store closing-! Special Prices until June 30!

Come to our Shiloh store, where you will find tons of specials & deals on True, Life, Inspire, Helix, Water Rower, & Cybex fitness equipment! We will be closing the doors at this store on June 30^th, so make sure to come in & take advantage of our special pricing! If you have any questions be sure to call us at 618-206-2399.

Spring in to Fitness With Best Buys From True Fitness at Fitness Showcase

True Fitness products have been recognized by the Treadmill Doctor as the “best buy” & Fitness Showcase is the only True Fitness Dealer in St. Louis & Springfield. We are proud to sell their award winning equipment!

We have deals running on many True Fitness products, such as the True PS 100 treadmill which was the winner in its price range for Best Buy treadmill, as was the ES900 Elliptical! Check out our specials in store or on our website!

Fit Tip: Focus on Legs

One of the easiest ways to tone your legs is to get up and use them more with consistent walking, jogging or biking routines. These cardio activities will also burn calories and help reduce overall body fat. But if you are looking for lean, strong legs, the prescription is strength training. Rely on variations of good old-fashioned squats, lunges and deadlifts to firm up the muscles in your glutes, quads, hamstrings, and calves. 

Try the following leg exercises to train your muscles and get your legs ready for summer:

Take the Stairs: Choosing the stairs over the elevator is one of the easiest ways to work your legs during the day and you don’t need any extra equipment, just your body weight. Make it even more effective by taking the stairs two at a time. Push yourself up with your glutes and hamstrings to work the back of your legs. 

Squats: Squats are one of the best moves for leg toning and glute firming. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, toes facing forward, abs tight and arms at your sides.  Bend your knees to lower your body into a squat position, going as low as you can but no farther than 90 degrees. Pretend you are sitting back into a chair. Sit back and keep your knees over your toes, keep your chest lifted and spine long. Push through your heels and squeeze your buns to rise back to the starting position.

Deadlifts: There’s no doubt, the dead lift is one of the best exercise to tone the glutes and backside of the legs. Holding a barbell or two dumbbells at your side, keep your arms straight and knees slightly bent. Slowly bend at your hip joint, not your waist, and lower the weights as far as possible without rounding your back. Keep your spine neutral and abs tight. Squeeze your glutes to pull yourself up.

Stability Ball Leg Curl:  This is a great exercise to target the back of your legs. Grab a stability ball and lie on your back with your knees at a 90 degree angle and ankles on top of the ball. Squeeze your glutes and lift your hips off the ground. Keep your glutes squeezed tight, hold your hips off the ground and roll the ball toward your glutes and back to perform the rep. If that’s too challenging start with a simple hip lift and work your way toward the leg curl.

Alternating Reverse Lunges: Step back with one leg and bend both knees, lowering your body towards the ground. Align your front knee over the ankle of your front foot and stay on your back toe. Come back up to standing and switch legs. 

Brought to you by LifeFitness

Chocolate Chip Cookies with Avocado, No Butter

If you’ve been on Pinterest you’ve probably seen some tantalizing pictures of recipes made with impossibly healthy ingredients. Can it be true? Do those recipes taste as good as they look? Our team wanted to find out, so we tested out a recipe for chocolate chip cookies that has NO BUTTER. The secret ingredient: the buttery and delicious super-food, avocado. A big thanks to Natalie over at Deconstructing the Home for the recipe.

I Instagrammed the entire process and as a notoriously horrible baker, I’m proud to say I only made one mistake. While they didn’t look as beautiful as the one’s from Natalie’s blog, they definitely passed the taste test. 

The recipe calls for ½ cup, or roughly one, avocado. I managed to buy a giant one, so I used about 2/3 and saved the rest for a delicious snack the next day. Isn’t she a beauty? 

Using a hand mixer, I mixed the avocado until it was just slightly lumpy and followed that with the sugar. The recipe calls for Splenda as a sugar free option, but I prefer to choose natural ingredients over processed foods any time I can (even if that means a few more calories.)

Next came the egg and vanilla, which I also mixed until smooth.

I mixed up my remaining dry ingredients (baking soda*, whole wheat flour and salt) in a separate bowl and slowly added to my lovely green mush.

*Welcome to my mistake. It turns out I only had baking powder on hand, not baking soda. These ingredients help the cookies rise, so I took to the internet to find out if I could substitute. The general consensus online was to use about twice the amount of baking powder than the recipe called for in baking soda. Two teaspoons it was. My cookies tasted delicious, but you’ll see very soon that they didn’t come out very pretty. Please be smarter than me and check all your ingredients before beginning. 

A good portion of chocolate chips came next to finish off the recipe! Note: The recipe calls for 1 cup chocolate chips, which made the cookies very yummy, but you can definitely get away with less. I would recommend 2/3 cup to cut the calories a bit, but still get chocolaty goodness in every cookie. 

Onto a lightly greased baking sheet and into the oven for 15 minutes. 

The finished product. Like I said, not the prettiest, but they were still a hit at home and at Life Fitness headquarters.

Have you ever used avocado in an unexpected way? Comment and tell us!

Healthy Chocolate Chip Cookies with Avocado

Ingredients:
½ Cup avocado (approximately one avocado)
¾ Cup Splenda (or your favorite sweetener)
1 Egg
1 tsp vanilla
1 Cup whole wheat flour
1 tsp baking soda
¼ tsp salt
1 Cup semi-sweet chocolate chips (or unsweetened to remove all sugar)
½ Cup chopped pecans (optional)
Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 290 degrees. Line cookie sheet with parchment paper or lightly grease.

2. Remove avocado from skin and place in mixer. Mix on medium until slightly lumpy. Add Splenda and mix on high until smooth. Add egg and vanilla and mix until combined.

3. In small bowl mix together baking soda, flour, and salt. Slowly add to wet ingredients. Mix on medium until well combined. Add chocolate chips and pecans and mix till evenly combined.

4. Scoop one tablespoon of dough per cookie and place on cookie sheet one inch apart. If you want flatter cookies you can use the back of a spoon to flatten them out. Bake for 15-18 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool.

Dig in!
Makes 24 cookies!

Brought to you by LifeFitness

Fit Tip: Use Technology to Improve Your Health

Technology can get a bad rap, often blamed for the increasingly sedentary lives many people are leading. But your phone, tablet and television don’t have to be a license to sit still. They can actually be used as motivators to get and stay fit. In fact, in a global survey of exercisers, Life Fitness found that exercisers that use technology to support their workouts consider themselves to be more successful at achieving their weight and fitness goals.  Try one of these tech-driven tools to lead a healthier life:

Heart Rate

A heart rate monitor can be a great tool for monitoring workouts. Most cardio machines feature an embedded heart rate monitor that clearly displays how hard the body is working. You can also wear a heart rate monitor for indoor and outdoor workouts. To effectively us it, it’s important to know your maximum heart rate. This is the highest number of times your heart can beat in one minute and offers a key figure in determining training intensities. Using heart rate to create interval training sessions or steady-state workouts, can strengthen the heart and improve cardiovascular fitness. 

Wearable Fitness Tech

One of the biggest trends in fitness technology is wearable monitoring devices. They come in the form of bracelets or clips and go beyond classic heart rate monitors. Meant to be worn at all times, these devices can measure movement, calories burned, heart rate, sleep patterns, skin temperature and even blood oxygen levels. Most also sync with mobile apps to help you track these vital statistics over time. Investing in these tools and seeing results over time can be a huge motivator. Some of the most popular wearable fitness devices include the Nike+ Fuel Band, Core 2 from Body Media, Fit Bit Flex and Jawbone UP.

Healthy Eating Apps

With the advent of apps that support meal planning, nutrition tracking and calorie counting, it’s never been easier to eat right. Find tools that fit with your lifestyle to educate yourself about your food and take steps towards a healthier diet. Not sure how healthy that granola bar really is? Apps like Fooducate will analyze the nutritional content of a product and give it an easy-to-read grade of A – F.  Meal tracking has been a long trusted technique for improving eating habits, and it’s even easier today with apps like Lose It!, which features a rich database of foods to help you count calories and even sync with Life Fitness cardio equipment.

Social Accountability

One of the greatest fitness benefits technology can provide comes through social accountability. With just a few clicks you can join an online community like Spark People or LFconnect to connect with others trying to get fit. Apps like Fitocracy and Teemo add a sense of gamification and competition with your friends. You can even take your accountability to the next level with GymPact, which charges you real cash every time you miss a scheduled workout.

This FitTip was brought to by LifeFitness

Fit Tip: Active Date Ideas to Get the Heart Pumping

Thinking of skipping your workout for a hot date tonight? Think again. Step outside of your sedentary dinner-and-a-movie comfort zone and go for an active date instead. Not only is it great for your health, it can be great for your relationships, too. The next time you’re making plans with your significant other, try one of these active date ideas:

Try something new. Choose an activity that is both new and physically challenging to you and your partner; the fun is often in the unknown. For example, try indoor rick climbing, ice-skating, kayaking or snowboarding. You might just discover a new workout you both enjoy. 

Play a game built for two. If you pick an activity designed for pairs, you’ll be up and moving all evening long. Schedule a game of tennis, badminton, squash or even table tennis (it is an Olympic sport). Even a game of pool or darts will get you moving more than posting up at the bar.   

Train together. Sign up for a race together and schedule training walks/runs as you would a date night. Working towards a common goal is a great way to develop a relationship. You can cheer each other on, keep each other motivated and plan for race day together.

Put on your dancing shoes. Dance the night away at a club or concert for a great cardio workout. Better yet, take a ballroom dance or swing class to really step up the heat.

Skip the pay per view. Staying in for a romantic evening at home doesn’t have to equal laziness. Go out for an evening walk or take the dog to the local park. Get off the couch and try an active video game like Wii Kinect or Dance Dance Revolution.

This Fit Tip was brought to you by  LifeFitness

Fit Tip: Four Workouts You Haven’t Tried Yet

he New Year is the perfect time to shake up your fitness routine and there are plenty of exciting and new workouts to choose from. Here are four workouts you probably haven’t tried, but should:

Mud Runs. Mud runs are growing in popularity because they bring back the kid in you. There are many different types of mud runs with varying degrees of difficulty. The courses can involve climbing over stuff, jumping over fire, balancing across a log, crawling under wire, slogging through waist high mud puddles and scaling walls. People are attracted to mud runs because of the sense of adventure, the camaraderie, the challenge and the fun of getting dirty. Oh, it’s also a great workout.

HIIT. This workout is interval training with two extra words:  high intensity.  High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT) workouts alternate periods of work with periods of recovery.  The interval times may vary and the exercises can be a combination of both strength and cardio.  The key is to go at a high effort level during the work periods and make the most of your recovery so you can hit it again.  HIIT is all about working smarter, not longer. 

CrossFit. Unless you live under a rock, you’ve heard of CrossFit and the Workout of the Day (WOD). These intense workouts mix up body weight exercises with plyometrics, weights and sprints. The workout changes daily and the instructor pushes you to give it your all.  It’s a back to basics approach and can be modified for varying fitness levels. 

Barre Workouts. In just one hour, a barre class will work every major muscle group in your body. It’s low impact, fun and if you are consistent you can see incredible results. Most barre studios combine light weight work with isometric toning and ballet inspired moves.  But the workouts are for all ages and absolutely any fitness level.  Dance experience and flexibility are not required.  It’s hot among the Hollywood crowd and a fun way to cross train.

Brought to you by LifeFitness

Fit Tip: Create a Workout Plan to Stick To

How many times have you started a new workout routine in January and fell off the wagon by the end of February? It happens to a lot of people when goals are unrealistic or plans aren’t well thought out. Get focused this year and use these tips to create a workout plan to stick to.

Create a weekly schedule.  Long term goals are great, but it’s also important to break it down into weekly expectations.  Write down a weekly workout plan and schedule it into your calendar like any other meeting. When planning workouts, remember that the Center for Disease Control recommends 150 minutes of cardio exercise per week. Split that into five, 30-minute sessions or maybe 15 minutes Monday-Thursday and an hour on Saturdays and Sundays.  Make it work for you. Add in two strength sessions per week and you’ll be meeting the exercise requirements for a healthy body.  

Log your exercise. Tracking workouts and progress will increase your motivation to show up at the gym. Log workouts with apps like Runtastic, websites like LFconnect or just old fashioned pen and paper.

Find a class and make friends. Group classes are ideal because there’s something for everyone. Add a class once or twice a week to cross train and add varitey. Plus, on those days when you don’t feel like creating your own workout you can just show up and follow the guidance of a group fitness instructor. Making friends in class will make showing up even more enjoyable and will provide an additional layer of accountability.  

Increase intensity over time. Don’t jump on a stationary bike for the first time and go full tilt with the most difficult preprogrammed workout. Doing more than you are ready for might make you throw in the towel. Hop on the treadmill, elliptical or other equipment and work up to an intensity that’s right for you.  Add hills, intervals and zone training as you go. As your strength improves, you can increase your speed, intensity, duration and resistance.

This FitTip was brought to you by Lifefitness

The Best and Worst Holiday Drinks for Your Diet

A string of holiday parties and family get-togethers is likely in your future and festive drinks are sure to be served. Make smarter choices when gathered around the tree by understanding the best and worst holiday cocktails for your diet. Those liquid calories have a way of adding up, especially when you top it with decadent family dinners.

The Worst
White Russian (6 oz.) – 374 Calories
Eggnog (8 oz.) – 343 Calories
Kir Royal (6.5 oz.) – 219 Calories

The Best
Champagne (1 glass/4.1 fl oz) – 91 Calories
Make it lighter: Go for brut (dry) champagne.
Mojito (6 oz.) – 167 Calories
Make it lighter: Use a sugar substitute.
Hot Toddy (8 oz.) – 173 Calories
Make it ligher: Use ½ - ¾ tablespoon of honey instead of the stand 1 tablespoon.

Source: http://caloriecount.about.com/

Via Life Fitness

Fit Tip: Stretch to Success

Stretching may seem like an easy thing to cut out of a busy schedule, but the benefits of stretching far outweigh any excuses. Stretching can improve athletic performance, decrease risk of injuries and increase flexibility through a wider range of motion. So take a minute and stretch your mind around these easy tips:

Start with a warm up, not stretches. Did you know stretching pre-workout can actually decrease performance? The perfect warm-up is simply a lower-intensity version of whatever exercise you are about to perform. The goal during this time is to slowly increase the temperature of muscle tissue to prevent injury.

Stretch at the end of your workout. For best results, stretch when muscles are warm, after bringing your heart rate back to a comfortable zone. Static stretches, or stretches held in place, are most effective.  Follow the American College of Sports Medicine guidelines and hold each stretch for 20 to 40 seconds. This will increase blood flow to the muscle and improve workout results. Stretching consistently over time will lead to improvements in flexibility and range of motion. 

Focus on main muscle groups. Pay attention to the calves, hips, thighs, lower back, neck and shoulders. Always stretch on both sides and focus on performing stretches that are sport-specific. For instance, runners should focus on stretching the hamstrings, hips and calves thoroughly.

Listen to your body. Make sure to breath. Inhale to prepare and exhale before going a little deeper into a stretch. If you ever feel pain, stop immediately, back off to a comfortable point and hold. Never bounce when holding a stretch.

Stretching after exercise can help relax and balance tension caused by a workout and save you from tight, sore muscles the following day. Make stretching a habit every time you hit the gym to reap the benefits.

This Fit Tip was brought to you by Life Fitness

Fit Tip: Multi-Machine Cardio Workouts

exercise xenophobe (noun): 1. Any individual who works out on the same machine every day and is comfortable with their current workout. 2. An exerciser who avoids trying out an unfamiliar machine. See also: In an exercise rut.

Ok, that is a fictional term. But repeating the same cardio routine every day is getting a little dull, right? Not to worry; this 30 minute triple cardio workout is guaranteed to put some pep in your step. Simply spend ten minutes on three different cardio machines for a workout that will spice up any routine.

Try something new.  Make like Magellan and go exploring. Have you steered clear of the Summit Trainer or avoided the cardio rowing machine in favor of a familiar treadmill?  Conquer the foreign territory of a new piece of equipment by committing to a 10 minute session.  Using your muscles in a different way will reinvigorate your mind, too. Here’s a triple workout to try: Start with three minutes of walking to warm up, followed by seven minutes of walking at a fast pace on the treadmill. Then switch to the elliptical cross-trainer for the next ten minutes. Finally, hop onto an upright bike and pedal briskly for seven minutes, and decrease your speed for three minutes to cool down.  

Throw a wrench in it. Once you’ve acquainted yourself with each different cardio machine, change up your program to combat boredom and stave off humdrum-ness. Jack up the incline or add hand weights to your walking workout on the treadmill. Choose an elliptical with handlebars to get your upper body moving at the same time.  Try increasing the resistance on your stationary bike and make it a hill workout instead of a flat ride.

Minimize time to maximize results. Keeping your workout on each machine shorter in duration means you can pay more attention to your body and its movements instead of zoning out. Make the most of your limited time on each machine by pushing your intensity to achieve results.

Success, multiplied. Exercising on different pieces of equipment engages many more muscles than a workout on one machine would, including two of the most important muscles we have: our brains and our hearts.  Cardiovascular exercise improves heart health, and planning each new triple program will engage your mind as well.

This Fit-Tip was brought to you by LifeFitness

Fit Tip: Winterize Your Workout

It’s easy to see why people enjoy working out alfresco, whether you are challenging your friends to a pick-up game of volleyball at the beach, testing the strength of a carabiner on the side of a cliff, or jogging with your dog. But, there will undoubtedly be at least a few days this winter season when Jack Frost’s arctic temperature or dangerous, icy terrain will force even the most stalwart outdoor exercise enthusiast inside. That’s no reason to hibernate. Beat the winter blues (and blahs) with these brrrrrilliant tips from Life Fitness.

Bring the Outside In:  Many of your outdoor workouts can be tweaked to function inside. Try transitioning from outdoor boot camp to circuit training on the Cable Motion Dual Adjustable Pulley machine. Take advantage of Lifescape interactive courses, which will transport you to exotic locales across the globe and are available on Life Fitness Elevation Series Treadmills, Cross Trainers, and bikes.

Make a “hot” new playlist: Few things can shake up an otherwise dull workout like some new music. Harness the transformative powers of music by stocking your list with tracks that evoke warm weather and summertime celebrations. Need some inspiration? Start with Don Henley’s “Boys of Summer”, Buster Poindexter’s “Hot! Hot! Hot!”, and the ubiquitous summer 2012 anthem, “Call Me Maybe”.

Try a new class: Winter is the perfect opportunity to try out a new class and a new way to work out your body.  Group fitness or small group personal training also helps motivate you to show up for the camaraderie, the fun, and the benefits that accompany working out with a pro.  Plus, you may meet some workout buddies to help you greet the spring thaw.

Get in the zone: If you are used to high intensity, strenuous outdoor workouts, you may think it’s impossible to achieve similar results inside.  Try preprogrammed cardio machine workouts that simulate hills and/or intervals and customize the settings to push you both aerobically and anaerobically.  Don’t forget to use a Heart Rate Monitor; keeping track of your zones will ensure you are working hard enough but not overdoing it. 

This Fit-Tip was brought to you by Life Fitness

10 Ways to Burn 100 Calories

Anything that gets you up and moving is good for your health, so try incorporating some of these 10 ways to burn 100 calories into your daily routine.

1. Vacuuming: 25 minutes
Use good posture and stand tall instead of bent over to engage your tummy muscles. Alternate arms on the push and pulling of the movement. 

Focus: Arms

2. Walking: 15 minutes
Along with the calorie burn, taking a brisk walk 2-3 times a day can also help lower stress levels. Be sure to push off your big toe and take larger strides while swinging your arms.
Focus:  Legs

3. Gardening: 15 minutes
Bending, standing, pulling weeds and digging in the dirt is a great total body workout. Remember to use a knee pad while kneeling and avoid being bent over from the waistline to steer clear of back pain. 
Focus: Total Body

4. Biking (10 mph on a flat surface): 40 minutes
Because you're not bearing weight in your legs, you'll burn less calories riding a bike than walking. However, the time can really fly by on a bike outdoors and you might even use it to head to and from work or the grocery store to incorporate its benefits into your week.
Focus: Lower Body

5. Swimming: 15 minutes
Swimming is great for the joints and can produce great toning effects.  Alternate strokes to change muscles group every five laps. 
Focus: Total Body

6. Stairs: 20 minutes
You'll find that stair climbing can boost your cardiovascular conditioning faster than going out for a run. Remember to use your arms on the hand rails to pull your body up instead of just pushing up from each stair. Going down is more challenging on the joints, so try side stepping. 
Focus: Legs and Hearth

7. Pushing the stroller: 20 minutes
Take the baby out not only for the calorie burn, but for fresh air as well. Focus on lightly holding onto the stroller with a firm grip and standing upright.
Focus: Lower body

8. Dancing: 20 minutes
Dancing has taken center stage with the celebrity competitions and classes like Zumba and Jazzercise, but you don’t have to be at the gym or on a reality show to benefit from dancing. Just put on some music and let your body start moving.
Focus: Total Body

9. Volleyball: 12 minutes
Volleyball is a fun, outdoor activity that can burn calories too. Play in the sand and burn a few extra calories!
Focus: Arms

10. Kissing: 90 minutes
While kissing may improve your love life, it won't burn calories as much as other activities you can do. But it's at least nice to know you can still burn a few while igniting your life.

Focus: Relationship

This fit-tip was brought to you by Life Fitness

TOUR DE FRANCE-INSPIRED FITNESS

With Tour de France taking place the next few weeks, it's the perfect time to use this famous race as inspiration for your own workouts by following these tips from Life Fitness and adding cycling to your fitness repertoire.

Enjoy the health benefits. Cycling is a heart-pumping cardio activity that can increase your endurance and stamina, and lead to better overall fitness and muscle tone. When cycling, your quads, hamstrings and glutes do most of the work, but your core muscles will get a great workout, too. Outdoor cycling is particularly beneficial because you have to deal with the challenges of gravity, weather and terrain. Mix up your daily routine by using your bike as a means of transportation this summer and you'll notice a difference in your endurance after a couple weeks.

Go for group rides. Cycling is an activity the whole family can do together. The smallest child can climb into a bike seat or tow-along buggy, and because cycling is kind on joints, it's a low-impact workout people of almost all fitness levels can enjoy. If you go out for a ride with a friend and your paces aren't perfectly matched, just slow down and enjoy each other's company. Consider partnering up with your spouse and make a date out of a healthy bike ride.

Stay Safe. Make sure you are properly equipped when you head out for a ride by wearing a helmet that fits properly. If you're riding outdoors, skip the distracting headphones and instead of flip-flops, wear shoes that give you control of the pedals. Keep your bike in good condition by checking your breaks and tires regularly. If you are going to be riding in the road, use extreme caution when cycling among cars and follow the rules of the road. Make eye contact with drivers to ensure they see you and use hand signals to let motorists know what you are doing.

This Fit Tip was provided by Life Fitness July 3rd, 2012