Fit Friday- "gadgets & gear!"

Welcome to my second Fit Friday!! I had so much fun doing this last week and am looking forward to continuing on my quest to a healthy and fit lifestyle! This week, we need to gear up! And by "gear"... of course I mean we need to do a little shopping! :) For Mother's Day, all I am asking for is exercise clothes. Lately, that's all I've been wearing, so a little variety would be nice. I found these adorable items at Old Navy.... cheap and SO cute!

What a flattering top- it's 16 bucks and it even has a built in shelf bra! Hooray! :) Find it here!

I love love loveeeeee foldover yoga pants to exercise in. They are flattering and so comfy-cozy. I love these capris for spring and summer, but Old Navy's got a whole bunch of different ones to suit your style. Anyone have any clothing must-haves for exercising???

Now onto a gadget for you....

A must have to track how much exercise your body is getting on a daily basis: a pedometer will measure your total steps for the day. The recommended goal to living a healthy and active lifestyle is about 10,000 steps a day. I have used pedometers in the past and they really are a great motivational tool- you want to get to that 10,000 mark everyday if it kills you!! :) Weight Watchers offers one that also tracks how many activity points you earn in a day, but I bought a cheap-y one from WalMart a few days ago. I used it and am not super wild about it, but since it was only a few bucks I will give it the benefit of the doubt. The pedometer above got great reviews on Amazon and looks a bit ore promising... and it isn't a ton of money. I might look into getting that one. I like the pedometers that not only tell you how many steps you have gone, but a mileage as well. That is helpful on neighborhood walks when you aren't positive about the distance you are covering.

Anyone have any recommended brands they use and enjoy??

Here is a bit of info about getting in the 10,000 steps a day from The Walking Site:

"Maybe you have heard the recent guidelines about walking 10,000 steps per day. How far is 10,000 steps anyway? The average person's stride length is approximately 2.5 feet long. That means it takes just over 2,000 steps to walk one mile, and 10,000 steps is close to 5 miles. A sedentary person may only average 1,000 to 3,000 steps a day. For these people adding steps has many health benefits.

A reasonable goal for most people is to increase average daily steps each week by 500 per day until you can easily average 10,000 per day. Example: If you currently average 3000 steps each day, your goal for week one is 3500 each day. Your week 2 goal is 4000 each day. Continue to increase each week and you should be averaging 10,000 steps by the end of 14 weeks.

Wearing a pedometer is an easy way to track your steps each day. Start by wearing the pedometer every day for one week. Put it on when you get up in the morning and wear it until bed time. Record your daily steps in a log or notebook. By the end of the week you will know your average daily steps. You might be surprised how many (or how few) steps you get in each day.

There are many ways to increase your daily steps. Use your imagination and come up with your own list:

• Take a walk with your spouse, child, or friend
• Walk the dog
• Use the stairs instead of the elevator
• Park farther from the store
• Better yet, walk to the store
• Get up to change the channel
• Window shop
• Plan a walking meeting
• Walk over to visit a neighbor
• Get outside to walk around the garden or do a little weeding

Continue to track your daily steps and/or mileage; and keep notes on how you feel, how your body is improving, or other changes you are making to improve your health."

So go ahead and treat yourself to a new exercise outfit that will make you feel slammin' & clip on those pedometers!! Here is to a healthy and fit week, my friends!! :) And PS. Remember to leave me a comment with any fit tips! I will be compiling everyone's tips into an upcoming Fit Friday blog so we can all share our secrets! xo!