How to Use a Pedometer to Meet Your Fitness Goals

A small device can keep you on track as you make steps toward meeting your fitness goals.

My daughter came home from school with a little green pedometer she got from her P.E. teacher. She was asked to wear it on her waistband and keep track of how many steps she takes each day. I was thrilled to see this come home because it gets kids thinking about the amount of movement they get in a day at an early age. I can also say this is not a perfect science because I found the pedometer that was supposed to be attached to her waist for a week straight on the dining room table this morning. OK, she is nine and I guess that using a pedometer every day may be a little unrealistic, but when she got home from school she did realize she left it behind and was looking forward to wearing it the next day. Pedometers can be a useful tool for …

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Tips to Avoid Holiday Weight Gain

A dietitian explains how it can be easier and more enjoyable than you thing.

Just because the holidays have arrived, it doesn’t mean weight gain has to come too. Antonio Cain, a registered and licensed dietitian at the DeKalb Medical Center near Tucker, says the key is to remain conscious about the amounts and types of foods you choose throughout the holidays. “Many people simply just don’t think. So much food is presented at once and often times we overeat,” Cain said. - What weight-control measures have worked for you in the past? Share them in the comments below. It’s difficult to pass on many of the holiday foods, especially since they are filled with tradition. So Cain suggests before a holiday meal, eat some fruits or veggies and drink water to prevent overeating. During the meal choose lean cuts of meat, …

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'Where's Me?' Zumba Changes Venues

This roaming East Cobb-based hip-hop workout series led by Mechelle Burd culminates at the Marietta Square May 7.

Not everyone looks forward to Monday mornings, but a growing group of East Cobb women do—that’s when they get to get down with a series of hip-hop moves and basic boogeying during outdoor Zumba-inspired classes called “Where’s Me?” Every Monday for the past nine weeks this spring, East Cobb fitness instructor and certified Zumba teacher Michelle Burd has been helping women get in shape through the funky urban routines she choreographs, changing the class location each week. The grand finale of the series takes place on Monday, May 7 at the Marietta Square starting at 10:15 a.m. From East Cobb Park, to neighborhood clubhouses, to palatial East Cobb homes with private tennis courts, Burd has conducted her popular Zumba classes outdoors and …

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Readers' Choice: Marietta East Cobb Jazzercise

This wasn't much of a contest at all in this week's poll of favorite workout places in East Cobb.

When it comes to working out in East Cobb, Marietta East Cobb Jazzercise has been a popular place for a long time. In this week's Readers' Choice poll, the Olde Towne establishment won in a landslide, garnering 62 of the 98 votes cast, or 62 percent.  Finishing in second place was Women's Premier Fitness on Lower Roswell Road. Cathy Mobley's Marietta East Cobb Jazzercise center also is strongly community minded, as she and several clients recently participated in a Jazzercise fundraiser in Buckhead for breast cancer research.  On Monday, we'll ask readers about their favorite place to celebrate St. Patrick's Day.

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Readers' Choice: Places to Work Out in East Cobb

Please vote between now and Friday for your favorite gym or studio.

Where's the best place in East Cobb to work out? Here's your chance to help your favorite gym or studio win. This week's East Cobb Patch Readers' Choice poll is open for voting through 9 a.m. Friday. On Friday afternoon, we'll announce the winner. With plenty of places to get and stay fit, there's so much to choose from.  If your favorite isn't among the following establisments, let us know in the comments section and we'll add it to the poll: Because this poll is not scientific, it is not the sole consideration in choosing a winner. East Cobb Patch editor Wendy Parker (wendy.parker@patch.com) will determine the winner based on the poll results and reviews on Patch Places pages (just click on the business names above). Positive comments …

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Scene in East Cobb

Easter Fun at East Cobb YMCA's Healthy Kids Day

McCleskey-East Cobb Family YMCA and East Cobber magazine teamed up for last Sunday's Health and Wellness Expo.

Exactly one week before Easter, scores of families took advantage of the perfect spring weather Sunday to enjoy Healthy Kids Day held at the McCleskey-East Cobb Family YMCA. The event included a Health & Wellness Expo organized by East Cobber magazine. The goal is to encourage children and their parents to embrace healthy lifestyle choices through exercise, healthful food, and lots of fun. “At the McCleskey-East Cobb YMCA, we know that parents struggle to find the time to incorporate more active play and healthier habits into their kids’ daily routine,” wrote Executive Director Becky Shipley in a press release issued about the event. “Doing so doesn’t have to require extra money or resources. It’s as simple as making a play date with your …

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The Great Escape

East Cobb Moms Inspire Everyday Fitness

Owners of Fitness Attack offer one-on-one training and the boot camp option for getting in shape.

Well before East Cobb’s cold Monday morning rush hour began, Cami Mitelman and Natalie Rachael, who own Fitness Attack, left their children warmly tucked in bed and set out to help a group of clients continue working on their new year’s resolutions one lunge, curl, and twist at a time. Fitness Attack has served clients in East Cobb and Dunwoody since October 2009, and it provides both private one-on-one fitness training and boot camp-style group dynamics. And at 5:30 a.m. four days a week, Fitness Attack opens its doors at the East Cobb-based Atlanta Dance studios for clients who are serious about getting in shape or losing weight for the new year and beyond. Mitelman and Rachael, with five-school age children between them, are business …

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'Release Your Soul' with Zumba Classes

The newest fitness craze appears to be catching on in East Cobb.

Maybe you’ve seen the engaging Zumba Fitness infomercial or considered buying the associated Wii or Xbox game, but there are plenty of places in East Cobb where fast-moving groups of women are shaking what their mama gave ‘em—and laughing out loud while doing it. Zumba, a registered trademark of mostly Latin-flavored dances and the music that helps facilitate the moves, seems to be growing locally with dozens of classes in East Cobb and surrounding areas. And while most people are struggling to make it to month’s end with their new year’s resolution to step up their fitness routines, many mothers and grandmothers in the community haven’t missed a beat with Zumba. Recently, East Cobb-area YMCAs have increased the number of Zumba classes …

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Changes at YMCA Target New Members

New equipment, new activities and a fee-reducing member-referral program are among the New Year's highlights at the East Cobb and Northeast Cobb Y.

Less is more—yet more is more—as the two local YMCA locations reduce membership dues through a referral program, install dozens of new exercise machines and increase the frequency of their most popular classes for the new year.  With the Shrink Your Dues member-referral program, the McCleskey Family East Cobb YMCA and the Northeast Cobb Family YMCA hope to offer members a way to cut their monthly dues by as much as 20 percent, pushing fees back to decade-old lows.  According to YMCA Executive Director Becky Shipley, if existing members refer family or friends to the Y, both the new and current card carriers will receive reduced monthly rates. The reduced fees could result in individual rates as low as they were in 1999. The campaign kicks …

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Resolving to Slow Down with Stillness Yoga

Considering yoga and meditation as a way to keep up with New Year's resolutions.

While many people might already want to give up on their health- and wellness-focused New Year's resolutions, Stephanie Clement, owner of Stillness Yoga in East Cobb, suggests ways to stay on track by slowing down, breathing, and sitting still for a while. Clement, who has taught meditation and yoga to dozens of adults and children, including Walton High School students, said that ultimately, we already have the key to success. "Within each of us, we have an innate wisdom," said Clement, who is certified to teach yoga by the Yoga Alliance, a national yoga education association. "When we begin to listen to that, when it guides us, all of our resolutions can be met with freedom and with ease." Conversely, she said, "when we're not aligned …

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