I’m a closet ballerina. The one with no poise or grace, just like Lucy. So I twirl in hiding, and plié when no one is looking. Occasionally, if I have a long wait someplace where I have to stand for an extended period of time, I’ll break out the ol’ tippy toe maneuvers and throw in an attempt at an elegant circular arm gesture which I hijacked straight from the Nutcracker. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve pirouetted my way into the fantasy ballet Hall of Fame, (It’s like the real one, only BETTER). And when I’m certain no eyes are upon me, I’ve been known to attempt a full circle spin on one toe, and blow an imaginary kiss to Baryshnikov. (So what if he retired from dancing years ago; Carrie Bradshaw brought him back to life, and back to my fantasies).

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The New Year is coming and I predict that all of you single gals who are seeking men are going to be wanting some new ideas on how to make a love connection in 2009.  I’m a huge believer in combining your quest to stay fit with your search for romance, so I’ve put together list of the five sports you might want to try to expand your fitness and dating horizons.

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I’m sure the Pilgrims and Indians (gasp! I said that horribly politically incorrect word) didn’t know that the feast tradition they started all those years ago would be embraced by a nation far into the future. I’m also sure they didn’t realize that nation would celebrate with food every other day of the year too, in such a big way that their ancestors (us) would be battling an obesity problem.

I thought that since we are headed into the biggest eating holiday of the year, I would show you which parts of the country will be needing to work out the most in 2009! See whether you live in a fat State, or a *f.a.t. State by clicking here. 

Whether you are traveling across this great country over the next few days to celebrate, or just staying where you are, check back for some healthy Fit After Thirty turkey recipes for your post-holiday leftovers!

You may be surprised to know that boredom is one of the main reasons people don’t keep up with their exercise routine. Yes, laziness, and time constraints are two other common reasons, but boredom is a big one too, and it’s so easy to solve.

Fitness is like sex within a marriage. Sometimes you just have to mix things up a little bit to keep it interesting and exciting!  Just like with sex, if it’s fun, you’ll want to keep doing it, but if it feels like a chore (does that really happen?), then you’ll stop doing it. In my opinion, fitness never has to get boring. When making fitness fun, think NEW. New challenges, new methods, new people, and new workout gear!

Here are my top ten suggestions for more making fitness fun:

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After losing yet another iPod on yet another airplane a couple weeks ago, I had to borrow a friend’s Shuffle for my run the other day. This was a good idea in theory, except that I ended up spending most of the run fast forwarding through the crappy rappy and the crappy sappy (rap and country) to get to the intermittent good song. “Good song” being any song that suited my musical tastes while also being motivating, inspiring and otherwise keeping me pepped for my run.

It got me thinking about just how important music can be to the workout process. Therefore, I thought I’d share with you a playlist with eleven (ten is so boring) of my favorite tunes for running with. I promise you, these will fire you up, and by the end, you will get that last push you need to finish strong! 

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Okay, *f.a.t. sisters, it’s October and you know what that means, the holidays are right around the corner. Life gets crazy with the kids, holiday parties and our jobs. Fitness routines fall by the wayside and before you know it, it’s January and you’re ten pounds heavier.

Let’s prevent that from happening. Set a goal to run a race a couple months out, that you have to train for during November and December when all that pumpkin pie and egg nog is filling your fridge. It will force you to stay on track through the crazy holiday season, and probably help you deal with the stress a whole lot better too!

Every year there is a local half marathon in January that I sign up for so that I have a reason to keep up my fitness routine. It may sound stupid to add something else to your plate during a very busy time of year, but it actually gives you a break from the hustle and bustle, and it even keeps you from spending too much money! I know that sounds odd, but when you exhibit control in one area of your life, it helps you in the other areas as well.

Since January is the time for making resolutions and setting new goals for the year anyway, why not decide to give yourself the amazing experience of completing a 10K or half marathon? Everyone should attempt one at some point in their lives!!!

You can start by walking your first. Check out the step by step 12 week training program at halhigdon. Hal makes it easy to follow the day-by-day training schedules for novice, intermediate and advanced runners. So, pick a local race or walk, sign up for it and give yourself the gift of health during the holiday season. Take a look at the races near you, at Runner’s World.

Many years ago I got injured running and I was looking for a good alternative that would provide similar cardio results. I am not graceful or coordinated so aerobic and step classes scared me. Mainly for the injuries I could have caused other people by tripping over them or missing a step. Spinning seemed like a great option.

Spinning is the closest thing I have found to running in terms of the quality of the workout I get. You sweat your ass off, give most of your major muscles a good workout in a short amount of time, and raise your heart rate. As you know, I am a busy mom, so I am all about the best bang for your buck in the shortest amount of time when it comes to working out!

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Okay, f.a.t. sisters I have a couple new gadgets to tell you about that will aid you in your running and other workouts. And since I’m not quite as gadget-phobic as Suzy, I volunteered to do the research on these babies!

The Garmin 405 Forerunner is now on my Christmas list. A running friend of mine just got one so I was able to check it out a bit. With this watch, you can track your speed, pace, mileage, calories burned, and distance, and it weighs about as much as a handful of nickels. No more. No less.

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Girls, let’s be practical. There’s a limited number of hours in a week. If you’re single, and meeting someone for a great relationship is a priority, then some of those free hours have to be spent on activities that might allow you to meet a man. A lot of women are finding there are just too few hours in a week to do it all. If the time spent going to happy hours and surfing dating sites is cutting into your workout schedule, then it’s going to have a negative effect on your physique, which, in turn, will impact your health and your ability to attract a dude. 

So what’s the solution? You combine the two endeavors. You find fitness activities that you like, that keep you in shape, but that also allow you to circulate with potential objects of desire. Welcome to the world of co-ed sports. I just heard the loud communal gasp of every woman who would rather swallow razor blades than be seen by a man without makeup and hair done. First of all, get over yourselves. All of you. Second of all, razor blades will do an unacceptable amount of damage to your trachea. 

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Yesterday I was out at the Manhattan Beach 10K race and was inspired to see so many people of all ages who completed the race. There was a mix of old and very young runners. “Young” as in kiddos. The coolest thing was seeing so many kids who ran the race with their moms.

What an awesome way to make sure they grow up to be Fit After Thirty also! There were also a lot of couples running it together as well as guys not running it, but who were there to cheer their wives and girlfriends on. It just confirmed in my mind the long standing belief that I’ve had that sports are one of the best ways to make relationships and solidify them. I can’t think of a better way to share time with your loved ones - through fitness! 

Even if you’ve never been a runner or if you’ve only done it recreationally, and never competed in a race, it’s worth considering it, because the pay off is not only better health, but a huge feeling of a sense of accomplishment. 

It’s easy to get intimidated at the thought of taking on a new fitness challenge for the first time, and it’s easy to convince yourself that races are only for the extremely fit, and long time runners. That’s not so. Of course you will need to train for it and prepare by building up your endurance, but if ten year old kids can do it, and the older men and women I saw out there can do it, then you gals can do it!

If you’re ready to commit, the best way to get started is by first finding a race you would like to tackle. Runner’s World has a great feature that allows you to search for a race by distance from your zip code.

When you find one you like, the next thing you must do is train for it. Put the date of the race on the calendar and get to work! To get started, you can print out this training routine for the novice runner. And remember, running together is a great way to share time with your significant other, your parents, or your kids!