Social Workout

Industrial Chic

Foam Rollers, Weird Balls, and Other Stocking Stuffers

Seeking gift ideas, and/or potentially life-changing accessories for your living room? Click through to OPTP.com, the J. Peterman (or perhaps J. Crew or Red Envelope) of fitness props. Here in the world of "Orthopedic Physical Therapy Products" you will find all manner of wonderful mats, balls, bands, etc. Think of the therapeutic fun you might have with the SmartRoller, which fitness blogger Andrew Heffernan says is "the Cadillac of foam rollers." Just $39.95. Or you might consider the "Quick Hands Bola Trainer," pictured here, the "ultimate training tool to improve neurological function." How can you not pay $29.95 to whip your neurons into shape? Or perhaps you just need a good Pilates mat. Knock yourself out. 

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Gift Ideas

The Necklace that Tracks Every Heave of Your Bosom

It's the holidays. How about giving that special out-of-shape someone an oversized glossy plastic transmitter to hang around their gorgeous neck, which will send all of their movements to a coach pacing furiously back and forth in a bunker somewhere in the Netherlands. For just $99, the Philips DirectLife activity monitor could make this Lives of Others dream come true.

Doh! Sarcasm aside, it's gift buying time, and you might actually consider snapping up one of these crazy activity trackers, and/or a state-of-the-art heart rate monitor gizmo watch. Why? Well, they're not crazy expensive, and they might actually be the future. This is your chance to be an early adopter, to nurture your latent techno-fetishism, and to impress your family with the novel, cool item during the gift opening proceedings.

Stocking Stuffers

Fitness Dork Gift Ideas

For the mobile fitness buff in your life, or perhaps anyone who is into straps.... TRX is having  25% off sale on its suspension training systems. We've written about TRX in the past, and will now simply reiterate that some people love the suspension workout. The military, for example, ordered a gazillion of the strap systems for soldiers in Iraq. That might be partly because Randy Hetrick, the creator of the straps, invented the concept while a Navy SEAL. We've got some friends who rave ("Took it everywhere when we travelled in Europe!"), while at least one friend who grouses (Opened the box and thought it was just to bulky and complext!") Anyhoo, today is the "last day" of the 25% off sale. Since the sticker price is about $200, you're saving $50-ish, which is nothing to sneeze at. Still, at $150 this isn't quite a stocking stuffer. Thanks to Skwigg for the tip-off, and, no, we're not making any money here. Just helping you with holiday gift ideas.

Gift Ideas

Tuesday Afternoon Stocking Stuffer

It's a deck of 32 cards, each one has a different exercise on it, complete with photo and description. None of the exercises require equimpent. You shuffle the deck, pick eight, and go to town. Hello Exercise-to-Go: Travel Workout Cards, brainchild of Tim Koffler. "The great thing about the cards is that it gets rid of one more excuse," says Tim. "You can use the cards to exercise anywhere, anytime." Likely to get lost in the back of your desk drawer or side pocket of your overnight bag? Yes. Sort of cute? True. Possibly effective for the rare organized and whimsical personality? Totally.

Gift Ideas

Yogamatic or Black?

My mom does not believe in decorated dinner plates. We grew up with simple, off-white Johnson Brothers Ironstone. It was the great chef Joey Hyde who told her: "Let the food do the talking." I think I feel the same way about yoga mats. Keep 'em simple. Preferably black. On the other hand, Yogamatic is totally cool. Upload any picture, pay $85, and they send you your very own, customized, fully-eco-friendly mat. Warrior two practiced on image of long board can only help the surfing, right? And you can share mat designs, like iTunes playlists. (FYI: Matthew McConaughey has the longboard one.) Call it your special occasion mat, to bust out when feeling down, or when main mat is still "recovering" in the shower.