The cast of True Blood has to be one of the fittest group of actors on television today. Rutina Wesley, the actress who portrays Tara Thornton, is no exception. Rutina has an upper body that exudes strength — she looks like she could smash it in an arm wrestling comp! If you’ve wondered how to achieve the kind of shoulders and arms that Rutina has, Fitness has the scoop. The mag recently talked with her on how she maintains such a fit bod.

Rutina told Fitness that when it comes to working out, she does a mix of cardio and strength three times a week. A trained dancer, Rutina also fits in time for yoga. But what we really wanted to know is how she gets those arms. Rutina’s regimen is a totally achievable at-home workout that anyone can do:

“About every other day, I do a special 30-20-10 push-up circuit: 30 push-ups and 30 tricep dips, then 20 of each, then 10 of each.”

If you complete this cross training with some rope skipping, sit ups and a brisk walk you’ll have a complete workout in lest than 30mins.

Sometimes I debate having these conversations but this guy does a good job talking about the carbs. I wont get on my soapbox about the food industry’s secret agenda…but what I will say is check this video out

Serena Williams is a 26 time Grand Slam champion, but perhaps the thing she is most proud of is her body.  She began working on her new fit body in January when she finished the Australian Open.

“I wanted to get really fit. I wanted to lose some weight. So I’ve been doing Pilates and yoga, trying to lean out my body so I won’t be bulky. Pilates gave me results within a week,” says the tennis star.

Just what is her workout routine?  Venus does Pilates two or three times per week, especially when she is training for an upcoming tournament, and an hour or two of cardio and strengthening exercises in the gym.  When she is not on the road she runs to her sister Venus’ house instead of driving, half a mile.

Serena’s diet includes “smaller portions of every meal, a lot of grilled or baked chicken or fish, and steamed veggies.”  Even so, she says that she is never able to turn down cherry pie.

So far, it seems, she is right on track.  She has managed to lengthen her muscles, slim her waist, and minimize her butt.  Although, she has not always been confident of her body, today the only thing she would change is her arms.

So far, it seems, she is right on track.  She has managed to lengthen her muscles, slim her waist, and minimize her butt.  Although, she has not always been confident of her body, today the only thing she would change is her arms.

“When I was six or seven in a swimsuit — I look back at those picture, and my arms are cut and my legs are strong,” she says. “I didn’t realize that I was really fit and most people aren’t. To this day, I don’t love my arms. People want more fit arms, but my arms are too fit. But I’m not complaining. They pay my bills.”

Both she and her sister are big time tennis champions, but Serena used to want to be more like Venus. It took her until she was in her twenties to realize that it was okay to be different.

“I was 23 when I realized that I wasn’t Venus. She’s totally different,” Serena explains. “I’m super-curvy. I have big boobs and this massive butt.  She’s tall and she’s like a model and she fits everything.  I was growing up, wanting to be her, wanting to look like her, and I was always fitting in her clothes, but then one day I couldn’t. But it’s fine. Now I’m obviously good, but it’s a weird thing.”

Related articles by Zemanta

• Serena Williams Talks Body Image With Harper’s Bazaar Aug. 2010 (popcrunch.com)
• Serena Williams: I Wanted to Look Like Venus (bettyconfidential.com)
• Grand Slam BAP: Serena Williams (bmorebaplife.blogspot.com)

Everyone knows when you do anything with a friend, it makes the time that you do a particular task much more enjoyable. Working out is no different. Many bodybuilders have reached their potential by having partners there to motivate them. But sometimes having partners while you areworking out can hinder your bodybuilding goals. In this article, I want to go over the pros and cons of working out with a partner. Let’s begin.

Pros: There are many pros to working with a partner when it comes to lifting weight. The first benefit is the motivation factor. A partner is a great motivational tool. People that usually workout with partners tend to go beyond the limits that they set for themselves. The partner usually pushes them to go further. Another pro of working out with a partner is that you will always have a spotter. It is hard trying to find people to give you a spot when you are working out on your heavy days. With a training partner, you will not have this problem. Your partner usually knows what you can and what you can not lift, so he knows when to come in at the right time. Another plus about having a partner is that they can tell you when you are doing something wrong. A partner can guide you in the right direction when your form is particularly straight.

Cons: Even though working with a partner can be great, it also has its down sides. One negative to working out with a partner is what I call the social factor. Many people have their friend or a group of friends workout with them, with the expectation of the partners being there to motivate them. These usually turn into social gatherings, where everything is done but working out. They talk about sports, girls, and anything else that has nothing to do with training. Here is the rule of thumb when working out with a partner. You are there to train, not to find out what is the latest on your favorite sports team. Work out first and then talk to your friends. Another con to working with a partner is that sometimes the partners do not show up on time. If you want a consistent workout, you need to have a partner that will arrive at the scheduled time that you all have agreed upon. This make the workouts go smoother.

Finally, I was going to discuss working out with the opposite sex but I’ll leave that for later….In matter of fact I’ll refer you to my girl Buffie the body at BOOTYNOMICS she might have a thing or two to say about having a workout partner.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Muscle lab: Bulk up with the science of bodybuilding (newscientist.com)
• Muscular and feminine, the new face of bodybuilding (independent.co.uk)
• 5 Traits Your Forced Reps Gym Partner Should Have (fitfiend.com)

In 2005, The Fantastic Four was released at the box office and I felt like a kid again even though I was thirty something years old. The Fantastic Four just happened to be one of my favorite superhero groups back in the day. I especially liked Thing and Mr. Fantastic. Thing had the muscle to get things done and Mr. Fantastic was the “brain.” The qualities and powers they had always appealed to me. I never really paid much attention to the other two superheroes but something brought Sue Storm back to my mind. I happened to be going to work and listening to the Rickey Smiley Morning Show when a comedian made a joke about black woman not going to the gym because they don’t want to get their hair messed up. It was hilarious, but it made me think on a deeper level.

What do Sue Storm and Black Women have in common?

If you recall, Sue Storm had the power to become invisible. So how does that relate to black women? I am not sure whether you’ve noticed, but black women are increasingly absent in gyms or the fitness profession as a whole. I would go so far as to say they have made themselves invisible. Well, may be not invisible but for the numbers that make up the population they can be represented by the digits of my hands and feet so that isn’t a great number. Why is this happening? I am not sure what is contributing to this but I have some ideas.

Economics 101

In college, I took an economics course not because I wanted to, but because it was required for my business degree. I learned a few things but the majority of the stuff was boring and I always thought to myself, “When am I ever gonna use this stuff?” Well, my economics professor would be happy to know I learned a little something and I am going to use it right now. Here’s my question. Do black women have less discretionary income than other ethnic groups? On a large scale, I realize there are much more single black women with kids so these women might not be able to afford the gym, right? They may not even have the time. The majority of “sistas” just don’t live on Wisteria Lane like Eva Longoria’s character on Desperate Housewives with a rich spouse. Is that the cause? Hmm… maybe, maybe its something else?

I Look Good

Do black women care more about looking good vs. feeling good? Every now and then I venture in to get a pedicure. Yes, ladies, I am a man who gets a pedicure! I am secure with my masculinity. (smile) I notice tons of “sistas” getting pedicures, manicures and even eyebrows waxed. I also hit the barber shop and see ya’ll getting your hair done, but what I don’t see is you in the gym or attending local bootcamps to trim and tone your figure. So, the question is, do black women only care about looking good and not feeling good by keeping their weight down and being healthy? I might be a bit critical but these are questions I hope to get answered or is it like the comedian said,” Ya’ll just don’t want to get your hair messed up?”

Related articles by Zemanta

• Epidemic of Hating Black Women (indigenist.blogspot.com)
• Do Black Men Expect Too Much From Black Women? (hellobeautiful.com)
• Interracial Dating (socyberty.com)