By Mary Rambin

To me, Vegas is more than poker and all-night parties. I’m really only there for Spearmint Rhino. Kidding! I like to spend all night wining and dining at one of the many fabulous restaurants and all day melting away at the luxurious spas. For years I’ve headed straight to Canyon Ranch on the top of the Venetian. If you’re a “spaddict” and haven’t experienced one of their resorts (Michelle blogged Canyon Ranch Miami last winter), you’re missing out. However, when the Aria finally opened, I thought such a expansive property must have a spa facility to knock my robe off.

I will not tell a lie and say their spa is THE BEST on the strip, but what I can tell you, is that you can pinch EVERY PENNY out of your treatment fee.

Let me explain. I called ahead to see what facilities (steam room, sauna, etc) they have. The kind receptionist said, “you will have access to the pool, the gym, and all of the specialty rooms.” SCORE!  My 5 star hotel, I won’t name names, had a small gym and no pool to speak of (if you know Vegas, you’ll guess it). So I planned to spend my whole day at the Aria for the price of one massage!

First I hit the gym. As an avid gym rat, I’m not happy without at least an hour workout to detox after a night of heavy Vegas intox. Most gyms in Vegas will charge you an entrance fee, even if you’re a guest of the hotel. More importantly there are two unique qualities to this gym: natural light floods through the wall of glass AND it’s populated. Other people are there working out so I could fuel myself off of their motivation. Because let’s be honest, in Vegas, no one really wants to be in the gym. The equipment is new and clean, and even had a legit spinning bike for me to conquer my cardio. If you really need an extra kick in the butt, they also offer group fitness classes.

I’m sure you’ve guessed my next move was to the pool where I ordered a lime beverage to recharge my energy (gatorade, margarita, they’re the same color). An hour nap by the pool would have been nice, but I decided to people watch instead. It’s Vegas; the crazy characters walking around there are priceless!

When I went up to the spa itself, I found it to be modern and minimal. Spas these days don’t really have an ambiance, have you noticed? I slipped on my delicious robe and found my way to the steam room where I sprawled out and commenced detox 2 for the day. After my muscles were thoroughly heated and I gave my body a quick rinse, I headed into the massage with John. As an athlete, I often opt for the intense deep tissue massage that often can be more painful than pleasurable. John was able to find a nice middle ground so I could doze off as he rubbed my aching feet. They offer an array of Thai massages but sometimes the straight ahead deep tissue or aromatherapy wins me over for its simplicity.

Afterwards he led me to the Shio Salt Relaxation room which cleans out your lungs, but it was too bright in there for me. Instead I de-robed again in “hot stone room” which is technically called the Ganbanyoku beds. The Aria is the only facility in the US to offer these traditional Japanese stone beds that enhance your circulation and metabolism. Wait, there’s more!  Other relaxation areas include: soaking pools, a fireside lounge, and co-ed infinity pool.

Needless to say, after the entire day at the Aria, it’s a miracle I was able to walk out of there on my own two feet.

Bottom Line: If there’s availability, book the reservation and enjoy an entire day at the Aria.

And this isn’t the first time a guest blogger recommended this!  Check out Sarah Berkley’s review of the Spa & Salon at ARIA.

Their $50 Spa Week treatments this Fall are:

• 50 Min Seaweed Wrap
• 50 Min Signature Exotic Manicure

The Spa & Salon at ARIA is located at 3730 Las Vegas Boulevard South, Las Vegas, Nevada. Call 702.590.9600 to book your appointment (and all-day relaxation) now!

Mary Rambin of MoreThanMary.com is a professional blogger and travel features writer for The Houston Chronicle. In NYC, she co-founded NonSociety and produced a weekly web series called TMI Weekly. Now she trains small businesses in the basics of social media amidst her travels all over the world.  Follow Mary on Twitter at @MaryRambin.

Gym photo via

Obesity is one of the leading causes of preventable death in the United States and about one-third of adults are obese, according to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. While personal trainers, nutritionists and fitness centers attempt to conquer this growing epidemic, such resources are not such an affordable option for many people. That’s why Spa Week has teamed up with the Today show’s resident nutritionist and diet expert, Joy Bauer, and one of the exclusive resorts from NBC’s hit TV show, The Biggest Loser to dramatically kick-start a new, healthy lifestyle for one lucky winner by entering the Fast Track to Health Giveaway.

Reclaim your inner strength and learn how to create positive changes with simple, healthy choices that will result in a healthier you – inside and out at The Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge in Malibu, California. Prepare to be amazed at what you can accomplish – you’re worth it! The Biggest Loser Resort at Fitness Ridge offers a complete atmosphere for fitness, relaxation, and spa amenities ensuring your stay is as productive and relaxing as possible.  Enjoy comfortable accommodations, spa cuisine, breathtaking hikes and  group oriented classes to meet other motivated individuals who are inspired to get fit. Whether your goal is to lose substantial weight or to enjoy a fitness getaway, the program and group atmosphere will provide the personal attention that you need to achieve your goals.

SPA

Reward your efforts with the ultimate spa and salon experience at The Retreat. Soothe sore muscles with several different forms of massage and body work, or simply relax and rejuvenate with acupuncture or reflexology. From soothing body treatments to luxurious facials and salon treatments, you’ll leave feeling pampered, refreshed and fabulous.

NUTRITION

Participate in a structured, calorie-controlled, health program. Every meal is designed by the Executive Chef and Registered Dietitian in a calorie-controlled, spa cuisine meal plan.  Each menu item captures the nutrition in a balanced diet of carbohydrates, protein and healthy fats.  Choosing low-fat foods that are high in fiber offers higher satisfaction than on other types of low-calorie meal plans.

FITNESS

Immerse yourself in a variety of indoor fitness classes or experience beautiful outdoor activities. The professional, certified fitness team will help you achieve your goals and provide you the adequate tools to be successful at home. Take advantage of the Education Series, which consists of daily lectures hosted by the Wellness Team. Topics discussed include portion control, product label reading, and intuitive eating, as well as cooking demos and fitness tips. Our Wellness Team includes an Executive Chef, Registered Dietitians, a Licensed Professional Counselor, Certified Trainers and a Life Coach.

The large gym features top-of-the-line equipment and our aerobics room hosts classes for kickboxing, step-n-pump, indoor cycling, ball works, and stretch. The aquatics center features a pool and hot tub.

The Resort is surrounded by the wooded landscape of the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. There are many different trail options for terrain, cardio intensity, and experience level. The landscape of each hiking trail is surrounded by the motivational, healing environment of southern California’s natural oasis of trees and wildflowers.  Hiking is a beautiful compliment to the program, with trails for all fitness levels everyone can enjoy!

Your time is precious. Especially when you have less than an hour to pick up your dry cleaning, stop for lunch, and attempt to make up for those juicy beef tacos you had topped to the max. It’s okay to turn down the drink invite. Why not turn your happy hour into an hour filled with endorphins and perspiration?

Sixty minutes is plenty of time to do a substantial routine that involves strength, endurance, stability and flexibility… but you have to know what to do.

Introducing your virtual fitness coach Noam Tamir, president of Flex4Fitness Inc. and certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the NSCA.

Noam, what’s the absolute best way to maximize 60 minutes at the gym?

1. First start with a 5 min warm up on the elliptical cross trainer or treadmill. This will start to elevate your heart rate and warm up your muscles. Bikes are okay but they mostly involve the lower part of your body and therefore don’t warm up your whole body.

Important: Don’t stop moving. The more you move the more energy you use and the more calories you burn.

2. Next, do 10 min of dynamic stretching movements. Lengthen the muscle through movements such as rolling your shoulders, crossing your arms back and forth to stretch your chest and kicking out your feet to stretch your hamstrings. You can do repetitions of 15-20 for each one. Again, this will elevate your heart rate, create blood flow and prepare your muscles to be worked.

3. The next portion of this workout consists of the 25 minutes resistance training. Most people think that weights cause you to only build muscle, but what they also do is burn fat. Not only that, but it causes you to burn calories at a higher rate for up to 36 hours after your training versus a cardiovascular training which causes your body to go back to normal after just a few hours. The resistance training should consist of high reps, little rest and stability exercises so that your core is constantly being challenged. You can begin with lower body movements such as a squat on an unstable surface such as a bosu followed by a bent over dumbbell row, into a bridge with a swiss ball, into a dumbbell chest press on a swiss ball. Using big muscle groups and alternating upper and lower body allows you to keep moving and lets certain body parts rest a little so you can keep up the intensity.

4. Last is 20 minutes of cardiovascular training–running, biking, elliptical, your pick. Why cardio at the end? The reason being is that it takes most people 10-15 minutes just to start burning fat. The first energy source the body uses is its carbohydrates. At this point the cardio you do is all fat burning and much more optimal.

Sunday mornings can be rough.

Everyone has those nights where you somehow end up in a fast food restaurant at 4 AM and then when you get home, you decide it’s a good idea to smear chocolate frosting from your roommate’s cake onto the leftover bread from your sandwich. Right??? Don’t answer that one.  Or, you know, you wake up the next day with Tyson’s pet tiger in your bathroom and realize you have a baby and a hooker wife and missing tooth.

We’re all entitled! But once you put the pieces back together (or not), does it make it all better if you motivate yourself to go to the gym the next day? I think yes. So when I arrived at Equinox on 19th and Broadway in NYC yesterday at 2pm, my trainer Tom took one look at me and introduced to me:

The 6 All-Time Best Hangover Exercises

1. FOAM ROLLER: This isn’t so much of an exercise as it is a self-massage. By letting your body weight do the work, roll your glutes, legs, back and obliques back and forth on a foam roller. You’ll be releasing toxins from the night before. (Otherwise, we recommend a massage)

2. ROWING MACHINE: Rowing machines are just more fun that most cardio machines. Instead of setting a time goal, set a distance goal of 1000 meters. This will take you about 5 minutes to complete (more or less depending on your hustle) and will seem like less. Do this twice, giving yourself a 5 minute breather in between.

3. MEDICINE BALL (THE SLAM): They don’t call it a medicine ball for no reason. Slam it down! The morning after a rough night calls for some fun. And there’s nothing quite as fun as slamming a medicine ball down to the floor and letting out a booming ARGGGG!!! Do 10 in a row— it gets your heart pumping and provides sensational release! Go back and forth 3 times between this exercise and #4:

4. MEDICINE BALL (PLAY CATCH): You’re not done with your meds. You’ll need a partner for this one. Stand about 8 feet apart, and toss the medicine ball to one another underhand. Now, do this while trotting back and forth across the width of a room 20 times. You’ll forget you’re even working out!

5. SPRINTS: This morning is all about baby steps. Don’t even think about a treadmill… just run back and forth! Do 3 sets of 10 laps— across a gym classroom, or any clear straight path where you can see the other end and don’t think “oh man, that’s far.” On the way there, sprint it. On the way back, jog it out.

6. JUMP ROPE: If you did it on a playground in grade school, chances are you’ll be able to handle during a hangover. Make it to 100 without skipping a skip! Every time you mess up, that’s one push-up you have to do afterward. 4 trip-ups? 4 push-ups. Do this twice, and make sure you’re listening to some good old school music to add to the experience.

Don’t forget to DRINK LOTS OF WATER! Or do better, and drink something with electrolytes like Gatorade. And when you look in the full-length mirror, don’t hide. Embrace the dishevel. You could have gone back to sleep, but look at you, superstar!

Training sponsored by Equinox on 19th and Broadway, NYC

When it comes to getting to the gym in the mornings, when I make it there I’m usually a broken record – I’ll run on the track or use the elliptical before rotating through a few weight stations. It works, but it’s far from thrilling.

I know I usually never cast a glance towards the other cardio equipment, but this Fitsugar article convinced me that I should give these lonely pieces of equipment a second chance. 

All this equipment blasts calories and mixes intense strength training with all the heart-healthy benefits of cardio, which means you can knock out boredom at the same time that you turbo-load your workout.

If you’re neglecting the following equipment, you might want to think again:

1. Rowing machine
2. Arc trainers (like a stair-stepper, elliptical, and treadmill all in one…my gym doesn’t have one or I think I would have given it a try! Who doesn’t love exercise machines that mimic that hamster-in-the-wheel feel?)
3. Stationary bikes
4. The Stairmaster or “StairMill”/endless staircase
5. VersaClimber (another one my gym doesn’t have – this machine mimics the effort required to mount a vertical incline.)

As an added bonus, most of these machines have all the benefits of running but are much more gentle on the joints. Thanks for the reminder that we can shake up our workouts even without taking classes, Fitsugar! 

What piece of gym equipment – traditional or not – is your favorite to work out on?