Hip Hop rules! Attention! Fitness-related post! ;o)

Get a Celebrity Workout Cheap
by Sharon Boone

Here's a workout worthy of hip-hop royalty--but it costs almost nothing
and you can do it at home. Yes, Mark Jenkins (left) gets more than
$1,700 per hour to train some of the best bodies in music-Beyoncé,
Mary J. Blige, LL Cool J and D'Angelo. He helped Missy drop 70 pounds
and prepped P. Diddy for the New York City marathon. But don't
hate-here's a workout with exercises that Jenkins has done with his
most famous clients, no gym and very little equipment required. Before
you get your sweat on, make sure you have your doctor's OK to start a
fitness program. Warm up first, and stretch afterward to prevent
injury. The key to this exercise routine is speed, so pause no longer
than it takes to take a sip of water, then move on to the next step.

Step 1
THE WARM-UP: SHADOWBOXING
Benefit: Gets your heart going and warms up muscles.
Equipment needed: None.
Time: 3-5 minutes.
A. Stand with left foot in front of right.
B. Punch with your left hand, extending your shoulder.
C. Then punch with your right hand. Feel the snap-and breathe!
Mark's tip: "Fully extend your arms and turn from your waist into
the punch. Go through the motion imagining that you're hitting
someone."
D. Bend your knees and duck. Return to standing position.
Model's take: "Getting the coordination down was tricky, but it
didn't take long for me to get into it," says salon receptionist
Moshon Wortham.

Where to get the equipment:
Medicine ball: Danskin makes a four-pound toning ball; $11.99.
Fitness bands: Try the SPRI Xertube with door attachment; $12.99.
Both items are available at the Sports Authority,
www.thesportsauthority.com (888) 801-9164.

Step 2
OVERHEAD SHOULDER PRESS
Benefit: Strengthens shoulders and upper back.
Equipment: A resistance band with handles or a bar, dumbbells or two
one-liter bottles of water. Reps: 10.
-Stand with feet hip-width apart, with bar, dumbbells or bottles in
hands at shoulders.
-Exhale as you lift, and inhale as you lower the weight.

Step 3
JUMP SHOTS
Benefit: Strengthens heart and lungs.
Equipment: A tightly knotted towel or, if working with a partner or
outdoors, a medicine ball or basketball.
Reps: 10 shots with the right hand, then 10 with the left.
-Stand with feet hip-width apart, right foot in front of left, ball in
your hands.
-Squat, jump and "shoot" towel against wall (or to a partner) with
your right hand.
Catch it on the rebound. Switch feet when switching hands.

Step 4
PUSH-UPS
Benefit: Works the chest, upper arms, shoulders and tummy.
Equipment: None.
Reps: 10.
-Get on hands and knees, wrists aligned with shoulders, knees hip-width
apart. (Or keep legs straight and get on your toes.)
-Inhale and, keeping stomach tight, lower chest. Exhale, and return to
starting position.

Step 5
SQUATS
Benefit: Works thighs, butt and calves.
Equipment: Dumbbells, two one-liter bottles of water or a resistance
band with handles or bar. Can also be done without weights.
Reps: Three sets of 10.
-Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Put hands on hips or rest
bottles, dumbbells or bar on shoulders, behind neck, with resistance
band under feet.
-Exhale, and squat. Stick your butt out to keep your weight back.
Inhale, and straighten to starting position.

Step 6
WOODCHOPPER
Benefit: Works shoulders, tummy, butt, thighs and chest.
Equipment: Medicine ball or basketball.
Reps: 10.
-Stand with feet shoulder-width apart. Squat and pick up the ball.
-Quickly stand, raising ball overhead. Squat, and swing arms back down,
like you're chopping wood.

Step 7
JUMPING JACKS AND KNEE RAISES
Benefit: Keeps heart rate up and strengthens arms, legs and butt.
Reps: 10 jacks, 10 knee raises with right knee, 10 with left.
-Start in lunge position.
-Bring rear knee forward to waist height. Repeat 10 times on each side.

Step 8
CHEST FLY
Benefit: Works chest muscles.
Equipment: A resistance band. Wrap it around something sturdy, like a
pole or fence post.
Reps: 10.
-Grip handles with back facing the pole. Take lunge step forward. Keep
upper body upright.
-Straighten arms, then return to starting position. Keep shoulder
blades squeezed together.

Step 9
FULL BODY CRUNCHES
Benefit: Gut buster.
Equipment: Medicine ball (optional).
Reps: Three sets of 10.
-Lie on back, knees bent, medicine ball between knees, hands behind
head, elbows wide.
-Curl head, shoulders, upper body and knees together.
Mark's tip: "Keep your feet raised for the entire exercise so even
when you lower your legs your feet should hover about an inch off the
ground.

Mark Jenkins, the face of hip-hop fitness, was once just a chubby kid
from around the way.

Celeb training guru Mark Jenkins looks more like a Greek god than a
couch potato. But in high school, "I had a 44-inch waist, and they
used to call me Suck-in-the-Gut," he says. A stint in the Navy during
the Gulf War helped him take off the weight, but the Adonis physique
surfaced when he hit the gym. By the time his tour of duty ended,
Jenkins was whipping flabby recruits into shape on base.

Afterward, he clocked a nine-to-five at a post office while earning
fitness certification, then began training clients across the street
from Motown's New York office. One happy customer (who lost 60
pounds) happened to be the press rep for R&B princess Brandy, who later
hired Jenkins. Since then, a who's who has beaten a path to his door.
Now, Jenkins has a nascent fitness empire, In Fitness, with a video,
Celebrity Training
Secrets, $39.99; visit www.infitness.com and a brand-new book, _The
Jump Off: 60 Days to a Hip-Hop Hard Body_ (Harper Collins, $16.95).
Jenkins trains the rich and famous, but he hasn't forgotten his
mission. "I wanted to help people be healthier and transform their
bodies," he says. "I know what it feels like to be fat, but I know
you can change!" /From
http://www.realhealthmag.com/articles/372_111.shtml

--
Curt