Group Fitness Class

There are several benefits to signing up for group fitness classes. I have come up with 6 benefits I think are the most important for anyone seeking to join a group fitness program.

Flexibility

Group Fitness Classes provide flexible times that fit even the busiest schedules. This way you don’t have to worry about missing your workout or constantly rescheduling a time. Just pick one of the time slots and attend!

*Balanced Life Fitness has 33-session times per week

Cost Savings

Significant cost savings compared to paying for a 1-on-1 private trainer every workout. By paying for classes with others, instead of 1-0n1 training, you get

Camaraderie and Positive Support

Group Exercise Classes are a great way to meet like-minded and motivated individuals. Class participants share common goals and interests which creates a great motivator to work hard in class and create accountability for each other to come back week after week. It’s hard to go it alone, lets work together to reach our goals and keep it fun in the process!

Efficiency

Group Fitness Classes help you to make more efficient use of your time. By exercising nonstop and making the most use of your work out time, you wind up working much harder than 1-on-1 training because there is less talking between exercises. In group exercise classes, there is no talking in-between, we keep you in constant motion going from one exercise to the next so that you get the most out of what you pay for.

Variety

Group Fitness Classes provide you with more variety in your workouts because the programs are designed with everyones fitness goals in mind. Not only will you be trying new things all the time, you will be getting a better all around work out. By combining resistance training indoors with outdoor bootcamp training,  it keeps your body constantly guessing which helps to prevent your body from plateauting. Its also a lot of fun which keeps you guessing what’s going to happen next.

Fun and Positivitey

Having other people in your group helps motivate you and it is easy to feed off the positive energy of your classmates. Most, classes keep it fun and uplifting, because lets be honest who wants to go to something that they don’t enjoy!

1.) Seasons 52 –Every item on the menu is less than 475 calories and the food is fantastic.  I don’t know how they make the food so good but it is superb and extremely healthy to eat.

2.) Avanti Café – exceptional organic menu with lots of variety and a great atmosphere.  They have a great Arugula & Spinach Pesto Pizza that is one of my favorite dishes.

3.) Native Foods Café – If you are a vegetarian or vegan, this is a great place for you! They have a great menu filled with healthy, flavorful food along with exceptional service.  Try the Chicken Run Ranch Burger – really tasty and very healthy!

4.) Chixy Natural – This is a quiet little place that would be hard to find unless you were a Costa Mesa local.  But the food is excellent.  I stumbled on this place when I was running errands one day and decided to go in there for lunch – I had the best chicken sandwich I have ever had and the way they prepared it was very healthy.  I now have another place to go to for lunch in Costa Mesa and would recommend it to anyone looking for a healthy but tasty menu.

5.) Flame Broiler – This has become a daily habit for me.  The menu is just grilled chicken or beef with brown or white rice and steamed vegetables.  You can’t get any healthier than that and I have lunch there about 3 times a week, knowing that I am not expanding my waistline, despite the fact that the food is so good.

1.Javier’s – Awesome food and great atmosphere. The cocktails are also excellent – great Cadillac margaritas. One of the top Mexican Restaurants in all of Orange County. The crowd is always full of energy and it’s a great place to meet people or get together with friends on a Friday or Saturday night. Also a great place for Sunday brunch.

2.El Ranchito Mexican Restaurant – Great authentic Mexican food with a quiet atmosphere and great crowd. Prices are good and it’s a great place to go for a casual lunch or dinner. This is the place to be for Taco Tuesday, as the line is usually out the door and $5 will get you all you can eat taco buffet. Easily the number one Taco Tuesday joint on the Peninsula.

3. SOL Mexican Cocina – Simple, Fresh Food, thats Full of Flavor mixed with a modern, upbeat atmosphere. Another great place to grab some lunch at. The seafood tacos and burritos are outstanding, not to mention they have best collection of exquisite tequilas.

4. Baja Sharkeez – a great sports bar with awesome Mexican food. This is a great place to go to hang out on a Sunday afternoon and watch the game while munching on chips and salsa and drinking Corona’s. A great place to go with friends with a lively environment.

5. El Torito Grill – I like to go here for the Sunday brunch. There is so much food there and they make excellent omelets. It’s reasonably priced and the atmosphere is always hoppin. They also make great margaritas!

My all-time favorite trail to hike, is Crown of the Sea trail to big and little Coronal, Crystal Cove in Corona del Mar.  There is no better view of the ocean than from here and the huge cliffs right off the beach give you an amazing bird’s eye view of the beaches and all its wildlife.  The tide pools are among my favorite – trekking out on to the rocks to check out all the  crabs and other little critters that live in the cracks of the rocks.  I grew up in Laguna Beach (specifically Victoria Beach) where my parents still live and I have always loved the sea.  I will never leave and plan on spending the rest of my life right here in the beach cities of Orange County.

My second favorite place to hike is the West Bluff Trail at the Upper Newport Bay Ecological Reserve.  This area is teeming with wildlife – home to over 200 species of birds not to mention an absolutely gorgeous view of the bay.  The trails are easy to follow and they even have guided tours once a month.  The best part of this trail is the Interpretive Center on the northwest side of Upper Newport Bay.  There is an education center for visitors where you can learn all about the California wetlands and all the species of wildlife in the bay.

I could spend all day on here talking about all the other amazing trails there are but instead I will leave it up to you. Get out there and explore some of what Orange County hiking has to offer. If you have a good recommendation for a trail in Orange County, please post a comment below and tell us about it! I’d love to hear about some of your experiences and some of your favorite trails!

Cheers!

-Jack

1. Bluewater Grill – Located right on the water off of  Lido Park Drive, Bluewater Grill gives you that one of a kind feel. It has the best Ahi Tuna I have ever had, and I’ve had m fair share of Ahi!  The Atmosphere is exceptional with a tasteful décor, right on the harbor.  It’s not a big place, so it’s a great place to take a date for a quiet dinner for two.
2. The Cannery – Some of the best oysters and muscles in all of Orange County.  This is a rustic environment, that always has lots of energy there with a great crowd.  This is a great place to go on a Friday night for drinks and hanging out with friends or a date. Their Balboa Sundae is to die for! =)
3. Tommy Bahamas Restaurant – This place has a huge menu with lots of different fish to choose from as well as many other dishes besides seafood.  The restaurant is quite large and has a great bar area for meeting friends and having a drink.  I highly recommend the sea bass, It’s excellent here.
4. Rusty Pelican – Located right in Mariner Mile. The Rusty Pelican is a great place to go for a casual dinner. The fish is delicious and they have a great selection. The fish is always fresh and the service is spectacular.
5. Chart House – Located right next door to the Rusty Pelican, The Chart House Chain knows good seafood! They have the best seafood chowder and halibut in town.  The service is great and it is reasonably priced.  This is a great place to go for a good seafood dinner any day of the week.

My top two favorite places to surf are down south at San Onofre State Beach and Trestles down in San Clemente. These two breaks are the best at what they are known for. San Onofre is one of the best places to longboard in the country. With waves breaking out almost a quartermile, you can be sure to catch a nice long ride. Just watch out for all the other people there because I’ve never seen it not crowded on a good day. Also, you can be sure to see plenty of dolphions enjoying the surf as well!

Trestles is one of the best point breaks in the world, and is certainly the best in the U.S. Every year the top surfers from around the world come to compete and enjoy the perfect A frame barrels that Southern Orange County has to offer. The crowds are pretty rough there though so If you aren’t a seasoned veteran I wouldn’t mess around down there.

Northern Orange County has plenty of great surf breaks as well. The U.S. Open of surfing is held every summer in Hunting Beach which is also know as Surf City, USA. Again professional surfers from around the U.S. and World come and compete along the Huntington Pier in one of the most highly anticipated and watched surfing events of the year. Be sure to get there early, as spots on the pier and beach fill up quite quickly. When the U.S. Open is going on, there are plenty of breaks along the Huntington Beach stretch of coast.

A little farther south, in Newport Beach you can find plenty of places to surf. The World famous Wedge is at the very tip of the Balboa Peninsula and on the right swell can see waves in the 20 ft- 25 ft+ range. This break is extremely dangerous and should be left to the professionals on huge days like that. What makes this so dangerous is the fact that the waves crash right on the sand, leaving many people injured or dead if they are not a seasoned swimmer/surfer. All along the peninsula there are plenty of great surf breaks. For most the 52nd-56th street stretch is the most popular providing some of the best waves in the area. A little further south you can find some smaller, better shaped waves with less of crowd, usually from 36th st down to the Newport Pier.

These are just a few of my favorite places, obviously I wouldn’t give up my favorite ”Secret Spots” because then they wouldn’t be a secret anymore would they? If you have a favorite place that you like to catch a few waves at, don’t hesitate to share below in the comments!

Aloha!

-Jack

One of my favorite places to go for a run, is the Back Bay in Newport Beach.  It has excellent scenery, a ton of wildlife and the ocean breeze makes the temperature cool enough to go for a long run without getting too hot.

My second favorite place to go running is on the Bonita Canyon trail in Newport Beach.  Again, tons of scenery and an excellent workout with the hills.  The trails are designed for running and it is very peaceful and quiet.  This is one of my favorite places to run when I want to clear the cobwebs out of my head and get away from everything – Awesome place to run!

My third favorite place to go running is on the Crystal Cove trail over in the Newport Coast.  There is no better view of the Pacific Ocean while running.  I love running along this trail late in the day when the sun is setting. It’s the most peaceful run.  Plus it is close to my home and is a great way to get in a workout without having to drive far away.

What are some of  your Favorite Places to run in Newport Beach? Post a comment below with your personal favorites!

Cheers

-Jack

1. Chipotle – Great Mexican food that is pretty healthy and not expensive at all.  This place is habit forming and I get in a rut going here a lot because the food is so good – excellent burritos and tacos!
2. Chronic Tacos – A great little Mexican joint with rustic atmosphere and awesome tacos.  If tacos are your weakness, this is the place to go!
3. Gabbi’s Mexican Kitchen – another great place with down to earth atmosphere, great authentic Mexican food at a great price.  This is a great place to go for lunch or a casual dinner with friends.
4. Taco Mesa – another great Mexican place with lots of choices on the menu and really tasty food.  This is another place that can be habit forming if you are not careful.
5. Mi Casa Mexican Restaurant – Good old fashion authentic Mexican food in a homey, down to earth setting.  This is an old standby place to go for great Mexican food with a huge menu.   They make fantastic fajitas!

There are several ways to measure body fat.  The most popular method is still using pinch calipers, where you measure the thickness of the skin (and fat underneath the skin) in certain areas of your body, such as the arms, love handles and thighs.  The most accurate way of measuring body fat is to use a dunk tank, where your body fat can be measured by your level of buoyancy in the water.  But with today’s technology, it is easier to simply use an inexpensive body fat measuring tool that is held in the hands while it measures the electrical conductivity in your body.  This method is not nearly as accurate but it is a convenient way of getting an approximation of your body fat percentage.