FabSugar

On Our Radar: Coach Shows It Cares

FabSugar — Fri, 12 Dec 2008 04:00:22 PST

Just like Juicy Couture gave thanks, Coach is also showing its philanthropic side through Coach Cares. The brand has collaborated with high-profile celebrities like Mandy Moore, Jessica Alba, and Ryan Reynolds, to spread joy this holiday season. Each star has selected a must-have holiday item - Mandy's is a Coach Amanda Satin Foldover Clutch ($298). If you buy from now through Dec. 31, 20 percent of the proceeds will go to the celeb's choice of charity. Coach has done its part; now it's up to you to help.

The Vampire Diaries Season Finale "The Departed": The Good, The Bad, and The Bloody

Shannon Vestal — Fri, 11 May 2012 07:38:06 PDT

Season three of The Vampire Diaries has come to an end, folks, and forgive me if I am still sitting here with my jaw wide open. The finale is eventful, to say the least, and like seasons past, we saw the deaths of a couple of characters - along with the red herring deaths of a couple of characters. Oh, and by that I mean that something super crazy happens in the final moments of the episode that we'll be talking about all Summer.

I can't really talk about too much before the break without spoiling everything, so let's get to it. Dry your tears over that fact that there won't be any new episodes of The Vampire Diaries for a few months, and let's get to the final good, bad, and bloody of season three after the jump.

9 Love Lessons I've Learned In 10 Years Of Marriage

YourTango — Wed, 09 May 2012 02:00:36 PDT

We're happy to present this excerpt from one of our favorite sites, YourTango. Today, we have tips for a long-lasting, loving relationship.

As much as we all want to believe that once we find our true love, we'll live out our lives in blissful happiness, reveling in that loving feeling forever, reality is not quite like that. We tend to think that love is something that happens to us, instead of something that comes from us. The truth is that successful relationships take energy, effort and attention from both partners.

This year, I'll be celebrating my tenth anniversary with my husband, and while that's certainly not a record-breaking accomplishment, there are a few things I've learned along the way regarding keeping a relationship healthy, or at least from falling apart at the seams. Here they are:

Touch him. As human beings we all crave being touched. It gives us that sense of being connected to others, that sense of bonding. I'm not necessarily talking about sexual touching, but things like simply touching his forearm when you're talking to him, running your fingers gently through his hair or rubbing his ears lightly when you kiss him goodbye. A little bit of touch goes a long way, and in these hurried modern times, we can all use more than we're getting.
Compliment him. We're all naturally quick to point out our partner's flaws or things they did wrong or could do better, but why is it so hard to comment on what's great about him? Once we get used to each other, the great things become expected and taken for granted. Pick three things that he does really well, and the next time you see him doing one of them, give him a nice little compliment like, "You're so good at that, thank you for taking care of that for us." If you aim to give him one compliment every day it will begin to become natural and soon you'll find yourself doing it even more often. And you'll also find his annoying habits won't seem so bad.
Keep your dirty laundry in your house. If he's done something that really bothers you, and you feel the need to complain to your friends, co-workers, or your mom, bite your tongue as hard as you can. Words spoken in one ear have a tendency to make it to other ears very quickly, and these people will think less of your guy long after you've gotten over it. Mom and Dad are particularly good at holding grudges against the guy that hurt their daughter. If you need to complain, write it down in a journal instead of voicing it, or if you absolutely have to voice it to someone, tell it to your therapist or a relationship coach.
Be a winning team. Look at life's ups and downs as something that you're both in together. If you work together as a team, always looking out for the other, you'll be able to handle whatever comes at you. Just as the various members of a team have different talents, you and your partner have unique talents, so put them to work together to create greatness.
Take him at face value. Know that he is what he is and also know that he's not going to change. Then love him for what he is. Instead of looking at his bad habits as annoying, look at them as quirky traits that make him such a loveable guy. Write down three things that you absolutely love about him on an index card and keep it in your pocket at all times. Any time he annoys you, pull out the card and read each to yourself; you won't be able to stay mad. (If you can't come up with three things that you love about him then dump him and move on. I mean, seriously.)

For the rest of the article, head to YourTango: 9 Love Lessons I've Learned In 10 Years Of Marriage

Written by Jane Garapick for YourTango.

Shawn Johnson Takes Us Inside Training Camp

espnW — Fri, 13 Apr 2012 12:04:59 PDT

We are pumped to share one of our fave stories from espnW here on FitSugar!

By Shawn Johnson

Shawn Johnson is blogging for espnW throughout her training for the Olympics in London this summer. Follow her journey and other Olympic hopefuls on espnW.com.

Say "camp" to an ordinary kid and she'll probably tell you about bonfires and sing-alongs and arts and crafts. Say it to an elite gymnast, and she'll tell you camp is every four weeks outside New Waverly, Texas, at "the ranch" - the national team training center.

Shawn Johnson in the Driver's Seat

The ranch is a lot different than it sounds. Yes, there are animals (camels, peacocks and lots of deer!), but it's also fully equipped with multiple gyms, a row of cabins for gymnasts, a separate row for their coaches and dining facilities. It's an honor to be asked to attend the national team camps, but spending a few days there is also really hard work, especially for a slightly older body like mine. I'm used to it, though - after all, I've been going to camp since I was 12 years old, and I'm now 20.

When we're there, we wake up around 6:45 a.m. and head straight for breakfast. Most of the girls grab eggs and coffee before we go back to our cabins and get ready to hit the gym. National team coordinator Martha Karolyi has an unwritten rule: If you're not 30 minutes early to practice, you're late. So although practice starts at 8:30, we all get there at 8. We get heat packs, get taped and do whatever we need to get ready, then sit in a loose circle on the floor and wait. At 8:30 on the dot, Martha walks out of the office. It's a signal - we stand up, line up and address her. She gives our assignments for the day, and we start practice.

My last camp, three weeks ago, was just a check-in for me. I'm not competition-ready yet, but it was good to be in the gym, working alongside all of the other girls. I'm impressed by them all, but I try not to watch too much because it makes me nervous. I don't want to compare myself to them yet; because of my knee injury and rehab, I'm not where they are right now.

Shawn Johnson Rehabbing, Eyeing London

Read on for more of a day in the life of Shawn Johnson at training camp.

Meeting My Sperm Donor

The Good Men Project — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 10:00:50 PDT

We're happy to present this story from one of our favorite sites, The Good Men Project. Ben Sommer, conceived through alternative insemination, is a young man now and tells the story of deciding to meet his donor.

I grew up in a middle-class home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, with two loving parents, both of whom are women. My conception was perhaps the most organized and scientific miracle of the modern American family - my architecture, the dream of dozens of individuals conducting their work across thousands of miles.

Objectifying Ryan Gosling

I was conceived through alternative insemination. A donor submitted his sperm to the Sperm Bank of California in Oakland (TSBC). Later, it was sent to the Fenway Community Health Center in Boston. Since opening its doors in 1982, TSBC has helped families without the ability to conceive on their own to birth over 2,000 children. Two thirds of those have ended up, like me, being raised in a lesbian household. TSBC is also the first sperm bank to offer a donor-identity-release program, which allows children of alternative insemination access to their donors' information when they turn 18.

I am not as much an oddity as you might think. As of 2005, some 270,000 children in the United States had same sex-parents. We are a generation that is just now beginning to come of age and able to share our stories. This is mine.

Growing up in a lesbian household was much like growing up in any other family unit, I imagine: vacations to Cape Cod, parents working late and sometimes not, play dates with a diverse group of friends.

I never gave much thought to that mysterious figure across the country. I never questioned the fact that I didn't have a father. As far as I was concerned I didn't need one. Is having two moms really all that different than having a mom and a dad? Parents are parents, right? I didn't see a difference at the time. My parents didn't either - at least at first.

They decided to conceive through a donor, in part, to avoid the complications that a third parent would bring. Asking a close male friend to donate, like some couples have done, can create unforeseen consequences. In the past, there have been custody battles between the donor and the parents raising the child. This was the case with a friend of mine, whose parents arranged donation from a male family friend. With a semi-anonymous donor like the man my parents chose, it would be clear who my parents were. And it was.

That's not to say that it was smooth sailing. "When we first learned you were going to be a boy, we really panicked," my mother told me recently. "Who's going to teach him to throw a ball? We didn't have many male friends. There was even basic stuff, like who's going to teach him to pee standing up. That doesn't come naturally."

Read the rest of the story below.

From the Community: Everything You Need to Know About CrossFit

Fit Community — Wed, 28 Mar 2012 01:22:23 PDT

FitSugar reader meetcasey interviewed CrossFit expert Robert Sax, owner of the CrossFit Amped Gym, and posted the Q&A in our Get Fit For 2012 community group. Check out what Robert had to say about this rising fitness trend!

Meet the Expert: Robert Sax

Can you begin by telling us a little about yourself?

I am 27 years old and a Capricorn (yes, that’s the goat). I’m originally from Portland, ME (the first Portland), and I currently live in Bellevue, WA. I graduated from Springfield College in Massachusetts with a BS in exercise science. I own CrossFit Amped, coach during the day, fight crime at night, and occasionally put down an entire jar of fresh-grind almond butter. Mmmmmm, fat!

What is CrossFit?

Textbook definition: it is constantly varied functional movements executed at a high intensity. CliffsNotes version: constantly changing workouts that involve body weight movements, gymnastics, aerobic and anaerobic training, Olympic lifting, power lifting, strongman movements, and anything else my twisted mind can conjure up! It is a universally scalable platform for exercise that allows any man or woman of any age and ability level to participate. I have worked with every walk of life and haven’t been stumped yet. In fact, I am currently coaching two men who are deaf, which was a challenge at first because of the amount of detail needed to comprehend and apply to certain movement patterns. Now it is no problem. In fact, I’ve learned some sign language because of it!

Learn more about what a CrossFit workout is and how it can change your body after the break

How to Avoid Cancellation Fees When Backing Out of a Trip

Emily Co — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 11:52:52 PDT

I'm sure many of you have had to deal with canceling trips in the past. Perhaps you were a little too eager when planning a trip and rushed ahead to purchase tickets and nights at a hotel without giving it careful thought. Or maybe something came up, and you were no longer able to travel. It's definitely a bummer canceling your travel plans, not to mention a hassle and a waste of time and money. Canceling your trip doesn't always mean heavy cancellation fees. Here are a few ways to avoid paying those annoying penalties:

For plane tickets

Pick the right airline. Opt to pick airlines that have a more lenient change or cancellation policy. Southwest is your best bet, as the airline will let you change your flights without incurring fees.
Cancel within 24 hours. There's a new rule (that all airlines have to adhere to) that lets you get all of your money back if you cancel within 24 hours of your booking. The flight also needs to be at least seven days from the time of booking to qualify.
Get refundable fares. If there is a very high chance of your trip falling through, perhaps you should consider getting a refundable fare. Those will obviously be higher priced, but if the cancellation fee will cost more than the difference between a coach ticket and a refundable fare ticket, you might want to get the latter.

For hotel stays

Change the date of your hotel stay. I found this neat little tip on Lifehacker: postpone your arrival date by a few days so you won't get hit with a cancellation fee if you're planning on canceling in less than 24 hours. It's advisable to wait at least a day before canceling, rather than canceling it right away, to make it less obvious.
Talk directly to the hotel. Most of the time, talking to the hotels directly works a lot better than the official hotline of a hotel chain. I've gotten away with penalty-free cancellations, so just talk to the manager of the hotel and let them know your situation. Read my tips on how to talk your way into getting anything you want.

Remember, if you're canceling your trip because of work-related reasons, you can always try asking your employer to expense the cancellation fees on your behalf.

Source: Flickr User Atli Harðarson

400 Meter Diva Natasha Hastings on Running For Olympic Gold

Susi May — Tue, 13 Mar 2012 14:19:47 PDT

Finishing a quick tour once around the track with times hovering at the 50-second mark, the potential US Track Team is deep with female talent ready to conquer the 400-meter event at the Summer games. The women's relay team will most likely have a shot for a repeat gold medal performance, too. A member of the winning relay team in Beijing, Natasha Hastings told us in a recent interview that she hopes to break the tape in the individual 400-meter event in London this August. Recognizing the possibly tense team dynamic that accompanies four fast women on a relay team who are also vying for gold in the solo event, Natasha explained, "Track and field certainly is an individual sport. But when we get on the relay, we are teammates - but to get on the team, we are competing against each other. So it does kind of create an interesting mesh."

Hastings ran for the South Carolina Gamecocks, but the nickname she earned during her college years, the 400 Meter Diva, has a much more feminine ring to it. When interviewed before a big collegiate meet and asked why the native New Yorker chose a southern school, she replied that the team all looked like divas - in a good way. The moniker stuck and Natasha explains, "I just ran with it." Her college coach also taught her that "If you look good, you feel good. And if you feel good, you run good." Looking good included wearing business suits to meets and makeup on the track. "I never compete without makeup. It is kind of like my game face. It's part of my routine when I'm getting ready to go out to the track. It's fun, but it's part of my ritual."

Learn her fave beauty products, fitness gear, and exercise after the break.

Jillian Michaels's Secrets to the Strongest You . . . Ever

Health — Fri, 24 Feb 2012 04:43:51 PST

We are pumped to share one of our favorite stories from Health.com here on our site.

The top trainer and life guru reveals the one question that'll get you to your goal - plus the single best workout to keep you feeling great for life.
By Alison Prato

Jillian Michaels catapulted to fame as the punishing trainer who got results on The Biggest Loser and Losing It With Jillian. But the 38-year-old has always been just as interested in building confidence as she has in sculpting rock-hard abs.

It's no accident that her most recent book is Unlimited: How to Build an Exceptional Life. Everything Jillian tackles - including her recent gig as a life adviser on The Doctors, her DVDs (such as her latest, Jillian Michaels Kickbox FastFix), and her intimate podcast - is meant to help the rest of us claim a healthier, happier life.

Health.com: Get the Body You Crave With Celeb-Inspired Workouts

Sitting high in the hills of Southern California, the woman who calls everybody "buddy" is surprisingly funny and self-deprecating. And as expected, she's incredibly open, talking about her tough tween years, how she stays motivated (and how you can, too), and the dream she's fighting to make a reality.

Read the interview with Jillian after the break.

Anna Sui Fall 2012

Marisa Tom — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 19:14:12 PST

Let's face it: Anna Sui knows how to have fun. So much fun, in fact, that we were even treated to models like Lily Donaldson, Joan Smalls, and Lindsey Wixson smiling on the runway! For Fall '12, Anna drew inspiration from a 1960s Jean Shrimpton silhouette but, in Sui style, took care to put her own signature whimsical spin on it, as seen in the psychedelic patterns and color palette. While the super-textured shag coats, Woodstock-worthy caftans, and babydoll dresses certainly set the retro tone, it was the designer's attention to the owl motif that left a lasting impression. The knitted owl hats, owl-shaped sunglasses, and owl-embellished fingerless gloves were just a few of the not-so-subtle themed items found within this playful lineup. Also worth noting? Anna Sui collaborated with Coach to design this season's line of bags - newly debuted on the runway - and yes, they had owls on them, too. It was a total Anna production, just youthful and fun from start to finish.

Trends: Owls, oversized Peter Pan collars, super-textured shag coats, '60s-style babydoll dresses, and bright tights.
Colors: Rich autumnal colors - rust, orange, ecru - matched up with neon blue, fuchsia, and pink.
Key Piece: The cozy shag coats over sweet babydoll dresses.
Accessories: Newly debuted line of Anna Sui for Coach bags, knit owl hats, owl-shaped sunglasses, knit fingerless owl-embellished gloves, and neon tights.
Who Would Wear It: Fashionistas with a taste for kitsch and color, like Hailee Steinfeld and Chloe Moretz.