It's every music lover/gig goers' favorite time of year, MUSIC FESTIVAL SEASON!
Heavy hitters SXSW and Coachella sprang in Spring and Napa's newbie, The Bottlerock Festival already came and went but the Festival Season is really just starting to warm up!
Below is just a sliver-slice of some up-coming 2013 Music Festivals:
That's a
SLIVER-SLICE! With the beach body season (Summer!) nipping at our heals why not tone up while enjoying the live tunes, am I right?!
Besides walking from stage to stage to stage there are other ways you to
keep your body rockin' here's how!
1) Stay Hydrated! (ie:DRINK WATER)
This is a general rule of thumb and may be more so at a Festival because you're on your feet out in the elements all day and night. Often when you "feel" hungry you could actually be thirsty. Even worse, you could be dehydrated (i.e. feeling weak, dizzy and cranky)! Yep, that's your body "tricking" your brain to give you fuel but it might not be the fuel you need. Silly body! Also, don't forget that alcohol can (and will) dehydrate you! So, if you enjoy one too many beers but drink plenty of water you won't be (or feel) as hungover as your buddy who drank no water! You'll wake up ready for the next show!
(Rock-Med tents usually give ya free water! So before you're full on in the music festival madness take a look at the map and make a mental note of where that Rock-Med tent is located and filler up as needed!)
2) Standing Calf Raises:
These are great practice for shorter folks to see over taller audience members!
Stand with your feet about hip width apart with toes facing forward. Keep your knees straight and stiff but not locked. Rise up onto the balls of your feet and squeeze, moving only at the ankles then return to neutral. Do not turn your toes in or out as this puts an unnatural stress on the knees!
Repeat (10-15 reps = 1 set) .
3) Standing Crunch:
Get ready to make some fest-friends during the stage change over or heck, even while the band is playing. People tend to get antsy at Festival shows (it can't just be me right?) so why the heck not twist and shout? You can turn the crowd surrounding you into "standing crunch dance/cheer party" and create a little more room in your "personal space bubble" (you're welcome). GoOoO TEAM!
Stand with your feet about hip width apart with toes facing forward.Stabilize your body and prepare to balance on one leg: place your right hand on your hip and raise your left arm straight up. Extend your right leg to the side and touch the floor with the ball of your foot. Bring your left elbow down and your right knee up, touching them together as you twist to the right. Repeat (10 reps per side).
3) Standing Back Bend:
People in the crowd won't even know you're
exercising in between sets when ya do this move. The Standing Back Bend looks like a stretch because it is a stretch but it's also an exercise! It's a calishtenic exercise to be exact which strengthens abs and lower back!
Stand with your feet about hip width apart with toes facing forward. Look forward instead of up to keep your balance. Place your hands on your hips and slowly lean back while lifting chest up creating a slight bend in your lower back. Hold for a few seconds before returning to neutral.
Repeat (10-15 reps = 1 set)
4) Side Bend: Stand with your feet about shoulder width apart with toes facing forward and palms
facing your torso. Place your right hand on your waist and left arm hanging down the left side of your body. Your
feet should be placed at shoulder width. This will be your starting
position. Keeping your back straight and your head up, bend only at the
waist to the left as far as possible breathing in as you bend to the
side. Then hold for a second and come back up to the starting position
as you exhale (as you bend to the side
the rest of the body stationary). Repeat (10 reps per side)
5) Eat every four hours:
Carrot sticks? Check! Raisins? Check! Peanuts, grapes, apple, banana, granola bars?! CHECK! Another general rule of thumb: eat every four hours, even if you're not hungry in order to keep your blood sugar levels steady. As blood sugar levels drop so does will power causing you to over eat. On top of that, when you hit the stravation mode (or worse..catabolization! Eek!) your body craves those more fatty temptaitons because you deprived it of nutrients for so long!
Eating every 4 hours improves fat loss, controlling your appetite
and metabolism.
Pack some snacks along with the rest of your festival gear
and graze the day away without gaining. It's like magic! Plus, bringing your own snacks will keep your wallet nice and fat and who doesn't like a fat wallet?
Of course there are a bunch of other easy, equipment free exercises to do outside like push-ups, jumping jacks, planks. Heck if the opportunity rises maybe you can do a pull up or five....go for it! Don't forget that
dancing and even
standing burns calories, too!
Before busting moves and grooves at the fest I'll leave you with one last tip to put in your pocket: don't be fooled by light/lite beer fool!
Light beer has less calories, yes it does. Did you know that it also has a lower alcohol content? It sure does. That means you might drink more light beers just to get your "healthy" buzz on than if you stuck with a good ol' "regular" brew. In the end you could be consuming more calories and possibly more alcohol even though you were trying to be good.
Now you're ready to rock!
