Hula-Hooping Comes Around as Workout Craze

Swim a mile while handcuffed, shackled, and towing a boat? No problem

(NEWSER) - Jack LaLanne, the legendary fitness guru who died yesterday at 96 , was known for his insane physical feats. Aol News rounds up his top 10 stunts:

• 1955, age 41: Swam from Alcatraz Island to Fisherman’s Wharf—a distance of 1.23 miles—while handcuffed.
• 1957, age 43: Swam the Golden Gate channel while towing a cabin cruiser … which weighed 2,500 pounds. The one-mile swim turned into a six-and-a-half-mile journey thanks to ocean currents.

First-ever video game supported by NHS

(NEWSER) - Turn on the boob tube and get fit. That's the message from the British National Health Service, which is endorsing Nintendo's new Wii Fit Plus video game. It's the first time ever the service has endorsed a video game and it's sure to raise criticism from some health experts, reports the Telegraph. Nintendo can use the endorsement in advertising plugging the updated game, which leads viewers through a series of exercises and goes on sale in Britain this week. More»

But the über-fit first lady just can't do double dutch

(AP) - The president isn't the only Obama with impressive hoops prowess: Michelle managed 142 swivels of a hula hoop yesterday during a "healthy kids fair" on the White House lawn. Jumping rope double dutch? Not so much. The first lady also gave a pep talk about eating right to about 100 children and parents from local elementary schools. Obama said it's OK to eat fun stuff sometimes as long as you usually eat right. More»

Psychological benefits of working out not related to actual fitness: study

(NEWSER) - Good news for the semi-motivated couch potato: doing just a little exercise—not actually getting fit—will make you feel better about yourself, a new study says. University of Florida researchers reviewing 57 studies on exercise and body image found that people who exercised got the same body-image boost no matter the duration, intensity, length, or type of exercise. More»

First lady joins administration's push for more positive habits

(NEWSER) - The Obama administration's push for better fitness and nutrition starts at the top, with the gym-rat president and garden-planting first lady setting the bar high for a nation of couch potatoes. It's all about moderation, Michelle Obama tells Prevention magazine. "My message to women: Do what makes you feel good, because there’ll always be someone who thinks you should do it differently." More»