Yesterday, I posted a suggestion that you should take your workout outside. I received some blowback (read: excuses) from my friends in Minnesota. I find this particularly useful for banter, given that we’re smack in the middle of the Winter Olympics! What sort of things can you do in the cold weather? Ice Hockey – 403 calories per hour Downhill skiing – 408 calories per hour Curling – 420 calories per hour Snowboarding – 520 calories per hour Speed skating -1,020 calories per hour Cross country skiing – 1,320 calories per hour Lest you think I’m not in touch… Compare the sterile, big box gyms we are all too familiar with to training outdoors. You sense it intuitively. Having the elements on your skin, being surrounded by nature is good for us. Roughly three years ago, I moved from Los Angeles’ San Fernando Valley to Malibu. While the Valley is surrounded by majestic mountains, it’s made up of a grid of city blocks, apartment buildings, alleys, graffiti, tons of traffic and smog. I’ll always proudly rep the 818 (it’s laughably tattooed on me), but I was thrilled to move 30 miles in the direction of the ocean. Malibu… What’s better than eating oysters near the ocean in sunny SoCal? Understanding, then absorbing all the health benefits oysters pack into their shells. I don’t play when it comes to my meals. When the time arrives for me to try a new restaurant, I review and research everything about the joint. I use crowdsourcing sites like Yelp to help me make decisions. 5 stars and 89 reviews (a true rarity on Yelp) propelled me to my new favorite oyster joint. The Jolly Oyster’s game is straight to the point; the oyster is the star of the show. Since it… Cardiovascular training is not the easiest path to achieve your leanest, firmest physique.  One of the best fitness decisions I ever made was to stop doing cardio. There was a point in 2007 when I was pounding the pavement for many miles weekly. Throwing on a hoodie and headphones and getting lost in a long run is pure freedom for me. I embrace the trance, the intense sweat and, of course, the endorphin release. My dad ran a few marathons; I fight the urge to do the same. Personal trainer Mike Donavanik, C.S.C.S., C.P.T.: Minute per minute, cardio indisputably… Something about being outdoors and in the indigenous glow of the sun makes me feel good. I resent the fact that I’m told to cover up or slather on sunscreen before I go sprint or swim or whatever. It doesn’t seem fair or natural to me. How could the sun or the wind or the rain not be good for us human beings who have evolved under our star’s brightest light? Don’t misunderstand – I’m not discounting the fact that skin cancer is a very real issue. My dad is a survivor of this disease. Instead, I’ll briefly discuss… Want to win this autographed bat? Enter here! Contest runs through Monday, 2/10. You can tweet about the giveaway once per day to increase your chances! a Rafflecopter giveaway  … The bench press is the most essential upper body move for overall strength, power and muscular development. It has also inspired the world’s most ridiculous question: Man, how much can you bench? This query is both embarrassing and meaningful. The amount of weight an athlete can move off of his or her chest translates directly to sport. For non-athletes concerned mostly about aesthetics, the move often correlates equally to chest size and definition. Tim Henriques, NPTI sums it up nicely. For the goals of improved strength, increased muscle size, improved athletic function and improved general fitness, the bench press…