Fitbit popped into the wearable technology scene early last year and we invited the flex into our lives with open arms!

The simple little rubber strap gave us so much, like…

• Activity and Sleep tracking
• Allowed us live updates of activity progress on our mobile devices
• It made fitness social and fun
• And for some it turned into a fashion accessory :P

A year on now, wearable technology has taken huge strides. The chargeHR is the latest from fitbit, and we absolutely love it.

PurePulse is the most prominent feature added to the fitbit tech. It displays continuous, automatic heart rate updates during your workouts. Being able to obtain this information at the flick of a wrist gives users the ability to maintain workout intensity and lets you assess how many calories you've burnt in a session – helping you get the most out of your workouts!

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If you're anything like me, Mondays can be one of the hardest days of the week! We all know what it's like, we know we should be at the gym, out for a run, preparing a healthy lunch or exercising… instead we often roll over and hit that snooze button. It's almost as if our body requires that much more motivation to do what is usually an easy task!

So to help get you guys ramping up and ready for a big week of life I've decided to start our new series; Motivational Mondays! Every Monday I'm going to have something different to motivate you, it could be a video, photo, or quote! So be sure to check in each week for your weekly dose of motivation!

Here's a motivational video based upon Arnold Schwarzenegger's Com­mencement Address at the University of Southern California in 2009. I've watched a few versions of this speech and this was by far my favourite! Full screen, HD and turn it up and get ready for an awesome 5 minutes!

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Welcome to the first installment of our new Fitness & Nutrition blog series today – Talman's Training Tuesdays!

We are heading into the summer months and I'm sure lots of you are going to be hitting the pavement, gym, cross trainer, pool in a last ditch effort to shed those last couple of kilos! As we hit the sunny sandy beach months ahead there is something within all of us that inspires us to go extra hard it seems. If you're anything like me, this only seems to last a couple of weeks before the lure of relaxing takes over and you settle for second best.

To get you off your bum and into your exercise why not try a pre-workout supplement? Pre-workouts are great when you need that extra edge to get you through a tough patch. The extra energy will not only give you the fuel you need to lift heavier, but also the mental sharpness and drive to get your body to where your mind wants it to be!

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One of the major issues that puts people off when it comes to training and exercise is the recovery period – people can't handle the sore tired muscles that result from a good work out. BCAA's or Branch Chain Amino Acids have a large role to play when it comes to recovery, unfortunately however many people overlook this key area of supplementation – the body can't manufacture BCAA's, they must be supplied through diet and supplementation.

There are 3 main essential amino acids that are responsible for anti catabolic (Stopping the breakdown of muscle and tissue) and anabolic (increasing muscle growth) activity.

• Leucine – Increases muscle mass, repairs muscle tissue, regulates blood sugar.
• Valine – Repairs muscle tissue, is used for treatment of gallbladder and liver disorders.
• Isoleucine – regulates blood sugar, aids repair of muscle tissue.

It doesn't matter what exercise you do; gardening, weight training, cleaning, or running, muscle soreness can occur from all forms of movements. Not many people know this but the muscle fatigue and pain one experiences from training is actually the muscle fibres being broken apart, this sensation can last as long as 3–5 days (DOMS – delayed onset muscle soreness). The good news is though that once these muscle fibres have been broken they grow back stronger – this is exactly why when we exercise our muscles we grow stronger and build muscles. It is in this stage of rebuilding the muscle fibres that BCAA's have an important role to play, the faster you recover, the faster you can get back to training!

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One of the most commonly overlooked aspects of training in my opinion is ones grip strength. Grip strength is one area that it when it comes to training it no one seems to have any idea on how to do it, well one place to start is with our Reebok Hand Grips.

Grip strength limits ones ability to lift big weights, especially when it comes to pulling movements like deadlifts and rows, with an increase in grip strength movements like pull ups will also become immeasurably easier too. Grip strength also plays an important role when it comes to handshakes; how often have you gone to shake someone's hand only to be greeted by a slimy dead fish? Everyone appreciates a firm, confident handshake. Arm wrestling? The ultimate test of ones manliness – grip strength.

Ever since I was young I have always been fascinated with my dads strong, rough, calloused hands from all the farm work and manual labour he did, I haven't yet managed to beat him in an arm wrestle, and I'm still inspired by his handshake. If you too can relate to anything I've been saying check out this awesome blog by the guys over at The Art of Manliness and get training your grip now!

Ever tried getting back into training and suffered the next day? You know what I'm talking about, still legs that don't seem to move – stairs look like mountains, the hallway is never ending, and that old wooden chair has never looked so comfortable? Yes we all know the feeling. With all the awesome deals we're running to kick off our Fitness & Nutrition category I'm sure lots of you are getting back into your training and are currently experiencing exactly what I'm talking about!

Never fear though! I'm really excited to introduce to you one of my favourite products right now; the Firefly Recovery Strap This exciting new product sends small electrical pulses through the nervous system in your lower legs to increase blood flow by around 300%! This increase of blood flow rapidly speeds up recovery time, especially after heavy training sessions or when getting back into training after a period of time off.

Now I know what you're probably thinking.. Electric shocks! Are you Crazy!? But trust me here, it is a weird feeling the first time you experience it but you get used to it after 5 minutes, I ended up falling asleep with them on once!

Now on a more personal note; about 2 months ago I started getting into Crossfit – “constantly varied, high-intensity, functional movement.” Now I've played rugby all my life and am relatively fit, but nothing could have prepared me for what I went through after that first session. I spent my next 3 days in agony, I could hardly get out of bed, stairs were a no go, I couldn't even back myself to drive. I was suffering from delayed onset muscle soreness (DOMS) like never before.

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Getting fit for summer is definitely a fight. Score yourself a knock-out with our new range of MMA Gear here at Mighty Ape.

From being sold out of the back of a car in 1998, to becoming a 100 million dollar company in 2013 it's no doubt that Tapout is a major player in the MMA scene. With fighters like Chael Sonnen, Chad Mendes, and Stephan Bonnar it's obvious that Tapout means business.

Ecko is another brand I'm sure you've heard of plenty of times. But did you know that it all started with a tin of spray paint and 6 t-shirts? From humble beginnings to the powerhouse it is today, Ecko has always remained true to the roots founder Marc Ecko built it upon.

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