Vitamin Daily

After a season of sloth and over-indulgence, it may take a drill sergeant to get us off the sofa.

But we’ve discovered an easier way to burn stress and calories with Powerhouse Hit the Deck. This tiny fitness kit (US$19.99) includes a timer and 35 cards with easy-to-follow interval exercises, including strength training and cardio (no props required). The mighty ambitious can work for 30-minutes straight while the rest of us can ease into our new fitness regime at ten-minute intervals. We especially love that the kit is so small, we can throw it into our suitcase on trips outta town.

It’s like our own little bootcamp-in-a-box (without all the screaming).

At www.powerhousehitthedeck.com

It’s that time of year again. New year’s resolutions have piled up and getting fit is on the top of most lists.

This year, skip the ordinary boot camp and make your workout a little more fun, not to mention saucy, at a Puss ’n’ Booty Camp (from $80 for five weeks).

Choose from two different sessions, 45 minutes of yoga and core followed by 45 minutes of sensual dance or, a 45-minute cardio and strength class, followed by the same dance class. In five weeks, you’ll learn a short and sassy routine that will have you giggling while you’re strutting your stuff and working out at the same time.

And at the end, you can perform for your own Johnny at home.

Next session begins today, register here.

Ever since Michelle Obama flaunted her hula hooping skills on the lawn of the White House, women across the continent have decided to whirl their way to better bods.

Hooping can burn up to 600 calories in an hour, and as well as being a lot of fun, it tones the body in all the right places.

Wham-O, first released the hula hoop in the '50s, and it remains most enthusiasts' ring of choice. Pick one up in hot pink and neon green and get gyrating.

Check out Hoop Toronto for tips, tricks and classes in the GTA.

$9.95 at Swipe, 401 Richmond St. W., Toronto, 416-363-1332, www.swipe.com

Looking to fine-tune from top to tail?

Popular with ladies-who-lunch and pro-hockey players, the newly expanded boutique-style Victoria Park offers a Total Body Transformation program, including expert advice on nutrition, personal training, and non-surgical cosmetic treatments. We love the cozy beauty salon (featuring toxin-free Luzern products), TRX classes (get a sculpted core using suspended ropes), and state-of-the-art Medispa with a secret exit for privacy. Zap brown spots with Intense Pulsed Light Therapy or book in for one-hour of body Thermage, which uses radiofrequency energy to tighten thighs and derriere.

If you don’t swoon over the striking art works, soothing grey walls and tree top views of upper Westmount, you’ll be knocked out by Dr. Mirko Gilardino, the spa’s resident McSteamy. Trust us.

Prices by consultation; 376 Victoria Ave., Westmount, 514-488-7722, www.vicpark.com

The season of sun salutations on Mount Royal is over so we’re heading indoors to Moksha Yoga NDG’s beautifully revamped Studio B.

With soft cork floors, picture windows and massive mirrors, this palace-of-zen is now radiantly heated for hot yoga classes (practiced between 38 and 41 degrees Celsius). The eco-friendly floors make your tootsies feel more welcome than hardwood, plus cork is anti-bacterial and soft on the back (perfect for corpse pose!). We also love that Moksha uses all-natural cleaning products and VOC paint so your deep breathing is toxin free.

We’ll om to that.

4260 Girouard Ave., 3rd fl., N.D.G., 514-544-YOGA, www.mokshayogandg.com

The Flow Yoga studio at Burrard and Smithe has a new lotus on life.

Partnering with YYoga, the new centre has stretched out from its former 1,800 square feet to six times the size. Offering 150 classes every week from Anusara to Yin (and even a yoga-spinning class called YRide), the  green-designed space, now named Flow Wellness, also offers services like massage therapy, chiropractic care and acupuncture to work out your other kinks.

Add in a tea lounge (pictured), health food bar, infrared sauna and eco-boutique, and our downward dog is happiest downtown.

Flow Wellness, 888 Burrard St., Vancouver, 604-682-3569, www.yyoga.ca

If your summer exercise plans have stalled, or never properly began, a month of Fit Chicks could be just the kick-start you need. 

Fit Chicks is like bootcamp but without all the anger. No two classes are the same and instructors plan every minute of the eight one-hour sessions to work your entire body. Think jumping jacks, walking lunges, push-ups and abs, and did we mention the group meets rain or shine? Be prepared to work hard but rest assured, the time flies because it’s actually fun. Throughout the month, you will receive emails with training tips, recipes and news to keep your motivation and focus intact. 

Fit Chicks takes all your measurements on the first and last day of class and yes, we saw results - three inches lost overall, but we’re not telling where!

Fit Chicks, $159 for four weeks, www.fitchicks.ca 

Need a new 5K? Give Cedarvale Park a whirl. 

Step one, find your running buddy. Part of this run is through the woods so please, no solo missions.

Start at the Heath exit of St. Clair West station—the south entrance to the park. Head north along the trail, which will begin to veer northwest. Eventually you’ll see the steps up to Strathearn Road on your right. For an added challenge, run up and down them, twice. Continue past the off-leash dog area on your right and then the tennis courts on your left. At the end of the route, you’ll be at Ava and Everden Road. Take a quick minute to stretch and head back to the start.

The terrain is part-trail, part-path and there’s just one short hill at the very end. 

By our estimate, it’s a nearly perfect 5K.

www.cedarvalepark.com

With grownups swinging, tight roping and juggling their way to buffer bodies, circus camp is no longer just for kids.

The Harbourfront Centre’s Marsha Kennington, with professional aerialists Rebecca Leonard and Ana Shepherd, will have you walking on your hands and flying high this summer. Develop grace, confidence and leaner, stronger limbs while swinging on a trapeze, walking a tight wire and learning to juggle.

Juggling? You’re already a pro.

Coronation Park, Lake Shore Boulevard at the foot of Strachan Avenue, just south of the Princes Gates. $42 per class or $210 for 6-week session. To register or for more information call 416-973-4093, www.harbourfrontcentre.com/learn/courses

If your idea of scaling new heights is stepping into 6-inch stilettos, we’ve got a challenge for you.

Get your gams miniskirt-ready with a beginner lesson in indoor rock climbing at the Toronto Climbing Academy.

After a lesson in safety, knot tying, and belaying, it’s up, up and up. A great workout when you get going, you’ll feel the burn in your core, quads, and calves. 

Just remember: don’t look down, breathe deeply, and leave vanity at the door. The harness flatters no one. 

Approx. $45 pp, Toronto Climbing Academy, 100a Broadview Ave., Toronto, 416- 406-5900, www.climbingacademy.com