Holiday Gift Guide for Health Nuts and Fitness Gurus

That time of year is coming, the time when peace is in the air, all the gifts are bought and wrapped and put under the tree and no worries will be had. That sounds good, but the holidays are quite the opposite for most people. Gifts become anxiety, and the holidays pending make everything a little more stressing.

One solution is to know what to get for that special person. Knowledge is power and during the holidays everyone could use a little more help. One setback people have at times is finding that special gift for their fitness guru. Fitness fanatics are a special breed; they have a great deal of knowledge on fitness and will be very wary of any gadgets you try to pawn off as gifts. However with some special thought and care you can escape this holiday with a happy receiver of gifts that will make there feet and heart skips a beat. Here are some great suggestions to make the holidays run smoothly for your fitness nut.

1) Pedometer- these have been made especially popular by such diets as the "South Beach Diet" as helping people who do not exercise get the illusion of exercise. This is a good illusion though because it helps people see how little activity they get during the day. Most publishing's suggest 10,000 steps a day, which is about five miles. It does not sound like much, but one would be surprised how many steps those elevators, cab rides, and desk job eliminate routine exercise from our lives. These can be found anywhere but be careful of the cheap ones. They may serve you well for a week or two, but as time goes on, the pedometer will start to be less and less accurate. Shoot for a $10 minimum.

2) Heart Rate Monitor- this is an investment that might seem pricey at first, but the value has no price. Most people assume cardio is the answer to their fat woes, but getting on a treadmill for twenty minutes and not really getting the heart rate going is going to almost be a waste of time. The new monitors of today replicate real watches so you are really getting two presents in one. Make sure you get one that has all the settings you need and no more. Polar is a popular brand that offers many features. Remember if you do not need the feature, do not buy it, that's simply throwing money down the drain.

3) Clothing- First thing a new gym person will notice is they go through a great deal more clothing then usual. They might feel like a soap opera star going through several sets of clothes a day. Help this person with comfortable gym wear. Popular suggestions include sweat pants, t-shirts, good sneakers, caps, and some shirts. They will appreciate this when Friday is here and all they have clean are those spandex shorts from the eighties and a shirt that says Relax which is two sizes too small.

4) MP3 Player- this is an invaluable present that every fitness guru owns, so if your nut does not it will be on top of his or her list this year. The obvious brand is the IPOD from Apple, but do not get pigeon holed into thinking there are only one brand out there. There are other brands available that offer different options that you could not find on the IPOD and it will save you a little money over the MP3 super giant IPOD. Do some research!! Look on www.cnet.com or simply look for forums where real people give their viewpoints about the product they just bought. In the end shop for the person, not for the advertising you are drilled with on the subject, you might find a gem of a product that your nut just loves.

5) Bathroom Caddy- now of course all the bathroom stuff could simply be thrown in the backpack, but have you ever thrown a washcloth into a bag with your clothes? Not good, or how about the inevitable shower gel opening up and getting into your work shoes? Companies are seeing this as well and you are starting to see a rise in these products at places such as Lands End or Amazon.com. Most have two compartments- one for the wet stuff, and one for the dry products. You can also find ones that have hooks built in so they hang nicely in the gym locker.

6) Gym Bag- seems simple, but every person is different when it comes to his or her bag preferences. Some like the big bulky gym bags where they can fit everything from change of clothes, racquets for racquetball, goggles, water, protein shake, and anything else they could possibly ever need. Those work great for the person who likes the kitchen sink approach to going to the gym. The other side wants to fit their bag in a locker and have the ability to bring a few things and have them secure. Book bags work best for these type of people. Bags are best found at department stores like Wal-Mart and Target. You will get good quality at a good price.

7) Blenders and Shakers- Now for the muscle nut, one thing they need constant amounts of is protein. In order to prevent a shortage of chickens in the world, something called protein powder was invented. Some muscle men and woman drink upwards of four shakes a day. Blenders allow for them to mix them up ahead of time like the night before and throw them into their shakers for a quick snack the next day. The shakers work as a combination container/reblender. Things tend to settle so instead of blending the mix again, the shaker can simply be used to meld the nutrients back together before ingesting. Target has a great selection of blenders. Make sure that if ice or frozen fruit will be blended that you buy a blender that has a metal bit to turn the blade. Plastic will snap off at any resistance and you will have a paperweight with in a week. Vitamin Shoppe has a great shaker that holds 20 oz and can be picked up for under $3.

8) Scales, Myo-Tape, and Body Fat Calipers- Fitness gurus are the goal setting champions of the world. Goals are like your car, if you drive to a certain destination without checking the gas level, oil, or other maintenance to make sure the car is running properly you will not make your goal.

Buy a cheap scale, no need for the fancy $300 scales, go to Wal-Mart and get a digital scale, weight only. Then get a Myo-Tape and Accue-Measure Calipers. These will measure inches and body fat. These gifts will take your fitness guru to the next level because they will be able to measure their success.

These gifts will wow your fitness guru and help them take their fitness to heights they never dreamed of. You must remember fitness fanatics have drive that most people dream of, and when you are shopping for them you want to look for things that will help them take it to the next level.