SHOPPING: Get the right gear to get in shape for new year

If you're the sort that makes New Year's resolutions, at this point in time, you're probably well on your way to either making them happen or breaking them. And since the most popular resolutions I hear each January involve getting in shape, I've compiled some products that may come in handy for at-home yoga or Pilates sessions.

Several local sporting goods stores, including Dick's Sporting Goods and Sport Chalet, carry yoga accessories for beginners or those with more advanced skills.

Dick's, on the Web at www.dickssportinggoods.com, stocks Wai Lana wooden yoga blocks ($19.99) or Gaiam yoga mats ($17.95), as well as a variety of kits by GoFit, Wai Lana and Gaiam. They include items like mats, blocks, straps and books or DVDs ($19.99-$69.99).

Sport Chalet (www.sportchalet.com) stocks a variety of yoga- and Pilates-friendly apparel, as well as bricks ($10.99), straps ($5.99) and mats ($11.99-$19.99). Sport Chalet also carries various instructional videos and DVDs ($9.99-$19.99) for yoga and Pilates workouts.

Additionally, several online sites dedicated to yoga and Pilates gear carry just about anything you could ever imagine needing for a workout.

Yoga straps ($6-$34, many styles), sandbags ($15.99-$18) and balls ($9.99-$39.99) can be obtained at www.abc-of-yoga.com, along with apparel, including pants, tops, shorts, leotards and more, all designed to move with you during a workout.

The site also carries FootEase slippers ($44.95), designed to warm and soothe workout-weary feet.

Also on the Net, www.yogaprops.net carries standard, studio and thick yoga mats ($23, $19 and $29, respectively, for mats measuring 24 inches by 5 feet, 8 inches). The site also offers mat and carrying bag sets ($36-$99), as well as uncut rolls of yoga matting ($250, equals 17 standard mats).

The Web retailer sells a super mat carrying bag ($39) designed to hold any standard mat, and offers yoga blocks, water bottles and zipper compartments for other items.

Those can include foam or fuzzy yoga blocks ($11-$18) and bolsters in a variety of colors, sizes and shapes ($40-$60), all ideal for taking your workout from home to the gym and back again. Blanks ($19) and books also can be purchased from the Internet-based business.

In addition, Yogaprops sells yoga furniture, including several types of wood back bending benches, headstanders, heart blocks and shoulder stand benches ($85-$695) for serious yoga enthusiasts.

Capezio Dance Theatre Shop (1043 S. Rampart Blvd., www.capeziodance.com) also carries many styles of apparel for dance, yoga and Pilates, as well as stretch bands for yoga or dance ($10), children's yoga mats ($16), balance balls ($29) and a core training system ($39.99).

First-timers also might want to consider yoga or Pilates classes at local fitness clubs, which generally offer floor or mat classes or yoga or Pilates boutiques.

Local establishments include Body in Mind Pilates Studio (www.bodyinmindpilatesstudio.com) or Absolute Pilates (www.absolutepilatesnv.com.) Both offer classes for floor and mat, as well as individual or group classes with Pilates machines.

Classes are a great way to build core strength and get your good workout intentions off on the right foot.

Maria Phelan is a reporter for the Green Valley and Henderson Views. Retail information appropriate for mention can be sent to mphelan@viewnews.com.