Body Language | In Maine, he's transformed into a lean working machine

Philadelphia Inquirer: Those who think I'm a lightweight will be glad to know that I'm now even lighter.

The other day, while toweling off after my shower, I took a look at myself in the mirror. My middle was ripped and shredded. My abs stood out with the clarity of an anatomical chart. I resembled myself as a high school wrestler, circa age 16, after making weight.

Certain I had shed some pounds, I stepped on the scale. I weighed 174. In one week, I had lost 10 pounds. My body fat: a ridiculously low 4.6 percent.

This has happened before. In fact, every time I spend a week in the Maine woods, I come back lighter and leaner.

It's not because I diet. I consume more calories per day up there than I do at home.

It's not because I exercise, at least not formally. In Maine, I don't lift weights. When I was there recently, I ran only twice, and just a couple of miles.

The reason Maine is such a potent fat-burner? Nonstop physical activity.

This, I hope, will give you hope, assailed as you are by all manner of diet schemes and exercise gimmicks. It confirms what I've been preaching all along: functional fitness.

The idea is to incorporate physical activity into your life in a natural, seamless way. The goal is twofold: to achieve a level of fitness that enables you to function; and to get your exercise while performing a function, while accomplishing something. Example: cutting the grass with an old-fashioned push mower.

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Baker Turns Diet Sage to Counter Atkins

A baker who lost nearly half of his customers to the low-carb craze has tapped Dan Brown's best-selling novel for an Atkins alternative called the "Da Vinci Diet" that he hopes will bring people back to bread.

A little math theory kneaded with biblical lore from "The Da Vinci Code" has transformed Stephen Lanzalotta into a dietary sage, answering the "carbohydrate question" with a series of lectures propounding a diet he has followed for decades to maintain a muscular 160 pounds into middle age.

Admittedly, he is neither a nutritionist nor a scholar -- his background is in biology and biochemistry -- but Lanzalotta argues you don't have to look far to see a worldwide problem with obesity, and people have been eating bread for too long for it to suddenly be what is making everyone fat.

"Human civilization and grain have ties that go way back. No municipal society evolved without grain, no matter what it was," said Lanzalotta, who kneads his dough by hand like ancient breadmakers. "Not that I believe bread is one of the most sacred foods, but it is one of the most important things we can eat."

Bread forms the building blocks of the body and, in moderation, can lead people to more stable moods, clearer thoughts, and a rock hard body, right down to the washboard stomach of a Renaissance statue, Lanzalotta said.

The Da Vinci Diet he created consists mostly of Mediterranean foods -- the foods ancient thinkers and artists ate. Fish, cheese, vegetables, meat, nuts and wine, in addition to bread -- none are taboo at Da Vinci's table.

Based on mathematic values used to build the pyramids -- a value called Phi that scientists have since found existing everywhere in nature -- the Da Vinci diet doesn't seek to change biochemistry the way the Atkins diet does.

Instead, a person can use the ratio and tailor the principles to a diet fitted perfectly to the body you want, Lanzalotta said.

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Video games: The next big fitness trend?

Video game fans dance off extra pounds

Forget the image of paunchy video gamers holed up in a dark room, surrounded by sticky Twinkie wrappers and empty soda cans. Dance Dance Revolution players burn extra pounds along with their quarters. Weight loss is an unexpected benefit of a game designed for dance music.

Natalie Henry, 14, was drawn to the pulsing techno songs, and didn't realize she had slimmed down until she went clothes shopping.

"I went to go buy pants and the 14s were too big. The more I played, I gradually had to get smaller size pants," said Natalie, who now buys size 8 baggy cargoes.

The premise of DDR is simple: Players stand on a 3-foot square platform with an arrow on each side of the square_ pointing up, down, left and right. The player faces a video screen that has arrows scrolling upward to the beat of a song chosen by the player. As an arrow reaches the top of the screen, the player steps on the corresponding arrow on the platform.

Sound easy? Throw in combinations of multiple arrows and speed up the pace, and the game is as challenging and vigorous as a high impact aerobics class.

Most beginners look like they're stomping on ants and are flushed in the face after one or two songs.

"At first I was playing it for fun, but when you see results you're like, 'Yeah!'" said Matt Keene, a 19-year-old from Charleston, S.C., who used to weigh more than 350 pounds and wear pants with a 48-inch waist.

Also aided by better eating habits, the 6-foot-5 Keene explained in a phone interview he had dropped to about 200 pounds. Now he works out on a weight bench to bulk up because he thinks he's too skinny.

More than 1 million copies of DDR's home version have been sold in the United States, said Jason Enos, product manager at Konami Digital Entertainment-America, which distributes the Japanese game in the United States. About 6.5 million copies have been sold worldwide.

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Carb Comeback

As always, when it comes to carbs the bottom line is this: eat the right types of carbs and you'll lose weight and be healthy...eat the wrong types of carbs and you'll be fat and sick. And what about low-carb diets? They're only healthy and effective long-term if you eat lots of fruits and vegetables with some whole-grains...

May 25, 2004 NY Post

THE low-carb craze shows no sign of slowing, but if you've begun to sneak grains back into your diet, don't despair.

The new trend is to be smart about carbs - not to avoid them altogether, a July article in Fitness Magazine reveals. Here, a sneak peek at the magazine's "New Carb Rules," by Peter Jaret:

1. If you work out, carbs are your friend.

"Low-carb diets aren't appropriate for women who exercise even a few times a week," says Chris Carmichael, author of "Chris Carmichael's Food for Fitness." "Carbohydrates supply the quick-burning fuel you need for energy."

Eliminate carbs from your diet, and you will feel sluggish and unable to exercise at your maximum intensity - thus you'll burn fewer calories per session.

Popular low-carb diets start you off at a daily intake as low as 20 grams. "But you need 30 to 60 grams in just one post-workout meal to replenish glucose stores," says Carmichael.

If you're on a low-carb diet, modify it to include at least 130 grams of carbohydrates a day - the minimum amount you need to stay healthy, according to the National Academy of Sciences.

2. Calories count, not carbs.

When it comes to weight, calories, not carbs, are the pivotal factor. This was shown in a comprehensive review of 107 studies on low-carbohydrate diets published last year and in a recent long-term University of Pennsylvania study.

Researchers put volunteers on either a low-carb or a low-fat diet for a year. At the six-month mark, the low-carb group had dropped an average of 22 pounds while the low-fat group had lost 11. By the end of the study, however, the average weight loss in the two groups was just about the same: 11 to 15 pounds.

"Diets that tell you exactly what you can and can't eat are easy to follow, and that may be why the low-carb group ate less and lost more weight at first," says study author Gary Foster, clinical director of the university's Weight and Eating Disorders program. "In the long run, it's calories that matter."

3. The right carbs fight disease and prevent weight gain.

Fruit, vegetables, whole grains and beans are the high-carbohydrate foods to emphasize in any diet plan. The fiber, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants in carb-rich plant foods also protect against heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

Harvard researchers examined the diets and health status of more than 75,000 women and found that those who ate at least 21/2 servings of whole grains a day were 30 percent less likely to develop heart disease over 10 years than those who ate less.

Several studies show that people who center their meals on these foods have an easier time managing their weight.

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Water sports boost fitness, mental outlook

Anyone who has ever swam a long distance or spent a day surfing knows that water sports provide some of the most taxing workouts you can imagine. But, fortunately, they're also some of the most enjoyable!

The Sun News: If you're looking for an exhilarating, refreshing and beneficial workout, consider trying an aquatic activity in one of the Grand Strand's many watery amenities.

With the rolling ocean and its tranquil inlet waters on one side, the tea-colored Intracoastal Waterway and rivers meandering through its midsection and the hundreds of crystal clear swimming pools dotting its landscape, there are plenty of places to get in some water exercise.

Surfing, kayaking, canoeing, swimming and water aerobics are a few ways to get the body in motion and promote good mental health, the experts say.

"It's very peaceful and beautiful just past the breakers," said Jon Gibson, director of Conway Medical Center's Wellness and Fitness Center and a surfer and kayaker. "[Activities such as surfing and kayaking] can be therapeutic and physical."

Water exercise is an all-around, good low-impact activity that can encompass all aspects of fitness, including cardiovascular fitness, muscle strength, flexibility and endurance, Gibson said.

Here are a few ideas that allow you a good workout while you also enjoy the scenery:

Swimming

What it does for the body | Ideal for people with arthritis or other joint and back problems, swimming offers a total body workout with very little impact. For those new to swimming, expect to feel a slight impact, Gibson said.

"You're using muscles you don't typically use," he said. "You have to build on that."

The main benefits, provided by www.pushplay.org.nz, include stimulating circulation to help the heart perform more efficiently; increasing muscle strength as a result of the resistance water provides; improving flexibility; and burning fat.

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Jack La Lanne: Still crazy (about fitness) after all these years

Whether you like him or not, Jack La Lanne is definitely one of the most important fitness innovators of all time. He's also a great role model for many aging Americans...

Watch out. Jack La Lanne is coming.

Even though he'll soon turn 90, he hasn't lost any of the unbridled enthusiasm for physical fitness that made him a celebrity during the 34-year run of his nationally televised workout show.

He rolls out of bed every morning at 5 a.m., lifts weights for an hour, then swims for an hour.

"It's a big pain in the butt," he said. "I've never liked to work out. To leave a hot woman and a hot bed in the morning, why would you do it? I want to live. I work at living. Most people work at dying. Dying's easy. Living's hard.

"I can't afford to get sick or die. It'll ruin my image."

Having just finished his two-hour workout, he was getting worked up.

"I do things to help Jack La Lanne," he was saying. "You gotta believe in a supreme being. How else can you explain the human body? But I've never heard him knocking on my gym door at 5 a.m. 'Jack, this is Jesus. Time to work out.' God helps those who help themselves."

La Lanne, often called the "godfather of fitness," will unleash some of that exuberance at 1 p.m. Wednesday in the Forest Hills Fine Arts Center. The lecture, followed by a question and answer session, is open to adults of all ages.

In the more than 50 years his wife, Elaine, has known him, La Lanne always has been -- well -- fervent about fitness, she said. She met him around 1950 while she was co-hosting a television show on KGO, the ABC affiliate in San Francisco.

"I was a junk-food junkie," she said.

"He used to come in, and I'd be eating my chocolate doughnut and smoking cigarettes, and he would say, 'You should be eating apples and bananas and oranges, and if I didn't like you, I wouldn't be telling you this.' I decided to try it out and became a convert."

La Lanne, reached at his California home, said he, too, was a junk-food junkie. "I was sick all the time," he said. "It was all this sugar. I was constipated. I had headaches."

When he was 15, he attended a nutrition lecture that changed his life. He began lifting weights at the Berkeley YMCA and, while still in high school, opened his own fitness center in his back yard. He eventually earned the title of Mr. America.

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Pepper Spray for Weight Loss?

OK, hot peppers may boost the metabolism a bit but this might be going a little far. Why not just eat some jalapenos? Or, better yet, spray yourself in the face with 'normal' pepper spray and then run around screaming until you burn off a couple pounds of flab! (just kidding....please don't do that!)

New Capsaicin Food Spray Boosts The Metabolism & Burns Calories With The Power Of Hot Peppers

SiCap Industries, makers of the world’s first hot pepper nasal spray has launched another innovative natural health product based on the medicinal power of hot peppers. “Pepper Boost” is a liquid nutritional supplement made with a special hot pepper extract, and it may be the next big thing in weight loss management. The formula uses a combination of “all natural” herbal ingredients (including feverfew & green tea extract), aimed at boosting your metabolism, increasing circulation, and preventing a host of circulatory related diseases. Unlike other liquid nutritional supplements, Pepper Boost is delivered in a spray form that’s applied directly to the tongue, or on foods that go well with lime and pepper such as salads, fish, and chicken.

Altamont, NY (PR Web) May 24, 2004 -- There’s no doubt two of the most important keys to living a long life include having a healthy metabolism and good circulation, and now there’s a new product on the market designed to turn both these keys with a real boost. It’s the world’s first liquid capsaicin supplement known as “Pepper Boost,” and it’s being touted as a breakthrough in promoting natural weight loss by suppressing the appetite and boosting the metabolism.

Pepper Boost uses “Oleoresin Capsicum,” a natural chili pepper extract as one of its’ main active ingredients. Used primarily in the food industry, liquid capsicum is a powerful concentrated form of pepper with the active ingredient being capsaicin. Capsaicin is the natural chemical that puts the “Hot” in hot peppers.

The Pepper Boost formula uses a combination of natural herbal extracts to create a powerful cocktail that’s applied in the form of a spray. The product comes in a 2 ounce bottle that can be sprayed directly on the tongue, or on foods that go well with lime and pepper.

“Pepper Boost is designed for people who want to get their daily supply of capsaicin, but may not want to eat piles of peppers to do it. It doesn’t mean you should cut out eating hot peppers. Instead it’s designed to be a supplement that puts a concentrated amount of capsaicin into your system quickly and efficiently,” says Joyce Newman, creator of the website (www.pepperhealth.com).

Newman’s website focuses on the health benefits of peppers, (especially the hot stuff) and she believes Pepper Boost could be the next big thing in weight loss and circulatory health.

“It’s really powerful stuff. I like to spray it on my salads and it’s great on any kind of grilled food, even steak. It has a nice lime aroma and taste, and when you spray it on your tongue it gives you a fast boost sensation. I usually take 5 sprays five times a day, and it really wakes me up especially in the afternoon around that 4 O’clock hour. In fact, I like it so much it’s become part of my daily regimen. The company that makes it sent me a sample about three weeks ago, and I’m already running out. Guess I’ll have to buy it now,” adds Newman.

The folks at (pepperhealth.com) might be on the right track since there are some very well regarded studies that show capsaicin can increase metabolic activity dramatically while simultaneously suppressing the appetite.

One such study was conducted at the Oxford Polytechnic Institute in England. The 1986 “small case” study used twelve volunteers from various backgrounds who ingested capsaicin through various food sources. Their data showed that digestion of spicy foods did boost the metabolism in all the volunteers. According to this article, ingestion of capsaicin triggers a thermodynamic burn that can last up to five hours thus speeding up the metabolism and melting calories. It’s this thermal heat action that makes capsaicin so unique.

“It’s been proven that capsaicin definitely boosts your metabolism, but the medicinal benefits go way beyond that. Capsaicin has also been shown to prevent abnormal blood clotting that can lead to stroke and heart attack, and it absolutely can help with circulatory disorders,” says Wayne Perry, President of SiCap Industries, makers of Pepper Boost.

Pepper Boost may also be beneficial for diabetics who face a host of circulatory problems. Although Pepper Boost does contain a small amount of honey, the manufacturer claims it’s not enough to adversely effect the average diabetic under a doctor’s direct supervision.

“We do warn users on the label that pepper boost isn't meant for diabetics. We do this as a general warning, but truthfully as long as they monitor their sugar and follow the directions, most diabetics can use this formula. The amount of honey is so low. Less than one half of a milliliter, or one eighth of a teaspoon per bottle. At 60 servings per bottle we’re talking only about one five hundredth of a teaspoon of honey per serving -- so it’s safe for most diabetics as long as they watch their sugar and do it under the direct supervision of their doctors. The honey is really just in there to take the edge off the tanginess, and we find it’s necessary in the formula,” adds Perry.

Diabetics aside, the real intent of Pepper Boost is to aide in boosting the metabolism and helping the body burn fat and calories more efficiently. A recent article in “A.A.R.P. Magazine” touted capsaicin as “an effective weight loss tool that revs up your metabolism so you can burn more calories even when you’re not exercising.”

One of the first Pepper Boost users who was included in a local focus group claims he gets a real boost from the product when it’s sprayed directly on the tongue, but he also likes the fact that he can spray it on so many foods.

“I’ll tell you what. It tastes great on pizza. I got some of my friends doing it, and now every time we get a pizza, I bring out the pepper boost along with the parmesan cheese. It adds a real smooth lime and pepper taste to the pizza. Pizza shops ought to carry the stuff. They’d probably make a killing on it,” says Steve Fellows of Delmar, New York.

Officials at SiCap Industries are already hip to the idea of getting Pepper Boost into the restaurant industry. They’ve already been approached by several restaurant chains looking to cash in on the popularity of hot peppers by including Pepper Boost on their tables and at their salad bars as a condiment.

“It makes sense that Pepper Boost would be a great gimmick for any restaurant because it’s really terrific on any food. It gives both fresh and grilled foods a real extra tangy spice, but it’s not too hot for even the mildest pallet. The great thing about the formula is the more you use, the hotter it gets -- so pepper boost fits every appetite. It's got a very refreshing taste, and I even know a lot of locals spraying it in their Coronas,” says Bob Haines, VP of Manufacturing for SiCap Industries.

As far as getting into restaurants, SiCap Industries does see a future for Pepper Boost, but the company's management is taking a cautious approach to how they expose their new product.

“We’re definitely planning on going in the restaurant direction, but we may want to do something exclusive with one chain instead of making Pepper Boost available everywhere. I don’t want to see it in just any eatery. Like I wouldn’t think Burger King would be the right place for our product, but it would definitely fit in a chain like Chili’s. That would make sense to me. A lot of restaurants are just trying to cash in on the hot pepper health craze, but this product is the real deal and we don’t want to exploit it. It’s a natural health supplement that’s meant to be sprayed on food, and it tastes great too. But most importantly, it’s a natural metabolic booster so it can help you lose weight. It’s an innovative idea for restaurants, but right now we're concentrating on the internet sales. Stores and resaurants will definitely follow,” says Wayne Perry.

Perry wouldn’t say which restaurants have inquired about carrying Pepper Boost, but he did say there were a couple major chains interested. Furthermore, he says Pepper Boost does not have to be refrigerated although it can be.

“Just like any liquid herbal based product, I wouldn’t leave it in the direct 100 degree sun for 20 hours, but it doesn’t go bad. We use natural preservatives such as rosemary extract and ascorbic acid which is pure vitamin-c. The essential lime oil is also a super antiseptic along with the capsaicin itself. We’ve put the product under every test imaginable and it lasts for months and months with no change in the structural make up. This was an important aspect of the product for us because we wanted people to be able to carry it with them so they can use it regularly and when they’re eating on the road. Of course you don’t have to just spray it on food. Pepper Boost will give you a real noticeable energy boost when you apply five sprays to the tongue,” adds Perry.

Pepper Boost does not contain any stimulants although the manufacturer warns that there is an insignificant trace amount of natural caffeine due to the use of “Green Tea Extract”.

“We’re talking about nearly untraceable amounts of caffeine. Not even enough to be listed on our label, but we let people know anyway because we believe in giving the customer every detail concerning our products. After all, your health is number one – especially when it goes bad on you,” says Perry.

The Pepper Boost label also warns that pregnant women and nursing women shouldn’t take this product only because it does contain feverfew. Feverfew is a natural extract from a certain variety of Chrysanthemum plant. It's known as a powerful circulation booster that can thin the blood somewhat. So as far as people who are on anti-coagulant drugs, they need to take this product under a doctor’s supervision and many of them may be able to reduce their intake of prescription blood thinners by replacing them with the capsaicin supplement, but again – only under their doctor’s supervision

But if you’re basically in good health, and you’re not pregnant, nursing, or on anti-coagulant drugs, Pepper Boost is a safe and more effective alternative to all those “so-called” metabolic fat burner pills and powders on the market. Many studies show dried pulverized plant compounds are far less potent than the natural resins they are made from, and SiCap’s Pepper Boost spray uses only the natural herbal extracts and resins cultivated and extracted from plants in their natural organic state.

“We’re launching pepper boost just like we did our first product the sinus buster. With the sinus buster we took great pains in creating the most potent and most effective sinus and headache reliever ever made, and there are thousands of folks out there who’ll tell you we've succeeded. And now we’ve got the most effective metabolic booster in the weight loss business. Along with the SiCap reputation, that really means something. This is another breakthrough for us,” adds Bob Haines.

Interestingly enough, SiCap Industries stands for “The Science Of Capsaicin,” and with the launch of Pepper Boost, the company now has two “one of a kind” natural capsaicin health products – the first being the world’s first hot pepper nasal spray known as “The Sinus Buster”.

Next the company plans on releasing its’ own version of the infamous “Master Cleanser” made famous by the self titled book, and Robin Quivers of the Howard Stern Show. Quivers drinks a cocktail of cayenne pepper, maple syrup, and lemon juice daily, and she credits it with her new found health and incredible weight loss. SiCap officials are still very secretive about their new master cleanser, but Wayne Perry told me the product is ready to launch, and he even leaked the name, “Pepper Clean”. Perry said this product will be the first daily drinkable capsaicin supplement aimed at cleansing your system of toxins and promoting natural metabolic wellness. MMMM -- Is there a pattern here? I guess the only way to end is to say “SiCap’s their name, and pepper’s their game.”

If you’d like more information about peppers and health: go to (www.pepperhealth.com)

If you’d like more information about Pepper Boost: go to (www.pepperboost.com)

For more information on The Sinus Buster or other SiCap products: go to (www.sinusbuster.com)

Top 10 Reasons To Exercise In The Morning

If I had to pick a single factor that I thought was most important in a successful exercise or weight loss program, it would be to exercise first thing in the morning -every morning! Some mornings, you may just be able to fit in a 10 minute walk, but it's important to try to do something every morning.

So why mornings?...

1. Over 90% of people who exercise *consistently*, exercise in the morning. If you want to exercise consistently, odds are in your favor if you exercise first thing in the morning.

2. When you exercise early in the morning, it "jump starts" your metabolism and keeps it elevated for hours, sometimes up to 24 hours! That means you're burning more calories all day long just because you exercised in the morning!

3. When you exercise in the morning you'll be *energized* for the day! Personally, I feel dramatically different on days when I have and haven't exercised in the morning.

4. Many people find that morning exercise "regulates" their appetite for the day - that they aren't as hungry and that they make better food choices. Several people have told me that it puts them in a "healthy mindset."

5. If you exercise at about the same time every morning, and ideally wake-up at about the same time on a regular basis, your body's endocrine system and circadian rhythms adjust to that. Physiologically, some wonderful things begin to happen; A couple of hours *before* you awaken, your body begins to prepare for waking and exercise because it "knows" it's about to happen. Why? Because it "knows" you do the same thing just about everyday. You benefit from that in several ways..

a) It's MUCH easier to wake-up. When you wake-up at different times everyday, it confuses your body and thus it's never really "prepared" to awaken.

b) Your metabolism and all the hormones involved in activity and exercise begin to elevate while you're sleeping. Thus, you feel more alert, energized, and ready to exercise when you do wake-up.

c) Hormones prepare your body for exercise by regulating blood pressure, heart rate, blood flow to muscles, etc.

6. For many people, that appointed time every morning becomes something they look forward to. It's time they've set aside to do something good for themselves - to take care of their body, mind, and soul. Many find that it's a great time to think clearly, pray, plan their day, or just relax mentally.

7. Research has demonstrated that exercise increases mental acuity. On average it lasts four to ten hours after exercise! No sense in wasting that brain power while you're sleeping. :)

8. Exercise first thing in the morning is really the only way to assure that something else won't crowd exercise out of your schedule. When your days get hectic, exercise usually takes a back seat!

9. If finding time to exercise is difficult, anyone can get up 30 to 60 minutes earlier to exercise (if it's a priority in your life). If necessary, you can go to sleep a little earlier. Also, research has demonstrated that people who exercise on a regular basis have a higher quality of sleep and thus require less sleep!

10. You'll feel GREAT! DO IT! :)

Author and exercise physiologist, Greg Landry, offers FREE weight loss success stories and his "Fast, Healthy Weight Loss" newsletter at his site: Aggressive Weight Loss

Quest for perfect pecs sends men to gym, plastic surgeon

We all know that big chest and bicep muscles are the goal of just about every man who lifts weights. The ironic thing is that, in reality, most men use these muscle groups much less often than those of the back, legs, and triceps. Here's an interesting article that explains why every man wants to look like Brad Pitt in the movie Troy...

Nice rack, pal.

Hoist the barbells, tailor those T-shirts, and drop and give me 20.

For today's man, it's perfect pecs — or bust.

"The man's obtainable calling card is the chest," said Gregory Joujon-Roche, owner of Holistic Fitness in Los Angeles, who trained Brad Pitt for the movie Troy. "We're the roosters. Chest you can get. A six-pack stomach takes work. It's a guy's muscle."

Male cleavage is all the rage. Not a bloated bodybuilder's bosom, necessarily, but a chiseled sheath of armored flesh that raises eyebrows and not laughter during the bare-chested days of summer.

The army of greased-up, golden pecs is perhaps Troy's most notable achievement. The landscape and swordplay in last weekend's top-grossing film merely set the shirtless scene. Hordes of reviewers — apparently unmoved by the epic plot — peppered their assessment as much on the cast-iron cleavage as the action or cinematography:

"Pitt is rippled (even his hair looks muscular), yet also seems right," from the San Diego Union-Tribune.

" The god he worships would seem to be Nautilus the Machine instead of Zeus the All-Powerful," from the Washington Post.

The 40-year-old Pitt achieved the look through hours of weightlifting and sword-training to portray the warrior Achilles.

Speaking of ancient Greece, Narcissus and Adonis have nothing on today's pec-crazy consumers.

Those desperate to escape the confines of their size "S" T-shirts aren't just pounding the bench press. They're doling out thousands for pec implants, which allow the chicken-chested — or obsessively vain and insecure — to nab a few fake inches on their upper torso.

According to the American Society for Aesthetic Plastic Surgery, more than 1,700 men had silicone sacs voluntarily shoved into their chests last year, a 158 percent increase from 2002.

Apparently, there are no lengths some men won't go in their hunt for a chiseled look. But is it a trend or a peccadillo of the psyche?

"We're becoming a much more image-obsessed culture," said Harvard psychiatrist Dr. Roberto Olivardia, author of the book The Adonis Complex: The Secret Crisis of Male Body Obsession.

"A lot of the issues we've seen with women over the years we're seeing with men. Men are having to respond to the cultural pressure of having to look a certain way."

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Diet Pills Promise Rapid Weight Loss, With Faulty Tactics

Wondering if that weight loss product you see advertised in magazines and/or TV really works as well as they say? There's a very, very good chance that it does not:

ABC News: Diet pill commercials often make it seem so easy to lose weight; an overweight person is shown photographed with their flab and then pictured with a new fit physique. How do they do it?

In a special report, 20/20 investigated such claims and found three common gimmicks used to play with the truth from manipulating photos and quoting experts who aren't what they seem to ads that hype up claims without valid scientific support.
Take this for example: in one ad for an old formula of Hydroxycut, Marla Duncan claims she lost 35 pounds. It was "so easy," she said. Missouri attorney general Jay Nixon found one very good reason why — when she took the before picture Duncan had recently been pregnant and given birth.

Is this just downright deceptive?

"We wouldn't be suing people if we didn't think that they were deceptive," Nixon told ABCNEWS.

Hydroxycut said many of their ads did disclose Duncan's recent pregnancy and said their pills are proven to work. But Nixon has his own view. "They care more about their bottom line than your waistline," he said. He is suing the company for misrepresentation, which they deny.


Bulking Up to Slim Down

There's nothing like gaining weight before going on a diet.

In 2001, Mike Piacentino was featured in before and after pictures for Xenadrine. He started out as a competitive bodybuilder, but Todd Macaluso, an attorney who is fighting Xenadrine's appeal of a case he brought over weight loss claims says Piacentino testified that the company paid him to eat.

"They gave him a food allowance and they said, you know, you've got to fatten up," said Macaluso. "Eat like a pig, gain as much weight as you can, stop working out."

Piacentino put on the pounds by skipping his workouts and then gorging on endless boxes of doughnuts and gallons of ice cream. Soon it was time to take the before picture.

"They told him to stick his stomach out. They told him to have a frown on his face. They told him to wear baggy shorts," said Macaluso. "They told him to pull his shorts down below his belly button and they told him to stand there like he was a slob."

When it was time to lose the weight, Macaluso said the company had the former weight lifter take Xenadrine. He also used his bodybuilding expertise and worked out hours at a time, sometimes twice a day, to get back into shape.

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Is Your Fitness Instructor Certified?

Lots of people claim to be 'trainers'....but many aren't actually certified by a major accredited fitness organization. Make sure any personal trainer you hire has the proper credentials...

After the birth of her daughter, Rebecca Pratt wanted to teach stroller fitness classes to other new moms. So she set the wheels in motion.

Her first stop was the American Council on Exercise, ACE.

"The company that I chose to work with required that you are certified," Pratt said. ACE is nationally accredited to certify fitness instructors, personal trainers, and other fitness specialists.

"Anybody can say they're a trainer, but having that certification next to your name gives your club, yourself, and whoever you work for more credit," certified personal trainer Bryan Healy said.

Tony Ordas helps develop ACE's certification program which includes a tough exam.

"They have to suddenly learn anatomy and physiology and then also get experience of actually designing an exercise program whether it be for an individual or groups," Ordas said. Applicants study an average of three to six months, then pay $200 to take the test. "Currently we only have about 65 percent of the candidates passing the exam," Ordas said.

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Elle, 40, reveals fitness secret

Ever wonder how supermodels stay in shape? Here you go:

This week, [Elle] Macpherson revealed to a British newspaper her secret of having a perfect body – even after having had two children.

"There's pressure on me to look good but not so much that I had to force myself into a strict exercise regime as soon as my sons were born," she said.

"I've never been fanatical about sport but I love to run. I try to do six miles three or four times a week.

The supermodel admitted that her greatest extravagance is taking a massage therapist and trainer on holiday with her twice a year.

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Atkins Challenges Copycat Diet Claims

Apparently, the Atkins diet empire doesn't want you buying anyone else's low-carb diet books or products...

From the Atkins Health and Medical Information Services (5/21/04):

After three decades of fighting low-fat bias, Atkins, now supported by 27 scientific studies, and the low-carb consumer are facing a new set of obstacles: copycat diets that misrepresent Atkins in order to sell their diets as "unique." At the expense of consumer clarity and at odds with objective scientific findings, the Atkins Nutritional Approach(TM) has been misrepresented when compared with newer entrants into the low-carb field.

"A lot of derivative low-carbohydrate programs have sprung up over the last few years," says Dr. Stuart Trager, medical director of Atkins Nutritionals, Inc. "They are all trying to claim that they are the new and improved Atkins when, in truth and in fact, there is little, if any material difference between them and Atkins -- other than the Atkins Nutritional Approach(TM) has been scientifically proven to work. While Atkins is busy encouraging studies on how to promote better health, others are busy misrepresenting themselves and Atkins. The result is a lot of confusion and speculation as to how to do low-carb properly. We should be rooting the discussion in science to help battle the overweight and obesity epidemic."

"The South Beach Diet is a prime example of how copycats misrepresent the 'difference' between themselves and Atkins," says Dr. Trager. "The South Beach Diet has been positioned as a 'healthier' Atkins, conjuring up fashionable images of tropical beaches and trim bodies. However, factual comparisons between Atkins For Life and The South Beach Diet reveal few differences in the published menus. Independent analysis of the menus in both books reveals that there is no statistically significant variation between levels of healthy fats and healthy carbs between the Atkins and South Beach programs. And, yes," says Dr. Trager, "that includes the amount of saturated fat included in a typical week's menu for both programs. The suggestion that the South Beach program is a 'lower or healthier fat approach' when compared to Atkins is simply wrong."

"Figuratively speaking, The South Beach Diet correctly replicates the heart of the Atkins program," says Dr. Trager. "The balance relies on trend- driven pop culture. In fact, the part that does not originate with Atkins is the same low-fat conjecture that Atkins has been battling for decades, and that science of late has shown to be questionable. South Beach also tells people they don't have to count carbs. Well, virtually all of the peer reviewed, objective science shows us that when people DO count carbs, they enjoy the weight loss and health benefits of a low-carb Atkins lifestyle."

Another copycat fabrication is the idea that Atkins lumps all carbs together. "That is pure fiction" says Colette Heimowitz, M.Sc., vice president, Atkins Health and Medical Information Services. "Since Diet Revolution was published in 1972, Dr. Atkins made it clear that healthy fruits, vegetables, seeds/nuts and whole grains should be the source of a person's carbohydrates, and they should avoid the simple carbohydrates -- the flour and sugars -- that create spikes in blood sugar levels."

"The public needs a healthy approach to eating based on peer-reviewed science, not 'variations' named after stylish beaches like South Beach and The Hamptons," emphasizes Dr. Trager.

Dr. Trager sees the problem only getting worse as consumers get confused about the false "variations" among the low-carb diets. As a result, they may drop low-carb nutrition altogether in their true health battle which is the battle over obesity.

"New diets will spring up all the time, and yes, they will make small changes and create catchy terminology to make their program sound new and hip and 'evolutionary,'" he says. "But we cannot let what sounds good replace science, and we can't let fiction replace fact. Controlling carbohydrates is not about subtle differences in fat grams or exotic oils, it is about controlling carbohydrates, and when it comes to controlling carbohydrates, to date only Atkins is the time-tested and scientifically-validated time and again solution."

Consumer group seeks ban on trans fat

Now this is a very good idea:

WASHINGTON (AP) -- A consumer advocacy group has petitioned the Food and Drug Administration to ban the use of partially hydrogenated vegetable oils as processed food ingredients.

Partially hydrogenated vegetable oils are a common source of artery-clogging trans fat. Manufacturers, though, use such oils to give their products longer shelf lives and maintain flavor.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest said in its petition there are safer alternatives to the partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Among the alternatives are canola, corn and sunflower oils and new manufactured modified fats, CSPI said.

The Institute of Medicine, an arm of the National Academy of Sciences, has said there is no safe amount of trans fat in the diet. Trans fat is an especially harmful type of fatty acid because it raises levels of artery-clogging cholesterol while reducing healthful cholesterol.

CSPI says that getting rid of trans fat from food could save 11,000 to 30,000 lives a year.

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A simple fitness plan should get you started

In response to the overwhelming number of e-mail, letters and calls with questions on how to get fit this spring and summer, I am giving you a "fitness wake-up call" with basic information.

A successful fitness routine should be rooted in the basics. It should be simple, straightforward and based on a system that is built on a realistic assessment of your physical condition, schedule and level of commitment.

When you take the time to assess yourself, you will have both a physical and mental framework that will help you design a format tailored specifically for you and your current level of conditioning and-or ability.

You wouldn't go into the doctor's office and say, "Hey, doc, I have a headache" and then let him perform brain surgery on you without first getting a full examination, diagnosis and careful plan of action. The same is true for determining a successful routine of fitness that will last a lifetime.

Consistent testing and monitoring of your routine will save you time and money because there will be no wasted products or activities you don't need for your specific situation. Too many people start one program, then move on to the next thing that is in fashion. Break this cycle.

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Latest weight-loss gimmick requires you to see the dentist

It's hard enough to go on a diet. The latest dieting gimmick makes you go to the dentist, too.

An Atlanta company plans to begin selling a dental device that fits in your mouth and forces you to take smaller bites.

It could help you lose weight -- as long as you actually use it when you eat. The gadget isn't permanently attached, so you can leave it out and wolf down big bites anytime you want.

But Scientific Intake believes its DDS System is more palatable than a strict diet or surgery. The company expects to begin selling its devices Wednesday for about $400 apiece.

The company's chief executive says he lost 14 pounds simply by wearing it off and on over five months.

"Many people today ... eat so quickly their stomach doesn't have a chance to get message to the brain" to stop eating, said CEO William Longley. "This helps slow you down, so you feel satisfied on less food."

To get the device, a dentist takes a mold of your mouth and sends it to Scientific Intake, which produces the plastic retainer-like gizmo and ships it back to the dentist for fitting.

With 30 percent of U.S. adults considered to be obese, health officials, nutritionists and even entrepreneurs such as Longley have been searching for answers.

Nutritionists agree that the DDS gadget could help, but some were mystified as to why anyone would spend hundreds of dollars for this approach.

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Companionship, fitness pull Korean elders together

Wednesdays are special days for Tong Lee, 73, and Heui Kon Kim, 81.
It is the day Korean elders meet at the Lacey Senior Center for lunch and a few hours of socializing and music.

In their native land, the two gentlemen might never have met. Lee was a government bureaucrat in Seoul and Kim was a business owner and community leader in a small city north of Seoul.

At the senior center, the two nattily dressed men chat with a roomful of people who also speak their language and share their culture.

The program is one of several that Senior Services for South Sound hosts in an attempt to reach out to Thurston County's ethnic communities.

Every week, 20 to 30 Korean elders who live in north Thurston County are picked up at home and transported to the center, where they exercise for about 15 minutes before sitting down to a lunch served by volunteers.

"I wish I was younger, so I could be more active," Su Yon Lee, 83, said to Yon Clare, who translated her remarks into English.

But she enthusiastically joins in the low-impact exercises, and the sparkle in her eyes indicates a lively spirit.

Su Yon Lee, who owned a grocery store in South Korea, came to the United States 20 years ago, but most of her companions immigrated within the past 10 to 15 years.

Clare said most of the elders were brought to the United States by their children who, like her, had immigrated 30 years ago. When they got settled, many brought members of their family.

Home alone

Much of the time, the elders are home alone because their children own businesses and work long hours and their grandchildren are in school, Clare said.

Before the Lacey Senior Center opened about a year ago, the elders met at the Korean Women's Association. Volunteers went out and picked them up in a car, which required many trips.

Now the center provides transportation, a larger space for the elders to socialize and lunch served by volunteers like Shin Kyle, whose mother, Ki Kim, 80, participates.

"She is interested in coming every Wednesday here," Kyle said.

The elders enjoy the American food served at the center, Clare said.

On Wednesday, the menu included a beautifully prepared white fish, which Kim and Lee pronounced delicious.

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Hazards found in obesity surgery

By the time Linda Culpepper found her way to the Vanderbilt University Medical Center, she was in an alarming state. Her hair was falling out, her skin was flaking and her muscles had wasted so much that it was hard for her to walk. She had frequent attacks of diarrhea and could rarely eat without vomiting.

"She was a shadow of a human being," said her daughter, Susan Gritton.

Gordon Jensen, director of the Vanderbilt Center for Human Nutrition in Nashville, Tennessee, diagnosed her condition as life-threatening malnutrition, admitted her to the hospital and ordered intravenous feeding immediately.

The cause of the malnutrition was complications from weight-loss surgery performed at another hospital, specifically a gastric bypass, a procedure that closes most of the stomach and shortens the small intestine, often leading to weight losses of 100 pounds, or about 45 kilograms. That is the operation that has strikingly transformed celebrities like the television weather forecaster Al Roker, the singer Carnie Wilson and the comedian Roseanne Barr.

Successful cases like theirs, combined with a growing epidemic of obesity, have led to soaring demand for the surgery. In 1995, just 20,000 weight-loss operations were performed in the United States. Last year, there were 103,000, and this year 144,000 are projected.

The surgery has become big business, and medical centers have been scrambling to start programs.

The rapid growth worries experts like Jensen, as well as some insurers and government officials, who fear that inexperienced surgeons and inadequate screening and follow-up may harm patients.

In the last year, Jensen said, he has seen a "tremendous surge" in patients like Culpepper who have complications from the surgery or have not been taught how to change their eating habits to adjust to the drastic changes in their digestive systems. Most of the patients had surgery at smaller hospitals that were not equipped for the problems, he said, adding that he sees as many as one such case a week.

A recent study suggests that the overall death rate is twice the figure of 0.5 percent to 1 percent that is usually cited, and higher still if a surgeon lacks experience.

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Slimming cream claim doubted

Experts have cast doubt over a study which claims slimming creams may actually work.

A survey carried out by a French consumer magazine showed two slimming creams were able to reduce women's thighs by 2cm in just two weeks.

But consultant dermatologist at North Middlesex Hospital, Dr Nick Mann, said the claims are dubious.

"It's impossible to see how a cream like that could affect body tissue," he said.

The French equivalent of Which? magazine, 60 million de Consommateurs, conducted a slimming cream study on 220 women.

Ten groups comprising 20 women each tested a different cream, while a further 20 were given a placebo moisturiser.

Dubious claims

Women were told to rub the cream into one thigh twice a day, and were followed up every two weeks.

They found two creams - L'Oreal's PerfectSlim and Elancyl's Chrono-Actif were able to reduce the circumference of women's thighs by 2cm in just two weeks.

However it is not clear whether the study looked at other influencing factors such as lifestyle or diet.

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Food Can Have Powerful Effect on Health

From fast food and soft drinks to green tea and black coffee, new research points to the powerful role foods and beverages play in our well-being.


"These studies are a first step in a long journey toward understanding the relationship between nutrition and our health," says Lee Kaplan, MD, PhD, director of the Obesity Research Center and director of the Massachusetts General Hospital Weight Center in Boston.


Understanding this relationship will allow scientists to develop appropriate preventive and therapeutic approaches for a variety of diseases, including cancer, [and] obesity, says Kaplan, who moderated a news conference to discuss the findings.


The studies were presented at an annual meeting of digestive disease experts. Among the research:


Java Slashes Risk of Liver Disease


A jolt of java may cut the risk of liver disease among high-risk people, report researchers from the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases in Bethesda, Md.


In a study of nearly 6,000 adults who were at high risk for liver damage due to either excessive drinking, having hepatitis B or hepatitis C, obesity, or other problems that may affect the liver, the greater the consumption of caffeinated beverages, the lower the chance of having elevated liver blood tests that signal liver damage, says James E. Everhart, MD, MPH, chief medical officer of the Epidemiology and Clinical Trials Division of Digestive Diseases and Nutrition.


For example, people who drank more than two cups of coffee a day were about half as likely to have elevated liver enzyme blood tests compared with those who consumed less than a cup a day. And when divided into five groups according to the total amount of caffeine consumed, people in the highest group had about one-third the risk of liver damage than those in the lowest group.


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Study: Small Doses of Caffeine Best to Stay Awake

Are you often too tired for your afternoon or late-night workouts? A new study shows a better way to use caffeine to maintain energy levels:

Small, frequent doses of caffeine are best for truck drivers, doctors and others who need to stay awake over a long period of time, according to a U.S. study published Tuesday.


The regular doses of caffeine build up to counteract the body's natural desire for sleep and builds up the more one stays awake, the study said.


Small, frequent doses are more effective than a large jolt of caffeine in the morning, which wears off just as the body begins to feel the need for sleep, according to the study's lead author, James Wyatt.


"Most of the population is using caffeine the wrong way by drinking a few mugs of coffee or tea in the morning, or three cups from their Starbucks grande on the way to work," Wyatt, laboratory director of the Sleep Disorder Center at Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, said in a news release.


"This means that caffeine levels in the brain will be falling as the day goes on," he said. "Unfortunately, the physiological process they need to counteract is not a major player until the latter half of the day."


That process is the system that builds up the appetite for sleep. Caffeine is thought to block the receptor for adenosine, a critical chemical messenger involved in the body's drive for sleep, the report said.


Researchers at Rush, along with others at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston and Harvard Medical School (news - web sites), studied men in private suites who had no way of knowing what time it was for 29 days.


The men were scheduled to stay awake nearly 29 hours straight, simulating the amount of time some doctors, military and emergency services personnel have to up.


Those who were given a caffeine pill every hour equivalent to the caffeine in two ounces of coffee did better on tests than those who received an inert placebo, the study said. The subjects who took the caffeine pill also felt sleepier than the others when bedtime finally arrived, it said.


The research was published in the May issue of SLEEP, the journal of the Associated Professional Sleep Societies.


"While there is no perfect substitute for sleep, our results point the way toward a much better method for using caffeine in order to maintain optimal vigilance and attention, particularly when someone has to remain awake longer than the traditional 16-hour wake episode," Wyatt said.

Coffee, Tea or Yerba Maté?

A South American wonder drink is winning over caffeine fiends

Viggo Mortensen doesn't give an interview without one; it's the beverage of choice for millions in South America; and enlightened coffee slingers from downtown Toronto to Calgary increasingly talk it up with gusto.

It's not the latest low-fat frothy concoction hatched in a Seattle boardroom -- quite the opposite. Yerba maté, the energizing, nutrient-packed nectar being lauded as a wonder beverage and the healthy alternative to coffee, has been steeping in the semi-tropical lowlands of Argentina, Uruguay and Paraguay for centuries.

Relegated to the back shelves of health emporiums and international food shops, where it has been appearing since the late nineties, the earthy brew similar to a potent green tea is now flowing onto shopping lists and into coffee breaks of an increasingly health-obsessed North American populace.

Dharam Bhardwaj, owner of Soma Café in Calgary, started serving yerba maté in January, and says the number of people ordering it daily is on the rise.

"More than half who try it come back," he says, adding that most new customers seek out the tea after hearing about its near-mythical nutritional values and effects.

"Yerba maté gives me a lasting buzz, without the depression of coffee," he says, echoing the praise of most of the tea's disciples. "Your awareness becomes more acute and your hunger is suppressed."

Indeed, the tea's packaging seduces with promises of elusive benefits: clarity of the mind, relaxation of the nervous system and stable energy throughout the day.

But can this "super" beverage, with its swelling praises and subsequent hype, really have no side effects? None has been reported, and some of the scientific community's claims are staggering.

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Study casts doubt on advantages of Atkins diet

Low-carb regimen no better than low-fat after a year

Like millions of Americans, James and Suzy Gelman went on the Atkins low-carbohydrate diet because they thought it was a way to lose weight quickly and eat lots of the foods they love.

“My main eating problem is portion control, and Atkins offered a way to eat a lot of steak, and chicken and that type of stuff,” says James Gelman.

Even physicians have been attracted to the diet. Dr. Linda Stern of the Philadelphia Veterans Administration Hospital liked it so much she decided to study it. What was it about the Atkins diet that appealed to her?

“I had just gotten back from a vacation where I had gained a few pounds, and I tried it," says Stern. “And I was surprised to see how quickly and easily I lost the few pounds that I had gained.”

But does the weight stay off? Stern experimented with 132 obese patients — half went on the Atkins diet, while half ate a standard low-fat diet.

“The results: After six months, the low-carbohydrate group lost significantly more weight than the group following the low-fat diet,” says Stern.

And that finding, along with several similar studies, made big news — especially because cholesterol and other risk factors for heart disease actually improved on the Atkins diet.

But in research released Monday, Stern finds that while the Atkins diet worked better for the first six months, after a year, the weight of the two groups became almost the same. Other studies are reaching the same conclusion.

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New Fitness Channel on AOL

Just in time for summer swimsuits, America Online launched its new Diet & Fitness channel, designed to help support AOL members' complete weight loss needs throughout the year. Responding to the growing trend in online dieting, AOL Diet & Fitness enables members to manage their diet efforts more effectively through a one-stop weight loss center, full of the information and support needed to get fit, shed pounds and keep them off. Enhanced through content partnerships with Health magazine, Cooking Light, eDiets.com and bestselling author and AOL Weight Loss Coach Jorge Cruise, AOL will offer members the ultimate collection of nutritional and fitness resources. With summer only five weeks away, AOL will highlight shapeup strategies during its Diet & Fitness Week campaign that begins today on the world's leading interactive service.

"For the approximately 10 million AOL members who are doing something to control their weight, our goal is to help them change their shape and potentially their lives," said Tina Sharkey, Senior Vice President for Life Management & Community, America Online, Inc. "The new Diet & Fitness channel is a complete experience where dieters can find the information and guidance they need, when they want it, and receive ongoing support from experts and peers alike."

Online dieting has become an increasingly popular way to lose weight, find information and recipes and get support. Last summer, the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that 44% of Americans have gone online to find information about dieting, weight loss and fitness.(2) Additionally, according to a 2001 study conducted by researchers at Brown University and published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, people who enrolled in a structured online dieting program lost three times more weight in six months than those who simply searched for dieting information online.(3) AOL's new Diet & Fitness channel builds upon these current Internet habits and interests, bringing members the ultimate weight loss resource for managing their everyday diet and fitness activities.

"With the heightened urgency to address obesity and the increasing desire by consumers to live healthier, we are pleased to partner with AOL to offer its members a range of personalized online diet and nutrition solutions that fit into their daily lives," said Harriet Gallu, Vice President, Brand Marketing at eDiets.com. "Incorporating eDiets.com's health assessment tools and diet information adds significant value to the AOL Diet & Fitness experience for its users. They will benefit from personalized nutrition plans, including the Atkins Nutritional Approach(TM), "The Zone" Diet and Shape Up!(TM), inspired by Dr. Phil McGraw's Ultimate Weight Solution, along with eDiets.com's other award-winning content and support services."

During Diet & Fitness Week (May 17- May 23), AOL will introduce new diet and fitness themes each day as part of AOL's Life Management strategy to make daily living easier through a series of products and platforms such as AOL(R) Bill Pay, AOL(R) Kitchen Assistant and now AOL Diet & Fitness. AOL members can find daily fitness highlights, including exercises from AOL Weight Loss Coach Jorge Cruise for toning trouble spots, diet plans and nutritional information, exercise routines, diet basics, the latest weight-loss news and findings and motivational advice from other AOL(R) members.

The new AOL Diet & Fitness area includes:

-- Diets A-Z: This exclusive diet franchise is dedicated to providing members need-to-know information on 20 popular weight loss programs, including the Atkins Diet, the South Beach Diet(R), Weight Watchers diet and "The Zone." AOL members can access unique overviews, diet checklists and expert reviews created by Health magazine specifically for AOL. Plus, they can rate each diet based on their own experiences or see if other members had success with those programs.

-- Diet Basics: Health magazine and Cooking Light supply members with a healthy eating 101 overview, while eDiets.com arms members with access to the official, personalized online versions of the best-known brand names in the diet field, along with a sampling of menus. In addition to providing tools to measure body composition, eDiets.com's Diet Needs Analysis (DNA) tool helps AOL members identify a nutrition plan that best suits their unique dietary, medical and lifestyle needs.

-- Weight Loss Coach: Jorge Cruise, fitness guru and New York Times bestselling author of the 8 Minutes in the Morning(R) book series, serves as AOL's Weight Loss Coach, dedicated to offering members advice, encouragement and exercise moves for achieving the bodies they want. Says Jorge: "While the summer bathing suit and shorts season is one of the most popular times to trim and tone, a weight loss routine should not be limited to a once-a-year diet crunch. I look forward to helping busy AOL members tone their trouble spots and achieve long-term weight loss." AOL(R) for Broadband members can watch videos featuring moves for trimming trouble spots, while AOL dial-up users can view photo gallery/screen captures from the videos. Follow the Weight Loss Coach's AOL(R) Journal to read his entries about how to lose weight while traveling, diet and fitness FAQs and other timely weight loss advice.

-- AOL(R) Takes It Off: Members help members take off pounds and inches by submitting tips and photos according to each month's diet theme or topic. For help shaping-up for swimsuit season, see how other dieters and fitness buffs have scored results.

-- Fitness & Exercise: Cooking Light helps members develop a fitness regime based on sample workout plans featuring toning and trimming exercises/animations, yoga moves, Pilates basics and more. Also, members can find local fitness resources and gyms.

-- Diet Talk: Members can meet other members and get the peer-to-peer support they need to reach their weight-loss goals. Also, dieters can trade advice, tips and inspirational stories about their successful fitness programs.

-- News & Trends: AOL keeps members up to date with weekly fitness facts, fads and findings.

About AOL(R) Life Management

AOL now provides a suite of solutions for busy members to help make every day easier. From losing weight to saving money to deciding what's for dinner to helping children with their homework, AOL offers solutions to life's daily challenges. Weaving together powerful tools and expert advice and information from industry leaders, as well as tips and advice from other AOL members, AOL is the "always on" resource for making daily decisions and activities easier. Life management resources for AOL members can be found in areas that include AOL(R) Food, Living, Bill Pay, Health, Diet & Fitness, Parenting, Research & Learn, AOL(R) Books, Horoscopes, Homework Help and across member-led communities on the service.

Diet, exercise can help ward off arthritis in aging, weight-gaining boomers

As baby boomers get older and fatter, they’re also more likely to come down with one of the consequences of age and weight — arthritis.

Although they can’t prevent aging, boomers can reduce the risk from obesity, and diet and exercise can help them achieve it, doctors say.

Osteoarthritis, the most common form, develops as cartilage that cushions the joints wears away, leaving the ends of the bones rubbing against each other. The Arthritis Foundation says X-rays can find signs of osteoarthritis in most people over 60.

The condition commonly begins to show up between ages 40 and 60, so most boomers are “right smack in the target,” said Bill Roberts, an associate professor of family medicine at the University of Minnesota and president-elect of the American College of Sports Medicine.

Extra weight on the cartilage brings extra risk of the joint disease. “The simple explanation is, you’re putting more biomechanical stress on the joints,” said Kevin Fontaine, an assistant professor of rheumatology at the Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.

Joint pain increases with weight

Fontaine and his colleagues looked at survey data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and concluded that the odds of joint pain went up as weight did. People ages 60 and older had a 12 percent likelihood of pain if they were underweight but a 60 percent chance if they were very obese, according to the study in the October edition of the journal Obesity Research.

Although the CDC survey did not ask whether the pain came from arthritis, Fontaine believes it did because the people polled were in the right age range.

Losing weight can reduce the risk of developing arthritis, said Dr. David Pisetsky, director of the Duke University Arthritis Center and a medical adviser to the Arthritis Foundation.

“There is good evidence that people who are close to their ideal weight are going to have fewer problems,” he said.

Pisetsky also said overweight people ought to give special consideration to physical activity because it offers protection beyond weight loss. “Many tissues just perform better when they move or bear weight,” he said.

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Big Mac Counterattack: Super Size Me and the case against fast food

The United States is about to undergo a paradigm shift in the way it eats, and the success of Morgan Spurlock's super-entertaining, super-disgusting documentary Super Size Me will have something to do with it. With any luck, Spurlock's odyssey will do for patrons of McDonald's, Burger King, KFC, etc., what scientists did for the sociopathic Alex (Malcolm McDowell) in A Clockwork Orange (1971) when they pried his eyes wide open, administered a drug to induce nausea, and forced him to ogle hours and hours of violence. It will put you off your fast food—or, at least, slow you down. Just the thought of a Quarter Pounder With Cheese and a large fries makes me gag these days. And not too long ago, I was addicted to the stuff.

Yes, I'm one of those annoying reformed junkies—but hear me out. While you probably think of movie critics as lean, suave, and athletic bon vivants, I was anything but. After late screenings in Times Square, I was hitting the McDonald's outlets pretty hard. There I'd be, at 11 p.m., chowing down under the harsh fluorescents with all the other pale and blobby souls, feeling more and more disgusted with myself after every bite. On those nights, I learned the true meaning of "reflux." And from a comfortable 160 pounds (I'm 5-feet-9), I shot up to a shamefaced (and triple-chinned) 220. I don't blame McDonald's—I blame my indulgent self. But as all my hungry fat cells yodeled, "Feed me! Feed me!" those fast-food outlets beckoned. What they offered was the most efficient delivery system for fat, salt, sugar, and carbs known to man. And I deserved a break today.

For Super Size Me, Spurlock came up with a magnificent stunt—but one that seemed to leap from the collective unconscious of our fast-food nation. He would spend a month eating nothing but McDonald's food, three meals a day, and if they asked if he wanted it supersized, he'd say, "Yes, I would!" But only if they asked. In the movie's first gross-out set piece, Spurlock goes to the drive-through window, orders a Double Quarter Pounder With Cheese meal, supersizes it, and settles in for an orgy.

This is the American dream, isn't it? To sit in your oversized car (where you don't have to make eye contact with anyone) and eat an oversized meal of crap. Sure, there are nutrients in there somewhere, but not in proportion to calories, sugar, and sodium. And after you've inhaled that stuff (it goes down fast—there's nothing really to masticate), it makes you feel bad. Spurlock mentions McBloat and McGas, among other symptoms. A few minutes later, he pukes out the window, with the cameraman helpfully leaning over to show the vomit on the pavement.

Spurlock consumed way too many calories—5,000 a day—even for his fit, 6-foot-2-inch frame. But no one, least of all the doctors who agreed to monitor him, expected the scale of what happened next: a gain of 25 pounds and a cholesterol leap of 65 points. His liver filled up with fat. He was depressed, exhausted, and, according to his vegan-chef girlfriend, semi-impotent. On camera, his doctors regard him the way they would a man on the verge of a massive coronary. They tell him to get to a hospital at the first sign of chest pains—and it's handy because, as Spurlock shows us, there are hospitals that have a McDonald's right in them.

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This cop flexes her muscles in 4-inch heels

When Kim Swatts isn't walking a beat, or riding a bike, she pumps iron, sticks to her diet and works on her aerobics routine.

The Sarasota police officer competes in fitness and figure competitions at Florida bodybuilding shows. That means shedding her uniform to stride across stage in little more than a swimsuit and 4-inch heels.

"I don't have those little stilettos," she says, laughing. "Mine are a little bit wider, so I have a little wider platform to walk on."

Swatts, 27, stands 5-foot-10 and weighs a sculpted 137 pounds. She's a former gymnast and cheerleader who played college volleyball on scholarship at Florida Atlantic University.

This year she'd like to qualify for a national figure competition, and do some fitness modeling, without giving up her badge.

During a 12-hour shift, her partner puts up with her eating light protein meals every three hours. Her buddies on the police force haven't made her a pinup just yet.

"A few of 'em went to a show last year," Swatts says. "They're supportive; everybody's real good about it."

On May 29, local bodybuilders and fitness contestants will flex their muscles at a regional competition in the Lakewood Ranch High School auditorium.

More than six months before a show, figure competitors begin bulking up, adding muscle to their shoulders and legs. As the competition date nears, they begin dieting to drop body fat and add definition to their physiques.

This routine requires discipline and dedication.

"It's hard, at times," says Stacie Vernon, 28. "You have cravings -- sugar, definitely, because you're not allowed anything like that. So you crave a lot of sweets."

Son Tran, a Sarasota bodybuilder who organizes local shows, knows the routine. He trains his wife and many of the fitness and figure competitors.

"A lot of people think, 'Oh, they just come out and look good,' " Tran says. "No. They have to diet. They have to work hard. They have to take this seriously."

The goal for figure contestants is a lean, feminine look. They want to be less bulky than female bodybuilders, but just as fit.

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Get outside, and get out of your fitness rut

Dear Dave Patania: All winter, I have been lifting weights, consistently taking aerobics classes and doing the elliptical trainer. However, I am very bored, dread doing the same things and am afraid of not being in shape this spring and summer. Can you give me some ideas?

Dear Reader: Some people don't exercise consistently or hard enough to get results, and therefore fail because true effort wasn't given.

However, there are those like yourself who have proven that they have the discipline to exercise and eat right consistently.

The problem is that after performing the same exercise-eating routine and using the same machines for so long, many people feel imprisoned by the very habits that are supposed to help them achieve their goals.

This is called being stuck in a fitness rut. In your case, you are doing all of your exercise indoors within the confines of walls and manufactured light.

Change your routine by getting outside and enjoying the fresh air, sunshine and even the rain. Instead of pretending to walk or jog up a hill on a treadmill, grab a few friends and walk-jog a couple times a week with them and create different, maybe steeper, routes to challenge one another and have fun.

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Diary Your Way to Weight Loss

Most of us have a lot we could learn about our eating habits. Keeping a diary of your daily food intake can help you see where you're going wrong.

What is your eating personality? Do you eat your meals in record time? Does your hand get caught in a bag of snacks while you mindlessly engage in eating amnesia? Are you eating when you are not hungry? Or maybe you are the type to starve yourself during the day and raid the pantry the minute you walk in the door.

Food diary tips:

- Track the time of day and your feelings when you eat to help you discover problem times and emotions that cause you to overeat.

- Recognize the triggers and find healthier foods to satisfy your hunger or better alternatives than food to cope with your emotions.

- Monitor your progress, track your new behaviors, and reward yourself with a manicure or movie for all your hard work.

Robins employee sheds 150 pounds

ROBINS AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. -- Irish Frederick exercises four to five days a week at the fitness center here. She drinks water and eats healthy foods. She lost more than 150 pounds and dropped 12 dress sizes. (U.S. Air Force photo by Sue Sapp)

An employee here replaced her size 28 pants and more than 150 extra pounds with a size 16 and a new lease on life.

Irish Frederick, 35, of Byron, Ga., said she is slimmer, fitter and “lookin’ good.”

The classroom program assistant at Robins’ Child Development Center said she lost weight by changing her diet and exercising four to five days a week at the fitness center here.

Her motivation was declining health, she said. Swollen feet, high blood pressure, the start of a hernia, fatigue and problems with digestion led her to her doctor.

She was 5-feet, 5-inches tall and weighed 348 pounds. Her doctor’s advice -- lose weight.

Mrs. Frederick replaced carbonated drinks with water and cut fried foods, fast foods, bread, snack cakes and cookies from her diet. She began grilling instead of frying and ate baked fish, steamed vegetables and rice. Her husband and three daughters quickly adapted to the diet, and they are eating healthier, too, she said.

She also started daily workouts of two or more hours which included both aerobic and circuit training.

“I started seeing results within about three months,” she said. “I had gotten down ... two dress sizes. I thought to myself ‘this is lookin’ good,’ and it motivated me even more.

“At first, I felt uncomfortable in the fitness center,” she said. “I walked into the gym and saw all these little bitty ladies. I wore an old T-shirt and baggy sweat pants, and I always kept a jacket on. I even used the old side of the gym because there were fewer people there; but, I didn’t let anything deter me.”

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The high cost of low-carb diets

For close to a year, low carb diets, led by Atkins and South Beach has become the number one diet of choice. In fact, according to ACNielsen, 17.2% of Americans are currently on a low-carb diet. While much discussion has ensued about the nutritional benefits (and drawbacks) to this type of diet, little has been written about the actual cost of maintaining such a diet plan.

Conventional wisdom suggests that going on a diet means you would eat less and therefore the cost of your food would be less as well; but the truth is that adhering to either Atkins or South Beach meal plans, as detailed in their books, is way more expensive than the typical family currently eats. Bringing up the question whether or not the folks that need to lose those extra pounds can actually afford to do so.

The average one person household spends approximately $59 a week on their groceries according to the Food Marketing Institute's 2004 Trends report. We wanted to calculate just how much the two leading low carb diets would cost, so we broke down each recipe and meal plan (for one person) and found that strictly following the portion size and ingredients in a weeklong program on Atkins totaled $99.89 and on South Beach $91.28, almost double the norm.

Analyzing the obesity rates, according to the National Health Interview Study, reveals some shocking differences in the rates of our most correctable health dilemma: 26% of those whose income is less than $17,000 are obese compared to 18% for those individuals making over $67,000 per year. Obesity is defined as 30 pounds or more over overweight.

Sugar, fat and grains are our cheapest foods, and those are exactly the food types that these low carb diets want us to eliminate or reduce significantly. In fact the new recommendations from the Institutes of Medicine last December reinforce this thinking, as they dropped the current Recommended Daily Allowance (RDA) for carbohydrates from 300 grams a day to 130 grams a day, less than half. Protein, in particular fish, chicken and meats cost more than pasta and rice -- so what can an average person, who still wants to keep close to their budget of $59 a week do?

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Get Fit For - and AT - the Beach!

(eDiets.com) - Looking for a fun way to stay fit this summer? Try beach volleyball. More than just an enjoyable way to spend a day along the ocean, playing volleyball on the sand also provides a great cardiovascular and muscular workout. What could be better than hitting the beach and getting fit at the same time?

Volleyball tones the entire body. You use your arm and shoulder muscles when you hit the ball, leg muscles when jumping to block the ball and abs when twisting and lunging for the ball. Playing volleyball raises your heart rate and strengthens your cardiovascular system. And because playing on sand requires more effort, you burn extra calories.

"Beach volleyball is a very physical game," says Stephanie Roberts, a personal trainer at Sports Club/LA at Irvine and a professional Volleyball player who moved to Newport Beach from Michigan so she could play on the beach. "It's very hard, and you're not always in control. You need a lot of endurance. And, in my case, I'm trying to focus on focusing, because sometimes I get a little excited and anxious."

Roberts says that in beach volleyball, leg strength is key. Players need to be able to carry themselves in the sand at all times, and they need strength to jump and push off. Roberts began strength training back in November, and plyometric, or jumping, training in December.

"We alternated between plyometrics and strength training, but now I'm working more on muscular endurance more than strength," she says. "We also practice in the sand a few times a week. I usually train with a partner because it's nice to have someone to work out with and to throw out new ideas. When you train by yourself it's easy to do fewer sets. It's nice to have someone push you, and that's helped in my jumping. When we train, we jump over hurdles, over boxes, side-to-side, front to back. We jump on two legs, on one leg, we get up and jump down, which helps with decentric contractions. We do a lot of single leg exercises for stabilization and a lot of shoulder work."

Roberts notes that Volleyball is one of the few sports that requires good core strength and good abs.

"The abdominal muscles are one of the least used muscles in the body," says Roberts. "You laugh or cough and your abs contract, and that's about the only time most people use them, but in volleyball, when you're hitting the ball and you go into a pike position, which means your torso and legs kind of crunch together, you use your abs. If I have not played Volleyball for a while and then go and try to play, my abs hurt."

Roberts says she like to make sure she has a lot of core strength going into the beach volleyball season, which began in March. It's often difficult for players to maintain a workout program once the season starts. She usually takes a day or 2 off before a tournament and just does a light cardio routine to let her body repair itself.

"When you're in a tournament, you just go and go, and you're very susceptible to pulling something," she explains. "It's hard for me, because I want to constantly improve, I want to work on everything. It's hard to step back and just focus on the game."

Roberts says that for anyone who wants to get into beach Volleyball it helps to have someone in the know teach you fundamentals of the game.

"Volleyball is very technical," she notes. "You need good form, you need to know the basics like passing, serving, setting, hitting, how to approach the shot, how to hit the ball and how not to hit the ball, things like that."

Bottom line: Learn the basics, then go out and have fun while you're getting fit on the beach.

Indoor Volleyball

Alexis Henry has tried beach Volleyball and finds it challenging. The 22-year-old Huntington Beach woman who recently moved to LA has been playing indoor Volleyball for the past 3 years at Occidental College in Eagle Rock. She says that hardwood floors are much easier than sand.

"After I played beach Volleyball for a while, I noticed an improvement in my indoor game," says Harvey. "Sand gives your muscles more of a workout."

Of course, Harvey was already pretty well conditioned for indoor Volleyball. She played 4 years in high school and three years on the varsity team at Occidental and is currently active in club leagues, where she plays a couple of nights a week.

"Our coaches designed programs for us with a lot of explosive lifting, including squats, cleans, and dead lifts, because that's what Volleyball consists of," recalls Harvey. "We also did a running workout to keep up endurance, and we did a lot of plyometric workouts."

Harvey says her team - one of the top 5 in the area - trained harder in the off-season than they did during Volleyball season. Once the season started, she says the workouts focused on the major muscle groups with the goal of just keeping in shape and keeping the leaping strength up.

One important thing that Harvey learned from playing Volleyball: multi-tasking and time management.

"When you're trying to balance classes and homework and you have a 3 hour practice well, you have lots of time management issues," notes Harvey.

VOLLEYBALL FITNESS PROGRAM

Exercises to prepare your body for beach Volleyball:

JUMP ROPE: 3-5 sets of 100 reps, then 2 sets (1 on each leg) of one-legged jumping of 100 reps.

SQUARE JUMPING: Create a square with 4 quadrants on the floor and jump around into each square in a clockwise and the counterclockwise pattern. Do 4 sets of 25 reps alternating clockwise and counterclockwise rotation.

JUMP AND REACH: Find an object just beyond reach and jump from a standing position while reaching for it. Five sets of 15 reps.

NO-ARMED JUMPS: Jump with your hand clasped above your head striving to touch your knees to your chest on each jump. As your feet hit the ground, rebound and bounce back into the air. Three sets of 15-20 reps.

APPROACH JUMPS: Do normal approaches with maximal jumps. Reach for something just slightly out of reach. Three sets of 10-15 reps.

Start in a kneeling position with the forward leg bent at 90 degrees and the back leg slightly off the ground. Jump and land with the opposite foot forward and the opposite foot backward. Try and keep from bending the ankle so that the knee is more forward than the foot. Three sets of 30 repetitions.

BLOCKING JUMPS: (10-12 reps) Take two side steps to the left or right and exploding upward while reaching up with both hands.

STANDING JUMPS; (10 to 12 reps) Find a point (the top of a basketball rim, for example) and jumping to touch it. Don't take any steps, explode upward and reach with both hands. As soon as your feet hit the ground explode back upward. Time on the ground should be minimal. Do this until you can't reach the target anymore.

DEPTH JUMPS: (10-12 reps) Stand on a step about 20''-24'' high. Step off, land with both feet simultaneously and explode upward reaching with both hands. Time on the ground should be minimal.

A good Volleyball training schedule could include alternate days of plyometrics (jumping exercises) and weight training, with a day off. But remember: If it hurts, stop.

Stretch the muscles you plan to work before your exercises. A warm muscle will get propel your body a lot higher than a cold one. The goal of plyometrics is to get the muscles acting quickly and strongly. Stretching is just like jumping, only not as extreme.

Learn more at eDiets.com...

Flexible fitness: Running on the road

When the weather starts to get warmer here in New England, more feet start hitting the street. This is the time of year when runners of all levels transfer their workout from the gym to the road.

There are many benefits to running including cardiovascular fitness, weight loss or weight control, bone health from weight-bearing activity, mental stimulation, stress management and socialization through running clubs or running partners. Running is also a relatively low-tech method of exercise.

As with any sport, injuries may occur with running. Common injuries include Achilles tendon strain, plantar fasciitis, knee pain from patellofemoral or iliotibial band (ITB) dysfunction, shin splints and low back pain. Injuries are often a result of poor running posture, imbalances in muscle flexibility or strength, inadequate conditioning or improper footwear.

If an injury does occur, the runner should contact his or her physician to ask for a referral to physical therapy. A typical physical therapy program may include stretching to lengthen shortened, tight muscles, strengthening for weaker muscle groups, and treatments such as ice, ultrasound, iontophoresis, and electrical stimulation. The therapist would determine specific exercises, stretches, and treatments after a comprehensive examination.

Many injuries can be prevented through proper conditioning, appropriate footwear and good form while running. Conditioning programs will vary depending on the runner's goals, whether it is 5 miles or 50 miles a week. Components should include running, stretching and strengthening. Training runs involve hills, speed work, pacing and endurance runs. Runners typically have shortened chest muscles, hip flexors, quadriceps and calve muscles. A full-body stretching program is beneficial to maintain general mobility, but specific focus should be made to these muscle groups. Strengthening is appropriate not only for the legs, but for the entire body. Runners often have weaker abdominals, gluteals, hamstrings and neck muscles, all of which can affect running form. Core strengthening and incorporating single-leg stance activities while strengthening are good methods for improving strength in runners.

Since the foot strikes the ground approximately 3,000 times per mile, proper footwear can make or break a runner's career. There are three basic categories of foot type, each of which have different shoe needs: neutral feet, pronators (feet with a flattened arch), or supinators (feet with a higher arch). There are running shoes specifically designed to accommodate different foot types. Once fitted with the proper shoe, it is vital to replace the shoe every few hundred miles or every three to six months to ensure proper support is maintained.

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Bob Greene's 'Get With the Program!' Now Available at eDiets

Oprah's Personal Trainer Partners With eDiets.com to Help Consumers Get Real About Their Health, Weight and Emotional Well-Being

eDiets, the leading online diet and healthy living destination, today announced that a personalized online version of Bob Greene's "Get With the Program!" is exclusively available through the company's award-winning Web site, www.eDiets.com. Through eDiets.com, Bob Greene, Oprah's personal trainer and best-selling author of "Get With the Program!," "The Get With the Program! Guide to Good Eating" and "Make the Connection," is offering consumers two custom tailored fitness regimens: "Basic Training," an entry level 12-week plan for fitness novices, and "Stay With the Program," an ongoing maintenance program of advanced strength training and aerobics. Each program has a special focus on eliminating emotional eating through self-discovery and fine-tuning of eating behaviors. As a complete and balanced weight management solution, eDiets.com's personalized online version of "Get With the Program!" allows members to include a meal plan by selecting from among its 17 available personalized online nutrition plans, including the Atkins Nutritional Approach™, The Zone Diet, and the Slim·Fast® Plan. Each meal plan is custom-tailored to meet each individual's dietary needs, preferences, and lifestyle.

"Through this dynamic online format, not only will members get customized fitness programs that will teach them how to exercise the 'right way' in the comfort and convenience of their own homes, they will also get sound, common-sense advice on how to achieve a healthy body through a combination of fitness, nutrition and emotional well-being," said Bob Greene. "A National Institute of Health study on a combined therapy of diet and physical activity concluded that 'the combination of a reduced calorie diet and increased physical activity is recommended, since it produces weight loss, decreases abdominal fat, and increases cardiorespiratory fitness.' eDiets.com's 'Get With the Program!' members will be given a full range of tools, information and support to help them achieve a lifetime of activity and good health."

eDiets.com's personalized online version of Bob Greene's "Basic Training" methodically guides each individual member's gradual progression through a 12-week regimen. Unlike other fitness programs that often intimidate fitness novices with their complexity, this is a completely customized, self-paced program that can be easily followed at home or in a gym, and features a variety of cardiovascular and strength-training exercises complete with 3-D animated instruction and detailed descriptions to assist members with proper form and technique. To assure program flexibility, eDiets.com's injury and health assessment profile allows for exercise substitutions to accommodate any specific injuries or other physical limitations a member may have.

Also unique to eDiets.com's personalized online version of Bob Greene's "Get With the Program!," members will receive ongoing support and motivation through a dedicated online support group that is moderated by eDiets.com's personal trainers and psychologists. Members can also attend relevant online meetings and engage in real-time chats with member peers.

"Often overlooked keys to successful weight management are strength and perseverance of attitude and mind," said Dr. John Sklare, eDiets.com's director of emotional support. "Thoughts are powerful tools that impact one's attitude, health and body, which all respond to how and what we believe about ourselves. Accordingly, changes needed to succeed at weight management must first be made from the neck up. Bob Greene's 'Get With the Program!,' with a meal plan personalized by eDiets.com and in combination with our vast support services, will help program members do just that."

"In keeping with our strategy of aligning ourselves with innovative health solutions and adapting them for online consumers using our proprietary personalization technology, Bob Greene's highly successful program is a natural fit," said David Humble, CEO of eDiets.com. "Through this partnership, our members now benefit from convenient access to a customized online version of this highly regarded fitness plan offered in combination with a personalized nutrition plan and our comprehensive support community."

About Bob Greene

Over recent years, Bob Greene has become one of the country's most respected fitness trainers. Perhaps best known as fitness trainer to talk show host Oprah, he has authored such bestsellers as "Make the Connection," "Get With the Program!" and "Get With the Program! Guide to Good Eating." He also regularly appears on the Oprah show, is a frequent contributor to O Magazine, and was recently featured on the cover of Good Housekeeping Magazine. To date, Bob Greene's "Get With the Program!" has amassed over 50,000 members.

High-flying doughnut maker Krispy Kreme hit by low-carb craze

The low-carb diet craze could mean some belt-tightening at the onetime high-flying doughnut company, Krispy Kreme.

For the first time since becoming a public company in 2000, Krispy Kreme is warning of lower profits for the upcoming fiscal year -- about 10 percent below prior forecasts.

"For several months, there has been increasing consumer interest in low-carbohydrate diets, which has adversely impacted several flour-based food categories, including bread, cereal and pasta," said Scott Livengood, chairman, president and chief executive officer.

"This trend had little discernable effect on our business last year. However, recent market data suggests consumer interest in reduced carbohydrate consumption has heightened significantly following the beginning of the year and has accelerated in the last two to three months."

The phenomenon has affected the company's revenues, especially sales of packaged doughnuts to grocery stores, which fell 0.4 percent over the 12-week period ended April 18.

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Does Your Fitness IQ Make the Grade?

In Celebration of Women's Health Week, Mealsmatter.org Encourages Women to Take the Nutrition & Fitness Challenge

In celebration of Women's Health Week (May 9th-16th), Mealsmatter.org, a non-commercial website sponsored by the Dairy Council of California encourages women to test their fitness IQ by participating in the Nutrition & Fitness Challenge.

The Nutrition & Fitness Challenge is a web-based, three week, self-paced event designed to help participants make physical activity and good nutrition part of their everyday lifestyle. The program is absolutely free and teaches participants how to develop healthy habits that contribute to overall well-being.

The Nutrition & Fitness Challenge begins May 10th and continues through the week of May 31st. Unlike your typical nutrition website, Mealsmatter.org and the Nutrition & Fitness Challenge do not focus on strict weight loss or exercise regimens. Rather, small changes that can be incorporated into day-to-day routines are encouraged. A new nutrition topic and corresponding activities will be introduced each week.

-- Week 1 -- Taking the Challenge
Assess your current physical activity level and decide what you can
change starting today.

-- Week 2 -- Overcoming your fitness obstacles
Learn how to make time for physical activity no matter how busy your
schedule.

-- Week 3 -- Getting Stronger
Learn more about different types of physical activity and how they work
together to make you stronger and healthier.


Participants can register anytime during the three weeks and complete online activities from previous weeks. To join the Nutrition & Fitness Challenge, logon to www.mealsmatter.org and register. Those who complete all three weeks of the challenge and register by May 14th, will be eligible to win $200 worth of free groceries for them and their family.

Meals Matter -- www.mealsmatter.org -- is a non-commercial website supported by the Dairy Council of California staffed by registered dietitians and dedicated to promoting healthy food choices for families.

Fitness Guru Bob Greene Shares Weight-Loss Tips

The guy who got Oprah in shape says he can help you get fit, too.

Fitness guru Bob Green shares his seven secrets to losing weight.

When it comes to weight loss, Greene says most of us do it the wrong way: We start by going on a diet.

"That's all backwards because when you cut calories, you actually cut your metabolism right up front," Greene said. "You want to do it the other way around."

1. Greene says you've got to get active first. Start with stretching to keep your muscles limber and your body flexible.

2. Then, focus on what Greene calls "functional exercises" that strengthen key muscle groups like shoulders, legs and abdominal muscles that need to be strong to be healthy.

"If you get this functional, you're not going to have back problems," Greene said.

3. Once the core of your body is stronger, add in aerobic activity like walking or biking -- but make sure your breathing is fast paced.

4. After that, do some weight training, even if it's just using dumbbells at home.

"The aerobic exercise is like the kindling wood, it starts the fire in your metabolism," Greene said. "Weight training is like that big log that's going to carry you through, maintaining that muscle, burning calories -- and that's what you want."

5. Now for a couple of his success secrets: Stop eating two to three hours before bedtime.

6. Pay attention to your emotional appetite -- the reason why you're digging in the refrigerator for a late-night snack.

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MIT students make computer 'biking' a fun exercise

The hot-air balloon was too low, much too low. A mountain loomed ahead, its granite wall reaching out to smash the fragile basket. Daniele De Francesco had only seconds to react. So De Francesco did the only thing he could do. He pedaled faster.

It worked. On the TV screen in front of him, the balloon slowly rose, clearing the peak with room to spare. De Francesco even got a couple of bonuses. He snared a floating gold coin worth 50 points, as well as a vigorous cardiovascular workout.

As a 2000 graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, De Francesco still has use of the school's Zesiger Sports and Fitness Center. That's why he's one of the test subjects for an MIT project that merges video gaming with physical fitness.

It's called CycleScore, and it's a recumbent bicycle connected to a personal computer programmed with a simple, engaging game. CycleScore transforms the bike's pedals and handlebars into game controllers, and offers a game program that rewards steady effort and the occasional burst of speed. There's even a touch of the shoot-'em-up, as the balloonist can fire missiles at passing targets for extra points. The idea is to create a system so interesting and enjoyable that people will forget they're sweating.

For De Francesco, it almost works. "It gives me something to think about," he said. "Working out staring at the wall is the boringest thing." But the only game currently running on CycleScore -- steering a hot-air balloon over mountains -- might get a little old after a while.

The MIT students working on CycleScore certainly agree. They're techies as well as gamers, and hope to eventually offer a suite of slam-bam action games that'll turn members of the PlayStation generation into workout junkies.

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Week one of Bikini Boot Camp

When Chaunce Drury realized she had regained 20 of the 40 pounds she’d struggled so hard to lose almost two years ago, the 30-year-old film industry worker vowed to get serious about getting back on track.

“I woke up one day and realized: I’m not very healthy. I took my dog for a walk one day and going up a hill - not even a big hill - I had to go slow and thought, ‘Wow! I’m out of shape!’”

Not for long. Drury has volunteered to go public with every red-faced gasp, every sore under-used muscle and unwanted jiggle as she begins a six-week shapeup that will put her back into a bikini in time for beach season.

“I know once I start, it’ll happen. I’m very determined to do this,” she says.

This determination has made Drury the standard-bearer for The Province’s Bikini Boot Camp, a six-week series involving The Specialty Gourmet, Innovative Fitness, Eveline Charles Salon & Spa and Swimco beachwear.

Drury has been at Bikini Boot Camp for a week now and today, we’ll provide you with details of what she’s been doing with the trainers at Innovative Fitness, what meals she’s been eating, delivered to her each day by Specialty Gourmet, and what the specialists at Eveline Charles have advised her to do for glowing, healthy skin.

At the end of six weeks, Drury will undergo a complete beauty makeover at Eveline Charles and pick out the perfect beach outfit from Swimco before having her picture taken for our final instalment of Bikini Boot Camp, scheduled for June 13.

We invite our readers to join with her for their own version of the boot camp. The bottom-line requirements are commitment and perseverance; the goal is to feel - and look - the best you can. [Editor’s note: Anyone just starting an exercise program is strongly advised to get their doctor’s approval first.]

We’ll have full menu details and complete workout programs, plus a personal daily diary Drury is keeping during the program at our website, www.theprovince.com. Click on Online Extras. The material will be updated every week.

Setting goals

Drury devised her own workout and diet plan two years ago when she realized her weight had shot up past her comfort zone. She did her research before beginning, read all she could about how to get in shape, worked out regularly at the gym, watched her diet and ended up losing 40 pounds over five months.

Now, the weight is creeping back up and Drury says that’s because she made the mistake of thinking she was finished when she reached her target weight. Her life became more hectic, her eating schedule more erratic, and exercise? Who has time?

“I’ve learned you can’t just say, ‘Well, I’ve reached my goal.’ You have to make it a lifelong habit,” she says.
And habits are best formed when they’re laid on a foundation of reachable goals. With the Bikini Boot Camp, Drury says she wants to:
- Feel healthier and fitter.
- Lose 10 or more pounds in time for beach season.
- Begin to challenge herself more, to take on goals such as running a 5k fun run.

The workouts

When I saw Drury at her first workout, I thought she was going to explode, both from the excitement of going public with her efforts to get in shape and because of the intensity of the workout trainer Colin Macdonald had set up for her.

Earlier in the session, Drury was given an initial assessment in which Macdonald checked her posture, overall cardio conditioning and core strength. A heart-rate monitor showed she burned 500 calories - of which 45 per cent were fat calories - during that first workout, according to Innovative Fitness head Aaron Keay.

Although the boot camp is only 42 days long, the fitness specialists will draw up a three-month program for Drury. That’s because most people need 90 days to break bad habits and establish good ones, says Keay.

At her second session three days later, Drury underwent a fitness evaluation that consisted of body-fat measurement, cardio, co-ordination and speed testing, muscular- strength testing, muscular-endurance testing and a flexibility test.

The food

Chaunce Drury is a foodie. She’s been cooking since she was five, started throwing dinner parties at 16, loves to cook and prefers shopping at Granville Island Public Market for tonight’s dinner to shopping on Robson St. for shoes . . . to wear to tonight’s dinner!

She also works in a highly stressful industry in which 12-hour days during the height of filming are not uncommon. Forget about sitting down to three good meals and a healthy snack a day. Munch on whatever is available - cookies, chips, more cookies, maybe some more of those chips. What’s a girl to do?

Enter the Specialty Gourmet, which offers full or partial daily menus for Zone, Atkins and Heart Healthy diets. Every day, Drury wakes up to find someone else has done the cooking for her as she opens the cooler left at her front door filled with Zone diet breakfast, lunch, dinner and snack. No grabbing whatever junk food is available, no guessing how much is enough, no overfilling the plate.

Nutritionist Maria Thomas of Urban Nutrition says the Zone diet is better than Atkins for weight loss for someone involved in an intense workout program like Drury. The Zone tends to be low in calories when properly followed, and this allows the person to lose the weight, she says.

The diet includes a variety of fruits and vegetables, and also emphasizes some fat and protein to promote satiety, and thus help control appetite, says Thomas.

She suggests anyone following the diet also take a multivitamin and a calcium supplement, “to help ensure nutritional needs are being met.”

Read more...