Curious to know how celebrities squeeze fitness into their daily lives? Want to know the secrets of the stars? Bi-weekly our That's Fit fitness expert Fitz sits down with the celebs we want to know more about, and digs out their great and not-so-great methods to staying healthy.

The Hills season finale on December 22 is quickly approaching on MTV, and I was able to catch up with reality star Lo Bosworth for a quick interview. To find out how she stays in shape and what her "realities" are while starring on this hit show, read on.

Fitz: How'd you end up on The Hills? What goes in to that?

Lo: Well, I started out on Laguna Beach back in high school. Then I went away to college. I was at UCSB and I transferred to UCLA my junior year. That was when Lauren and I were able to spend more time together. So I started going out a little bit and sometimes they would be filming. And then at some point, the producers just asked me to re-join the show.

Fitz: You're on a reality show but not necessarily a "performer" in Hollywood. You're supposed to be "real," but do you feel tons of pressure to be thin, beautiful and well dressed all the time?

Will Lo launch her own fashion line? Read on!

Source

Recent research shows that when elementary schools ban soft drinks, the improvement in kids' health is minimal.

Schools who have removed soda vending machines have done so in an effort to improve student health. But research shows that fifth graders who attend schools where soda is banned consume only 4% less than students who have access to soda at school.

As far as I'm concerned, 4% is 4% is 4%. It may be a small improvement, but it's an improvement none-the-less. And since soda bans are relatively recent -- starting in 2003 in California -- I think time will still tell. It takes time to change kids' tastes and preferences. Parents just have to get on board, too, and save soda for the rare treat or avoid it altogether.

Source

When my body isn't moving so much, my mind goes to a bit of a blue place. I'm not quite there, but I feel myself getting close. Ironically, this week my body has traveled thousands of miles and I've seen my favorite blue place in the world -- the Pacific Ocean.

As most of us know, traveling usually means our health suffers a bit due to lack of exercise, increased stress and the subsequent effect on our mental state of both. I travel from my home in the mid-Atlantic to my native California at least twice a year. I am writing from my mother's home in the Los Angeles area right now. Before heading home a week from tomorrow, we will have traveled by air and navigated airports for more than 12 hours and spent almost 20 hours in cars in order to visit family and friends on opposite ends of the state. So much movement, so little exercise.

Thankfully, visiting the loved ones we live so far away from keeps my mind a bit happier during these sedentary vacation days. And I do try to adhere to some of the common tips for maintaining good health and fitness while traveling, such as making good food choices and drinking lots of water. I also follow certain prevention guidelines.

When I get home, I'll run through the neighborhood, hop on my bike or swim laps at the rec center in an effort to kick those endorphins back into high gear and then some. I'll certainly have to in order to heal the little bit of homesickness and heartsickness that's sure to crop up after leaving so many loved ones behind.

I finished off my carton of strawberries last night while prepping a fruit salad. And while I was using the plastic container as a trash receptacle for the seeds of my cherries, I noticed a label promoting the website CalGiant.com. CalGiant I figured was the grower of my berries so once I savored my salad, I hopped on over to my laptop and checked things out.

Yep, California Giant is a berry farm, specializing in strawberries, blueberries, blackberries, and raspberries. I'd love to tell you about each of these juicy fruits -- and someday I will -- but for now, here are some facts specific to strawberries, straight from the CalGiant folks.

• Strawberries are high in folic acid which makes them great for women who are pregnant.
  
  

• Strawberries are high in antioxidants, thought to be responsible for lowering the risk of some cancers and improving urinary tract health and memory function.
  
  

• Strawberries are good for the heart. Dr. Gene Spiller, Nutrition and Health Research Center, recently released data showing that when people eat a daily serving of strawberries (about eight berries; 45 calories) there are significant increases in blood folate levels and decreases in systolic blood pressure.
  
  

• A nutrient dense fruit, strawberries taste great and contain lots of fiber.
  
  

• Strawberries are available year-round -- what an opportunity for consumers to add great taste and nutrition to their everyday, healthy diet.
  

Source

It's hard to say which day out of the six we spent a few weeks ago at the Walt Disney World Resort was my favorite, but day three really was special. It was jam packed with a variety of super fun activities that were both totally exciting and totally relaxing at the same time. The majority of day three was spent at Disney's Caribbean Beach Resort, where we were staying. We capped off a superb day with a glamorous evening at The California Grill, one of Disney's Signature Restaurants located on the top floor of The Contemporary Resort.

If you take your family to Disney, I highly recommend strategically placing at least one 'resort day' in the middle of your stay. The theme parks and water parks are amazing, but can be exhausting. Playing at your Disney resort still offers loads of fun, but doesn't drain. In fact, a 'resort day' is the perfect recharge for tired parents needed a break. The pools are wildly creative, the hot tubs....to die for, and the free organized activities are endless. Yes, you heard me right. Most of the Disney resorts offer planned activities for both children and adults.....FREE OF CHARGE! Whooohooooo!

Source

Curious to know how celebrities squeeze fitness into their daily lives? Want to know the secrets of the stars? Bi-weekly, our That's Fit fitness expert Fitz sits down with the celebs we want to know more about, and digs out their great and not-so-great methods to staying healthy.

Mmmmmm. Just the mention of Chef Jens Dahlmanns's name puts my mind in ecstasy. His is the name of the man who created what I'd choose as my 'last meal.' He's the premier Chef of Disney's signature restaurant The California Grill, who also oversees a staff of award-winning chefs atop Disney's Contemporary Resort. Chef Jens was classically trained in European kitchens and worked for Le Cirque 2000 in New York City and Cafe 'L Europe in Palm Beach, Florida, before joining Disney in April 2004.

We first spoke on the phone a week before I was to dine at his spectacular grill. From a fitness trainer standpoint, he gave all of the 'right answers.' Not that he was contrived, but his stance on cooking is what I would wish to hear. If you've read my features before, you'll know that I preach the importance of lean fresh foods. Read on to see how dead-on Chef Jens is to that style of eating. From a regular gal's point of view, it was just really exciting and fun to hear Chef Jens talk about food. He described white asparagus the same way most men would describe a beautiful woman. I could imagine what each item tasted like as he described them.

My experience at The California Grill was almost indescribable. Chef Jens and his staff were pampering to say the least. He greeted me with a sample of the white asparagus he gushed about, and I knew I was in for something special. The combinations of flavors and textures were to die for! I relished every bite and cleaned each and every plate that landed in front of me (highly unusual for me). The man knows how to make fresh food taste divine. The advice he gave in this interview is exactly what I, as your online Fitzness Trainer, want you to follow. Chef Jens just knows far better than I, how to make all of the healthy stuff taste heavenly.

Fitz: How much does "healthy" influence the foods you create for your menus?

Chef Jens: Healthy actually has a lot to do with our menu. First of all, Disney has set an initiative for enhancing our menus in a healthy way, so across all of the Disney parks and restaurants you'll find better choices. On my part, I'm always driven by what's fresh in the market. We create meals based on the season. At the California Grill, our menu changes according to what foods are in season. Fresh food equals leaner and "cleaner" food. I never use processed ingredients.

Source

In my expert opinion, yes! Disney World is the healthiest place on earth. I just returned from a five-night, six-day vacation with my husband and two children and was blown away by the amount of physical activity both offered and required of ourselves in order to indulge in the full Disney experience.

We pushed our double-stroller miles through two theme parks, climbed thousands of stairs and jumped an equal amount of waves at two water-parks, danced our tushies off to live bands at various Disney resorts, and played game after game with our children as we giggled, oohed and ahhed at all the Disney magic. As a fitness trainer, one of my biggest obstacles is convincing my clients not to trash their fitness efforts when they head out on vacation. Disney offers the perfect opportunity to not only maintain one's fitness level, but improve it.

The physical adventures are endless, and Disney World has made a deliberate effort to increase the availability of legitimately nutritious, low fat, and lower sugar foods. Fruit stands have popped up all over the theme parks, and children's dining has switched from burgers and fries to grilled chicken with carrots and grapes offered as side dishes. Soda has been dumped for low fat milk! I can't get food that "clean" in my own neighborhood, unless I cook it myself! Of course, the old junkie favorites like popcorn, fries, and ice cream are still available, but if you do care about your health and want to maintain it on vacation ... Disney makes it easy.

One of the elements I miss most about Southern California since moving to Northern Virginia almost three years ago is the ocean: it's proximity to where I live, visiting it often, seeing the sun set in it, driving Highway 1 with the windows down and smelling it, surfing and swimming in it, everything.

I remember when years ago I'd break up my long and traffic-clogged commute between a newspaper in Thousand Oaks and my apartment in Los Angeles by taking a detour and following Kanan Road from the 101 freeway to Malibu and having a cocktail on the sand at Paradise Cove. Just looking at the ocean relieved my stress from the work day more than any cocktail could. Breathing the air, smelling the salt, feeling the breeze, watching the waves, basking in the sun. It was heavenly and I'd continue my drive home a happier person.

I'm not the first to practice or suggest visiting the ocean or another body of water as a means of stress relief. Nor am I the first to start or suggest imagining such a visit. I find both methods highly successful, even if they leave me with a sad case of nostalgia.

Source

When it became common knowledge that Blue Cross had been sending letters to doctors, asking them alert the insurance company when a patient had a pre-existing condition that wasn't reported on their insurance form, the outcry was so great that Blue Cross immediately terminated the practice.

Though Blue Cross claims that they only sent out the letters to protect themselves from fraud, critics say that they used the knowledge they gained to cancel policies when patients racked up expensive medical bills. The company has been accused of offering coverage and then using practices like this one to pull it away just when it's needed most.

California's Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger and Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton were among those calling for a halt to the practice. Blue Cross was also targeted in Michael Moore's movie Sicko, in 2007.

Source

Medical marijuana users may soon find themselves receiving their drug from an unlikely source...vending machines. The new machines are set to be distributed in California, where using marijuana for medical reasons is legal, if it's prescribed by a doctor.

It won't be as easy as ordering up a can of soda or a candy bar, however. Users will need to be fingerprinted, photographed, and prove they have a prescription before they can use the machine, and even then, the transaction will be videotaped and done in front of security guard.

Marijuana is often prescribed for pain relief and to stimulate appetite. Though the federal government does not recognize it as part of a valid treatment program, medical marijuana use is legal in 11 states.

Source

A huge health care bill up before the California legislature may be seeing a permanent dirt nap soon, leaving that state to end up not setting a precedent for health care coverage to millions of uninsured people.

Many Senators are reportedly on the ropes on voting no to the legislation that would provide health insurance to all Californians through private or public means. The state's large population makes the current health care insurance battle a sight to watch from all other states, apparently.

Health care is shaping up to be one of the hot-button issues in this year's U.S. Presidential election, and the timing of the California proposal will keep the issue of medical coverage for the uninsured fresh in the minds of millions.

Source

After 18,000 air samples from all around southern California, measurements indicate that the cancer risk due to air pollution is down 15 percent. While that's a considerable decline, the current levels are still dangerously high. The two year study concluded that areas around Los Angeles and Long Beach contained some of the dirtiest air in the nation.

Want to hear a scary number? Estimates say that if SoCal residents live to be 70 years old, then 1,200 out of every one million people will get cancer. This is due to toxic air. But don't panic, estimates need to be taken with a grain of salt. Scientists have to put a number on everything, and while the air is certainly in need of quality control, you shouldn't evacuate.

Authorities say the current levels are unacceptable, but how do you combat this sort of problem? Regulations concerning gas and diesel fuels could be considered. And of course, the "green" movement towards cleaner automobiles is another way to lend a helping hand. This is not an isolated problem, however, and it won't go away until we learn to be better stewards of our environment.

Source

I think that, in most cases, it's almost always healthier to eat in than eat out. You have control over what goes into your meal and can control your portion sizes. New York recently required that restaurants share nutritional information with their customers, and a similar bill in California was recently ignored by their governor. Why is nutritional information such a big deal? Because in some cases, what you're eating is really, really bad in terms of calories, fat, and sodium.

Men's Health recently went behind the scenes to find out why nutritional information is such a well-kept secret. In some cases, what they discovered was stunning. For instance, did you know that an order of Aussie Cheese Fries at Outback Steak House has a whopping 2,900 calories?

It makes for interesting reading. I don't think there's anything wrong with eating out now and then, or even indulging in some cheesy fries, but I do think that savvy consumers should be concerned when a restaurant won't open up about what's in their food. If you have to hide it, it makes me wonder why. What do you think?

Source

California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wants to get a special legislative session underway to figure out how to correct the ship known as California's health care system. This after his earlier reform proposals did not, umm, turn out as expected.

Although staunch Republican Schwarzenegger outlined a plan to insure the 6.5 million California residents without current health insurance, he failed to find a friend on the Democratic side that would help him push his plan through. Interesting, eh?

If his call for a special session is approved, then the California legislature won't go home soon until January, but will stay in session to try and get something enacted that would please both taxpayers (who would foot the bill) and legislators (who have some things or people in their pockets, most likely).

If Schwarzenegger succeeds here, perhaps he can chime in on the subject at next year's political conventions in preparation for electing a new president.

Source

Nearly a half million pounds of beef from California and Pennsylvania have been recalled due to fears it's been contaminated with E. coli. Other states affected are: Virginia, West Virginia, Arizona, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington.

The illnesses stemming from the Pennsylvania recall seem to all be connected to one restaurant where four or five customers got sick. Health officials say that because the number of illness is small and because exposure happened several weeks ago, that customers can feel comfortable eating at the restaurant.

Frozen beef products being recalled have the code "EST. 8264" on them and a date code of 118-6 or 4/28/06.

Source