As a writer for "AOL Health," one my greatest pleasures (and horrors) is writing about the latest and most outrageous fast food disasters. While I've come across some doozies in my reporting, nothing quite compares to the West Michigan Whitecaps' soon-to-be-released four-pound, $20 sandwich, which is boasted to contain five beef patties, five slices of cheese, nearly a cup of chili and liberal doses of salsa and corn chips, all crammed in an eight-inch bun, amounting to 4,800-calories. Yes, that's nearly two and a half day's worth of calories! No wonder a dietitian from the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine called this seriously bad burger a "dietary disaster."

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.

My guest this week is one of those people who really puts me in awe. Desmond Howard has scooped up two of the most impressive and revered awards in the entire sport of football, a Heisman Trophy and a Super Bowl MVP. As I sat with Desmond on a sunny and breezy day in the University of Florida football stadium, The Swamp, I wondered what if felt like to achieve such greatness. Most boys feel lucky to make their high school JV football team. To play in college is an honor. To do what Desmond's done ... indescribable.

I love talking to professional athletes because they have had access to the best of the best opportunities in fitness. They have been trained for perfection and have proven to have mastered the art of discipline. Surely, they have something to share!

ince retiring from playing football, Desmond now works as a color analyst for ESPN's College GameDay. He doesn't have the luxury of an aggressive coach barking at him each day to maximize his potential. He trains because he loves being fit, and just like you and me, he has had to find creative ways to work it into his schedule.

On a personal note ... for someone with so much success in one of the most testosterone-driven sports in the world, Desmond was one of the most down-to-earth non-egotistical men I've ever met. He maintained a gigantic smile (with ridiculously perfect white teeth) throughout our entire conversation and was just a pleasure to spend time with. He's smart, funny, and everything I would want my son to become if he followed in a similar athletic path. Plus he praised his Mom, and of course, I want my baby to do that too. If you haven't been able to keep up with Desmond's success in sports, but would like to achieve great fitness as an adult ... read on.

Fitz: You've retired as one of the most successful football players in both the NFL and NCAA. What do you do now to stay fit?

Desmond: I usually try to work out four-five times a week, but it's kind of difficult when I travel a lot. When we do a lot of college football games, I'll ask the Sports Information Director of the university where we'll be if we can use their weight room. Sometimes the hotels we stay in have pretty nice weight rooms too. We really don't need a lot. I try to do cardio. I like the elliptical machine a lot, because it's low impact on my knees. If they don't have that I'll do the stationary bike. I always get in at least 35-40 minutes of hard cardio, work my core, and then work some other muscle group.

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Whenever there's a story about a public smoking ban or a lawsuit involving secondhand smoke, we usually get one or two commenters who think it's unfair that smokers are under such duress. I can see the logic in some of their arguments, but yet I can't get past the fact that smoking doesn't only harm the smoker.

Take, for instance, this story from Michigan. A young woman recently died from an acute asthma attack while working as a waitress in a smoky bar. Smoke is a trigger for many asthmatics, though this is the first recorded case of a death that can be directly linked to secondhand smoke.

Asthmatics can avoid eating and socializing in smoky establishments, but what about the people who work there? There's a bar in my town that's become locally famous, because they banned smoking shortly after one of their longtime waitresses was diagnosed with heart disease. They didn't want to lose her, so they made their patrons quit smoking. Now they're more popular than ever.

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A Michigan anti-lawsuit group hopes to draw attention to the effect frivolous lawsuits have had on warning labels with their list of the Wacky Warning labels. The winner? A sticker on a small tractor that warns "Avoid Death!" Other contenders include an iron-on transfer that discourages you from ironing while wearing the shirt, and a baby stroller that tells apparently clueless parents not to stick their baby in the storage pouch.

I do think sometimes warning labels are necessary on certain products. But do these go too far? This group thinks so...do you?

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H.J. Heinz Company has plenty to celebrate this holiday season. The company just scored higher than any other on the University of Michigan's American Customer Satisfaction Index (ACSI). Heinz has been the index's top-rated food company for eight consecutive years and this year scored 90 out of 100, three points higher than their 2006 score.

The ASCI is a national economic indicator of the quality of products and services available to household consumers in the United States. The index figures in scores from 200 companies in 43 industries. With such big competition, the crew at Heinz is clearly elated.

"Heinz is pouring it on when it comes to customer satisfaction," says William R. Johnson, Heinz Chairman, President, and CEO.

Heinz, a self-proclaimed leader in the marketing and production of healthy and convenient foods, specializes in ketchup, sauces, meals, soups, snacks, and infant nutrition. Its presence is seen on five continents and in the homes of many.

Are you a fan of Heinz?

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So you've quit smoking. Good for you! You're one step closer to a healthier, longer life -- unless you pack on the pounds, in which case you'll compromise your health in other ways.

To help you manage your weight while you resist the urge to smoke, Dr. Cindy Pomerleau, Director of the Nicotine Research Laboratory at the University of Michigan, offers these seven tips:

• Start the day with breakfast, not a cigarette. A satisfying breakfast can help deflect the urge to smoke. Avoiding the meal might sound like a good way to avoid unwanted calories, but it's not a sound weight-management strategy.

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How does your city rank? Self magazine recently collected data on 100 major metropolitan areas in the country to find out which cities had the healthiest lifestyles, least environmental concerns, most community resources, and best disease statistics. After compiling their data, they ranked the cities from 1-100. Want to find out how the cities in your state faired? Click here.

The country's healthiest place for women -- according to Self magazine, anyway -- is Honolulu with low obesity and depression rates and good air quality. The city lost points for high property crime rates, low number of health clubs, and long commutes. The unhealthiest is the Motor City. Detroit's high rates of obesity and violent crimes -- twice the national average -- sent it to the bottom of the list. In its defense, however, Detroit scored points for its high number of parks, low drinking rates among women, and good dental health.

I'm not sure exactly how Self developed their ranking scale or if this information even means anything, but it's kind of interesting to look at. If you live in one of the cities on the list, let me know what you think of your ranking and if it seems appropriate.

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A while back on our sister site, Gadling, I made it public that I would be registering and running in my first marathon. Considering I'm not a HUGE running fan, I wanted to prove to myself that after putting in so many walking miles on the Steps Across America tour, I'd be able to push myself and my fitness level a bit further by running a full 26.2 miles. Now onto the training.

To my advantage, a good pal is helping me get started, providing me with reading material, scheduling runs on my calendar, and so on. I'm presently in the middle of Week Three training, with 15 more weeks separating me from the Detroit Free Press/Flagstar Bank Marathon on October 29, 2006.

Marathon training, like anything else, would be easy if it were the only thing we had penned in our planners, but that isn't always the case. Take my situation. In the midst of my training schedule, I'll be flying to Tajikistan for a three-week period. I'm not certain how much of the country's female population goes running on a daily basis or for long distances. I'm really trying to keep my calm and hope that I'll be able to find a decent gym or run undisturbed in the post-Soviet country. But what if I just can't? Sounds like a silly question, but seriously? One suggestion already tossed my way was to pack a jump rope to keep some level of cardio activity. Obviously this isn't going to compensate for one of the long runs. So, my question is this:

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