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.

Nastia Liukin was the darling of the U.S. gymnastics team this year as she conquered Olympic Gold in the All Around competition and proudly added to her collection four more medals. That would be three silver and one bronze; I personally would kill to have just one in any color. She's Russian born, American bred and now working with the Secret Sport Challenge to help make other athletic dreams come true. I scored this interview this week while she was promoting the Challenge and bringing attention to the twenty $5,000 scholarships being given away to help others achieve their sporty goals. Nastia is ridiculously fit and has some great advice to help you look better, feel stronger and live longer.

Fitz: How many hours a week do you train before a competition?

Nastia: Before the Olympics I trained for about seven hours a day. It included about two hours of warming up and conditioning, and the rest of the time was spent practicing routines and skills on the events.

Fitz: If you weren't a professional athlete/gymnast how do you think you'd pursue fitness?

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The United States is two to three years behind most Western countries in terms of life expectancy -- it ranks 29th among all United Nations' member nations. Highest is Andorra, with an average life expectancy of 83. The U.S. magical age is 78. Still, we're making some progress in the life expectancy arena.

• Babies born in 2006 have an average life expectancy about four months greater than babies born in 2005.
  
  

• The male-female difference has declined over the past 15 years, from eight years to five years.
  
  

• Blacks have been gaining on whites.
  
  
• Flu and pneumonia deaths are dropping -- there were 22,000 fewer deaths between 2005 and 2006.
  
  
• Infant mortality rates are dropping.
  
  

• Deaths from stroke, lower respiratory diseases, heart disease, high blood pressure, and diabetes are on the decline.
  
  

While it's too soon to tell if some of these occurrences are caused by statistical fluke or real trends, there's a possibility the drop in diabetes deaths is the biggest researchers have seen in a long time. And that, my friends, would be some pretty good news.

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National Women's Health Week kicks off on Mother's Day with the purpose of empowering women to get healthy by taking action. Your health should be a major priority, and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office on Women's Health has a few steps designed to help you achieve that. Businesses, government, and health organizations across the United States, hopefully near you, will be taking part in this event.

Objectives of the week are designed to teach women the benefits of:

• Engaging in physical activity most days of the week
• Making healthy food choices
• Visiting a health care provider to receive regular check-ups and preventive screenings
• Avoiding risky behaviors, like smoking and not wearing a seat belt

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A new study reveals that Americans are less happy today than they were 30 years ago. The research comes from Italy of all places, but it looks at data collected from 1975 to 2004. Can you guess the leading causes of this drop in happiness? The culprits are longer working hours and diminishing personal relationships.

It seems obvious: just look at the drastic rise in medical treatments for depression nowadays! How did we get to this point? While it's safe to say not everyone is a walking puddle of misery, our culture has become increasingly competitive. Not only that, but many people perceive others to be untrustworthy and keep their distance. An interesting note in the study states that it's easier to drop from the middle class to the poor in America than in Europe. Because of this insecurity, Europe's "happiness trends" have remained relatively constant over the years.

However there is hope. For those who think money can buy happiness, the good news is that an extra $320,000 in income will bring the same level of joy as someone who has plenty of friends and social interactions. If you buy into that, then good luck. For everyone else, the fix is simple. Try curbing the occupational binge and start spending more time with friends and family! Finding a happy balance is not as hard as it may appear. Here's to the next 30 years-

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