That's Fit

Hilary Duff has had her weight scrutinized over the last few years -- for a while there, she was scarily thin -- but she seems to have a healthy amount of muscle and some feminine curves now, and she gives some of the credit to Pilates.

The erstwhile Lizzie McGuire actress told People magazine, "I was a gymnast before, so I was a bit more bulky in the past. [Now] I have leaner, longer muscles, my strength is up."

Looks to me like she's found a great balance of healthy eating and exercise -- perhaps due in part to her relationship with a professional hockey player. At any rate, it's great to see her looking strong and healthy!

How does Dancing With the Stars judge Carrie Ann Inaba stay so fit? Well, obviously dance plays some role, but she credits her upbringing with her healthy diet.

Friday Night Lights star Minka Kelly loves her curves, and she's not alone. Charlize Theron has also made it known that she thinks her curves belong right where they are, and that they make her feel "pretty hot."

Joining the "I love my curves" club is recent mama Christina Aguilera, who has worked hard to get her tummy flat and toned, but admits she's "okay with the booty and the boobs."

It often seems like Hollywood's leading ladies get sucked into the "thinner is better" mentality, but not Charlize Theron. The A-list actress gained almost 30 pounds for her Oscar-winning role in Monster, but she also lost nearly the same amount for a different role in Sweet Sixteen, and she didn't like either extreme.

Charlize said, "I hated being fat but I also hated being so thin. I went down to a size six and just felt completely uncomfortable." She recalled feeling ribs and bone when wrapping her arms around herself, which made her feel "totally unsexy."

Despite the pressures of Hollywood, Charlize remains insistent that her curves belong on her body, and that "women have to work out what makes them feel comfortable, whether it's about their weight or their clothes." And, while it's not like Charlize's curves are out of control by any means -- she's always looked very slender to me -- it's still refreshing to hear her say that she prefers healthy curves to skin and bone.

The body is an amazing piece of equipment. I am in awe every day, really, when I think about how my body -- even after an attack by cancer -- is able to survive, even thrive. Wired for sustaining life, our bodies give and give and give. It's only after a whole bunch of abuse or a whole bunch of disease that it generally gives out. Simply amazing how our bodies last for as long as they do.

Here are some amazing body facts featured in Laura Lewis' book 52 Ways To A Healthy You -- yes, our very own That's Fit blogger, Laura Lewis. She's a wealth of knowledge, a fountain of wisdom, and while I've only just skimmed her book so far, I plan to dive right in very soon. And then I'll be back with more. For now, though, take some time to marvel at these six human body feats.

• The human body has 45 miles of nerves.

• A nerve impulse travels at the speed of light.

• Each square inch of human skin consists of 20 feet of blood vessels.

• Your tongue print is as unique as your fingerprints.

• Twenty-five percent of all the oxygen in your body is constantly being used by your brain.

• The average human heart beats about 100,000 times every 24 hours.

With all of its potential, just think how great our bodies would work if we treated them like they deserve to be treated, if we ate right, exercised right, slept well, minimized stress -- you know the drill. Think about it. And see what you can do to let your amazing machine serve you the best it can.

Everyone of course! I recently returned from a fabulous vacation with my family at Walt Disney World in Florida. Our six-day adventure was non-stop fun, and a major highlight of this trip were our days at the Disney water parks. We enjoyed both Blizzard Beach and Typhoon Lagoon to the max and would love to go back every sunny day of the year.

I had a little sad moment though as I chatted with a father of two little ones in the kiddie section of Blizzard Beach. We were commenting on what a challenge it was to keep perfect track of our children in such a busy, water-filled place. The poor guy told me he was alone with his children, because his wife didn't feel like she could go out in public in her swimsuit. He didn't want the kids to miss out on the water fun, so he took them himself. She stayed back at their resort.

It made me amazingly sad to think that this woman felt so uncomfortable in her skin that she couldn't even enjoy a beautiful day with her family at a ridiculously perfect place. I know we all feel self conscious at times (including me). And even as my profession is to educate and inspire others to be more fit ... I wouldn't want anyone to place their life on hold because of their body shape or size. That woman is a really special part of her family, and I imagine they missed her very much.

Actress Minka Kelly may have said goodbye to once-boyfriend John Mayer but she won't say farewell to her curves, says the 28-year-old Friday Night Lights star.

"I've heard it all -- 'Lose weight, lose the booty.' It's not going anywhere though!" she says. Nope, there are no diets on the horizon for this beauty, who reports that she's a healthy girl who likes to eat.

Kelly wishes all women would love their bodies. "It's good for them to know that you don't have to be anorexic."

What about you -- do you love your curves?

Keira Knightley has battled allegations that her slight build is due to an eating disorder, and though she has publicly denied having anorexia (if fact, she insists she eats like a horse), speculation has continued. Her mom is now speaking out, saying that Keira eats well and has her father's genes.

Jamie Lee Curtis once again proved to be a breath of fresh air in Hollywood. The actress is turning 50, and at this point in her life, she has come to some realizations about age, body perception, and life in general. Not only is she a class act and a role model -- she's wise, too!

Oprah Winfrey ended her 21-day vegan cleanse, and she says she got out of it exactly what she intended to get out of it -- enlightenment. She kept an online journal of her diet and talked about what she found difficult and what she found surprisingly easy. While the talk show host isn't making any commitments to going vegan, she did say, "I will forever be a more cautious and conscious eater. That's my commitment for now. To stay awakened."

In order to take your body to the next level, and to finally break through the wall you may have recently hit, you have to push yourself to reach levels beyond those already reached. Your workout brought you to where you are today, but unless you're amenable to changing things up, it is there where you'll stay.

This is why changing your workout every four to six weeks is so important. Equally as important is that you constantly try to improve upon your previous bests. Otherwise, you'll forever be lifting the same amount of weight for the same number of reps or running the same distance for the same amount of time. This is called maintenance, not progress. For progress to occur, you must always be willing to do even the slightest bit more than you did last time, as it is this incremental change that will ensure improved performance and better health over time.

Simple changes can come in the form of adding a pound or two to weight your currently lifting, increasing the speed on a treadmill by .1 or .2 on your next run, or even adding a 5-minute session of jumping rope to the end of the workout you're currently doing. You can really turn up the dial and try running to and from the gym every day rather than driving; performing walking lunges in between sets as you move from station to station instead of taking a leisurely stroll; and performing your entire workout while wearing a weighted vest.

I do some of my best thinking on the treadmill. I happen to have one at home and whenever I hop on for a power walk or run, my mind starts working. Sometimes, I plot the course of my day as the miles tick by. Sometimes, I watch my kids play in front of me and marvel at their passion for pirate ships, dragons, and Lego creations of all kinds. Other times, I generate items for my ongoing to-do list, I dream up ideas for stories I can write -- like this one -- and when I'm feeling really reflective, I count my blessing on that treadmill.

My treadmill is more than an exercise apparatus. It's a location that is all my own, reserved not only for the fine-tuning of my body but for the fitness of my mind too. I never knew that piece of equipment, purchased more than seven years ago and still going strong, would be such a great investment. Now, I know.

When we hit the beach, we all have different feelings about strutting our stuff in a swimsuit. Some folks let it all hang out. Some have nothing to hang out. And others have certain body parts they'd like to keep covered, but they still want to look beachy and summery.

This summer, stop trying to decide whether you'd rather cover up with gym shorts and a tee or with your beach towel -- there are more fashionable (and more flattering) ways for you to keep covered, and we've got the scoop on what will work best for you.

The Best Beachwear Cover-Ups gallery in our Summer Slimdown Guide is just what you need -- check out what we have to say about cover-ups get lots of other summer slimdown secrets here!

Carrie Underwood recently displayed the best kind of fitness -- fitness of the body as well as the spirit. She took part in the 8th Annual City of Hope Celebrity Softball Challenge, showing off her batting skills while raising money for City of Hope, "an innovative biomedical, research, treatment, and education institute dedicated to prevention and cure of cancer and other life-threatening illness." Judging by the pictures, it looks like Carrie might really have some skills!

Janet Jackson is once again relying on a hardcore workout regiment to get into superstar shape before her comeback tour (scheduled to begin September 7). Six days out of the week, she spends an hour working out in the morning, loosens up for a bit, then dances ... for eight hours!

I remember reading about her fitness routine the last time she got her body into completely amazing shape -- it was really tough, but incorporated all kinds of fun things that she loved to do, like dancing and playing basketball. What a smart way to approach fitness!

If your partner seems to have taken a "sex has left the building" approach to your love life, it may require some shrewd tactics to get him or her interested in being intimate again.

You can first try telling them that sex ranks quite high among possible stress-busters. Ironically, it's stress that's often to blame for a lack sexual desire, so this shouldn't be a tough sell. You may also want to mention the importance of overall health, for both of you. Studies from the University of Bristol in England show that people who have sex three times a week reduced their risk of heart disease by 50 percent, something you may want to casually mention over dinner one evening.

I'm not sure using stress-reduction and the risk of health complications as an excuse for more sex is the best way to work things out with your partner, but if it works, I doubt either of you will have any trouble getting over that small bit of deceitfulness.

Maybe the whole Body Mass Index (BMI) thing just isn't too accurate. I mean, how can a tool that takes into account only my height and weight really tell me if I'm overweight or not? What about muscle mass -- not that I have too much -- and bone density, and body fat? Don't all these factors play a role in what number appears on my bathroom scale? Surely, they do. Still, BMI measurements serve as a general guide, offering somewhat of a clue about weightiness.

Runner's World offers this cool BMI calculator you might want to check out. It's really easy to use. Just enter your weight (mine is 135) and your height (I'm 5'7") and presto! Your BMI number will present itself in an instant. Mine is 21.1, which means I am in a normal weight range. Here's how the numbers break down, according to the National Institutes of Health.

• Underweight: Less than 18.5

• Normal Weight: 18.5 to 24.9

• Overweight: 25 to 29.9

• Obese: 30 or greater
  
  

For more about Body Mass Index, check out this site. And for a different spin on BMI, use this AOL Body tool. It even includes waist measurement as an indicator.

Want to keep your brain sharp? Then give your brain cells a workout by switching up your everyday routines. Brush your teeth with the opposite hand. Find your keys in your purse by touch alone -- don't peek. Or try a challenging crossword puzzle or mind game.

Here are six more strategies, compliments of Woman's Day magazine, for keeping your whole body sharp.

• Strength train your muscles and then drink fat-free milk. Studies show that exercisers who drank two glasses a day lost more fat and built more muscle than those who didn't drink up.

Is there anything more frustrating than making a real effort to lose a certain amount of weight before a big event, like a wedding or class reunion, only to come up short when the big day rolls around? But you're out of time -- what can you do? Let me tell you -- the right clothes can make all the difference.

You've probably heard of Spanx and Assets, which are great. Hey, if it's good enough for celebrities on the red carpet, it's good enough for me. However, a new line of clothing has come out, and it has what you need built right in -- ShapeFX.

ShapeFX has all kinds of slimming items designed to "make the body you have look like the body you want." They offer shaper pieces to wear underneath (they even have Shaper Shorts with a Butt Lifter!), but they also have dresses, pants, tops ... pretty much anything you would ever want to wear. And every piece has uses at least one of three approaches to slimming you down and hiding flaws: control, fabrication, and design.