Is Pilates just a little too tame for you? Do your typical fitness classes leave you craving a little competition? Why not go retro with fitness and try roller derby?

Roller derby has been around since the 1920s, and it's popularity has ebbed and flowed. But flat track roller derby is making a comeback and it puts an edge, a competitiveness, and some fun on fitness like almost nothing else can. Roller derby certainly isn't a sport for wallflowers. But if you've got the need for speed and you're ready to get a little rough, joining an amateur league might just be the extreme fitness outlet you're looking for.

For Melissa "Melicious" Joulwan, author of "Rollergirl: Totally True Tales from the Track," roller derby was love at first sight. "I got started because I was kind of at a crossroads in my life and was looking for a way to meet people. The first time I saw a derby I thought 'I just have to do that.' I was a regular exerciser and was always a skate rat when I was young."

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Losing weight fast is widely regarded as really unhealthy. But researchers in Louisiana are questioning this notion, according to this article on Calorie Lab. In recent studies, diet very low in calories (we're talking 890 calories a day here) were shown to be and effective and fast way to lose weight without leading to dangerous loss of bone density.

I don't know about you but I'm still not convinced. There's no way eating less than 1000 calories a day can be good for you.

However, in related news, the same article points out that weight loss surgery like gastric bypass surgery, can lead to extensive bone loss. Researchers say that taking higher doses of supplements may help.

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It's no secret how Victoria Beckham stays so very thin -- the girl doesn't eat much. It's not through physical activity seeing as how she hates wearing any sort of flat shoe. Not exactly a healthy role model for weight loss, but unfortunately Britney Spears seems to have picked up on some of the ways Posh stays slim and is trying to follow that diet.

According to the Daily Mail, a source in L.A. says, "She's been eating steamed fish and edemame beans. She was told that's how Victoria stays so slim." Doesn't sound so bad, right? Just wait -- it gets worse.

"She is also drinking goji berry juice and seaweed shakes to stave off hunger and starts each day with a cup of hot water and lemon." I hope Britney and her trainers realize that Posh may be slim, but she's not healthy -- I'm happy to see Britney hitting the gym, and if she keeps that up and eats healthfully, she should be in great shape before you know it. No need to resort to seaweed shakes (unless she likes them, but I think it sounds gross!).

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How many times have you heard a startlet credit her fabulous body with good genetics or a busy lifestyle. You know, "I swear, I eat junk food all the time! I just don't put on any weight!" Well, I don't know about you, but I generally want to punch those girls. You know, good for them and all, but most of us just aren't that lucky.

Well, it turns out most of them aren't, either. We're always hearing about celebrity diets and fitness routines, and this article in the Daily Mail gives us nine reasons why most of us don't look like most of them. And trust me, these are not things you want to do in order to get bodies like theirs.

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While at Canyon Ranch -- a health, healing, and fitness resort in Tucson, Arizona -- a nutritionist told me to take a breather from hard-core healthy eating once in a while. "Order a pizza once a week," she told me. "Everyone needs a break." At the time, before I embarked on my strict diet overhaul, this seemed like sound advice. It was an invitation to let loose. I liked it. But now, five months and 15 pounds later, I can't seem to let go of my nutrition reins and give in to that cheesy, greasy pizza.

Is my diet behavior too extreme? Should I loosen up? Perhaps. But what about those who go to the other extreme? The one where letting loose is practiced a bit too often.

While every health nut should lighten up now and then and a short hiatus from the gym is certainly OK, it's not wise to go overboard. Practicing a healthy diet all week long only to guzzle beer on the weekends, shovel in the junk food, and party until the wee hours of the morning is simply counterproductive.

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The triumph of the human spirit over seemingly insurmountable obstacles never ceases to amaze me. If you thought it was hard to lose 10 pounds this summer, was it rally that hard after all?

Compare yourself to Kelly Pless, who weighed 220 pounds last year until deciding to lose 95 of them and participate in a marathon. How did Kelly do it? That old formula that works so well: diet and exercise.

Kelly weighted 215 at her senior prom in high school as the nightmare set in. After more than a decade, though, she slimmed down eight complete dress sizes and started walking as a start to exercise as well as really watching her diet. Is Kelly a model for many of us? Sure -- to millions of us, that is. Way to go, Kelly!

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It seems like nothing is as simple as it should be, even building healthy bones. It's true that eating right and exercising regularly starting early in life can keep your bones healthy and prevent osteoporosis, but it's also true that you can overdo it. If you diet too severely while exercising too rigorously you can actually make it harder for your body to form new bone, instead of easier. Which means when you're older your bones will be weaker.

It's all about balance. Exercise is great for bones, but only if you eat enough to provide the fuel your body needs. What you don't want to do is run yourself into the ground, because even if you don't have major symptoms now you'll end up paying for it later.

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How many times have you been watching an action movie when one of those chase scenes comes up that makes you think "yeah right!" as the hero miraculously leaps from rooftop to rooftop and hoists himself into a helicopter after dangling by just one pinky finger. Oh whatever, that is soooo unrealistic!

Or is it? Believe it or not there's an extreme sport that's been gaining in popularity, Parkour, that focuses on just those types of skills (okay, maybe not the 'dangling by a pinky finger' thing), but it's all about running, rolling, jumping, sliding, and even leaping from high buildings without getting hurt. It's the stuff of Hollywood chase scenes, in real life. And Parkour has actually been used in movies -- the opening of "Casino Royale" for one.

As it gains a name for itself there's even talk of Parkour being included in the Olympics! Now that would be fun to watch.

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