Safety helmets have become standard gear for biking. So much so that people don't think twice about putting them on. But many still go zooming down the side of a slippery mountain without the protection of a helmet. It's ridiculous if you think about it. Even more ridiculous when you consider that there were more than 26,000 head injuries from winter sports in 2007, according to the Consumer Product Safety Commission.

Keep safe while sporting in the snow by following these tips:

• Wear a helmet approved for your specific sport.
• Protect your eyes with goggles.
• Wear appropriate clothing.
• Use additional safety gear when it is available (e.g. hockey pads).
  
• Don't drink before skiing or snowboarding, and don't participate when you're not feeling well.
  
• Avoid hazardous conditions such as ice-coated sledding hills.
• Use approved areas for ice skating, skiing, snowmobiling and sledding.

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Sit-ups may seem old school. But, when done correctly, they're effective and that's why they've stood the test of time. Late-night infomercials and different workout programs have tried to improve upon the basic sit-up for years. But you don't need any $19.99, plus shipping and handling, tool to get the job done.

Safe and effective sit ups are as simple as ABC ... and D. (Though that darn 'D' makes the whole shtick a lot less catchy.)

• A is for Alignment. Lie on your back with your knees bent. Keep your feet flat on the floor and don't hook them under your couch or anything else. Position the small of your back flat on the floor. With your hands resting lightly on your temples (not behind your head -- pulling can injure you), lift your head, neck and shoulders off the ground.
  
• B is for Body control. When lifting up, make sure your abs are doing the work. Go slowly. Remember to breathe while doing the sit-up.
  
• C is for Consistency. Don't expect a few sit-ups once a month to do the trick. Try doing sit-ups every other day, and remember that quality is better than quantity -- 10-20 with proper form are better (and safer!) than many sloppy ones.
  
• D is for Develop all the abdominal muscles. Traditional sit-ups don't target the lower abdominal muscles and you don't want them to feel left out, do you? Try lying on your back with your knees bent, then bring one knee toward your chest and hold for a few seconds. Bring the other leg up and then slowly lower the first leg, then the second. Repeat on both sides.
  

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The snow is flying outside my window right now. It's beautiful, but I know I'm going to have quite a bit of shoveling to do soon. Though shoveling snow shouldn't replace your regular workout, it certainly does offer fitness benefits. Like any other physical activity, you need to be smart and careful when shoveling snow.

• Warm up for a few minutes before heading outside to shovel snow. Walk in place for five to 10 minutes in your living room or climb up and down the stairs a few times.
• Stretch after your warm-up. Be sure to do some flexibility exercises that safely stretch your back, such as lying on your back and bringing your knees up to your chest. Also do some arm and leg stretches.
  
• Dress in layers so you can peel off your outer layers if you start to get overheated.
• Use proper equipment. Some snow shovels are designed for pushing light snow and others are designed for scooping and lifting heavier snow. Make sure you've got the right tool for the job.
  
• Use your legs. If the snow is too heavy to just push to the side, use your legs. Throw the snow in a forward motion -- don't twist and throw it over your shoulder or to the side.

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I adopted my son a little over a year ago. When he first moved home, he was 10-years-old and had spent quite a few years bouncing between family to family in foster care. Subsequently, he didn't have a very good grasp on a lot of basic principles, such as manners and appropriate boundaries. He honestly didn't know why it would be OK to ask for a drink of water, but why it isn't polite just to start rifling through a neighbor's kitchen cabinets.

While we worked on manners and boundaries at home, I decided it was best to set an outdoor-only rule when playing with neighborhood friends. I figured there were a lot fewer manner-glitches he could run into while playing outdoors. Besides, it was summer. Why should he be inside when there are bikes to be ridden and games of tag to be played?

A few of the other parents talked to me about the rule. They understood that he was learning new rules and needed stricter boundaries, but they didn't want him to feel different from the other kids in the neighborhood. In the end, they all supported my decision. And by the time winter's cold arrived, my son had a much better grasp on manners and could play inside friend's houses without unintentionally being rude.

• Eat right

• Exercise

• Get lots of sleep

• Drink plenty of water

• Brush and floss your teeth

• Stay safe

I came across this post at the Celebrity Baby Blog showing Nicole Kidman walking with her trainer and ... showing her pregnant belly! The post was pretty short, mostly consisting of pictures, but what was more interesting were the comments.

Many women seemed really concerned with the fact that Nic is working out so much and so hard during her pregnancy, especially given her age and history (she's had a miscarriage and an ectopic pregnancy). Good God, her belly is so small! Oh, no, she's sweating!

Here's the thing -- there were stories posted about her attending a spinning class and walking with a trainer within the span of a week. There is no evidence that she's spending hours and hours at the gym each day (or any day, for that matter.

Obviously, Nicole was fit prior to becoming pregnant, and most doctors recommend keeping up some level of activity after becoming pregnant, unless there are problems. And, while each pregnancy is different, as is each pregnant woman, does anyone really think Nicole is about to put her baby at risk?

She's made it abundantly clear that she's over the moon about this pregnancy, and I'm pretty sure she (and her doctors, and her trainer) are well aware of her age and history. I think the opinions of those in the know -- don't you?

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Have you ever tried a liquid diet? I'll admit, I did a few years ago when I wanted to lose a couple pounds in a short amount of time. My conclusion? I like food too much to give it up. It's hard to give up both the sensation of chewing and the taste of real food. What's more, although I was getting an adequate amount of calories, it was hard to convince myself that the chalky substance I just drank was dinner. So while I'm all for having a protein shake for breakfast, I discovered that a full-on liquid diet isn't for me.

WebMD recently did an interesting article on liquid diets -- check it out if you're considering one. The long and short of it? Liquid diets can be effective, but you have to be careful to choose one that is not dangerously low in calories or nutrients.

What do you think about liquid diets?

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Today is New Year's Eve. Many of of are looking back on a whole year of memories. Some good, some not so good. Although you might not have eaten as well, stayed as healthy or exercised as much as you would have hoped in 2007, there's a fresh year ahead.

Whatever your New Year's resolutions are for 2008, stick with them: write them on your bathroom mirror so you won't forget; note them in your car so you see them every day; put a sticky note on your PC at work to remind you.

Remember, only you can make a force for change, whether it be eating better, getting in shape, reading more books or just living an overall healthier lifestyle -- however you quantify it for your personal tastes. Until then, Happy New Year and we hope to see you back here next year at That's Fit!

Is there any truth to the five-second rule? You know, that guiding principle we use when our food drops to the floor and we pick it right back up and eat it. As long as it hasn't been on the floor for more than five seconds, we're safe. Right?

We actually have longer than five seconds, says Anne Bernhard, assistant professor of biology at Connecticut College, whose students put this rule to the test.

Bernard and her team dropped apple slices, a wet food, and Skittles, a dry food, on a cafeteria floor -- which incidentally had been smeared with E.coli -- and then measured the results. Their conclusion: Moist foods are probably safe for 30 seconds, and dry food can stay on the ground for one minute. And that's with E.coli in the mix.

So the five-second rule appears to be legit -- if you trust this study, that is.

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There's always been a general consensus when it comes to safe vehicles that bigger is safer, but that's really not the case. Not only is bigger not safer, in some cases it's actually more dangerous to drive a larger vehicle. The Ford Excursion, for example, had 3 times the death rate of the smaller Excursion and twice that of the mid-sized Explorer (it's now a discontinued model). To help us all figure this out Forbes has compiled all the data from crash test ratings, available electronic stability control, and accident avoidance statistics to come up with a list of the 15 safest SUVs, and here are the top 5:

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A big part of watching out for your health is watching out for your own and your family's safety. There are many dangers out in the world, but one of the biggest safety risks involves something you do everyday without even batting an eyelid: jumping in the car.

Making the decision on which car to get for your family is a big one that involves a lot of factors, but one of the most important is safety. According to Forbes this is the top 10 list of the safest in family cars:

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I've heard so much good stuff about Stevia, even on That's Fit. So it caught my eye when our friends at Diet Blog asked the question is stevia safe? Turns out the FDA sent a letter to Hain Celestial Group Inc. about their use of stevia as a food additive in some of their products. Now, according to the FDA, stevia is fine as a food supplement, but not as a food additive. Why? Because the FDA considers stevia as unsafe as a food additive. Moreover, they claim that there is insufficient data to support that stevia is safe.

Concerned yet? I am. For more info on stevia, read the full article.

Do you use stevia?

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It seems we keep going over and over the topic of what to eat and how to eat it. I guess we keep asking the same tired diet questions because we forget the answers or we worry popular opinion has changed. It happens. Remember when coffee was an evil drink? Now it's practically considered a health food. And then there's the fact that people disagree. Some experts believe in low-carb diets. Others say don't worry about the darned things. So we search and search for guidance, hoping to one day locate the final word on proper nutrition.

And here I am with another expert opinion. It comes from Discover Magazine's Robert W. Lash, M.D., who reveals his take on fat, protein, and carbs. See what you think.

Lash says the lower the fat the better, within reason. Twenty percent is a good goal but can be difficult to maintain over the long haul.

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There's no question adults need to get moving for the sake of health and fitness. What about kids? Yep. With more overweight kids now than ever before, youngsters need to do their part too.

It's not all that hard to set kids on the right path. In fact, it's as easy as getting them to walk to school. One study showed girls who pound the pavement get an extra 14 minutes of activity per day. Add this to all the movement they accumulate in the day and it can make quite a difference.

Experts recommend parents start a "walking school bus," -- a group of kids led by one or more adults. For those who live too far to hoof it all the way to school, choose a closer drop-off point -- try a half-mile or mile away from the final destination -- and begin the trek there.

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When I was growing up, if there was a kid in the neighborhood that had a trampoline that kid was the most popular person on the block. In the summer, all the local youngsters would head over to double-bounce each other and on hot days, run a sprinkler underneath to cool off. Not only was it great exercise, it was a whole lot of fun.

So I find it disappointing to read that both the Canadian Paediatric Society and Canadian Academy of Sports Medicine have recommended that parents not let their their kids use trampolines at home for recreational purposes. I realize that the bouncy equipment results in loads of injuries each year. According to the information I found, injuries ranged from approximately 20,000 to 60,000 a year in the US based on 5-year period and between 149 and 660 a year in Canada over a 13-year period -- which doesn't sound like much compared to the US numbers but the they are actually pretty similar when looked at on a per capita basis.

Granted that's a lot of broken arms and sprained wrists but rather than suggesting an altogether ban as a solution, I prefer Health Canada's approach which advocates educating kids about the dangers of trampoline use. Basically, parents need to be reasonable and take responsibility for their kids safety. It's important to advise children on safe trampoline use, set strict boundaries and be willing to take the time to supervise but I don't think that it's necessary to prevent your kids from using trampolines at all.

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