That's Fit

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.

If you've been in tune with national sporting news this week, you're probably aware of the big hub-bub created by Mike Nadel, a cranky reporter of the Peoria Journal Star, who wrote a venomous article about the both young and beautiful sideline reporter for ESPN, Erin Andrews. The "big news" and "big deal" was that Erin wore a dress that hit right above her knee (the outrage!), and her dress was not a turtleneck (hussy)! Nadel even noted that Erin went so far as to grope Alfonso Soriano's bicep at a gathering (she was just looking at his scar from a recent surgery).

Here is the truth about Erin. She's a college educated, ambitious, down-to-earth woman who started on a small network and proved her reporting worthy of a high profile on-air position at ESPN. She loves sports and is great at delivering the news we want to know about our favorite athletes, coaches and teams. Erin and I relaxed on a sunny afternoon in both of our alma mater's football stadium, the University of Florida's SWAMP, to chat. She's funny, sarcastic, and truly grateful to have the job she's dreamed of. She often travels with a band of brothers, the mostly male ESPN GameDay crew, and has had to learn the hard way that she really isn't a guy. Some fans with cell phone cameras taught her that.

Fitz: You are pretty great shape! What do you do?

Erin: Traveling for my job makes staying in shape really hard. We're on the road so much, and for me ... it's tough cause I'm one of the only girls on site. I'm really close with the other talent and the broadcasters, so we go out to eat all the time. Today we had hamburgers! Eating on the road is the worst way to eat. Not only that, but I'm surrounded by guys! When you're surrounded by men, you eat and drink like a guy.

Fitz: Not good news for a slender woman like you!

I've mentioned before that I'm a pescetarian (I know it sounds pretentious -- it just means that I eat fish, but not any other form of meat). I have a number of reasons for my personal food choices, and I try not to force my choices on anyone else.

In fact, my husband is a big meat eater (though he's become less of one since marrying me), and until now, I've never tried to persuade him not to have steak -- he's in great health and he enjoys it.

However, this post at Green Daily made me realize that perhaps I should be just a little more outspoken about eating vegetarian meals. From the post: "... driving your car aimlessly for three hours consumes less energy and is responsible for fewer greenhouse gas emissions than producing 2.2 pounds of beef."

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.

This week I got to sit down on a beautiful sunny day, in The Swamp with the very sweet, smart and athletic ESPN College GameDay Analyst Mr. Kirk Herbstreit. No, we weren't knee deep in mucky water. We were in the heart of Gator Country enjoying the breeze after Kirk completed his workout, running zillions of steps at the University of Florida football stadium, The Swamp. Kirk retired from playing football more than 15 years ago, after four years at quarterback for the Ohio State Buckeyes. But now, he's one of the major faces of college football. Pandemonium strikes college campuses across the country when he -- along with host Chris Fowler and analyst Lee Corso -- set up shop outside the biggest games of each week.

Kirk brings something unique to the team. Every time the GameDay crew heads to the University of Florida, I find more than just the expected crowd of rowdy football fans swarming their booth. There is always an unusual amount of females in a frenzy to get as close a look as possible into Kirk's pretty blue eyes. He's definitely worthy of the attention. From my interaction with Kirk, I think he's a genuinely nice and genuinely thoughtful person. Before we started talking fitness, Kirk shared concerns over all the violence taking place on college campuses. He's a protective father and husband who tries to excel in his career while taking care of his family. He is just plain old sweet! And even though his professional life has been built around sports, he works hard to squeeze in fitness and manage nutritious eating just like the rest of us. Kirk seems to be an expert juggler of life and shares some great tricks for staying fit on the go. He also dishes a few doozies on football.

Fitz: What types of things do you do to stay in shape?

Kirk: It's kind of a lifestyle really. As an athlete I worked out so hard, I could eat anything without paying the price for it. As I got older, I still had that appetite and I was not able to work out as hard as I did when I was playing football. What I really try to do is control my portions, and mix in cardio and strength training workouts four to five days a week. If I can do that, I feel like I'm in a pretty good place. It's just about doing it though!

Fitz: What do you do while you're on the road?

Quesadillas are a standby meal for many people -- no matter where you get them, they're typically fairly satisfying and decent tasting. After all, how can you go wrong with some cheese and perhaps a bit of meat and vegetables baked between tortillas? Even if the quesadilla is bland, the salsa and sour cream that comes with it is sure to spice things up. Really, It's a fairly fool-proof dish.

But taste isn't everything, especially if you're watching what you eat. And as a rule of thumb, anything that lists cheese as it's main ingredient is probably not the best choice calorie-wise. But how bad are quesadillas? I picked a fairly average-sounding dish -- the Fajita Steak Quesadillas with guacamole from Chili's -- and did a bit of investigating. What did I find? Cast your vote:

It wasn't too long ago that carbs were largely regarded as the waistline's enemy. These days, however, thinking has changed -- it's not that carbs are bad for us, it's that protein is good for us. Protein has been shown to decrease appetite and increase energy. And unlike carbs, which are often stored as fat if not burned off, protein goes to your muscles.

That said, don't go out and order the biggest steak on the menu. Lean protein is the way to go, from sources like fish, skinless chicken breasts, low-fat cottage cheese, tofu, eggs, milk, nuts or even a slice of whole wheat bread!

I've recently upped my protein and I've felt pretty energetic ever since! What about you? How do you get your protein?

When sitting down to eat in your favorite restaurant which steak do you order. Beef or Tuna? Tuna is a nutritious source of protein and omega-3 fatty acids. Everyday we learn more about the health benefits of tuna. Mercury is not the public health risk that some claim. No studies have shown that fish consumption has led to dangerous levels of mercury within the human body. Studies show that eating fish high in omega-3 fatty acids may reduce people's overall risk for developing heart disease. Tuna is also a very good source of vitamin B6.

So weigh out the benefits of nutrients in 4 ounces of tuna versus lean organic beef.

4 ounces of tuna contains:
tryptophan 0.38g
selenium 53.07 mcg
protein 33.99g
vitamin B3 (niacin) 13.54mg
vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) 1.18mg
vitamin B1 (thiamin) 0.57mg
phosphorus 277.83mg
potassium 645.25mg
magnesium 72.58mg
omega 3 fatty acids 0.33g

4 ounces of lean organic beef contains:
tryptophan 0.36g
protein 32.04g
vitamin B12 (cobalamin) 2.92mcg
zinc 6.33mg
selenium 27.67mcg
phosphorus 269.89mg
vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) 0.49mg
iron 4.05mg
vitamin B3 (niacin) 4.44mg
vitamin B2 (riboflavin) 0.35mg

Even though beef and chicken sometimes get a bad rap, in moderation they definitely can be part of a healthy diet. Personally, I'm a huge veggie fan and don't even always cook meat at home, so some of the stuff in this article on 10 tips for buying meat and poultry was new to me. When I do buy meat in the store it always seems easy enough to just look for the "beef" or "chicken" sign, head over and pick something with the latest expiration date possible.

If that's not your style (and it shouldn't be!), then refreshing -- or increasing in my case -- your shopping knowledge is definitely a good thing, because things change everyday and "what to look for" in today's market is somewhat different from years ago.