We've been keeping our eye on Katie Holmes for a while now -- she was looking a little thin early in the year, when we heard a rumor that she was planning a Scientology detox diet after her Broadway show ended. And then, last month, she was explaining away her weight loss, blaming her seriously skinny frame on her heavy work load.

Well, it's not just work that's slimming her down -- it appears that Katie has been following a rigorous detox diet plan to rid her body of toxins (supposedly as a lead-up to having a second child), and it seems it's just a little too much for her. She and husband Tom Cruise were noticeably absent from last week's Academy Awards, and the "Daily Mail" is reporting that it's because the diet has left Katie simply "too tired" to handle it.

I've always felt strongly that a diet shouldn't leave you unable to do your daily tasks. And yes, I know, the Oscars are a bit more taxing than, say, an evening out with friends, but think about it -- how extreme would a diet have to be to keep you away from the biggest red carpet event of the year? Because I can't imagine how tired I would have to be to miss out on that.

So many celebrities rely on really unhealthy diets to drop weight, and it leads me to wonder: Do they really think these extreme diets are worth it? And do you?

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Excuses, excuses. If too many of them are standing in between you and your workout, try this.

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Ever noticed how an after-work drink on Friday makes you feel sluggish all weekend, even though a drink on Saturday doesn't have the same effect? You're not alone -- it happens to a lot of people. And according to nutritionist Jane Clarke, there's a perfectly reasonable explanation for this -- it has to do with how alcohol is processed by your body after a long, hard day or week of work. In other words: If you're tired, stressed or depressed, one drink can be pretty potent, even for the most seasoned drinkers.

Other things that affect how the drink affects you? If you've just come from a workout, a cocktail will affect you more easily than it would if you hadn't worked up a sweat. Similarly, if you haven't eaten a nutritious meal beforehand, alcohol will affect you more than it would have if you had.

However, if you're in college, you're probably thinking this is a good thing. Do your liver a favour and drink wisely.

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Have fitness questions? Fitz has your answers. Our ThatsFit.com fitness expert -- and now your own virtual personal trainer -- will help you get fit, increase your overall health and do it in a fun way. Drop your questions here in the Comments section below and we'll choose one per week to publish on That's Fit! Learn more about Fitz here.

Q. Fitz. I'm dying to get in shape, but I'm just too tired to do anything about it. I work a ton, sleep a little, and can't even find time to make a salad. What do I do? Erica

A. Hi Erica. Your question is kinda like the "chicken and the egg" dilemma. I know you think you're too tired to be fit, but this problem is probably in reverse. You are simply unable to keep up with your busy life because you are unfit. Time to make some changes.

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I have been sleeping in ecstasy for the past few weeks. Yes. I have a Sleep Number Bed. Not only do I have a Sleep Number Bed, but I have the new kind with Memory Foam on top. Mmmmmm. It's amazing. In fact, I didn't realize how poorly I was sleeping until I got this bed.

I value sleep. I'm a fitness trainer, fitness enthusiast, mother of two and writer of far too many things. I need to sleep, and I need to sleep well in order to accomplish the ridiculous amount of tasks that fill my days. Are you familiar with this insane style of living? I bet many of you are.

Sleep is such a powerful tool. In fact, it's a requirement for professionals and parents and growing children too. Think of it this way. Exhausted people don't work out. Those running on fumes struggle to achieve the bare minimums of each day and then toss and turn at night, unable to get to sleep quickly. Sleepless people tend to eat poorly and gain weight as a result as well. The bottom line? Quality sleep is a crucial component for vitality, fitness and success.

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Over at Fitsugar, they recently addressed this question: What's more important, sleep or exercise? Obviously, both are essential to a healthy lifestyle, but if you're so busy that you have to lose precious sleep to get your exercise, which activity should be cut? Their answer: You should always be getting seven to eight hours of sleep, and if that means you can't get to the gym at 6 am every morning, so be it.

Still, that doesn't mean you can't exercise. You owe it to yourself to try to fit in a workout where you can. Some suggestions?

• It's an oldie but a goody: take the stairs, and go up them as quickly as you can. Ten minutes of intense exercise a few times a day can have the same results as a 45-minute non-intense workout.
• Ever considered biking or walking to work or school? It's exercise -- and you're getting somewhere while you're at it.
• Instead of getting up an hour earlier to go to the gym, why not get up 20 minutes earlier and do a workout at home? There are tons of 20-minute workout DVDs out there, or you can make your own workout plan with simple exercises like sit-ups, push-ups, jump rope, etc.

I'm sure you have even more great ideas on how to fit in a workout -- please share!

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Unless you're: A) under the age of two; B) in high school; or C) eligible for an AARP card, naps are not usually considered socially acceptable. And anyway, who has the chance to nap? Most of us spend our afternoons in an office, running errands or doing something else that's productive.

But a nap, even a quick one, can really help restore alertness and improve your mood, so don't feel guilty about taking one. Divine Caroline has seven tips for napping effectively. Here are a couple:

• Don't sleep longer than 45 minutes. After this amount of time, you'll be drifting into deep sleep and will feel groggy when you wake up.
  
• Find a place to lie down -- it takes longer to fall asleep sitting up.
• Don't nap too close to bedtime -- you'll be lying awake when it's time to hit the sack.
  

Want more tips? Read the full article here.

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We've been talking lots about the importance of sleep lately. No wonder -- sleep is some potent stuff, strong enough to keep us healthy, keep our minds sharp, keep us thin. It can also keep us safe on the roads -- Laura even says so here.

Drowsy driving is a real health risk. Thanks to the National Safety Council, here are some tips for staying alert behind the wheel.

• Get plenty of sleep before you get on the road.
• If you feel tired, stop in a safe area and rest. Don't pull over at the side of the road, though.
• Don't drive between the hours of 12 a.m. and 6 a.m.
• For long trips, start driving early in the morning and share driving duties with a buddy.
• Keep the temperature inside the car cool and comfortable.
• Drive with your head up, shoulders back, and legs flexed at about a 45 degree angle.
• Take a break every 100 miles, get some fresh air, stretch your legs, and have a healthy snack -- see gallery for some ideas.

  11 snacks under 200 calories(click thumbnails to view gallery)

  

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Constantly tired? Join the club. It seems like everyone these days is walking around in a permanent haze of fatigue. Blame it on our crazy schedules, our myriad of commitments. But whatever the case, the fact of the matter is that it's affecting our health.

What can you do? The first step is figuring out where your sleep deficit is coming from. According to this article from Prevention Magazine, you should take two or three weeks to adjust your lifestyle and figure out if your fatigue is the result of your own habits or something deeper. Cut back on caffeine and alcohol, go to bed earlier, scale back your social calendar, get more exercise and eat better. And If none of the above help you feel less tired? Check out Prevention for some common causes of fatigue.

How do you prevent the yawns?

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Are you tired? Yawning, stretching, feeling unfocused and unenergetic? If that sounds like you, read up on some tests you might want to take.

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I ran really far on Sunday, and when the time came to go to the gym with my husband on Monday, I thought I'd be too beat to perform. I literally was contemplating stretching for an hour as I walked through the front doors. But then! Then I saw something beautiful to my left. Over the dozens of cardio machines to my side, I saw Tom Cruise plopped down on the couch with Oprah and was drawn over to the treadmills.

Curiosity got my goat, and up I climbed on to the machine before me. Now strangely enough, because of a back injury, walking hurts more than running. So with emotional bricks in my shoes I cranked up the speed to six miles per hour and got going. I swear to you that before I turned that darn machine on, I would have never imagined my legs would take me half a mile. Apparently I was wrong.

Turns out that even though I felt sluggish and was full of doubt, I was capable of running for an hour straight! Isn't that insane? I think so. Listen. I've been in this business a long time, and have made a living out of proving to people that they could do the things they thought they couldn't! Feeling slow, tired, and unmotivated is not unusual. What is unusual, though, is finding the inspiration to yank out your personal best, even under those circumstances.

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Statistics say lack of sleep is one major cause of car accidents. Do heavy eyes ever plague you on the road? If so, try these three remedies for staying awake and alert.

• Suck on a mint. Researchers report that the scents of peppermint and cinnamon boost altertness and cut down on fatigue. Pop a mint in your mouth on your next road trip and see if it works.

• Crank up the tunes. Fast music with high frequency sounds -- high voices, violins, saxophones -- may cause your brain waves, heart rate, and breath to speed up to match the rhythm of the music.

• Grab a cup of Joe. One recent study found that drinking coffee might be more effective than a power nap. Good reason to swing by that roadside Starbucks.
  
  

Source: Woman's Day magazine, April 2008

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Although getting good sleep should be at the top of everybody's daily "to do" list for good health and good looks, there are always going to be those days when you didn't get enough and you're really dragging. And as if a day like that isn't hard enough to get through, nothing makes it worse than having people telling you all day how tired you look. So the answer? Don't look tired.

Exercise! Overnight during sleep your body increases microcirculation to the skin to refresh and revive it by delivering essential nutrients. If you're shorted on sleep, though, you can help boost circulation with a quick morning workout.

Teabags Puffy eyes and dark circles happen when the body can't restore vascular tone during sleep and fluid accumulates. Putting a used, cool, green tea bag on/under each eye for a few minutes in the morning will help shrink blood vessels, drain fluid, and even fight inflammation.

Meditation Not getting enough sleep can create stress, or make current stress worse, which in turn increases your body's production of cortisol. Cortisol is linked to skin inflammation issues like acne and eczema. Meditation, however, can help your body fall into a state of deep rest -- which in turn might help curb some cortisol production.

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When we think of diabetes, we tend to assume that it affects either those who were diagnosed with it in childhood or those who are severely overweight. But guess what? Normal weight people can have diabetes too, and even if you don't notice the symptoms--fatigue, thirst, excessive urination--doesn't mean they're not there in a milder form.

This article from The Daily Mail talks about Diabetes in depth and even looks at the blood sugar levels of a handful of average adults. The results are surprising -- some seemingly healthy adults have blood sugar levels that should be investigated.

Does this mean that if you're tired, you have diabetes? No, but it does mean that you should be careful -- don't ignore your symptoms, and let your doctor know if something seems off.

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I know I've been guilty of being tired behind the wheel on a few occasions. There's nothing scarier than the head-drop that occurs while behind the wheel, causing you to instantly wake up in a panic.

And it seems as though I'm far from being the only tired driver on the road. According to the National Sleep Foundation, more than 32 million people admit to have actually fallen asleep at the wheel within the past year. Estimates as high as 100,000 reflect the number of crashes that occur in the U.S. as a result of sleep-related driving, killing more than 1,500 people annually.

So, the next time your eyelids start to get heavy while driving, don't try to soldier through the state of drowsiness. Instead, pull off the road and take a short break; it can sometimes mean the difference between a safe ride home and a terrible accident.

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