The Phillies' first baseman left spring training on Monday to get an infection in his surgical wound examined. Is he out?
Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard is down (again)—but is he out?
Local news outlets are reporting that Howard has developed an infection in the wound he received from surgery on his Achilles tendon in October. Howard reportedly left spring training in Clearwater, Florida, on Monday to see the Baltimore physician who performed the surgery. His wounds were cleaned and examined, but there’s no word yet on when Howard will be able to return to the practice field.
According to 6ABC, Phillies head athletic trainer Scott Sheridan said the infection isn’t a setback, and that Howard’s Achilles tendon is still perfectly intact. But, realistically, what kind of healing time are we looking at?
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Fill up on Mexican without busting your gut.
As a frequent diner of Mexican food establishments, I know all to well how easy it can be to fill up on the chips and guacamole—then overindulge in the food I ordered off the actual menu. The result is a major food coma and not-so-short couch break. This, my friends, does not have to be the case; Distrito, the hip University City eatery by Jose Garces offers many solutions.
Alright, let’s be honest. Do you really think you can skip the chips and guac? If not, you have got to share or consider sitting at the bar, having a beer and calling that your meal.
If you have enough self control not to order another round of chips, this menu is packed with healthy options that are perfect for sharing. Here are my picks.
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A free dance party with cocktails—need I say more?
 Beer, wine and a workout—too good to be true? Fitness instructors Christine Gallagher and Andrea Kozma are hosting a steamy 90 minute event this week: Double Trouble Fiesta Friday. The workout time will be split between Zumba and Gallagher’s Red Hot Dance Fitness (we named it one of Philly’s sexiest workouts, natch), with free beer and wine to follow. No registration required; just show up ready to have a good time! More info is here.
FREE, March 2, 6 to 7:30 p.m., Club La Maison, 215 Sugartown Road, Wayne.
>> Have a health or fitness event you’d like to share with Be Well Philly readers? Email eleaman@phillymag.com with details.
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Yes, yes, the Broad Street Run's sold out. Now what?
 Didn’t snag a spot in Philly’s über-popular 10-miler? Here, five other springtime races worth lacing up for.
Tyler Arboretum 10K Trail Run
When: March 31st at 9 a.m.
Where: Off-road trails in Delaware County’s Tyler Arboretum.
Why: This ain’t no jaunt in the park: It features four creek crossings and enough elevation changes to keep your quads and calves guessing.
Cost: $25 ($30 after March 4th); register. Update: This race is now sold out!
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The new Sweat Fitness and Frames will open in April near Philadelphia University.
 Scott Caplan at the new Sweat Fitness and Frames I’m sure this happens to you every day: You go to the gym and find yourself thinking, “Gosh, I really wish I could go bowling right now.” What if you could hop off the elliptical and stroll over to your gym’s bowling alley for a few frames?
“We’re building a gym with a bowling alley in it,” says Sweat Fitness co-owner Scott Caplan. ”I just woke up one morning and said, ‘I don’t think this has ever been done,’ so we’re doing it.”
Dare to dream, no?
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Historians (of all people) may have figured out why we have trouble sleeping.
 • I absolutely despise when I have a bad night of sleep. Nothing throws me off more than (what feels like) hours and hours of listless tossing. And I spend most of that time agonizing over how awful the next day will be as a result. Historians have dipped their toes into the pool of sleep science, it seems, and uncovered a most unusual sleeping pattern of our ancestors: first and second sleeps, in which a person falls asleep for a few hours, wakes up for a few, and then sleeps several more until morning. As the BBC reports, this is how people slept up until the early 19th century, when a continuous eight-hour sleep cycle was adopted (and when, coincidentally, reports of sleep problems began cropping up). In the 1990s, someone set out to find out what our natural sleep patterns actually are. And guess what? Study subjects had two distinct, four-hour sleep cycles, with an hour or two of awake time in between. Take that, modern science. Read more about the history of sleep here.
• Boy, am I happy I started liking fish recently. (Not a joke!) A study found that people with low levels of Omega-3s—the good-for-you stuff that fish are packed with—had smaller brains and scored worse on memory tests than those with high levels of the essential fatty acid. The Wall Street Journal has more.
• If you have a spare 9 minutes and 19 seconds this morning, watch this neat video over on Runner’s World about the importance of exercise—you know, the cure-all for just about everything.
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A paper in the Journal of Medical Ethics is ruffling lots of feathers.
Pockets of the Internet are just beginning to bubble over paper published in the March issue of the Journal of Medical Ethics. Editors of the journal decided to prepublish the paper, titled, “After-birth abortion: why should the baby live?”, online last week, and it’s already making waves. From the abstract:
Abortion is largely accepted even for reasons that do not have anything to do with the fetus’ health. By showing that (1) both fetuses and newborns do not have the same moral status as actual persons, (2) the fact that both are potential persons is morally irrelevant and (3) adoption is not always in the best interest of actual people, the authors argue that what we call ‘after-birth abortion’ (killing a newborn) should be permissible in all the cases where abortion is, including cases where the newborn is not disabled.
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From Zeltiq to VelaShape, four FDA-approved fat removal techniques to take care of trouble spots
If you’re thinking about liposuction but are a little freaked about surgery, anesthesia, downtime—or heck, all three—you may be in luck. Non-invasive fat removal techniques that get rid of fat cells without surgery or recovery time are available at plenty of places in the area.
Of course, there are drawbacks to these liposuction alternatives. For one, most work as compliments to liposuction surgery, or perform fat removal on a smaller scale. Although cheaper than lipo, they’re all pretty pricey, and it’s questionable how permanent the results are. And of course, none of these procedures (liposuction included), are miracle-workers. Diet, upkeep and exercise are necessary for long-lasting results.
But if you have a few pesky trouble-spots the gym just won’t get rid of, these four techniques, which leverage lasers, light, heat and freezing temperatures, may do the trick. All of these procedures are FDA-approved and said to be relatively painless.
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A special Philly Dance Fitness workshop led by guest instructor Duane Wilkins
 Love African music? Now is your chance to learn some of the basics while getting a serious workout. The class will begin with stretches and basic Afro-jazz moves leading up to a short combination that you’ll take to the dance floor. The workshop will conclude with a traditional salute to the drum. You don’t need to have any prior experience, just come ready to move around and have some fun! Register and learn more here.
$12 in advance, $15 day of; Saturday March 3, 12:30 to 2 p.m.; The Performance Garage, 1515 Brandywine St., Philadelphia
>> Have a health or fitness event you’d like to share with Be Well Philly readers? Email eleaman@phillymag.com with details.
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Don't train alone! These four training programs will get you up to speed.
With the Broad Street Run only 10 weeks away (!), it’s time to start mapping out a training plan. Since flying solo on your Saturday-morning jaunts is bound to get lonely at some point, why not opt for a training program that includes pointers, coaching and company? Here are four programs that can help you cross the finish line in one piece.
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