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 By Andie Rowe, EdM, CWP
UnitedHealthcare Regional Health and Wellness Director
Exercise can result in weight loss, increased energy, and improved outlook. But here’s an added bonus: studies show that those who exercise are also physically younger. Who couldn’t appreciate that?
The Fitness-Age Connection
Staying in shape can affect your life expectancy in two ways, according to a study in the Archives of Internal Medicine. First, it can decrease your chances of developing diseases and medical conditions. At the same time, keeping fit can also reduce the impact of aging on your chromosomes. The chromosomes of the most active people in the study were similar to those of inactive people 10 years younger – an excellent reason to get moving.
Get Your Weekly Dose
In order to reap the benefits of exercise you have to hit the pavement, not the couch. Guidelines from the American College of Sports Medicine and theAmerican Heart Association suggest that healthy adults need at least:
- 30 minutes of moderate activity—such as brisk walking, yoga, or dancing—five days a week, or
- 20 minutes of intense activity—such as jogging, swimming, or aerobic dance—three days a week, and
- 20 minutes of strength training twice a week
Paired with a healthy diet, regular exercise can help you maintain your health and even your youth!
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On Cinco de Mayo, no less!
 Philly Dance Fitness is celebrating its two-year anniversary in style: with a free Zumba Dance Party in Rittenhouse Square. On May 5th, the studio’s regularly scheduled Zumba class in South Philly will move to Rittenhouse, where anyone can drop in for free. In addition to Zumba, instructors will lead a handful of the studio’s most popular routines. And don’t forget—May 5th is Cinco de Mayo (duh), so don’t be surprised if you hear a techno version of the Mexican Hat Dance in the mix. (In fact, you should probably plan on it.) Whether you’re a dance-fitness vet or a newbie, this event welcomes everyone! Learn more here.
FREE, Saturday, May 5, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Rittenhouse Square Park, 18th and Walnut streets
>> 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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Our writer attempts to whip her body into bikini shape with Lithe Method's three-week introductory series.
I first decided to take the Lithe Method plunge when the weather started warming up and I realized I was not (in any way, shape or form) shorts-, skirt- or bikini-ready. I was interested in trying the Immersion series, a boot camp-like foray into the World of Lithe with two introductory classes a week for three weeks. It would be intense, of course, but I hoped it would be just the shock-to-the-system my body desperately needed.
For the uninitiated, the Lithe Method is an only-in-Philly (for now!) workout designed by former college cheerleader Lauren Boggi. Story goes she tore her rotator cuff and was rehabbing with Pilates when she realized it just wasn’t cutting it. She decided to create a cheerleading-inspired workout that be more challenging and offer better results. And so the Lithe Method was born, a barre/Pilates hybrid that mixes things up with good doses of cardio and some killer resistance training. The result is a workout unlike any you’ve ever done. Lithe addicts say it’s a total body-changer.
Toward the end of my final semester of college—a period that entailed a lot of stress-eating and late-night procrastinating as I juggled two internships and an editor position at my university newspaper—I recognized that my body was suffering. Regular exercise didn’t fit on my overstuffed calendar. As a former competitive dancer I know what it feels like to be in shape; as a twenty-something vegetarian whose meals mainly consist of carbs and cheese, I also know what it feels like to NOT be in shape. Weight loss wasn’t my goal, per se, and I certainly didn’t expect to fit into the size-24 True Religions hanging in the back of my closet, either. But while I reconciled myself with the fact that those jeans would never look awesome on my butt six years after purchasing them (let’s be real, no one retains the body of a 19-year-old for very long), I also didn’t want to rely on Lululemon’s awesome-butt pants in order to feel comfortable leaving my apartment all summer. I needed to tone. I needed to tighten.
So I signed up for the Lithe Method. Here’s what happened.
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Yup—even you.
Does doing a pull-up seem next to impossible? Don’t be too hard on yourself—pull-ups are one the toughest upper body exercises you can do. But here’s a secret you might not know: There are ways to modify pull-ups to make them possible at any fitness level.
In the video below, we demo easy modifications you can do to help build strength. Follow our advice and I promise—you’ll be doing pull-ups in no time.
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A California woman was shocked to discover that the chocolatey spread isn't health food. So she sued—and ended up a big winner.
 • Put down your coffee before you continue reading. I have something shocking to tell you. Ready? Okay, here goes: Nutella is not good for you. Listen, I’m sorry to burst your bubble and all, but since it appears that some consumers—fine, one consumer—was unaware that the gooey, sugar-loaded, chocolate-hazelnut spread is not in fact good for you, I figured it’d be best if I cleared up any confusion on the matter. Despite what its commercials might lead you to believe, Nutella is not health food, packing a couple hundred calories and double-digit fat grams in just a few tablespoons. Treat it like candy: It’s fine in moderation, but you probably shouldn’t consume it by the bucketful at every meal. San Diego mom Athena Hohenberg wasn’t super clear on all those details, it seems. She thought Nutella was healthy, since that’s what the ads seem to imply, and fed it to her daughter. (Nutella’s touted as vaguely healthy, I guess, if you’re reeeeally looking for it in this ad.) So when Hohenberg figured out that, no, Nutella’s not very healthy after all, she got mad—and then she sued (of course). What’s most mind-boggling about this whole situation is the fact that, on Friday, news came out that the suit has been settled, with a judge siding with Hohenberg on the matter. The company will have to pay $3.05 million—$2.5 million of which will be divided among consumers (you’re entitled to $4 for each bottle you purchased!)—and will have to rework its marketing and advertisements to remove any references, vague or otherwise, to the healthiness of its product. ABC News has more.
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Make a donation and enjoy a yoga class.
 What’s better than a yoga class? A yoga class that raises funds for breast cancer, that’s what. On Saturday May 5th, Bikram Yoga of Philadelphia will host an open class where you can make a donation and all proceeds go to Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Breathe deep, center, and support a great cause. Register and learn more here.
Donations suggested. Saturday, May 5, 1 p.m., Bikram Yoga of Philadelphia, 1520 Sansom Street, third floor.
>> 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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I dunno. $156,000 sure sounds like an awful lot to me ...
 I’m well aware of the fact that I work in a field where people don’t make a lot of money. I mean, most journalists aren’t known for driving Bentleys, chartering private planes and chugging bottles of Cristal. That said, I still think a six-figure income is a heck of a lot of money. Doctors who actually make that kind of cash, however, don’t seem to agree.
The results of an annual physicians’ salary survey released this week found that lots of doctors don’t “feel” rich, even though, well, they are. Of the 24,000 physicians who responded, 45 percent agreed with the statement: “My income probably qualifies me as rich, but I have so many debts and expenses that I don’t feel rich.” Another 45 percent said their incomes are “no better than many nonphysicians,” and only 11 percent—11!!—said they actually consider themselves rich.
In case you’re wondering what doctors make in terms of dollars and cents, the survey broke that down, too:
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Scientists deem a British woman's face mathematically perfect.
Just when you thought you’d seen it all in our appearance-obsessed culture (see: feeding-tube diets, Heidi Montag’s face), here’s a new story to send your head spinning: 18-year-old Florence Colgate has been deemed the most beautiful woman in Britain (and, some are saying, the world) based on—wait for it—mathematical calculations.
Colgate was discovered when she entered a Lorraine Cosmetics contest, in which women were required to be photographed completely natural—no makeup or plastic surgery. Florence stood out among thousands of entries for being so gosh-darn flawless and, well, stunningly symmetrical. Check out a picture of her here.
Researchers calculated that Florence has an almost perfectly proportioned face, based on what’s called the Golden Ratio. (I’ll direct you to Wikipedia if you want to see the equation for yourself.) Artists such as Michelangelo and Leonardo DaVinci have used the ratio for centuries to create beautiful, aesthetically pleasing works.
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Our boot-camping editor is facing some wicked Plateau Demons this week—and they've got him rattled.
 Why are you doing this? Really, why are you doing this? To be young again? Because you will never be young again. You will be 49 next week, and I don’t care what anybody says, that’s not young. It’s not old, but it’s not young. So why are you putting yourself through this? What are you trying to prove? That you can still be handsome? That you can somehow squeeze back into 10-year-old pants? If you quit, what’s the difference? You tried it, it didn’t work out. People quit every day. But you are putting yourself through hell and you don’t look any better. That’s the truth. And you have always been someone not afraid to face the truth, no matter how difficult. So maybe it’s time to face this truth. Maybe it’s time to just admit this was a ridiculous idea, deal with the embarrassment, and cut your losses.
—from an internal monologue in my head one recent evening, as I sat watching TV on my couch
There was a morning last week when I was looking in the mirror. There comes, in the life of every Boot Camper, a moment when in the midst of your weeks of physical torture you look into the mirror and see someone slightly different looking back, someone thinner, someone fitter.
This was not that moment.
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USA Archery wrote a thank-you note to author Suzanne Collins. Emily Post would be proud.
 • Forgive me for sounding like my grandfather (or, more specifically, my husband’s Main Line grandmother), but nobody writes proper thank-you notes anymore. Which is why when USA Archery took the time to pen (okay, fine, type) a thank-you note to Hunger Games author Suzanne Collins, my cackles of my heart were positively warmed. See, a funny little thing happened after HG: The Movie came out last month: Archery—a sport quite possibly more underrated than fencing and bull-riding—suddenly became cool. (I was going to add “again” at the end there but, honestly, archery was never cool in the first place.) It’s awesome timing for the World of Archery considering the sport will make an appearance at the Olympics this summer and, because of its newfound fame, might even score a few precious broadcast minutes from NBC. USA Archery posted its thank-you note to Ms. Collins on Fitnessmagazine.com. Here’s my favorite part:
When Katniss Everdeen started brandishing her bow and arrows on movie screens across America, our phones began (literally, began) ringing nonstop. You’d think our phones were tracker jackers, they frightened us so much those first couple rings.
• Gah! Los Vegas’ Heart Attack Grill claimed its second victim! We get the joke, HAG—you make 10,000-calorie burgers. But seriously, when will the insanity end? Someone close this place already.
• Hats off to fashion designer Mark Fast for using “full-figured” models in his runway shows. But pardon me while I gag on the phrase “full-figured” because there’s nothing full (a.k.a. fat) about these ladies—they’re just (gasp!) healthy looking.
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