I like the sales pitch from the owner of Center Street Fitness in New Hampshire: "If I can say anything about this gym, it's going to be hands down the cleanest gym you'll ever walk into," Gerard Boniello, owner of Center Street Fitness in Townsend, said.

I don't know if it is true but I like the way Mr. Boniello thinks.  Clean health clubs bring people in and sell memberships through the one marketing method that is time proven: member referrals.

Vitamin A scores an A ⁺ when it comes to your health. The benefits from this essential vitamin are endless, it aides in night vision (which we all need :-), bone and tooth development, and maintaining skin tissue. There are two ways to get this vitamin. One is in pill form the other is through foods such as sweet potatoes, carrots, greens, kale, eggs and broccoli just to name a few. Vitamin A also plays a big factor in fighting off signs of aging. Many cosmetic lines are including it in their products to promote healthier skin.

Writing down every morsel doubles weight loss

Dieters who kept daily food diaries were more successful, new study says...

In the struggle to lose weight, picking up a pen might be just as useful as putting down the fork.

That’s according to a new study that found that people who kept daily food diaries lost twice as much weight or more as those who didn’t keep a tally of their meals.

“There’s a myth in this country now that weight loss is almost impossible and very few can lose weight,” said Victor Stevens, a researcher at Kaiser’s Center for Health Research in Portland, Ore., and co-author of the study, which appears in the August issue of the American Journal of Preventive Medicine. “But we showed that with a simple, straightforward approach, nearly 70 percent of participants were able to lose enough weight to make significant improvements in their health.”

Overall, two-thirds of the study subjects lost nine pounds or more during the six-month study. But those who kept a food diary every day of the week dropped up to 20 pounds, more than twice as much as those who didn't record their every bite.

Karen Donato, the coordinator for overweight and obesity applications at the National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) in Bethesda, Md., thinks one of the big effects of the diary is that it can help people realize when they’re just eating out of boredom or stress. “A lot of times people do mindless eating, under stress, at their desks, bored, just eat things without thinking about it,” she said. “This strategy can help people avoid that.”

So if you are interested in starting a food diary of your own, visit the NHLBI website where you can access a free food diary and a menu planner that automatically calculates calories in common food items.

Tea Time: Drink up, green tea that is. Green tea is that latest trend in the fitness world and for good reason. As the Chinese probably discovered hundreds of years ago, green tea is a great source of antioxidants. Green tea leaves are even added to some lotions which promote anti aging benefits. Additionally, if you drink a few cups of the tea a day it can actually act to speed up your metabolism and burn a few extra calories. Studies are now showing that green tea may even help prevent cancer. So, drink up!

Feeling ill, lightheaded, dizzy, nauseous, or have a headache? Don't run to the doctor's office just yet....

With temperatures in Severna Park continuously on the rise dehydration is becoming more and more of a concern. Dehydration is a result of the body overheating from either lack of water, extreme heat, heavy physical exertion, or a combination of them all. It is important that on these hot summer days that you protect yourself against becoming dehydrated or you might just end up in the doctor's office after all.

First, know the symptoms and what to look for in yourself and others. While dehydration has different affects on different people here are some of the signs: weakness, dizziness, dry mouth, nausea, headaches, low blood pressure, fever, and excessive sweating. Should you notice any of these symptoms, you should immediately stop performing all strenuous physical activity and drink some water or other sports beverage. Also, head indoors and seek cooler temperatures as soon as possible.

Secondly, knowing how to prevent dehydration is important. The most important thing is to drink some type of fluid continuously throughout the day. Ideally, you should drink a cup of something every hour or less depending on the activity and temperature. Next, avoid being outside on extremely hot days. On such days its best to stay indoors, or head to Club One Fitness to workout while staying cool! Lastly, avoid consuming alcohol which dehydrates you and leaves your feeling fatigued.

Dehydration is easily preventable and fixable but be advised if your condition worsens, seek medical attention. Otherwise, have a great summer and stay cool!

Milk Your Diet: Milk might not be your current beverage of choice but maybe it should be. Milk is high in protein which not only helps build muscle but gives you the full satisfied feeling in between meals. I recommend skim milk or 1% in order to avoid taking in to many calories. Milk is one of the best sources of calcium which we all know is important in building strong bones and preventing osteoporosis as we get older. Milk is also loaded with tons of other vitamins. So next time you hear "Got Milk" you can answer YES!

Everyone knows that losing weight and being healthy relies on two basic factors, exercise and the foods you consume. It is easy to focus on exercising at Club One Fitness in Severna Park/Millersivlle, but it's what you eat before and after you walk through those doors that may be hindering your progress. That is why we would like to give you a few helpful hints on what to look for when shopping for groceries.

When grocery shopping around 80% of the food you buy should come from what is on the outside perimeter of the store (although the Safeway where I shop near our health club in Severna Park has some yummy healthy stuff in the middle) This means you spend less time going up and down the aisles and more time shopping for the essentials. All the major foods you should be eating, fruits, vegetables, dairy, and meat are located on the perimeter of the store. By sticking to this plan you avoid the temptation of buying all the junk and filler foods that are found in the aisles.  This plan should also help you reduce the amount of time you spend shopping for food each week.

Grocery shopping can be confusing at times with companies throwing out unfamiliar words or phrases that lead you to believe that they are healthy choices. To make things simpler you should look for key "buzzwords" on products. For instance, when buying bread, cereal, or crackers try and find ones that says "100% Whole Wheat." This means that it is higher in fiber and essential nutrients. Do not be misled by products that advertise things such as "multigrain" or "whole grain." Chances are that they are mostly composed of bleached flour that has little nutritional value. Another buzzword to look for is "zero trans fat." Trans-fat, in simple terms, is the worst type of fat there is. Many products may appear to be healthy choices but when in doubt check the nutritional facts and ingredients.

While what you eat is highly important, what you drink is even more so. The number one thing you should drink if you're trying to lose weight or just maintain is water! However, because water isn't the most exciting beverage there are now several sugar free low cal additives you can use to change that. These travel size packets make it easy to stay hydrated while on the go. Sports drinks are often high in sugar and unnecessary calories. You really should only be consuming sports drinks if you are working out hard for 2 hours or more. But if you must have a sports drink, have a low calorie version. You probably won't drink milk while exercising, but it is still a great source of calcium and vitamins. Choose skim milk over 2% to reduce the amount of calories you are consuming. Soda, is almost always on the "don't list." Considered to be full of "empty calories," (no nutritional value) soda should be consumed sparingly.

Now that you are armed with the tools to be a smart shopper it is only a matter of time before you attain your fitness goals. So have fun and don't be afraid to try new foods!

Have you been struggling to get rid of those few extra pounds? Perhaps the reason is not having enough calcium in your diet. Let's take a closer look at the role calcium plays in weight loss...new research shows that calcium -- three or four daily servings of low-fat dairy products can help adjust your body's fat-burning machinery. While it's true that 99% of the 1.2kg of calcium in the average human body goes to make up bone tissue, the remaining 1% is vitally important. Calcium is needed to switch muscles on and off without it, no muscular contraction would be possible and is also vital to the release of neurotransmitter chemicals, such as serotonin, acetylcholine and norepinephrine. Calcium is also an important co-factor for blood clotting and activates numerous enzyme systems in the body. Tips to get more Calcium in your diet: Start your day with a calcium fortified cereal, topped with skim milk and almonds. Snack on low-fat string cheese or low-fat fruited yogurt. Top pancakes or waffles with low-fat yogurt and sliced fresh fruit instead of syrup. For dessert, try instant pudding made with skim milk. Add calcium fortified fruit juices to your meals instead of soda. Top a sandwich with a slice of reduced-fat cheese. Mix up a fruit smoothie with low-fat frozen yogurt and skim milk. If milk is a problem, look for calcium fortified soy milk and tofu. Add steamed broccoli to a salad and black-eyed peas.

Kitchen gardens are as old as the first hunter-gatherers who decided to settle down and watch the seeds grow. Now, they are being discovered by a new generation of people who worry about just what is in that bag of spinach and how much fuel was consumed to grow it and to fly it a thousand miles to their grocery store.

More and more of us are trying to buy organic fruits and vegetables, so why not plant our own? In creating your own kitchen garden, you know exactly what is and what is not in the soil you are using to grow the potatoes and carrots that will wind up on your kitchen table! Rosalind Creasy shook up her neighbors in Los Altos, Calif., in 1984, when she dug up her front lawn to plant edibles. Ms. Creasy's book, "The Complete Book of Edible Landscaping" (Sierra Club Books, 1982), started a little revolution that has now grown into something big. Now she is working on a revision, scheduled to be out in 2010. These new gardeners are not necessarily back-to-the-land types. "I think a lot of the young ones are in search of authenticity," Ms. Damrosch said. "They still have their iPods and their BlackBerrys, but they're interested in crafts and knitting and acoustic music. They don't like the fake. They can see through stuff." Also, many of them grew up with environmentalism. Ms. Creasy said: "They have been trained in schools to look at the consequences of what we're doing. My kids dissected a lung from a smoker in the sixth grade. They study frogs that have been put in ponds with too many pesticides." Plants are readily available at farmers' markets or by mail order, from www.burpee.com, www.seedsavers.org, www.whiteflowerfarm.com and others.