Kimberly Garrison

...celebs, like everyone else, must learn that keeping healthy means living a wellness lifestyleAT FIRST, I didn't believe it. I thought it was trick photography. Janet Jackson obese?

By the looks of recent photographs, she appears to be tipping the scales heavily (she's gained at least 40 pounds) and moving dangerously toward a body mass index of 30+. The Centers for Disease Control define a person as medically obese if they have a BMI of 30 or higher, increasing the risk of heart disease, cancer and stroke, among other maladies.

Don't get me wrong, I'm a big Janet Jackson fan, which is why it's so upsetting to see her current condition. With the utmost compassion, I hope that she overcomes whatever is leading her to overeat and gets back on track with her health, fitness and career.

My theory is that Janet may suffer from depression. Only severe depression could drive a person who seemed so passionately committed to looking fit to go on an eating orgy that culminates into a major weight gain.

Is Janet depressed about her 40th birthday, coming up on May 16? Does she fear that, at 40, she has reached her creative peak and lost her youthful beauty? Or are the pressures of the Jackson family becoming too burdensome to bear?

Only Janet knows her personal demons; hopefully, she will have the fortitude to overcome them. Hopefully, she'll find her way to a balanced and holistic lifetime plan for health, fitness and beauty.

Life lessons from a star
Now, what can the rest of us learn from Janet Jackson's weight gain? Perhaps, that celebrities are mere mortals, facing the same challenges that we all must face.

Fitness and good health are the consequences of living a wellness lifestyle, not a celebrity lifestyle. Fame, fortune, yo-yo dieting, excessive exercise and cosmetic or plastic surgery are never solutions to what ails you.
Here are a few more things Janet's situation can teach us.

Lesson 1: Surgery won't save you.
A peek at old photos indicates that Janet's face and figure have gone through some changes since she played Penny in TV's "Good Times," Charlene in "Different Strokes," and Cleo Hewitt in "Fame."

Though she's never admitted to having plastic surgery, there have been rumors, including one that she had ribs removed to make her waist appear smaller. And plenty of stars have gone public about their surgical modifications. Alas, surgery is not a substitute for a healthy, fit body, nor is it a guarantee of permanent weight loss.

Lesson 2: Stop yo-yo dieting.
Yo-yo dieting is perhaps the most deadly thing you can do if you're trying to preserve your health and fitness.

According to the CDC, "Weight cycling, or yo-yo dieting, may lower levels of HDL cholesterol [good cholesterol]. Also, research studies have suggested that weight cycling increases a person's risk for sudden cardiac death, and lower levels of HDLs may be the culprit."

Lesson 3: Say no (that's right!) to excessive exercise.
A few years back, Janet was the Queen of Abs. Fabulous abs were her signature look.

But maintaining world-class washboard abs is difficult, to say the least. More importantly, for most women, washboard abs can be achieved only through an extremely strict and often unbalanced diet regimen, plus a three- to four-hour-a-day exercise commitment. Most of us don't have that kind of time.

Besides that, women who keep their weight and body fat extremely low are at increased risk for health problems such as exercise amenorrhea, disordered eating and osteoporosis.

It's not far-fetched to assume that many celebrities engage in in this type of extreme behavior to maintain their celebrity edge.

Exercise amenorrhea is a potentially serious condition, when a woman's period stops due to extreme thinness and exercise intensity. The condition mostly is associated with female athletes; however, athletes often influence celebrities, who typically influence the rest of us.

Unfortunately, more ordinary women are developing dangerously extreme exercise habits to achieve the elusive goal of ultra-leanness. It is neither normal nor healthy for most women to maintain a body fat level lower than 14 or 15 percent.

According to the experts, the minimum healthy level of body fat is between 18 and 21 percent. For physically active women, most experts agree that a range of 20 to 35 is healthy. Physically active women increase their risk for preventable diseases once body-fat levels rise above 35 percent.

Sure, you might want to lower your body fat for aesthetic purposes. However, a low body-fat level alone is no indication of your fitness level, overall health or athletic ability.

The entertainment industry's influence and emphasis on thinness has driven many talented and beautiful artists, such as Janet (not a naturally svelte woman), onto a deadly path of self-destruction. In our culture, the look of fitness - the glitter - is often mistaken for the real gold. *

Check the Daily News Yo! section every Thursday to track the progress of our five Flab to Fab Fitness Challenge participants, and Tattle writer Howard Gensler's personal fitness challenge.

The five Challenge participants also will be featured weekly on CBS 3 Eyewitness News, starting at 11 p.m. next Wednesday.

Follow along online at www.girlfriendslockerroom.com. On that page you'll find:
PODCAST: Hear brief interviews with the participants and their trainers as they arrived Monday at the 12th Street Gym for the Challenge kickoff, on Kimberly Garrison's Philly Fitness & Health podcast.

UPDATES: Weekly progress reports from Kimberly that will be added as weblog entries.

SIDEBLOG: Starting Monday, Howard will blog on this page about his efforts to follow the Flab-to-Fab program from home.

FITNESS TOOLS: Explore the rest of Kimberly's weblog for fitness calculators, health and diet tips and an archive of her Daily News columns.

5 contestants selected for Daily News fitness challenge

THERE'S NO OTHER way to say it: A lot of you are up for the challenge.
More than 200 people wanted to take part in the Daily News From Flab to Fab Fitness Challenge. We've picked five eager participants who for 12 weeks will follow the exercise, dietary and overall wellness advice of Daily News fitness columnist Kimberly Garrison and her team of personal trainers.

All five participants are from Philadelphia, and they also share a commitment to making the changes that will lead them to a healthier lifestyle.

But they each have very personal reasons for taking this challenge, whether it's to walk down the aisle as a slimmer, healthier bride, be an active, involved dad, serve serve as an example to family and co-workers or just reverse habits that have stranded them in what one participant called a "valley of unfitness."

You can monitor their journey weekly in the Yo! section, on Channel 3 and online. There will be blogs and podcasts, too.

Along with participants' progress, you'll find diet, exercise and lifestyle tips so that you, too, can make that journey to a fitter, healthier you.

Kimberly Garrison
Kimberly is a certified personal trainer and owner of One on One Ultimate Fitness in Philadelphia. She is the Daily News fitness columnist and also is pursuing a Ph.D. in holistic health and nutrition.

Gabriel Gaskin
A certified personal trainer with more than a decade's experience, and the founder of Unlimited Gains Personal Training of Philadelphia, Gabriel believes that extraordinary fitness and optimum health are our birthright - best achieved through a combination of spiritual, mental and physical fitness.

Jim Hart
A certified personal trainer and nutrition consultant, Jim was named one of the "100 Best Trainers in America" by Men's Journal magazine in 2004. Twenty years ago, he confesses, he was badly out of shape and 60 pounds overweight. Now, at age 45, he competes in amateur bodybuilding competitions.

Melissa Kolczynski
A certified fitness trainer for six years, Melissa is also a certified aerobic kickboxing instructor. She says fitness complements her interest in theater and music. She sings with the Philly Pops as well as her own swing trio, Boogie Rhythm.

Jeff Shablin
The certified trainer and founder of Optimal Personal Fitness of Philadelphia has more than 15 years' experience in the business of fitness, and an interest in fitness that dates to his childhood experience as a competitive gymnast

After I had surgery last March to remove my thyroid (which weighed approximately 25 grams), I began to put on weight (approximately 25 pounds).

Doesn't seem fair, does it?

Now that almost a year has passed, I've decided it's time to take off the flab. Since I spend my work days humiliating celebrities in print by writing the Tattle column, it only seemed right that I humiliate myself in print (and with this blog).

So, even though one colleague told me just yesterday, "You hide your fat well," I'll be meeting periodically with trainer Gabriel Gaskin to try and lose the gut, tone the muscles and drop 50 points off my cholesterol before it's time to summer on the Riviera, in the Hamptons or, more likely, here in my office at the Daily News.

My stats when I met with Gabriel on Saturday: 5-foot-9, 206 pounds, 40-inch waist (masked well by my broad shoulders).

My home scale said my fat content was 27 percent. Gabriel's little machine said it was 34 percent, which would make my insides akin to Silly Putty.

My goal: To lose Nicole Richie (who appears to weigh between 20 and 30 pounds) and get that body fat percentage below 20.

The five participants in the Daily News Flab to Fab Fitness Challenge - and their trainers - talk about the first week of the 12-week program. For some, it's been about going to the gym for the first time. And at least one participant has learned that there's more to vegetables than french fries.

MARY LEONARD
Yes, I'm still alive, even after a few workouts with Gabriel. At times, I did think I was gonna die, but he was wonderful and kept telling me I was doing good and that I could do it.
He had me doing things I have not done in years - skipping, jumping rope - things that I thought, oh, can I do this? Well, let me tell you, it was not as easy as it was when I was younger.
After my first training session, the next day my body was a little sore, but after the next one, it was not so bad. I really enjoy the one-on-one, because that's what I need to push me. I really feel good after one week.
My diet: I just never realized how unhealthily I was eating. Now I'm eating healthy and drinking a lot of water, which really does make me feel full. I can't believe in one week I did not cheat once. (Yes, there were times I actually caught myself. Some habits are had to break.)
On Saturday, my husband and I worked out together and that felt good. So here we are, on to week two.

TRAINER GABRIEL GASKIN:
Mary hit the ground running and is progressing nicely. We reviewed her diet and made some necessary adjustments in her eating plan.
The first week, she performed body-weight exercises. This week, we'll begin a circuit training routine and, quite naturally, review her diet.

The five Challenge participants' efforts also will be featured Wednesdays on Channel 3.

Helping to make the Fitness Challenge possible are 12th Street Gym and trainers Kimberly Garrison, Gabriel Gaskin, Jim Hart, Jeff Shablin and Melissa Kolczynski. We also thank Nike, Louis Christian Wayne Robert Salon and Spa in Cherry Hill, N.J.; Leehe Fai, Philadelphia; Gem'n'I, Cherry Hill; BYourself, Marlton, N.J.; Sparacino Mens, Philadelphia; Hugo Boss, Marlton; and MB and Associates - Public Relations, Haddonfield, N.J.

Here's how to get rid of that excessive abdominal fat.

DO YOU HAVE "Donelaps" disease? Donelaps is best characterized as an excessive girth condition in which your stomach "done lapped" over your pants.
But it's not just the fat you see that increases your risk for heart disease and other conditions. A sedentary lifestyle and overeating have left many Americans with large amounts of dangerous hidden fat around their organs as well as their waistlines.

Abdominal fat is nothing to take lightly. There is a major link to so-called "syndrome X" - high cholesterol, high blood sugar, high insulin and high blood pressure.

"Visceral fat buildup increases the risk of high blood pressure, blood clotting, elevated levels of 'bad' cholesterol and insulin resistance, a precursor to diabetes," according to the American Heart Association.

To add insult to injury, visceral fat accumulates at a surprisingly quick rate around organs and deeper into the body than subcutaneous (under the skin) fat, according to Duke University Medical Center researchers.

Apples and pears
Waist-to-hip ratio is a simple tool you can use to determine if abdominal fat is an issue for you.

In fact, body shape is considered the best predicator of future health, according to Dr. Marie Savard, co-author of "Apples and Pears: The Body Shape Solution for Weight Loss and Wellness" (Atria, $24.95).

People with "apple" figures carry their weight around their abdomens; those who are "pears" are heavier below the waist than above. According to Savard and others, apple-shaped individuals are prone to heart disease, diabetes, breast cancer and endometrial cancer.

Measure for measure
To determine if you have a healthy waist-to-hip ratio:
Measure the circumference of your hips at the widest part of your bottom, using a measuring tape. Then measure your waist at its smaller circumference, generally above the belly button. Divide your waist measurement by your hip measurement.

Women should have a waist-to-hip ratio of less than 0.8. A healthy waist-to-hip ratio for men is less than 0.9.

If math's not your strong suit, then follow this simple circumference test: Measure around your natural waist (at or slightly above your navel), and remember, don't suck in your stomach! A waist above 40 inches for a man, or 35 for a woman, is dangerously high.

Be gutsy about your gut
Come on now, don't dig your head in the sand. This is not Oz - that belly fat is not going to go away with three clicks of your heels.

That's what the Daily News Flab to Fab Fitness Contest participants are discovering. All five have dangerously high waist-to-hip ratios. Over the next 12 weeks, they intend to reverse that trend. You can, too.

A combination of cardiovascular exercise, core training and a good diet is the quickest way to reduce your waistline.

Aerobic exercise raises your heart rate and helps burn calories. Additionally, aerobic exercise tends to curb your appetite, reduce stress and strengthen the heart muscle.

Aerobic exercises include swimming, walking, speed walking, jogging, running, bicycling, hopping, skipping and jumping rope. Try to work up to 20 to 30 minutes of these activities at least three times a week. If weight loss is your goal, you'll likely need to work up to 60 to 90 minutes on most days.

You'll also want to strengthen and tone your core. Strength training, or resistance training, otherwise known as weight training, conditions, strengthens and tones the muscles and skeletal system.

Muscle gives the body shape, increases the base metabolic rate and gives the abs that tight, sleek appearance. Even if you don't lose pounds, you may lose inches by toning up your midsection.

There's an endless array of exercises to strengthen the midsection. Try crunches, leg raises and the plank. Additionally, multi-joint exercises like push-ups also engage the core.

Eat lean, too
A tight, toned waistline begins with a smart eating plan. Here are a few tips:
• Pack your lunch and prepare meals at home, so you eat out 50 percent less than you normally would.
• Drink eight or more glasses of water daily.
• Do the ABC diet (no alcohol, baked goods or candy).
• Eat five to nine servings of fruits and vegetables daily.

Get on track, whittle your middle and reshape that apple into a lean, mean workout machine. You can do it! *

You can post any questions at the COMMENTS link or e-mail Kimberly at kimberly@phillynews.com.

Mirror, mirror on the wall, who's the fittest of them all?

WELL, THAT depends - and not just on how you look.

If you're on a quest to shed unwanted pounds, determining how much of that poundage is fat and how much is muscle is perhaps the most important information you'll need.

Conventional weight-loss programs emphasize just that - losing weight. But the key to permanent weight management is understanding the difference between weight loss and fat loss.

Our five From Flab to Fab Fitness Challenge participants know the difference. During the first week in their 12-week fitness program, they learned about body-fat percentage, fat-to-muscle ratio and other aspects of body composition.

Scaling down
The scale is perhaps the poorest predictor of your overall health, and it cannot determine what your ratio of fat to muscle is.

A woman weighing 140 pounds and with a body-fat level of 35 percent is carrying 49 pounds of fat and 91 pounds of lean tissue and likely wears a size 14. That same woman weighing 140 pounds with 16 percent body fat is carrying 22.4 pounds of muscle and 117.6 pounds of lean tissue. She probably wears a size 8.

Three sizes smaller? That's major. But there's more.
Although her body weight is the same as the other woman's, she has a leaner, firmer and fitter appearance. She'll also have reduced stress on her joints, improved mobility and - the real bonus - her body will burn more calories when at rest.

The more muscle you have, the more metabolically active tissue you have. Studies have estimated that for each pound of muscle you add to your body, you burn an additional 35 to 50 calories a day. A pound of fat burns an insignificant 1 to 3 calories daily.

Thus, an extra 10 pounds of muscle will burn about 350 to 500 calories every day.

Weighty matters
Flab to Fab's Cynthia Santiago's first weigh-in was 181 pounds, and she had a high body-fat level of 34 percent. That meant that of those 181 pounds, 61.54 were fat and 119.46 were lean tissue.

Not only was Cynthia carrying too much body fat on her 5-foot-5-inch frame, her weight alone placed her in the medically obese category, according to the Body Mass Index.

Cynthia's BMI was 30.1 (a BMI of 30.1 or more indicates obesity). By those standards, she should shed a minimum of 32 pounds to get her BMI down to a normal range.

Determine your BMI by dividing your weight in kilograms (2.2046 pounds = 1 kilogram) by your height in meters (1 foot = 0.3048 meters) squared.
For the sake of argument, let's say Cynthia used a commercial weight-loss plan - and no exercise regimen - to drop those 32 pounds. Success, right? Wrong! In fact, this would be disastrous for her for several reasons.
If Cynthia just dieted off the weight, she would likely lose 30 pounds of lean tissue - and only 2 pounds of fat. This would do little to improve Cynthia's body-fat level; in fact, it would probably increase after the diet.

Secondly, she'd probably gain back most if not all of the weight she lost, setting herself up for a cycle of yo-yo dieting.

The National Institutes of Health and other researchers have found that 98 percent of people who diet gain it back within five years. Even worse, 90 percent of those who gain put on more weight than they had lost, according to the NIH.

As one researcher observed, "Dieting is the leading cause of obesity in the U.S."

The jiggle factor
Now that you know dieting is not the best way to permanent weight loss, let's get back to that body-fat percentage. Determining the ratio of fat to lean muscle mass in your body gives you a better understanding of what you need to do to be fit and healthy.

Fear not, if you don't have access to sophisticated body-fat assessment tools like those used to analyze our Flab to Fab participants. You can take my simple jump test.

Take off all your clothes, stand in front of a mirror and jump up and down. If there's anything shaking that shouldn't be, you know you're carrying too much body fat.

The mirror then, is a good indicator that you might need to drop a few pounds. But don't be fooled by the scale.

Body-fat level is a better indicator of your health and fitness. And if you need to drop pounds, the goal should be to maximize fat loss and minimize lean muscle loss.

In the coming weeks, as the From Flab to Fab Fitness Challenge continues, we'll share strategies to help you lose weight wisely. *