That's Fit

If you're looking for motivation to get your butt to the gym, often you don't have to look further than the nearest celebrity gossip magazine. Yep, it's the jobs of celebs to look good on the red carpet, and they definitely excel at it. Well, most of them. Of course, the ones who are the most fit get our seal of approval.

And, as we wind down 2008, we wanted to know who your favourite fit celeb of the past year was. Here are your top three picks:

• Kelly Ripa, who admitted to working out every day this year, got 18 percent of the votes.
• Jennifer Lopez, who ran a triathlon after giving birth to twins, scored 15 percent.
• And Hugh Jackman, who was too blindingly gorgeous for us to even care what his workout was, also had 15 percent of the votes.
  

All excellent choices. Thanks for your input!

After all the overindulgences of the holidays, you're probably trying to watch what you eat. Good for you -- but in order to successfully 'watch what you eat,' you need to know what you're putting into your mouth, horrendous calorie counts and all. So listen up.

Let's imagine, for instance, that you went to PF Chang's for dinner one night with friends. You decide to get an appetizer. You know that won tons and spring rolls are deep fried, so you opt for a healthier-sounding dish, the lettuce wraps. They're tasty, that's for sure, but are they healthy? What do you think?

Who's the most important person in your life? It's not who you think it is ...

This week marked the beginning of, I imagine, thousands of detox diets across North America. It's only natural, really, that after weeks of indulging in more sugar, fat, alcohol and laziness than we do all year that we're looking for ways to cleanse our bodies of our holiday sins and start 2009 off right. But before you rush to the drug store to pick up a detox kit to the tune of $30 or more, keep in mind that leading scientists have declared many so-called detoxes to be a waste of money.

You can save your hard-earned cash with a do-it-yourself detox. It won't be easy -- most experts believe that detoxing requires you to cut out sugar, salt, refined carbs, wheat, dairy, alcohol and caffeine, not to mention drinking lots of water and eating plenty of fruits and veggies -- but doing it yourself is healthier and more economical.

Click here for some more DIY-detoxing tips.

Swedish blonde bombshell Victoria Silvstedt has a figure most would die for -- both women and men. But staying slim is all in the job for the 34-year-old supermodel and Playboy pin-up -- she credits her tiny waist to wearing heels all day.

"How I stay in shape? 12 hours a day in heels," she recently told reporters, adding, "I'm, literally moving all day long in heels. When I'm not working I do go to the gym and do my cardio but nothing beats the high-heel workout!"

Really? That's all it takes? I should have traded my flats for stillettos years ago. Except heels apparently ruin your back. Um, maybe comfy shoes and a regular cardio workout don't sound so bad after all.

Oprah Winfrey is the most successful woman in the world, but as she told her millions of viewers on yesterday's show, "it doesn't mean anything if you can't control your eating [and] fit into your clothes ... I can't believe that with all the accomplishments, I'm still talking about weight." She's talking, of course, about her recent revelation that she's gained back all the weight she worked so hard to lose.

What went wrong? Oprah has a bunch of reasons for her weight loss. Her recent thyroid problem, for instance, caused stress, and she spent a portion of the past year feeling depressed and sleep-deprived -- that's when cravings tend to get the best of someone. But ultimately, it came down to loving her body. "Your overweight body doesn't crave food," she says. "It craves love."

Oprah plans on losing the weight again by following these rules of thumb:

Here at That's Fit, we're constantly telling you what we think about things, but sometimes it's nice to know what you think. So from time to time, we'll ask you a question. Don't be afraid to speak up -- we love feedback.

Love it or hate it (we're guessing the latter), your metabolism is something you just need to learn to deal with. And when the numbers on the scale start creeping up, our metabolism usually shoulders the blame. But be honest: Is it really your metabolism's fault?

As fabulous as we at That's Fit think this blog is, the truth is there are hundreds of wonderful blogs on healthy living to be seen all over the blogosphere. So in this feature, Fit Links, we'll introduce you to some that have caught our eye.

It sounds laughable but it's true -- Kids who are sensitive to wheat can now get their Play-Doh fix with Soy Doh. But the new product has a sweet smell, which will make it extra hard for you to keep your kids from eating it.

Could organic dieting be ruining your life? Green Daily explains.

What food item costs $15,000 per pound? Slashfood shares some of the craziest food stories from 2008.

Is the New Year's Resolution heading for early failure? Re-motivate yourself with 10 Easy Steps to Healthy Eating from Fit Celeb.

Get off the couch and start running with some advice from Fitsguar.

Ready to Shrink a Size? America Takes It Off will help you on your way.

Used to that guilty feeling you get when you head straight to the bar after work on Fridays? Don't beat yourself up -- apparently, a healthy happy hour habit is actually good for your health.

No, really. According to this article from Women's Health, drinking can lower your risk of heart disease by 25 to 50 percent, it can help improve your memory and it can help you lose weight (if you choose the right drink.)

But, bear in mind, this is moderate drinking we're talking about. Chugging a litre of tequila is not going to help your memory or your waistline (the opposite, in fact, as you might already know), so try to take it easy next time you hit up your local drinking establishment.

Yes, 50 is the new 40 and 70 is the new 60 and so on, but can you imagine carrying on your fitness routine well into your 80s? Joanne Good from the Daily Mail can, particularly since her 83-year-old mother is her role model, her motivator, her ... yoga teacher. Yes, someone just shy of 85 might possibly be more fit than you. Scary? Nah -- inspirational is more like it.

Yoga is the kind of activity you can do no matter what your age. It's one of those things that you can take at your own pace, and if one of the poses is too difficult, you can modify it or just move on. Yoga can be challenging or relaxing -- it's up to you. But no matter how you practice, you can't deny the good it does your body.

So what are you waiting for? Get yourself to a yoga class, pronto. And, more importantly, keep it up.

After drawing a fair bit of negative attention over the few extra pounds she gained while out of the spotlight, Alanis Morisette recently appeared in OK magazine looking incredible. She's lost an amazing 20 pounds in a few months, thanks to Joel Fuhrman's Eat to Live plan, but following this diet meant she had to give up a few things -- namely all animal products. Yes, she went vegan.

While changing your life so drastically seems extreme (not to mention really, really hard), she insists it was worth it. "I used to get out of bed in the morning and things were aching, and I just thought, this is what happens when you get into your 30s," she says. "But now I jump out of bed and have so much energy. I feel very alive. I have no more aches and pains, and my allergies are gone, too."

Sounds pretty amazing, but could you go vegan?

(via Fit Celeb)

Simon Cowell spent his recent holiday in Barbados frolicking on the beach and getting active by exploring the shoreline on a jet ski. Good for him -- jet skiing for a couple of hours will burn around 600 calories and is definitely a healthier activity than lying on a sun lounger frying your skin.

The only problem? He spent his time on the jet ski puffing away on a cancer stick. Classy. Also: How do you keep a cigarette lit when you're playing on the water? I've been on a jet ski before, and it's not easy staying dry.

Methinks Simon should add 'quit smoking' to his New Year's resolutions -- then he can really enjoy his water sports on his next vacation.

Jack Nicholson has seen better days. Having slowly gone from hunk to chunk over the past few years, the former ladies man has been sporting a bit of a paunch over the last little while. But that doesn't mean he's become lazy -- the Hollywood superstar has been spending the holidays skiing in Aspen. And, at 71, he's certainly not letting age slow him down.

If he keeps it up, his paunch will be gone in no time -- a six-hour day of moderately-paced downhill skiing can burn nearly 2,500 calories, which more than makes up for the 200+ calorie Irish coffee you're sure to enjoy by the fire in the apres-ski lounge.

Obese men have a lower chance of reproducing, and it's just not because they're less likely to score with chicks at the bar. No, obese men have an actual physical problem down there, with their sperm.

According to new studies, obesity impairs fertility by not only drastically reducing sperm count in men, but also by altering the quality of sperm. Additionally, a previous study found that obese men were more likely to battle impotence problems too.

Obviously, obese men who want to have kids should slim down but not just in the interest of improving their chances of conceiving. Obesity is one of the highest causes of premature death -- and you want to live to see those kids grow up, don't you? Well, then, now might be just the time to align yourself with America Takes It Off. Click here to learn more. And come back and see us on Monday -- we'll be issuing a challenge that might just help you on your way to slimmer days.

I'm guessing you spend a lot of time thinking about your weight. Some days you might love it, but most days it's the opposite. It has control over your mood and your confidence, and at the same time, it seems like an arbitrary number that you have no control over. It just doesn't seem fair.

And guess what? It's not. Fair, that is. According to this article from Reader's Digest, your weight is determined by many factors you don't have any control over -- your genes, your mother's habits when you were in the womb, your spouse, your family, your career, your busy schedule, illnesses you've had in the past ... and the list goes on, unfortunately.

So what are those who are dealt the fat hand to do? It's up to you to change your habits, change your metabolism, and change your lifestyle to one that's conducive to weight loss. It sucks, but it's true. There's no magic pill (yet), so just as if you were born with a learning disability, you've just gotta learn how to work with what you got. Never fear: AOL Health's America Takes It Off campaign is here to help. One click on the badge below, and you'll surely find the inspiration to make some change.