From the Baltimore Fishbowl events page…

So, it’s National Health and Fitness Month. Maybe you’re already so on top of it that you’re reading this post on your iPhone while on mile five of your morning 10K. Or maybe this information makes you squirm a bit with the vague memory of that New Year’s resolution that somehow fell to the wayside somewhere along the line. But no matter. It’s never to late to start getting fit– and there are so many ways and reasons to do so, that there’s no need to panic. In fact, National Health and Fitness Month makes it easier than ever– not only because the weather is finally the kind you want to enjoy outside– but also because fitness centers such as the Maryland Athletic Club are offering great opportunities this month to use the facilities, take classes, and start getting healthy. We checked in with Sharon Nevins, Vice President of Marketing at the MAC to find out how they’re celebrating National Health and Fitness Month and how we can, too.

Baltimore Fishbowl: So May is National Health and Wellness Month. What does that mean? And what is the MAC doing to help celebrate it?

Sharon Nevins: National Health & Fitness Month was created to help shine a spotlight on the importance of exercise to be healthy. Our industry, along with the First Lady’s “Let’s Move” Campaign joined together to encourage everyone to lead an active, healthy lifestyle. MAC helps celebrate by opening its doors to the entire community to enjoy the MAC and get moving for 7 days. We also have designated community wide classes where non-members can try us out with others just like them.

BFB: That’s great! What an awesome opportunity for those of us who are interested in trying out a new gym. Now that the nice weather is finally here, what are some of the best outdoor exercises we can do to supplement our time at the gym? Baltimore has so many great outdoor spaces and activities. Any top picks or workout ideas?

SN: Just getting outside and walking is always nice. Baltimore also has some incredible trails for hiking. From the NCR trail to Loch Raven to Soldiers Delight and the B&A trail for biking. Whatever is fun and easy for you, you should do. The idea is to enjoy it (most of the time) so you keep up the habit. Read More →

Imagine living with the constant fear that your child may unknowingly eat something that contains a given food, even just a trace of it, to which he is severely allergic. Within minutes the adverse reaction takes hold: the child’s throat swells, making it difficult to breathe. If emergency assistance is not delivered immediately, the situation can quickly become life-threatening.

These angst-producing circumstances are becoming increasingly common. Nearly 6 million, or 8 percent of children, live with food allergies, according to the Food Allergy Research & Education Network. And the numbers are rising. Between 1997 and 2008, the prevalence of peanut allergy among children appears to have tripled, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Olga and Charles Paterakis know all too well the gut-wrenching fear induced by childhood food allergies.

Their 15-year-old son Evan was born with six food allergies—to egg, dairy, fish, shellfish, peanuts and tree nuts. He has outgrown some on his own. He is still severely allergic to shellfish, as the family discovered when Evan, just a few months ago, ordered fish at a Florida restaurant that was unknowingly brushed with a sauce containing shellfish, despite the family’s explicit communication with the waiter when ordering. Severe vomiting and an anaphylactic reaction followed, requiring a rush to the nearest ER despite his use of an Epi-pen (a device that looks like a giant needle and delivers a dose of epinephrine to combat an acute allergic reaction).

Then there’s Evan’s dairy allergy.

Thanks to the Paterakis’ pediatrician and allergist, Robert Wood, M.D., Evan can now freely eat food containing dairy products. “His confidence skyrocketed after he knew he could eat pizza at birthday parties, cake if he wanted,” Olga Paterakis said. Read More →

Photo via Wikimedia

Isn’t the internet age fantastic? As of last week, Baltimoreans who want to be more limber and/or have been the victims of a crime don’t have to leave the cozy confines of their home to get feedback on their downward-facing dog/report an instance of theft. I can’t wait to find out what’s next.
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Courtesy Citybizlist – Under Armour has launched its third “What’s Beautiful” online fitness competition for women. The top three winners – one of whom will be selected by an online popular vote, and the other two by the sports apparel maker – will win all-expenses-paid visits to fitness retreats in Costa Rica. The eight-week competition will culminate mid-July with the naming of the winners. Read More →

So often, studies about weight loss offer contradictory or impractical advice. Not so this recent research out of Johns Hopkins, which offers an incredibly simple formula:  eating mushrooms instead of meat for one meal a day helped participants lose weight (and keep it off) and reduce body fat.
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We all know that exercise makes us feel better. Even the most dedicated couch potato feels the benefit of a brisk walk, or a game of Frisbee.  In recent years, yoga has grown in popularity due to its focus not just on physical wellness, but also on relaxation and spiritual or emotional well-being. However, yoga is not the only form of exercise that combines these qualities. If you’re looking for an exercise or movement practice that also encompasses mental and emotional health, you might want to turn to NIA—a practice “dance meets yoga meets tae kwon do,” as one instructor called it—that successfully integrates all that and more; leading to a holistic feeling of health with real results. Lola Manekin and Alba Azola are two local NIA instructors who teach classes at Baltimore Yoga Village. We asked them to fill us in about what NIA really is, and how we can reap its many benefits. Read More →

Lead in the soil, brownfields, illegal dumping sites, rat infestations — these aren’t the sorts of thing you’d see on your average city tour, but they’re the highlights of “urban environmentalist” Glenn Ross’s Toxic Tour of Baltimore. And he makes sure the windows are open. “I put it right up in their face – they’ve got to smell it, taste it, the whole nine yards,” he told Andrea Appleton, writing for Grist. “And at the end of the tour, they get it.”
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Our congratulations go out to Johns Hopkins HIV expert Deborah Persaud, who’s been named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine. Persaud made the news earlier this year when her team announced the first functional cure of an infant born with HIV.
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