If you’ve been to Eastland Mall lately, you’ve no doubt noticed the teeth whitening guy set up in front of Build-A-Bear. I’ve seen Britesmile locations in malls before, but never have I seen a makeshift dental center be setup as a kiosk.

I’m amazed this has even been set up in the first place, but I am even more amazed that I saw people actually having their teeth whitened in the mall. It’s such a weird form of exhibitionism.

Anyone know anything more about it?

photo courtesy of RandomConnections

HOT 96 DJ Brian Styles has accepted a challenge from Custom Fit Personal Training owner Tony Maslan and decided that he is going to take 8 Week Summer Shape Up Challenge and help support the Susan G Komen Foundation at the same time.

HOT 96 and Custom Fit challenge you to do the same!

The cost to participate in the 8 Week Summer Shape Up Challenge is a $10 donation to the Komen Foundation. A fitness professional from Custom Fit will determine your starting bodyweight, body-fat percentage, and circumference measurements at the beginning, 4 week mark, and completion of the 8 week challenge. The individual who makes the biggest positive change: muscle gained, body-fat lost, and inches lost will win a $300 training certificate from Custom Fit! At the completion of the 8 Week Challenge, all participants will be invited to participate in the Race For The Cure as a member of the Custom Fit and HOT 96 team.

To sign up for the 8 Week Summer Shape Up Challenge, stop by the Custom Fit Studio located at 111 South Green River Road Suite G next to Brinker’s Jewelers and Top Spot Outdoor Store or come visit our booth at the Family Fair at Crossroads Christian Church Saturday July 28, between 10am and 3pm.

At 1:30 pm on Saturday at the Family Fair, Custom Fit owner Tony Maslan will be giving a seminar titled “5 Keys to Transforming Your Body in Record Time”. Come out and learn the best path to your fitness and weight loss goals.

If you have any questions about the 8 Week Summer Shape Up Challenge, feel free to contact Tony at 812-437-2378.

In between all of the big summer blockbusters like Spiderman, Harry Potter and Die Hard, there’s a new Michael Moore movie out called Sicko which takes on the health care industry.

I’ve seen the movie twice now, and thought I’d use this week’s open thread to allow you to discuss the movie. If you’ve seen it, what did you think about it, and the state of our healthcare industry in general. If you haven’t seen it, why not?

Use this open thread to talk Sicko.

image courtesy of Sicko

With all of the news in the past week about Andrew Speaker, the Atlanta attorney who was diagnosed with Tuberculosis (TB) and then flew to Greece to be married, we thought we’d share a bit of Evansville’s history and how it relates to this story. In case you don’t know, tuberculosis is an infectious disease that affects the lungs and nervous system. It can be transferred via cough, sneeze, spit, kiss or even speaking, which is why it was highly unintelligent of Mr. Speaker to take a trans-continental flight while infected.

During the early 1900s it was an epidemic, but today is treatable using antibiotics in many cases. There is a strand of TB known as drug resistant tuberculosis that can withstand the main antibiotics used to treat TB, isoniazid and rifampin. Since 2000, there have only been 17 cases of extreme drug-resistant TB, which Speaker is infected with.

So where does Evansville fit in?

Continue reading Boehne Camp: Evansville’s Abandoned Tuberculosis Hospital…

If you were planning on doing much outdoors today, I might advise against it. At least 78 of Indiana’s 92 counties are under state advisories for pollution. This includes both Vanderburgh and Warrick Counties. If you do happen to go out, you’re most likely going to be breathing air with higher levels of particle pollution. For the uninformed, fine particulate matter is a mix of liquid droplets, dust, soot and other tiny particles too small to see and that can penetrate the lungs to enter the body and bloodstream. If you’re prone to heart or lung disease, it can lead to your early demise.

So what is causing all these environmental alerts so much this year? The Vanderburgh County Health Department says that a large, humid air mass over the region is most likely the cause for the elevated pollution levels for the area. It probably doesn’t help that it hasn’t rained in almost 3 weeks either.

You can help reduce the pollution levels by carpooling, combining errands to reduce travel, using public transportation and setting thermostats at a higher temperature to conserve electricity when alerts are issued.

Are you altering your life style in anyway because of the environmental issues?

photo courtesy of University of Michigan

As part of Healthier Evansville week, we asked our friend Tony Maslan of Custom Fit Personal Training to pen something to share with our readers.

Ask almost anyone who wants to lose weight or get in better shape when they are going to get started and they will most likely say “Tomorrow” or “Monday”. Check back with them in a week and their answer will probably be “I’m starting tomorrow” or “Monday”.

Many people fail to reach their fitness and weight loss goals because they fail to start. They keep waiting to “get motivated” or until things aren’t quite as busy. For those of you who are in that situation, I have bad news for you. There will never be a “perfect” time to start your new program.

Now for the good news. In fact it is great news! You are a human being and you have the power of free will. You have the ability to make yourself do things even when you don’t really want to do them. So get up, and start moving!

I’m sure you have heard people say that if something is worth doing, it is worth doing right. While that is very true, there are some instances when something worth doing is worth doing wrong also. At least for a little while.

Doing some sort of exercise, even if it is not the perfect routine for you and your goals is better than doing no exercise. Go for a walk. Lift some weights. Do some pushups. Climb some stairs. Just do something!

That is the beginning. Once you are consistently doing “something”, start getting that something organized. If you do not wish to use, or can’t afford the help of a fitness professional, than get a book. There are hundreds to choose from and there are a lot of good programs and plans out there. Any random program will not necessarily be the “best” one for you personally, but now you will at least be following something structured, and that will speed up your progress dramatically.

Now you will be heading the right direction. You will start to feel better and have more energy. You will be getting better sleep, and may not need as much of it. Your clothes may start feeling a little bit looser and you may be seeing some changes in the mirror that make you happy.

Once you start feeling and seeing these changes, THEN you will begin to get motivated. You will realize that this may be worth the work after all. By now you may be ready to find the “best” possible program for you and decide to work with a fitness professional to develop a plan to achieve your long term goals. You may have done enough research into different program options to find one that fits your schedule, your preferences, and brings you great results.

This all will happen if you take that first step. Stop waiting to get motivated! Get moving!! And Get Healthy Evansville!

Tony Maslan is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist, has a bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Evansville, and is the owner of Custom Fit Personal Training, LLC. If you have any specific fitness or weight loss questions, feel free to send them to tmaslan@cfpt.us. Tony has released several FREE REPORTS to help educate people on the proper ways to achieve their fitness goals. Find the report that is right for you at evansvillefitnessexpert.com

According to statistics, half of you reading this site are overweight. That’s because half of Hoosiers are overweight and are deemed the 8th fattest state in the nation. That’s not a good thing. As part of Healthier Evansville week, Welborn Clinic is hosting a week of walks downtown. The walks are designed for people of all fitness levels, so take some time out of your day to start your exercise program.

If you are interested in walking, meet at the intersection of 4th and Main St at 11:15 or 12:15 from today until May 4. There won’t be a 12:15 walk on May 4, so make sure you head to the early one. If you can’t make it to the Welborn hosted walks, that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t get out maybe after work or on one of your breaks and go for a walk or run. Find a time that fits your schedule and make exercise an appointment in your daily routine.

As part of Healthier Evansville week, we will be posting at least one story a day that highlights health issues in our city.

photo courtesy of kk+