Fashion Police Meets Fitness Police

A combination of a crime against fashion and a huge freaking fitness scam! Sketchers and Reebok continue to make claims that wearing Shape-Ups or EasyTone shoes can replace the need to set foot in a gym, while magically giving you long, lean legs, and a perfectly round rump. Sadly, this is not the case.

These monstrosities work the fine muscles in the calf area, which normally don't receive much attention. This causes the muscles to feel sore, because they truly have been worked, unfortunately, these muscle groups are small. Think of it like this: after writing for a long period of time, your forearm may feel sore, you have worked out several small muscles, but this is in no way considered to be a workout nor did this burn many calories.

Some info of note:

Although there have been small studies showing increases in muscular activity with the use of curved soles, Dr. Bruce Williams, a podiatrist and a past president of the American Academy of Podiatric Sports Medicine, said: "My point is that it's not necessarily beneficial even though there's an increase in muscular activity."

"Their primary complaint at the end of the day after walking around the mall is that they hurt," Williams said. "So is that necessarily beneficial to them? No, not at all. ... I'm not a big fan of people relearning how to walk."

-CNN

The study, by the American Council on Exercise, a nonprofit fitness organization, draws similar conclusions. The San Diego-based group tested the physiological reactions of 12 healthy women who wore regular fitness shoes and compared them with those of 12 others who wore Shape-Ups, Reebok's EasyTone Reeinspire shoes, and a model by Masai Barefoot Technology, a Swiss brand that pioneered the trend in the '90s. The report found that none of the latter models toned users' muscles or helped them burn calories.

"The messaging around these shoes and the notion that they can tone the body are appealing to the general consumer," Cedric Bryant, chief science officer at the council, told Consumer Ally . "But the toning shoes appear to produce the same results as regular sneakers. We want to educate consumers as to what's reasonable and realistic in terms of exercise and outcomes."

Bryant pointed out that any benefits of wearing Shape-Ups are more likely to come from the fact that they resemble orthopedic shoes and may indeed be good for people with foot abnormalities.

-WALLETPOP

For the love of God, stop lying to the public! Public, stop wasting your money and believing everything the TV tells you!

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/08/09/shape-ups-easytones-dont_n_675821.html

http://www.geardiary.com/2010/11/14/shape-up-shoes-shocker-they-dont-work/

http://www.walletpop.com/2010/09/01/skechers-shape-ups-ad-claims-said-to-be-misleading-consumers/

http://naturalbias.com/dont-let-reebok-fool-you-shoes-wont-tone-your-butt/

http://www.businesspundit.com/reebok-easytone-shoes-promise-to-tone-your-butt-fad-alert/

http://www.cnn.com/2009/HEALTH/08/12/shoes.fitness/index.html

Bristol Palin Gets Plastic Surgery

Bristol Palin has obviously had some work done!

She has likely received a chin implant. She looks puffy, which is either because of the recent implant, or could mean that the increase in the size of her chin is the result of an injectable filler. Her lower lip appears to have also been injected. It is hard to say for sure, but her eyebrows appear to have been lifted slightly, giving them a greater arch.

The chin looks overdone. It kind of makes her look like a cartoon character...or Snooki...
But overall, I'd say that its an improvement.

Just A Friendly Reminder To Wear Sunblock

With summer just around the corner, many are looking forward to soaking up the rays, and baking their skin to the perfect shade of bronze. But it is important to remember the dangers of the sun.

On the superficial level, sunbathing is the most cosmetically damaging thing we can do to our skin, even beyond the effects of smoking (however, doing meth can also ruin your skin). "Up to 90 percent of the visible changes commonly attributed to aging are caused by the sun" according to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. It causes premature wrinkling, age spots (also called sunspots, liver spots, lentigo simplex and senile lentigines), uneven skin tone, depletes collagen in the skin, causing it to appear loose and saggy.

Lets not overlook the greatest danger of sun exposure, cancer. Allow me to share a shocking and tragic story of a young man whose life was cut short by skin cancer. (WARNING: This story includes an image that may be troubling for some)

Marine Sgt. Carmelo Rodriguez served his country for almost ten years, also completing a tour of duty in Iraq. The country he loved so much to risk his life for, repaid him for his service with outright medical negligence, which resulted in his highly preventable death.

Upon enlisting in the U.S. Marine Corps, Rodriguez received a routine medical exam. His doctors diagnosed a blotch on his buttock as melanoma but never told him, and the military never followed up. Over the next eight years, the melanoma continued to grow until, while serving in Iraq, Rodriguez had it examined again. This time, he was told that it was just a wart and that he should have it examined upon returning to the U.S.

Tragically, by then, it was too late, and Rodriguez died 18 months later from skin cancer, holding the hand of his seven-year-old son. His once-buff physique had been whittled down to less than 80 pounds in 18 months by stage 4 melanoma.

Sgt. Carmelo Rodriguez was 19 years old when a military doctor first noticed the melanoma (but failed to take any action in order to treat the cancer or even to notify Rodriguez of his diagnosis) on his right buttock. At 29 years of age, Rodriguez succumbed to his illness.

People often associate skin cancer with the elderly, young Caucasian girls who abuse tanning beds, the fair skinned and freckled redheads. This was a young man of Hispanic dissent. He was, young, fit, healthy, and far from what is commonly associated with any risk factor for skin cancer. (I am choosing not to address at this time the horrifying negligence on the part of the U.S. military. That is a different topic, reserved for a separate article)

Some quick facts about skin cancer:

• Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United states.
• Every year 1 million Americans are diagnosed with skin cancer.
• One in five Americans will develop skin cancer in the course of a lifetime.
• Melanoma is the most common form of cancer for young adults 25-29 years old.

Here are some signs to watch out for:

I hope I have changed some minds out there about sunbathing.

http://www.justice.org/cps/rde/xchg/justice/hs.xsl/8151.htm

http://www.skinsight.com/diseaseGroups/sunDamage.htm

http://www.skincancer.org/Skin-Cancer-Facts/

Skinny Jeans Vs Flared Jeans

People need to stop wearing skinny jeans! No matter who you are, they make you look fat! They are NEVER flattering!!! They make fat people look fatter, and skinny people, less skinny! Here's the math (kinda):

The skinny jean showcases the discrepancy between the size of your thighs, and the size of your ankles. Since your thighs are much larger than your ankles, this causes your thighs to appear very large, simply by comparison to the size of your ankles. In flared jeans, the size of your thighs is offset by the flare at the ankle. This causes your lower and mid-thigh area to appear more lean, because the lower leg appears to be larger. Its a wonderful illusion.

Lets take a look at a more common scenario; a woman who doesn't have skinny little legs.

In the picture of the skinny jeans, notice that the mid-thigh appears to be the largest area of the leg, and the knee lacks contour, causing the leg to have a sausage-y look. In the flared jean, the lower thigh and knee area appear to be quite slender, thanks to the complementary flare in the lower area of the pant.

To further demonstrate my point, take into consideration the way that an hourglass figure may be flattering to the waist.

Large breasts and wide hips cause the waist to appear small, by comparison. While on the other hand, small breasts and narrow hips can cause the waist to appear larger than it may actually be. Another wonderful illusion for those women blessed with breasts and hips.

Hourglass waist, hourglass pants... Same concept, equally effective.