Trace Adkins works with five different producers on his 11th album, suggesting the country music veteran and reality TV star is searching for an infusion of fresh energy.

Noah Miller is in a perpetual fight with his own body.

Phoenix Children’s Hospital and the Phoenix Fire Department are already working to get kids ready for summer with reminders about staying safe around water.

In a previous column I discussed the PACER, a test of cardiovascular fitness that is part of the national youth physical fitness test battery (FITNESSGRAM). FITNESSGRAM, was developed at the Cooper Institute in Dallas and is now offered as a cooperative program with the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition (PCFSN) and the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (AAHPERD). In addition to assessing cardiovascular fitness, the FITNESSGRAM Test Battery includes tests of muscle fitness, flexibility, and body composition.

Until the very end, she is described as “The Girl.”

Cardiovascular fitness is generally considered to be the most important component of health-related physical fitness. Other commonly used terms for cardiovascular fitness include cardiorespiratory endurance, aerobic fitness, and aerobic capacity. The national youth physical fitness test (FITNESSGRAM), developed at the Cooper Institute in Dallas, is now offered as a cooperative program with the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition (PCFSN) and the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation, and Dance (AAHPERD). The recommended test for youth in the FITNESSGRAM battery is called the Progressive Aerobic Cardiovascular Endurance Run (PACER).

940 N. 54th St., Suite 200

Which scenario would you prefer?

Parents of school-aged kids may remember taking a physical fitness test that involved running the 50-yard dash and performing a zig-zag run (shuttle run) along with other tests such as the pull-up. Grandparents may remember throwing a softball, running or walking 600 yards, or doing the flexed arm hang. Over time youth physical fitness tests have changed. Now the national test, called FITNESSGRAM, produced by the Cooper Institute in Dallas and co-sponsored by the President’s Council on Fitness, Sports, and Nutrition and the American Alliance for Health Physical Education and Recreation, includes test items that relate to health rather than sports-related test items included in earlier tests.

‘Cloud Atlas’

Ever meandered through the pharmacy aisles of Whole Foods, Sprouts, or even Trader Joe’s and wished you knew more about the various supplements and which ones could possibly benefit you? Herbal/dietary supplements (also called botanicals) are plants used for their therapeutic properties, and the roots of herbalism go back to the beginning of humanity. The following list contains some of the more popular herbs that are generally accepted to have psychoactive and/or medicinal properties with positive effects in humans:

Colin Farrell replaces Arnold Schwarzenegger in the new version of “Total Recall,” and the smug sense of campy meanness that made the original 1990 film feel so muscular and grotesque gives way to a vibe that’s slick, shiny and deadly serious.

Christopher Nolan concludes his Batman trilogy in typically spectacular, ambitious fashion with "The Dark Knight Rises," but the feeling of frustration and disappointment is unshakable.

The sun, in its various hues and levels of intensity, plays an important role in Oliver Stone's latest, "Savages."

The heart is actually one big muscle. But it is a specialized muscle and different from the other muscles that are attached to your bones. Where you have to purposefully make your arm or leg muscles move, the heart muscle is continuously and, hopefully, efficiently pumping away, day and night without you thinking about it. 

If Balin Hewson could have one wish it would be to find a cure for muscular dystrophy.

If Balin Hewson could have one wish it would be to find a cure for muscular dystrophy.

Yet another fitness-gadget is espousing benefits backed by scientific studies. That's like blood in the water to me. I must investigate. It's an addiction.

Yet another fitness-gadget is espousing benefits backed by scientific studies. That's like blood in the water to me. I must investigate. It's an addiction.

FITNESSGRAM, a national youth fitness test battery, includes tests of four different parts of health-related physical fitness: body composition, cardiovascular fitness, muscle fitness, and flexibility. National guidelines recommend daily physical activity of 60 minutes or more to build all parts of fitness and to achieve other health benefits. Activities of all types from the Physical Activity Pyramid for Kids should be performed. Moderate activity (Step 1) contributes to general health benefits. Vigorous aerobic activity (Step 2) and vigorous sports and recreation (Step 3) build cardiovascular fitness. Muscle fitness exercises (Step 4) build muscle fitness, including strength and muscular endurance. Flexibility exercises (Step 5) build flexibility, including long muscles and good range of joint movement.

To stretch or not to stretch, that is the question. At least that would be Hamlet's question before going out for his morning run around Elsinore castle and people have been asking that same question ever since. I'm raising the question now because with the new year approaching, many of you will be resolving to begin an exercise program for health and weight loss.

HEALTH ADVICE