If you’re overweight, you’re not alone. More than one-third of Americans are obese, and two-thirds are either obese or overweight. All 50 states in the US now have at least a 20 percent obesity rate, with five states at more than 35 percent of their population being obese (South Carolina is not one of them). Just two decades ago, not one state in our nation had over a 15 percents obesity rate. Being overweight and obese is an epidemic, one far more scary and imminent than headline viruses. Obesity is linked to 60 chronic illnesses, and has now surpassed smoking as the No. 1 preventable cause of death. The reason: We are eating more. Way more! We are consuming 23 percent more calories on a daily basis than we did in the 1970s. What that looks like in numbers is a standard 2,000 calorie per day consumption has increased to an average of almost 2,500 calories per day, all while physical activity has decreased. The result: We have become an unhealthy, sick country. Everyone knows losing weight is one of the hardest tasks to conquer. Sometimes we feel defeated before we even start. The good news is, if you are overweight or obese, losing even five percent of your current weight helps reduce your risks for disease. Many wonder where to start. It’s OK to ask for help, and that’s why we went to the experts to really talk about the ins and outs of weight loss and fat reduction, and what the difference is.

“It’s time to get up and out!”
– The Uphill Skater –

Spring has sprung and all of that glorious stuff. The temperatures are in the 70s and azaleas are competing with new spring daffodils for the big color award. In case you have not noticed, it is time to get out of that jacket, get off the sofa, and check out the world. Our publisher, Elizabeth Millen, was spotted walking at Harbour Town without a coat and having a gin and tonic, the ultimate summer drink. So how about the rest of us? That cold-stay-inside weather is over, ladies. It’s time to open windows, open minds, and let the sun shine in!

Let’s figure out what we can do about coming out of hibernation to return—or start—living a healthy, active life and not be sad watching HGTV all day, longing for other people’s houses and decor that seems way better than ours. I have done that, and don’t pretend you haven’t.

While working at Uniform Issue at FLETC, I found a $50 bill in a pants pocket after checking about 150 pairs of pants finding mostly nasty mouth pieces or ear plugs. Whoop, whoop!

Getting a date with my wife, Hilary, was the best luck I ever had­—all the worst luck I ever had led me to her. Karma—God’s plan—you can’t change or escape it!

I have had both. I was married 22 years and my husband committed suicide. Two years later, my 16-year-old was killed in a car accident with his best friend. Now I have been with the love of my life for 14 years.

It’s the award season once more. 

The Golden Globes are already behind us, and the coveted Oscars are this month on February 9.

If you are a movie-goer like The Reel Corner, you might agree there really weren’t many films to get excited about in 2019. Never fear, The Reel Corner has highlighted a few worth seeing.

Kevin Lawless realized at an early age that he had difficulty with reading and he later learned he had dyslexia. Rather than let this learning handicap limit his life, he also realized he was blessed with an amazing talent that has led to a lifetime of living his dream. Kevin sees the world differently than most people. He envisions beauty where others see junk. He has become a famous artist with the talent to create stunning sculptures, metal gates, bicycle racks, fences and grills  all through the art and skill of welding.

He uses MILD Steel, often mistakenly referred to as wrought iron, as his medium. He learned much of his craft from his father-in-law.

Many people think a stroke happens in the heart, but it happens in the brain, and it can be devastating. Stroke is a disease you must be educated about. When it happens, it is always sudden and never expected. Knowing the signs and symptoms, and acting FAST, can mean the difference between a stroke victim being permanently disabled, or being able to resume a normal, healthy life. It can also be the difference between life and death. Read on to educate yourself on the risk factors, signs and symptoms of stroke.

 “February is the month of love, so how about we give some love to ourselves?”

– The Uphill Skater –

Yes, ladies, I am putting self-love out there for your consideration. We are so conditioned as women to love and serve others, that we frequently forget ourselves. In fact, I was sharing a Bible story with my Sunday school class last week, and we were talking about the miracle when Jesus healed the mother-in-law of Peter. After she was healed, the Bible said, she got up and began to serve them. What is that? She gets up from a sick bed and starts to serve the people just sitting around? Okay, you might think this not a good example and maybe from another time, both of which are correct, but have you ever known anyone who did not feel well, or was really sick and made dinner before collapsing into bed, or limped around getting the house clean before finally lying down to rest? I know I have not only heard of it, but I have been that person! Haven’t you?

New cleanse. Barre yoga class. Upset tummy. The runs. Run out of class. Never return.

My trainer was handing me a weight, and I accidentally grabbed his penis.

One night, I had the gym to myself…or so I thought. I was running on the treadmill and let out a huge fart. Someone in the corner started laughing. I have not been back since.

I slept walked into the living room and did a yoga video at 3:00 a.m.

“Is there such a word as ‘unmotivated?’
I’m just wondering!”
– The Uphill Skater –

2019 was very up and down for me. I do not mean just weight either. A week or so ago, I was so unmotivated to look to the future that I took my 2019 resolution list, and made the 1 into a 2 by putting a little curl on the top, and made the 9 into a 0 by filling in the empty space up the side. Can you picture it? It now looks like I have brand new resolutions for 2020 on the totally unmodified 2019 list, and I still have them shamelessly up on my fridge.

Basketball coach Jerry Faulkner is motivated by the satisfaction and pleasure he receives from helping others develop. He likens coaching to running a company. He teaches his high school players how to be emotionally prosperous, respectful, disciplined, and he sets the example. He respects authority and expects the same from his players. They are never allowed to disrespect an official, or for that matter, say anything to an official other than yes sir or yes m’am. If you ask his players—both past and present—it is they who are on the receiving end of Coach Faulkner’s motivating wisdom, which for many will last a lifetime.

Coach Faulkner’s demeanor is contagious. He teaches and motivates via tough love. He has one player who has played in the NBA and many more who have played in the European Leagues. In the 30 minutes we met, he motivated me to want to go back to coaching.

Scarlett O'Hara and Rhett Butler are one of the most enduring couples in American cinema, and December marked the 80th anniversary of their film debut in Gone with the Wind, a tale of war, love gone wrong and tragic endings. The film’s anniversary on December 15, was met with surprisingly little fuss—positive or negative.

Gone With the Wind can be credited for the existence of the television network Turner Classic Movies. Owner Ted Turner's obsession with the movie led him to buy the film library that became the basis of the network. GWTW is the most famous, most widely loved, and—adjusted for inflation—most successful film in Hollywood history ($3.4 billion in current money).

There is a surefire formula for Americans that is resulting in the rise of the dangerous disease of diabetes: Decreased exercise plus increased weight equals more and more diabetes diagnoses. There is good news and bad news when it comes to diabetes. Let’s talk bad new first: Diabetes is one of the most destructive diseases one can face. It breaks the body down, affecting vision, kidneys, nerves, gastric function, and blood circulation. It also severely increases the risks for heart disease and stroke. In other words, it negatively affects almost every body function. So whats the good news? Diabetes is controllable, and there is a lot of help out there to get you going on the right track. Speaking of tracks, one of the best ways to combat diabetes is by taking a daily brisk walk. In other words, by changing your lifestyle, you can change your trajectory of illness due to diabetes. Read on to learn more about this disease from our leading experts.

“The theme of this month’s issue is #BeTheDifference—
a variation of a quote by Ghandi. His quote verbatim is
‘Be the change you want to see in the world,’
which actually makes it MUCH harder!”
– The Uphill Skater –

Honestly, Elizabeth Millen, our darling editor/publisher, comes up with the best themes for Pink. What a challenge to actually bring home something as broad, yet right to the point, as one person being the difference in the world; and then to think that person is perhaps you. Fact is, it’s each one of us.

Last year, when the movie Instant Family came out, friends Jack Gigante and Jared Reuben had no clue that this movie would change their lives forever. Jared and Jack, both locally raised 16-year-old sophomores at Hilton Head Preparatory School, had an amazing idea inspired from the movie, finding an impactful way to give back to help others.

The movie’s plot is about a married couple finding themselves wanting to become foster parents. Hoping for one younger child, they get matched with a rebellious 15-year-old who comes paired with two younger siblings. Going from zero to three children overnight, the couple must learn how to become “good parents” in hopes of making a family.

Edward Harrison Norton is an American actor known for his intense performances and uncompromising approach to his work. He has received multiple awards and nominations. Raised in Columbia, Maryland, Norton was drawn to theatrical productions at local venues as a child. After graduating from Yale College in 1991, he worked for a few months in Japan as a consultant for his grandfather’s company before moving to New York City to pursue an acting career. He gained immediate recognition for his debut in Primal Fear (1996), which earned him the Golden Globe for Best Supporting Actor and an Academy Award nomination. His role as a reformed neo-Nazi in 1998’s American History X earned him an Academy Award nomination for Best Actor.

It can't be happening—thinning hair, texture change and even worse—hair going down the drain at an alarming rate. What is happening? Is it aging? Illness? Nutrition? Thinning hair is not something women talk much about. However, that doesn’t mean the problem isn’t real. We decided our skin was thick enough, even if our hair wasn’t, to unclog the silence and ask the professionals to give us the skinny on thinning hair.

Two decades ago, Allan La Coe’s eye fell on a newspaper article written by Betsy Doughtie, then-director of the local nonprofit Deep Well. What he read was to inspire one of the most worthwhile projects of his life.

“It said ‘Lonely locals have nowhere to go for Thanksgiving,’” recalls La Coe, Hilton Head resident since 1995. “This is an aging community, so some of them might have been people who were going through their first holiday after the death of a loved one. I called Betsy and said, ‘What can we do about this?’”

I love the old saying “Blessed to be a Blessing”
as it has a special meaning to me.
– The Uphill Skater –

We all know that living a healthy lifestyle has as many pieces to it as a big jigsaw puzzle, and one of those pieces, without which nothing else goes together, is gratitude. Yes, actual data-driven studies have shown that people who are grateful for what they have, be it a lot or a little by the definitions of others, live lives that are less stressful, happier, and less driven by acquisition of goods or wealth. Being a grateful person brings many life benefits, but perhaps equally important, it also brings health benefits.

If we embrace the wonderful piece of the puzzle called gratitude, it reflects the way we interact—both outwardly and inwardly— with our loved ones, co-workers and all we encouter. “Blessed to be a Blessing” has tons of implications when you think about it.

I have the honor of knowing these talented young men involved in filmmaking each representing a different decade. Let’s hear what they have to say about the future of films and those interested in filmmaking.

Jim Picariello (40-Something)
If you listen to conversations from those on the creative side of the filmmaking industry, the future of quality film production is heading in one direction: Television. Or at least what we call TV—Netflix, Amazon, Hulu. We all have the same conversation about films today: It’s all Disney or super heroes, or horror or cars making things blow up. Where are all the romantic comedies or mysteries or feel-good dramas? They’re turning into 10-episode series on cable or online subscription services. The definition of what’s a movie and what’s a longer movie that is just split into episodes, is blurring.

I had 30 people at my harvest table with all the leaves in it. When anyone wanted to get out of their seat, they had to crawl under the table since the table extended out of the dining room into the living room with no room in the doorway! It was fun!

We went to a resort at the Matterhorn in Switzerland. The chef made a turkey shaped pate, added sparklers and paraded it around the dining room!

I booked my flight on the wrong day!!!

The fabled Gullah culture of the Lowcountry finds one of its most elegant expressions in sweetgrass basketry. A perfect marriage of art and utility, the tight, delicately hued coils once used for winnowing rice and toting produce from the field are now prized as the highest taste in houseware, even as collector’s items and museum pieces. The technique was originally brought from West Africa by enslaved people, then later elevated to an art form by the creativity of their descendants. Using native materials such as longleaf pine straw, bulrush, palmetto fronds and the namesake sweetgrass, Gullah folk have stitched together their baskets by firesides, under trees and in modern living rooms. They’ve sold their wares from roadside stands along the famed Coastal Highway 17 corridor, at festivals and open-air markets, and in the priciest gift shops. A medium-sized bread basket that once went for a $20 bill now easily goes for ten times that much; a large elaborate showpiece requiring weeks of work can fetch hundreds or even thousands of dollars. The world has taken notice of sweetgrass.

One of the most dreaded conditions for women (and men) is incontinence. Unwanted and untimely waste leakage is a problem that ranges from being inconvenient to completely embarrassing. Though it’s usually a topic discussed jokingly in women’s circles, urinary incontinence is truly no laughing matter, and fecal incontinence is even worse. Both conditions can change a person’s lifestyle, making them not want to go out or socialize as much because of the chance of unwanted leakage. The good news is incontinence is not inevitable with age. In addition, there are many effective new treatments to consider. Read on to learn the various conditions of leakage—as they are not the same—and what you can do about it!

I have been advocating a healthy lifestyle in this column for years, and I hope you understand that creativity, newness and imagination are not only a part of a good health formula, but essential to the whole picture. Having the same old thoughts, the same old food boredom and the same old drudgery of a daily routine are not only sworn enemies of creativity, but also of good mental and physical health, too.

How can we avoid the unimaginative rut and use creativity to work toward being our best selves? I tend to substitute, or define the word creative in two ways: I like to use the words change and imagine.

With that in mind, let’s look at some things
that are very easy to change...

It took the successful release of the 2018 film Crazy Rich Asians, a global phenomenon that raked in $238 million at the box office, to reinforce the idea that diversity could also mean good business. Now the door is opening a little wider for Asian Americans and their stories. Prior, most Asian American actor roles were delegated to parts that required accents and rarely reflected their actual experiences.

Awkwafina, (born Nora Lum) one of the actresses in Crazy Rich Asians, has joined several movie franchises (Angry Birds and Jumanji) and earned rave reviews for Lulu Wang’s The Farewell since her role in the film.