Fifth Annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Health & Fitness Oct 4-5 at USC
LOS ANGELES, Sept. 2, 2003 – Hector Elizondo, Shelley Fabares, Sharon Lawrence, Dr. Susan Love, David Hyde Pierce, Dr. Drew Pinsky and Barry Sears are among the 160 celebrity health advocates, best-selling authors and leading health experts scheduled to participate in the fifth annual Los Angeles Times Festival of Health & Fitness, to be held Saturday, Oct. 4, and Sunday, Oct. 5, on the University of Southern California campus in Los Angeles. Festival hours are 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. both days.
Admission to the festival and panel sessions is free to the public. Seating for panel sessions is on a first-come, first-served basis. On-campus parking is available for $5.
Speaker and event information is available online at www.latimes.com/festivalofhealth or by calling 800-350-3211. The official Los Angeles Times Festival of Health & Fitness event program will appear in the Sept. 28 edition of The Times.
11th Annual Memory Walk to Kick Off Festival
The 11th Annual Memory Walk benefiting the Alzheimer’s Assn. in Los Angeles will kick off this year’s Festival of Health & Fitness at 9 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 4. The five-kilometer fund-raiser will begin on Trousdale Parkway on the USC campus and will benefit local community programs and services supporting Alzheimer’s patients and their families.
Guest celebrities participating in the Memory Walk include National Honorary Chairs Shelley Fabares and David Hyde Pierce along with Bryan Cranston, Hector Elizondo, Ken Howard, Rafer Johnson, Sharon Lawrence, George Takei and Lea Thompson. Steve Edwards, host of FOX 11’s Good Day L.A., will emcee the event.
Additional information about the Memory Walk is available by calling 323-930-6228 and online at www.alzla.org/mw.
Stage and Panel Presentations
The Center Stage Pavilion will host Alzheimer’s spokespersons Hector Elizondo, Shelley Fabares, Sharon Lawrence and David Hyde Pierce; Barry Sears, author of “The Zone;” Dr. Susan Love, author of “Dr. Susan Love’s Breast Book;” and Joe and Teresa Graedon, authors of “The People’s Pharmacy.”
The Doctors of USC Stage will feature discussions on new treatments for macular degeneration, Parkinson’s Disease and epilepsy; prevention and treatment options for prostate, colorectal and skin cancer and spine and back injuries; and the latest on minimally invasive heart surgery.
The Body Works Patio will offer sessions on the gentle fitness techniques behind Pilates, t’ai chi and yoga; meditation and relaxation methods; and fitness therapy.
Sessions to be conducted in various lecture halls include “Dr. Drew Speaks on Addiction,” “Nutritional Make-over,” “A Woman’s Body: From Adolescence to Menopause,” “Plastic Surgery: Beyond Nip & Tuck,” “Healthy Aging: What’s New?,” “Changing Perspectives on Hormone Therapy,” “Coping with Arthritis, Back Pain & Headaches” and “Finding Happiness.”
Fitness & Entertainment Stage demonstrations include Jazzercise, boot camp, spinning, martial arts and boxing in addition to hula and belly dancing. Musical entertainment includes Latin jazz by The Susie Hansen Band and the Caribbean music of Michael Wagner and The Roots Band.
The Food Stage will showcase cooking demonstrations by Regina Campbell, author and host of public television’s “Regina’s Vegetarian Table;” Cheryl Forberg, author of “Stop the Clock! Cooking;” syndicated food writer Linda Gassenheimer, author of “Low-Carb Meals in Minutes;” Kathy Keenan Isoldi, author of “Woman’s Day Weight Loss Plan;” executive chef Juliano, owner of RAW in Santa Monica and author, “Raw: The UNcook Book;” Michel Nischan, executive chef of Song Airways and author, “Taste Pure and Simple;” and James Beard Award-winning food expert and author Diane Rossen Worthington, author of “The Cuisine of California” and “Seriously Simple.”
The Kids’ Stage will host California Science Center’s BrainWorks show; doctor-comedian Neil Shulman; Hype! Kids Work-out with former Laker Girl Tricia Gomez; martial arts and team jump rope demonstrations; performances by Abalaye African Dance Ensemble, Arte Flamenco Dance Theatre, Debbie Allen Dance Academy, Los Angeles Performing Arts Academy and Mariachi Fiesta Mexicana.
Two interactive zones will feature an inflatable bungee run, kids’ sumo wrestling ring, trampolines, multi-sport obstacle course, rock climbing wall, and BMX bike, inline skating, skateboard and spinning demonstrations.
More than 150 exhibitors will offer information about a wide range of health issues and services, with several of them conducting free medical screenings.
Last year’s Festival of Health & Fitness attracted almost 62,000 visitors and featured 150 speakers and health experts.
Presenting sponsors are the University of Southern California and The Doctors of USC. Major sponsor is The California Wellness Foundation. Supporting sponsors are Oxytrol and HEARx. Media sponsors are KTLA-TV, ESPN Radio AM (710), KDIS-AM Radio Disney (1110), KKBT-FM “The Beat” (100.3) and KPCC FM (89.3).