Health & Fitness

Help for the Hesitant

Steak or fish? Celica or Mustang? Break up or shack up with Brenda? If you wrestle with such questions, you may be going about your decision making in the wrong way. You're probably thinking too much. New research suggests that people who suffer from the Hamlet Syndrome (self-absorption and doubt when decisive action is called for) can learn to choose wisely. Neuroscientists at the University of Iowa Medical College found that successful decision makers consider logic and fact but discover what's right for them by heeding their intuition. The research compared two sets of subjects: one group with normal brain function, one with damage to the area of the brain that affects decision making. The ''normal'' group relied on instinct and feeling-based hunches and came out on top. Those whose choices were fact-based made self-destructive decisions and lost. Laura Day, author of Practical Intuition, teaches ''emotional'' decision making by stressing attention to feelings over expert opinion, common sense over preconceived ideas. Relax, breathe, free-associate with your eyes shut, she advises, and ask yourself specific questions such as ''Should I marry Brenda?'' instead of ambiguous ones such as ''Will I ever be happy?''

Wild Man Weil

If you've never heard of Andrew Weil, you've probably been on an inadvertent ''news fast,'' the soothing break from world events prescribed in his latest best-seller, Eight Weeks to Optimum Health. In it, the guru of alternative medicine--named one of the year's most influential people by Time--turns his theoretical opus, Spontaneous Healing, into an action plan that includes good nutrition, Chinese herbs, detoxification and advice such as, ''Buy fresh flowers'' and ''Get a puppy.'' Weil has a medical degree from Harvard, where he and classmate Timothy Leary conducted groundbreaking research on mind-altering drugs in the early Sixties. In Eight Weeks, Weil weighs in on everything from cavities to cancer. Noncelebrity docs demand clinical data. Weil replies that he crafts his remedies from anecdotal evidence--though with book tours, speaking gigs and a PBS contract, he's not likely to see any soon. Look him up at www.drweil.com.

Gliders--Flying High or Hype?

So you're up late watching one of those annoying infomercials. It's a Health Walker. No, it's an Airofit. No, it's a Fitness Flyer. ''Call now,'' the announcer says, ''for firmer thighs, tighter arms and glutes that stand up and shout hallelujah!'' But wait. Are these glider devices the miracles they're touted to be? Not quite. ''These machines are not adaptable to all fitness levels and will not produce the promised results to an everyday exerciser,'' warns exercise physiologist Richard Cotton from the American Council on Exercise. If you're presently inactive, steady use of an air glider can tone muscles, boost endurance and burn calories equal to a slow walk or jog. But look elsewhere if you want a high-intensity workout or muscles with cut or bulk. Many brands are wobbly, noisy and unstable, so try before you buy, meaning shop in a fitness store, not off late-night TV.

Dr. Playboy

Q: I've heard there's a new recreational drug on the scene that's better than ecstasy. I never tried ecstasy, but I'm tempted by this one. Can you tell me about it?

A: The drug is most likely ketamine, also known as Special K, Vitamin K, K, Green or Cat Valium. It's a dangerous sedative intended only as an anesthetic for animals. It is particularly popular these days on the club scene in New York, where emergency-room doctors have seen many partygoers after they've snorted the drug and lost control of their muscles. Still tempted? The hype on the drug promises the dreamy, hypnotic effect of heroin with a sexual buzz similar to cocaine. The trouble is, a bad ketamine trip resembles paranoid schizophrenia and can end in the psychiatric ward. Ketamine is mostly snorted in 75--100 mg doses and lasts 30 minutes or so. It's also injected. Regular users can suffer seizures and permanent memory loss. Even a casual dose can cause severe mental distress. This is a high that's not worth the risks.