About 70 members of the Lebanon Area Chamber of Commerce listened to information about diet and fitness on March 27 as they enjoyed lunch at Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital.

Speakers were Kathy Miller, a registered nurse with the Diabetes Education/Wound and Ostomy Clinic at SLCH and Terry Deacon, a personal trainer with Fitness and All Sports Training.

Miller gave 10 tips on how to get in shape and lose weight.

Her first piece of advice? Learn how to read labels on food and drink containers.

Another tip was to focus on the food when you are eating, instead of occupying yourself with something else, like watching television.

"Take the time to enjoy the food," Miller said.

Miller said that it's a good idea to keep a food journal because it maintains accountability for what one eats.

Coffee drinks are something that people don't think too much about, but Miller said it's something that can play a major factor in weight loss.

"It's the little things that we could easily get rid of," she said. "It's important that you don't drink your calories."

Other things that affect weight loss are the size of plates, bowls and cups and the lack of fruits and vegetables.

The most important thing though, Miller said, is to not miss meals, because overeating often occurs later in the day.

"Your body is like a furnace and you have to keep putting fuel in it to keep it going," she said.

Deacon focused on fitness.

"The objective of fitness is to be able to do things you like to do for as long as you want," he said.

Mobility and balance are two important factors of fitness, especially as you get older, Deacon said.

"We're all going to reach a certain age where everything we've done will come back to haunt us," he said.

Deacon stressed that it's important to understand that age is not a factor in being in good shape.

"Anybody at any age can be physically fit," Deacon said.

Deacon said five areas of fitness need to be focused on more than others: aerobics, strength training, core stability, flexibility and balance.

"It affects our day-to-day living and the ability to enjoy life," he said.