Hi Nelson,

My name is Bob Bowers. I am a fitness trainer and a 20 year survivor of HIV/AIDS. I'm in the process of putting together a presentation for the state HIV conference for PWA's. "Building and Maintaining Lean Body Mass." I have a couple of articles published on thebody.com and on Tim's site, hivfitness.org I have researched as much as possible, including your site medibolics for the most comprehensive list of questions that someone can ask their Doctor before starting a strength training and or aerobic exercise program. I would sincerely appreciate any suggestions, input etc. and then hope you could post it here as well as a resource for others. We recently lost a 'mutual friend' in Tim Brewi. I worked with him at APLA and his loss is a big one. I'm doing this presentation with him close in my heart. My friend Marcy Fenton from APLA helped me 'clarify' the nutritonal questions. I appreciate your site and all that you do for the community as well. Keep up the good work. You may post any or all of this mail. The conference is next week, so I would appreciate if you could respond to me asap. I know you are a busy man, so I will understand if not. Here are the list of questions I have thus far:

Nutritionist:

h Proper diet h Protein intake h Carbohydrate intake h Fat intake h Proper food and water safety h Proper hydration h Dietary supplements (vitamins, minerals, others) h Caloric nutritional supplements (liquid, powder, bars, others) h Foods that work with your specific medications h Body cell mass measurements and/or skinfold, circumference measurements: waist, hip, mid arm, mid thigh, neck

Doctor: h Form of exercise most suitable h Any exercise restrictions or concerns h Check chemistry panel: lipids, hemoglobin etc. h Specific heart rate limitations h Frequency/Duration/Intensity h Possible medication interactions with exercise h Glucose tolerance test h Testosterone levels men: free and total h Role of anabolic treatments: testosterone, human growth hormone, oxandrolone, etc. h Blood pressure h Thyroid levels

My Thanks, Bob Bowers www.onetoughpirate.com

Thanks Bob. I will post your comments. Tim will be terribly missed by all. What a nice man that helped so many with his hivfitness.org web site! By the way, who takes care of that web site now?

Good list of questions. My only concern is that I doubt that many doctors can have an input about what kind of exercise to do. Some dietitians do not support the use of vitamins and supplements. Some doctors do not support the use of testosterone and anabolic agents. So, the patient has to be aware that some resistance may be encountered by clinicians in this regard (of course, you guys in LA are better off than most in the US)! Patient empowerement is KEY in this field of ours! Email me info on the seminar at powertx@aol.com so that I can post it in my lipodystrophy yahoo email list. Thansk again! Nelson