If you want to learn how to eat well for life, to fight off osteoporosis, or how to relax, you might want to turn to an area college for help. St. Francis University in Loretto offers these programs and more at its Disepio Institute.

The university can now boast of its Strong Women Program, its Couch Potato to 5K Finisher Program and its 10,000 Step Challenge Program, to name a few. We caught up with some folks who were working out as part of HOPE--Highmark Osteoporosis Prevention and Education Program. They know that preventing or managing the bone-thinning disease requires regular weight-bearing exercises like those they're doing with exercise bands at St. Francis.

Registered Dietitian Jane Maslonik helps teach several of the health and wellness programs including HOPE, Eat Well For Life, and Personal Nutrition Coaching. She says, "diets don't always work and so we try to teach people how to make healthier choices something they can do for the rest of their life."

With its Disepio Institute, the university focuses on what it calls the full health of the individual. Amy Hudkins teaches Discovering Relaxation using breathing exercises, meditation , muscle relaxation and guided imagery. And she says, "how you can use those relaxation techniques not just to feel that ah and that good feeling, but how then it connects to managing and preventing diseases and making you feel well all over."

For more information on these classes, log onto: http://www.saintfrancisuniversity.edu/DiSepioInstitute.htm