Allen R. Smith is a freelance writer living in Vail, Colorado and has been published in magazines, newspapers and hundreds of websites specializing in health, fitness, nutrition and outdoor sports.

Smith earned his Masters Degree in Exercise Physiology and his Exercise Specialist certification with the American College of Sports Medicine at San Diego State University in 1983. While at SDSU, he was the coordinator of the Human Performance Laboratory for the Adult Fitness Program - the oldest organized adult fitness program in the country. During his post-graduate study, Smith specialized in Type II diabetes and studied the relationship between glycosylated hemoglobin (HbA1c) and its plasma lactate accumulation during sub-maximal aerobic exercise.

His first position out of graduate school was heading the Executive Assessment Laboratory at the Medical Fitness Center in Los Angeles, California - a joint venture between the Los Angeles Athletic Club and California Hospital Medical Center. At the MFC, Smith ran executives through a comprehensive battery of health, fitness and psychological tests to determine their overall risk for heart disease. Some of his most notable clients included agents from the Los Angeles field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

Smith has lectured and developed in-patient and out-patient programs for type I and II diabetics, exercise-induced asthmatics and other individuals at high risk for cardiovascular disease. He has also consulted in a number of medically based weight loss and cardiac rehabilitation clinics and was a field examiner for the American College of Sports Medicine in preventive and rehabilitative exercise program certifications.

Smith now lives in Vail, Colorado and enjoys a career in freelance writing for print and the web. He is an award winning writer, has been featured on the Denver affiliate station of NBC, the Denver Post, OntheSnow.com, the Aspen Times, LIVESTRONG.COM, Trail.com, Idaho Mountain Express, Vail Daily, Tahoe Daily Tribue and published his first book, "Ski Instructors Confidential" in 2005. He is also a Level II certified Alpine Ski Instructor with the Professional Ski Instructors of America and teaches at Vail Mountain in Vail, Colorado. He can be reached at www.snowwriter.com.