Give Your Heart to Weight Loss: The Past is Present (Part 2)

Give Your Heart to Weight Loss: A Woman’s Guide to New Diet Books for Spring 2012
Part 2 of a 4-Part Series

    A slim waist, tasty meals, and a healthier heart are all results promised to women by well-known weight loss gurus in spring’s new diet books. Women of all ages are looking to find eating and exercise plans that fit their schedule and mindset. In honor of this month’s American Heart Month, 3 new books promise to change your beliefs on eating, wellness, and prevention of heart disease, which is the leading killer of women. Here is the second book in in this 4-entry blog series:

Book 2: The Prevention Approach

   Dr. Mark Hyman, M.D., offers an internal approach to weight loss with The Blood Sugar Solution, (Hardcover, Little, Brown & Company) noted his practice as a family physician to detecting and treating chronic diseases. He focuses on a 7-step program including improving brain function, dispelling health myths, and focusing on hormones, all aiding in reaching optimal blood sugar composition. Caitlin Runne, 25, a graduate student in pharmacology from Iowa City, Iowa looks forward to reading Hyman’s approach. “I spend so much of my day studying chemical reactions, but I never considered that they play just as big a role in my body’s weight loss as eating healthy  and hitting the gym,” she says. Runne has lost over 10 pounds on diet and exercise alone, but knows her challenging schedule sometimes prevents her from sticking to a strict gym and preparing healthy meals regime.  

 
   Dr. Hyman’s book includes a focus on prevention and management and what he refers to “diabesity,” or diabetes caused by obesity and overeating. He identifies risk factors for pre-diabetes conditions and explains that there is no longer a traditional risk factor for diabetes in the American lifestyle. As a reader with a family history of Diabetes, I considered the average sweet snacks my parents and grandparents would keep around the house. It was always a post dinner treat of vanilla ice cream, apple pie and pound cake. although I have a sweet tooth, I have began swapping sweet nighttime treats for apples and Greek yogurt.

   One chapter delves into overeating and food addiction as key genetic factors contributing to fluctuation in insulin levels and weight management. Stork spends great detail explaining that weight loss is impacted significantly (both positively and negatively) by your body’s internal functions and your family history, which need to be addressed just as importantly as consuming lean foods and completing workouts. Hyman’s previous books include UltraMetabolism: The Simple Plan for Automatic Weight Loss (Atira Books, 2008, $16.00), and TheUltraMind Solution (Simon & Schuster, 2008, $17.00). 

   Whether you’re struggling with planning low-calorie meals, getting your body jump started, those stubborn pounds, or a reliable fitness routine, there’s a book for you. Both the medical and fitness communities apply different methods to approach eating, working out, and weight management, but they are united in their desire to get women healthy, happy, and heart-conscious.

Image from amazon.com. 

See the first entry in this series here. 
See the third entry in this series here. 
Read tips and recipes here. 

Give Your Heart to Weight Loss: Petite Eats (Part 1)

Give Your Heart to Weight Loss: A Woman’s Guide to New Diet Books for Spring 2012

Part 1 of a 4-Part Series

     A slim waist, tasty meals, and a healthier heart are all results promised to women by well-known weight loss gurus in spring’s new diet books. Women of all ages are looking to find eating and exercise plans that fit their schedule and mindset. In honor of this month’s American Heart Month, 3 new books promise to change your beliefs on eating, wellness, and prevention of heart disease, which is the leading killer of women. Here is the first book in in this 4-entry blog series:

Book 1: The Less is Less Approach:     

  
  
Personal trainer and lifestyle expert Jim Karas offers a specialized take on women’s dieting with The Petite Advantage Diet: Achieve That Long, Lean Look. The Specialized Plan for Women 5'4" and Under (Hardcover, HarperOne, 2011, $25.99), available in stores now. Karas uses a 21 day plan of calorie cycling that applies lean eating to two days of 1,100 calories and a third day of 1,600 calories. The USDA reports women ages 19 to 30 and 31 to 50 should consume 1,800 to 2,200 calories and 1,600 to 2,200 calories per day, respectively.  As a woman measuring at 5 feet, I found tips in this book truly eye opening.

     Karas’s plan recognizes that a woman who is 5’4” or smaller cannot consume the same amount of calories as the “average” sized women. As a woman measuring in at 5 feet, I found tips in this book truly eye opening. A new study in February’s American Journal of Clinical Nutrition supports his idea that reducing calories as a prime factor in stimulating weight loss. While the plan is created with petite women in mind, any woman can benefit from Karas’s recommendations for changing one’s mindset to weight loss.

     Karas devotes chapters to explaining metabolism, the best meal options when eating out, the importance of recognizing liquids as a diet saboteur, and the benefits of dieting as a team or group. In recognizing the importance of social activity and relaxation, Karas approves wine on his list of appropriate liquids (in moderation), and allows for a few glasses a week in his plan. His unorthodox approach to exercise focuses on strength training as a key to maintaining a lean shape, with minimal cardio activity to accompany an improved metabolism. Karas offers simple mantras to express his points such as, “Muscle down = metabolism down.” Karas’s previous books include The Cardio-Free Diet (Gallery, 2007, $28.99) and The 7-Day Energy Surge (Rodale Books, 2010, $15.99). 

     Whether you’re struggling with planning low-calorie meals, getting your body jump started, those stubborn pounds, or a reliable fitness routine, there’s a book for you. Both the medical and fitness communities apply different methods to approach eating, working out, and weight management, but they are united in their desire to get women healthy, happy, and heart-conscious. 

Image from amazon.com. 
Read the next post here. 
Read the third post in the series here. 
Read tips and recipes here. 

A Note: Scary MOB Wives

I don't think anyone plans to watch Mob Wives. It just kinda happens on a random Tuesday night when the classy stuff, the REAL HOUSEWIVES are on on hiatus and the real shows are in repeats. Drama alert: someone doesn't want to read the chapter of someone else's book. And I quote: "This isn't a merry-go-round! This is friendship!" Finally, a solution to the problem from a senior wife: "Both of yous go out into the woods and only one of you's will make it back!"

This is really making me miss Bravo's Russian Dolls, and I only watched 20 minutes of that. But, I'm liking the mood music for this important meeting.

I give. Total elapsed time with the mob wives: 5 minutes.

A Note: Debutantes, Declarations & Daddy Issues (Gossip Girl)

Dear Gossip Girl,

How are you? I know you've been here for a while, but we haven't really connected. You've been saying some crazy things plot-wise and I think for a while, you might have lost your way. Glad to see you back on the right path. I know you standard weekly plot all too well:
1. Serena pouts and makes bad decisions
2.Blair plots evil deeds and feels bad about it later
2a. Mention a bunch of fancy designers and A-listers
3. Dorota says snappy things "in thick Russian Accent"
4. cool dresses
5. gossip girl blast
6. moment of family support
7. plan for sabotage
8. big fancy event
9. more cool dresses
10. gossip girl blast
11. Love triangle (or other applicable shape)
12." ..But you told me to meet you here, right?"
13. Dan gets emo
14. Rufus shines as a trophy husband
15. moment of scandal that threatens the balance of life in the upper east side
(usually in conjunction with gossip girl blast)
16. family secrets are revealed
17. some things get resolved while others get worse

But tonight broke the mold. It tapped into something- the old guard Gossip Girl, back in the days of high school, when things made a little more sense to us, the little people. The days when the biggest scandal was Serena making out with Nate while he was dutifully dating Blair (water under the bridge). Although I had a tragic flashback to seeing Tripp and a car crash in the same episode (December, two years ago I believe, or was it just last year?), it had punch. Here's what I loved and loathed:

LOVE:
1. Blair's in love with Chuck, who is also in love with Blair (but he knows Dan and Louis love Blair, so he backs away), but Dan is in love with Blair, and Serena is once again (wow what a selfish bee-yotch) in love with Dan.
2. Blair and Chuck pulling a Diana (as in Princess)
3. Dan picking up pizza and Evian for his houseguest, Blair
4. Cray cray Charlie/Ivy almost getting exposed
5. Nate fighting Grandpa but sucking it up to be the golden grandson (very Kennedy)
6. Dan arranging a secret meeting between Blair and Chuck
7. FINALLY- they make it 100% obvious that Elizabeth Hurley (Diana) is Chuck's mum.
8. Serena and Nate's commitment to take down Gossip Girl with their little website.

HATE:
1. The entire car accident scene. Train wreck. First, why was Nate's car following Blair and Chuck? Why did his driver not know to take him to the airport in Westchester?And furthermore, what creepy deserted forest that they drove for miles and miles through was supposed to be passed off as Central Park?
2. Charlie's such a weakling. One little car accident and she flees?
3. Dan moping.
4. Serena liking Dan when it's convenient for her

PREDICTIONS:
1. Blair's losing that baby.
2. Chuck's gonna live but this whole mama/baby drama's going to mindwarp him
3. Chuck's finally going to meet his mama
4. Serena's still gonna be a beey-otch.
5. Unsure about weddings.........
6. Louis's not going away without a fight

A Note: Stay Out of IT, NICK LACHEY! - Part 1

I am so pumped for January 11th! It's almost time for the actual beginning of One Tree Hill's last season. Just kidding, they're definitely coming back for season 10, a la 7th Heaven. So why Nick Lachey? What did he have to do with the hill? Plenty. In season 6, Lucas and Peyton (finally) married hours before she went into painful labor- spoiler alert- the birth was fine! Nick Lachey happened to be in town that weekend (naturally recording a new single at Red Bedroom Records) and accompanied Brooke to the wedding to make some dude jealous. Nick offered some romantic advice to budding singer Mia (Kate Voegele) and she retorted "Stay out of it, Nick Lachey!"

Which brings us back to the center of this post. Why OTH? Why do I still care? What other small town manages to parade major recording stars as themselves in a casual guest appearance? NONE.
What other town had an all-ages teen club where major drama and major concerts happened?
NONE.
What show's major hangout/club later turned into a bar/recording studio?
None.
What other teens got married in high school?
None.
What show caused major Oedipus-like complex drama where your dad shoots your uncle and makes it look like part of a troubled teen's rampage? Triple Oedipus with your mom marrying your uncle who was more of a father than your real father?
None.
Ravens hoops?
None.
The changed face of American Music and live performances?
The show had a music tour! RE: Gavin Degraw, Everly, the wreckers, kate voegele, tyler hilton)
NONE!
Clean teens? Shout-out to Stephen Coletti, who spanned a guest role into several seasons of good, solid, acting.
Crazy-ass cheerleader fights? The Sparkle Classic?
None.
The destruction of Chad and Sophia's fairytale marriage?
Access Hollywood.
That adorable kid?
Nobody. He might never work in TV again after this show....

But it's all good!


A town where fashion designers, teen pop stars, NBA players, tv anchors, coke-addicted recovering models, award winning novelists, and movie directors all co-esist like you and me?
None, well this is beginning to sound a little like THE O.C., but those kids never left high school.

So naturally, you understand why there is only One Tree Hill? I rest my case. I have literally grown up with PeyPey, Luke, Natey, Hales, and B.Davis, as well as Mouth (he's like the fifth Beatle). Their challenges might be a little more extreme, but their coming of age story is totally relate-able. See you Jan 11th for the beginning of the end!

I'm not the only one who owes OTH a debt of gratitude for the way it's changed my life. Read this great article for another fan's take!