BEST WAY FOR KIDS TO LOSE WEIGHT

Get the Sugar Out: 501 Simple Ways to Cut the Sugar Out of Any Diet

This timely book is aimed at the millions of people whose low-fat diets aren't providing the health benefits and weight loss they expect. The reason? The "healthy" promise of low-fat products masks the excessively high levels of cornstarch, sucrose, and other forms of sugar. More than 50 recipes make Get the Sugar Out a great guide to low-sugar adaptations of favorite meals, snacks, drinks and desserts.

"Avoiding sugar is the easiest, safest, and most permanent way to stay slim" is the bold promise nutritionist Ann Louise Gittleman makes in her book Get the Sugar Out. Gittleman, who also authored Beyond Pritikin, gives the hard facts about why refined sugar contributes to weight gain, mood swings, weak immunity, diabetes, and more. Low-fat diets, the book claims, frequently let people down, because manufactured fat-free foods often contain more sugar than their full-fat counterparts!
Don't be fooled, though: ridding your diet of sugar will not be an easy task. The 501 tips provided in the book may seem rather daunting at times. Luckily, Gittleman doesn't expect you to incorporate all of them into your life. She notes, "Even if you incorporate only one-tenth of the tips in this book, you're sure to reduce the sugar in your diet and change your life in a positive and noticeable way." So even if you find it's too difficult to give up your diet sodas, you can still improve your health by learning all the names sugar hides under (including tongue twisters such as xylitol, sorghum syrup, mannitol, and maltodextrin) and avoiding products that contain them. Some of Gittleman's suggestions, though, are not only simple, but fun. For example, you can substitute frozen grapes, raspberries, and blueberries for hard candy. This easy-to-read book even has 50 delicious recipes (how about Peanut Butter Muffins or "Gone Nutty" Frozen Bananas?) and a week's menu to get you started. So if you're ready to get going on "a satisfying, high-energy, low-sugar regimen," this just may be the book for you. --Jenny Brown

2010 Here We Go! New years resolutions...do you have one? Or more than one maybe? Honestly, I don't usually make new years resolutions. Why set myself up for failure. I know, that's a bad attitude. Instead of making resolutions once a year I try my best to live my life all year long with the strive for excellence and the will to succeed. I try to take my life one day at a time. I believe that if I take one day at a time, sometimes one hour at a time, and do the best I can do in that day or that hour then life will unfold in the best possible way. Of course sometimes the best things for us are the hardest things to get through...but there is a reason for all. In my opinion, if I had to make a new years resolution to do better in one area of my life then that would mean I'd have to admit that I have dropped the ball in that one area. How twisted am I? Not only do I have a hard time admitting to others when I'm wrong, but even to myself? Now that's just not right, lol. Okay, Okay.....I'll admit there are some areas of my life which I need to modify a bit in 2010. Modify? Resolution? Hum? Call it what you want. So what is it?

My focus is on staying focused this year. I have a tendency to jump from one thing to another, getting all excited about something and letting IT take control. I vow to work on one thing at a time. I will have an optimistic attitude even in the face of failure or rejection...because I have faith that what I am doing is good, is honest, is helpful, is needed, and is respected. I vow to not have to please everyone this year, and I vow NOT to focus on those that do not see my vision, but rather include those that do see my vision in my quest to succeed. I vow to remember that when I fail I learn something.......which ultimately brings me closer to reaching my final goal. Final goal? Is there such a thing? I don't think so.....at least not for me. Is there ever a point in our lives when we are truly satisfied? I'd like to think so. But how often do you hear, or even tell yourself things like this, "Once I lose weight everything will be good" or "If only I had more money, then things would be perfect" or "As soon as the kids reach a certain age things will be easier" the list goes on. What we fail to realize is that THIS is the only time we have. Today, this hour, this minute is all we are ever guaranteed, so lets do our best this year to live every minute, every hour, every day to the best of our ability. Know that it's okay to fall, but it's not okay to stay down. We will get up brush ourselves off and keep going.
Happy New Year and let's make 2010 a year that we gave 100%.......that's all that matters.....not where we end up....but how we got there...wherever that will be.

Every year I get excited about the " New Year" fresh start. Every year, no lie I make lists of things I would like to accomplish in the coming year. I usually get very few things checked off. I think that with getting older, you realize that certain things are unattainable. ( NO Matter how hard I try I will never acheive Jillian Micheals 6 pack)
Also with age, you realize that certain things just are not that important- ( Like the year I swore I would be the best mom and take my daughter to every museum in the city, which did not happen btw, and the ones we did attend she had more fun playing with the museum's water fountain than learning a lick about Dinosaurs!)
For me, goals now are simple. I stick to attainable goals that work with my lifestyle. Finishing my 365 was Huge for me. Starting a small photography business has been huge for me as well. I don't know how it will all turn out, but I will be baby stepping all the way.
Last year, more than anything, I became more forgiving of myself. I forgave myself for days when I felt like I couldn't go out and work out, I forgave myself for giving Elio's to the kids for dinner, I forgave myself for falling asleep on the couch, and I let myself have that second glass of wine.I forgave my body, forgave my mind. It's been liberating. But here I am now, January,And a few things have to change. Unfortunately I've been too nice to myself.I've packed on the newlywed 15. I very happily packed it on, and I know that late night edidting and munchies have done me in!

I need to get back to taking care of me physically,and I'm signing up again for the May 10 mile race down Broad Street. I did it last year, but very unhappily, I wasn't prepared. I'm starting my training early this time, to give myself lots of time, so I can be kind on my body! I might even have to start walking to begin. I'm determined to do it though, and I'm determined to enjoy it more this time around.

And, one thing, I'd like to do, ( here it goes) is BAM in my bathing suit!!!! EEEK!But I'm putting it out there, and I'm gonna look to ya'll to help me with this, to remind me!!! My friend Tiffany really helped me with this, she is not shy in front of the camera at all!

Over the years I have become more comfortable in my own skin, and gasp, I even like myself a lot. This is not about losing weight, it's about attaining a goal, and accomplishing something happily. When the race is over, that's when i will do the full body, bathing suit BAM!

And if anyone wants to run this race, it's the Broad Street Run, May 1st 2011- I would be happy to have some running buddies!