Naturally Thin: Unleash Your SkinnyGirl and Free Yourself from a Lifetime of Dieting

I felt very conflicted by this book. A lot of the advice was the sound advice that you've already read in all those women's magazine and seen on TV. You know, things like "calories in need to equal calories out", and try to eat a balanced diet, etc. Then the rest of the book teaches you neurotic, eating disordered behaviors.

Bethenny talks about how you shouldn't have to settle for a filling, healthy meal, when what you really want is a steak. Go ahead and order the steak, BUT you can only have 3 bites. Yep, 3 bites, she repeats that over and over again through the book. I don't know how you're supposed to live off of 3 bites. I can just imagine how concerned my friends and family would be if they saw me ordering food and then only have 3 bites. So what do you do with the rest of your food? You either A) throw it away B) pawn it off on your dinner companions or C) take it home and make your kids eat it. Frankly, I know a woman like this and I dread being around her whenever food is involved. She's constantly trying to pass off her food on everyone, including drinks (which Bethenny recommends). It's one thing if I'm like, "wow, that looks good", but I've never shown any interest in her meal. If I wanted to eat it, I would have ordered it! Then, if she does try to get some bland healthy meal, she stares at what I ordered, and begs for some. It's rude, annoying, and I hate going out to eat with her.

Next, Bethenny talks alot how when you're on a "diet" you act neurotic about food and obsess. Then she gives tips like, never eat a whole bagel, take half a bagel and then pull the bread out of it and eat only the crust. Same goes for english muffins. It also annoys me that she says repeatedly that she learned these eating habits from living in Italy. I'm a thin Italian woman and I EAT food.

Well, I guess if you ever wondered how these celebrities stay so thin, this book is the harsh reality. She gives a list of what she ate for 3 weeks as an example of how she lives. Here's one of the days: breakfast was 1/2 cup of coffee (couldn't possibly drink a whole cup!) and half of a egg white veggie omelet. Lunch was miso soup, glass of chardonnay, 2 prawns, and arugula salad with mushrooms. Dinner was a medium greek salad, a "skinnygirl" margarita, a couple chips with a small scoop of guacamole and roasted vegetables. Snack was a small handful of blueberry granola and almonds. I added that up to about 778 calories, and it's probably less than that since she never actually finishes food. Keep in mind she also exercises quite a bit.

While some of the advice in this book is solid, like "sit down to eat, eat slowly", the rest is actually quite unhealthy and eating disordered. Maybe Bethenny is confusing "naturally thin girls" with anorexics.

The End of Overeating

Many of us have difficulty controlling our weight. Usually we have assumed that it was due either to something we couldn't control, such as our metabolism, or a total lack of self-control. This book shows how it is really a middle-ground between the two extremes.

First, the author effectively dismisses the myth of the "metabolism" or "big boned" excuses that many of us use to excuse our over-eating. He shows that it is really a matter of calorie intake that is the root of our weight problems.

Second, he shows how the food industry has engineered food that is overloaded with excessive calories and is designed to promote overeating in their insatiable drive for excessive profits. Through the use of multiple layers of salt, fat and sugar, they create foods designed to trigger the pleasure centers of our brains, releasing opioids that cause us to lose control and overeat.

Finally, he shows how we can harness control over our eating by avoiding certain foods and by devising a planned response to food advertising and the presence of enticing foods, similar to the methodology employed by alcoholics to control their drinking. While we are not to blame for our susceptibility to the stimulus of enticing food and food advertising, we do have a choice as to how to react to the stimulus.

This book has helped me gain some control over my eating habits and has caused me to view television advertisements for restaurants and foods in a new light. Even the ads for Nutrisystem are designed to stimulate overeating! Unlike alcohol and other drugs, we need food to survive, so we have to learn how to deal with these issues and consume the right foods in moderation, avoiding both the wrong foods and overeating. This book is a great help in that quest. Knowing WHY we do something is half the battle and helps us control our reactions to the stimuli.

Ironically, this book made me think twice about my personal opposition to our nation's drug laws, both for legal (alcohol and tobacco) and illegal (marijuana, etc.) drugs. Seeing what a health problem has been created in this country by corporations engineering foods for maximum profits, I can only imagine the problems they would create if allowed to manufacture and sell drugs without any controls.

A Burden of Silence: My Mother's Battle with AIDS

Nancy Draper was enjoying her life as a busy wife and mother in New Hampshire when she was hit with a tremendous jolt. She was shocked to learn that her mother, a vital woman in her sixties, had been infected with the AIDS virus. She provides a compelling account of her experiences in dealing with AIDS along with those of her mother in "A Burden of Silence: My Mother's Battle with AIDS". Nancy's mother had received blood from a contaminated pool from New York City while receiving a blood transfusion. Those with knowledge of this tragedy failed to pass along word. Tragically, certain individuals in authority placed a premium on protecting themselves and not providing vital information to family members, beginning with Nancy's father. Having been dealt this terrible blow, Nancy Draper summoned all the courage and energy at her disposal to help her mother through her travail. A former teacher and current piano instructor, Nancy plainly likes people and has an essentially optimistic viewpoint which shows through in her writing. She was therefore stunned to observe that so many with whom she dealt in the health care field, rather than displaying the type of caring compassion toward Nancy's mother that her situation warranted, instead sadly operated at a cold distance. When Nancy sought answers on how to ease her mother's painful burden she sometimes received more of a shrug than helpful assistance. Incredibly, in one instance when she took her mother to a doctor's office, he remained seated and did not even get up to acknowledge their presence. Such conduct is a long step downward from the teachings of Hippocrates. This book represents a straightforward account of Nancy Draper's experiences without any punches being pulled, and as such there were negative experiences as well as, thankfully, positive ones as well. At a time when Nancy's mother needed a game plan to reduce the level of pain she was forced to endure the caring figure of Dr. Ann Webster emerged. As the director of the HIV/AIDS Program at the Mind/Body Institute in Boston, Dr. Webster made available the most updated treatment in the new and rapidly expanding holistic treatment area. "Nancy has given her mother's story a voice," Dr Webster stated regarding "Burden of Silence", adding, "There are lessons for everyone in this book - lessons about acceptance, compassion, and forgiveness." Ann Pozen, Psy.D., president of the National Association for Victims of Transfusion-Acquired AIDS, Inc., of Bethesda, Maryland, also provided a solid endorsement of "Burden of Silence": "Nancy Draper has written a tender account of a daughter's devotion to her dying mother. The story, about a grandmother who developed AIDS from a contaminated blood transfusion, will inspire admiration for Ms. Draper's courage and persistence. It will also inspire rage against the blood banks that failed to screen blood donations adequately." In addition to assisting Nancy's mother in the important holistic medicine area, seeking to ease the physical and mental pain she confronted, the act of bonding was also essential. During her mother's ordeal as well as the painful period following her death Nancy Draper found additional strength through interaction. One of the most positive and impressive elements of her story is the message that strength can be acquired through reaching out with full sensitivity toward those in a comparable situation. She writes movingly about one such instance when she met a woman on an airplane who had lost a brother to AIDS. They were able to provide needed comfort to one another, which was extended even further by group interaction. Draper correctly points out the terrible mistakes made in analyzing AIDS. She notes painfully how many people she knew shunned dealing with her mother and other AIDS patients for fear that even a touch may subject them to the disease. Another point well made was how long the federal government dragged its feet before speaking out officially about AIDS. It was not until 1987 that President Ronald Reagan even mentioned AIDS while numerous cases were being regularly reported from the early eighties. The author relates to the tragedy of pernicious ignorance as a factor in hardening feelings toward AIDS patients. Those familiar with the eighties recall the thundering denunciations of Jerry Falwell and Pat Robertson in which they bluntly stated that AIDS sufferers were being punished for their sins. Their voices were immediately silenced after statistics poured in from Africa revealing enormous numbers of AIDS cases involving heterosexuals. Due to the substantial weight losses of sufferers, the disease became known as Slims throughout Africa. After devoting a section to hospice care and the role it played during her mother's final days Nancy addresses the present and the future. She is proud of having contributed to the international AIDS quilt. In so doing she has kept her mother's name alive as well as joining hands with others who have suffered from AIDS by giving their lives and through empathizing with deaths of relatives and friends. As Nancy Draper effectively argues, AIDS is a disease that should not prompt us to sweep it fearfully under the rug as we atrophy in a well of ignorance. Any of us could acquire AIDS, it should remain a paramount concern to all citizens of the world community, and together we must march forward to demand the maximum in research and commitment toward finding a cure.

Winning by Losing: Drop the Weight, Change Your Life

I have to admit--I've watched both seasons of The Biggest Loser and Bob has always been my favorite of the two trainers. So, when I saw Jillian's book, I was hesitant at first about whether I wanted to buy it. However, I just finished reading it today and I have to say that I am impressed. She provides a lot of helpful information both on the eating side and on the exercise side. She has tests or formulas to help you--such as the test that tells you whether you are a slow, fast or balanced oxidizer...she explains how to determine your maximum heart rate so you can work out at the correct intensity, etc. I must say I was quite surprised to see that there is only an hour of cardio (really only 50 minutes once you factor in warm up and cool down) a week in her plan. This surprised me because, watching the show for two seasons, you always see the contestants struggling and sweating on the bike, elliptical or treadmill doing cardio. Granted, Jillian's way of doing weight/resistance training will get you sweating as well! I thought the book was strong and impressive overall. My only disappointment was in the first third or so of the book. I thought that some subjects such as emotional eating were ridiculously over-simplified and given short shrift. The message I took away from some of these chapters was "OKay, now I've explained in a page and a half why you shouldn't do that, so just get over it now, mmmkay?" I understand that no book is going to be able to cure emotional eating in a chapter, but I would have rather she admitted that she didn't have time or experience to cover it fully and perhaps suggest some additional reading rather than go with the "POOF! You're cured!" approach. One of her real strengths is to be able to explain some rather complicated concepts about how the body metabolizes food or how the muscles work and make it readily understandable. Her book could have easily veered into the too-scientific, but it didn't. It was like sitting and having someone give you the heart-to-heart talk you know you need but have been scared to hear. Yea, she's tough, but she obviously cares as well.

Master Your Metabolism: The 3 Diet Secrets to Naturally Balancing Your Hormones for a Hot and Healthy Body

Let me begin by saying I'm a big Jillian fan. I listen to her weekly radio show and watch her faithfully on TBL. That being said, I'm not "gullible" enough to believe 100% of what anyone says without checking it out first. What's good about MYM is Jillian's frank discussion about the hormone disruptors we have injected into our daily lives. Kind of a scary wake up call. She ought to be commended for her attempt to take a rather scientifically complicated topic and trying to present it in a readable manner. This is NOT easy to do, and she does a pretty good job of it. People who complain about the book being "dry" because of the science aren't appreciating the efforts Jillian has taken to give her book credibility. Instead of making a bunch of wild generalizations, she is attempting to present the information in a responsible way. I would have like to have seen, however, more specific citations of the scientific studies she used to support her arguments. As it stands, there are too many vague references along the lines of, "One European study a few years ago suggested..." Such generalities don't allow for verification, to see if Jillian used the research properly and in its original context. I know that not everyone would be interested in this, but listing specific studies could help to establish the book's credibility in a more forceful manner. The citations could have unobtrusively been included as endnotes in the back. Personally, I don't know enough about the science and politics behind organic farming to know whether it's truly safer than conventional farming. On the surface, that claim sounds true, but I simply don't know enough to know whether or not it actually IS true. So it's an issue that I need to look into further. In spite of these slight criticisms, I definitely recommend Jillian's book. If all you get out of it is to cut out products that contain high fructose corn syrup, partially hydrogenated oils (and don't be fooled by those labels that say "0 Trans Fats); read the ingredients!), enriched flour, and artificial sweeteners, then you'll be WAY ahead of the curve.

Healing the Addicted Brain

Healing the Addicted Brain is a breakthrough work that focuses on treating drug and alcohol addiction as a biological disease—based on the Recovery Science program that has helped thousands of patients defeat their addictions over the past 10 years. It combines the best behavioral addiction treatments with the latest scientific research into brain functions, providing tools and strategies designed to overcome the biological factors that cause addictive behavior along with proven treatments and medications.
Using this scientific approach, you will learn to conquer the physical factors that keep people tied to drug and alcohol addiction. The proven fact is addiction is not a moral failing or an issue of not having enough willpower. It is a disease of the brain that can and must be treated like other chronic medical illnesses.

CNN did a show on Saturday, April 18th; it was hosted by Dr. Sanjay Gupta. Dr. Gupta strongly confirms what Dr. Urschel states in his book and that is "addiction is a brain disease, it is a medical disease like hypertension, diabetes, etc. and should be treated accordingly. Unfortunately, most people do not know this and people who suffer from addiction don't know where to go for help. Dr. Urschel's book was an easy read and very educational. Not only does it help the addict, it portrays how imperative the family get support as well. Addiction is also a family disease.

This book was an excellent help to me in understanding what addiction is and how i can get help for my best friend who is struggling with Alcoholism. Before finding this book, I just did not know what to do, but Dr Urschel explains the important issues in how to get great addiction treatment very clearly. The book is easy to understand and to read. It has a lot of great exercises to help me understand the concepts better. It is even linked to an addiction website www.enterhealth.com which provides great information on other topics. After reading it, I bought several more copies to give to some of my other friends and their families that are dealing with the same issues.

Cook Yourself Thin

Cook Yourself Thin is a healthy, delicious way to drop a dress size without all the gimmicks.
For some of us, losing weight has always been a struggle. The challenge: figuring out how to cook healthy, low-fat foods that won't leave you hungry, bored, or running for a gallon of ice cream! Cook Yourself Thin shows how to cut calories, change diets, and improve health without sacrificing the foods we love.

Lifetime Television presents another hit show in the form of a wildly popular book that bears the same name. The premise of the British show was teaching you how to replace your favorite foods with healthy alternatives. By switching ingredients you'll be able to cut the calories while retaining the flavor...and you just might find the healthy version a bit more scrumdiddlyumptious. The book includes all the recipes featured on the show. These include, among others: Meals, appetizers, snacks, and deserts. Love chocolate brownies but fear the calories? Try the winter chocolate brownies recipe: Using pumpkin, organic dark cooking chocolate, cinnamon, almonds, and honey...you get that mouth-watering taste without all those grams of fat. Use healthy alternatives...get it? The book also features a calorie guide: this will show you which foods to avoid...and which foods to replace them with. It has a "how to" guide...this gives you practical cooking tips. There is also a food personality quiz...this will help you with goals and results. By following the guide you really can cook yourself thin. Follow the simple instructions and learn how to remove those high calorie ingredients from your favorite foods, and replace them with tasty healthy alternatives. The recipes have a step-by-step guide that shows you the differences in the foods you are substituting. Simply put...the book advises you on the ingredients, tools and tips necessary to make healthy changes to your life.

The 7 Day Energy Surge

This book was suggested to me by a friend because my energy level was lagging; work piling up, too tired on the weekends, weight gain etc. I was impressed! Clearly written, easy to understand but doesn't talk down to you, and SUGGESTIONS THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY USE! Plus, I am an academic guy, so the fact that this book is BASED ON REAL RESEARCH STUDIES goes a long way with me. And the sex chapter will rock your world. In summary, the book is a terrific combination of intelligence, practicality, science, and good sound advice. The exercise section is like having your own personal trainer, and the mental attitude parts are like having your own shrink on your nightstand!

Jim Karas is the author of the #1 New York Times best-seller The Business Plan for the Body as well as The Cardio-Free Diet and Flip the Switch. He is a graduate of the Wharton School of Business in Philadelphia and founder of Jim Karas Personal Training, LLC, which has trained more than 500 clients in Chicago and New York. In addition to lecturing and presenting workshops, he has been featured frequently on ABC’s Good Morning America as he helped Diane Sawyer lose weight and enhance her energy at the same time. Jim lives in Chicago with his two children.