I’m so proud to be a part of this book and movement. Click here to buy Operation Beautiful and here to read my Marathon Story (where the picture and my contribution to the book came from.)

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While Charlie is visiting I thought I’d through him a few of your questions as I did with Pastaqueen and DietGirl. It’s becoming a nice tradition and I like reading other peoples insights and then responding. Charlie was nice enough to answer 3 questions but since he’s a bit *cough* wordy I decided to break them up into a series. Here is the first.

Hi Roni! I was wondering what you may know about the acai berry diet and the colon cleanser that everyone is talking about from Oprah to Rachael Ray. Any insight?? Thanks! Loooove your site!!
Cathy

Charlie:

Hi Cathy,

From the beginning of recorded history, we’ve witnessed humanity’s search for the elixir of life: a panacea that cures all ills, prolongs life, and, when used correctly, reverses male pattern baldness. Every culture, every society, and every generation seems to produce yet another candidate potion for the masses to drool over. In my own lifetime, about thirty years ago, I was convinced it was the Big Mac. I was sorely disappointed when I found out I was misled.

So let’s take a look at the supposed list of benefits of the Açaí fruit: helps you lose weight, increases energy, detoxifies your body, aids sleep, smooths wrinkles, reduces cholesterol, … the list goes on and on.

Is your spidey sense tingling yet? At this point, way in the back of your head, you should be hearing your mother say, "If something sounds too good to be true, it probably is." And if you look closely, you may find that the people talking the most about the Açaí fruit are the people selling it. Coincidence?

But wait, if Oprah and Rachael are talking about it, it must be good! They wouldn’t mislead their loyal fans, would they? Well, let’s look at the facts. On Oprah, the fruit has been mentioned by Drs. Perricone and Oz. Perricone called it "one of the most nutritious and powerful foods in the world." Oz said it’s "a powerful antioxidant." That’s it. Neither mentioned weight loss and neither implied that it cures diabetes, cancer, and ingrown toenails.

And Rachael? Here’s what her web site said: "Many of you have brought to our attention concerns regarding solicitations involving Açai Berry and Wu Long Tea products that bear Rachael Ray’s name or photo. Please note that Rachael Ray has not endorsed any Açai Berry or Wu Long Tea products, and she is not involved with the solicitation of any such products. The use of her name or photo in connection with these solicitations is unauthorized."

In other words, a whole bevy of snake oil salesmen caught whiff of a trend, took a few remarks out of context, and implicated famous talk show hosts. They’re not out to shrink your belly, they’re out to shrink your wallet.

Unfortunately, all this overshadows the fact that it’s still a pretty good fruit. Just don’t expect it to restore your 401(k) balance.

Roni:

I couldn’t have said it any better than Charlie. Being an ex-quick fix gal myself I understand the draw of a magic potion that would allow me to live a lazy lifestyle, eat all the pizza I want and look like a Victoria Secret model. But alas, I’ve learned the hard way that 1.) I will never look like an airbrushed Victoria Secret Model 2.) Pizza, albiet tasty, isn’t healthy for me in hordes and 3.) Lazy was really the result of me feeling sorry for myself.

Once I stopped looking for the quick fix and focused on learning how to eat a balanced healthy diet. Things started falling into place. It didn’t happen overnight. I didn’t drop 30 lbs in 30 days or "detox my system". I simply learned (and am learning) self-acceptance, portion control, balance and patients.

Cathy, Don’t fall for the hype. I’m sure the Acai Berry has some health benefits, as so blueberries, pomegranate and chocolate. I’m also sure there is *some* truth to cleansing the ole pipes but none of these things will help you drop pounds if you aren’t willing to change you habits. Sorry to say and boy how I wish it wasn’t true!

Charlie:

I couldn’t have said it any better than Roni. Although, for some strange reason, I’ve really got a hankerin’ for one of my world famous acai, blueberry, pomegrante and chocolate smoothies right now.

Stay tuned for Parts 2 and 3. In the mean time check out his previous stop in the tour. Tomorrow he should be visiting Lynn.

Click here to read part 2

Click here to read part 3

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What a day! I’m jumping right in this tonight…

• First of all I had a chat, a webside chat if you will, with Mr. Jack Humphrey. He should have the podcast posted sometime tomorrow. We talked about blogging and all my sites. It’s kind of funny, I never really think I’m doing that much until someone points it out to me. I appreciated the talk, because being a blogger is surprising lonely. Not in a bad way, per se, just that you don’t go to an office and mingle around a water cooler. I really think that’s why things like twitter are so cool. It gives us lonely work at home people an outlet to connect. Anyway, I’ll post the link when it goes live.
• You MUST read this article about running and body image EB sent me. MUST! It captures my thoughts on running exactly and it’s why I fight tears when I cross a finish line looking over at the toddler cheering me on. Or when he says "Did you have a good run mommy?"
• Need a different type of motivation? Check out this video Alisha sent. We have No Excuses. RIGHT?!?
• Back to sappy… Now, I realize this video is a little odd as it has customer service undertones but that aside I found it touching. And of course… I cried. (I’m trying so hard to embrace my sap-hood, very hard.) LOL I’m such a subscriber to the "do something special" mindset.
• Blogging for weight loss is something I’m very passionate about. I feel so strongly about it, I created BlogToLose! And I’m not the only blogger that credits the act of blogging as a huge part of her success. Shauna, aka Dietgirl does as well. She’s been publicizing her new book stopping here a few weeks ago and more recently being interview on the CBS Morning Show. How cool is THAT! Congrats again Shauna!
• Chocolate time!! You guys know about the RonisWeigh code for Vitalicious products right? Well they are running an even sweeter Valentines promotion. Use the code EVDY3ZZ9 and get 15% off you own Valentines chocolate pack! That’s 24 VitaTops for $27.63. Pretty sweet, right? Maybe we should rethink Valentines Chocolates for our sweethearts this year. ;~)
• How about the moms? Any moms out there looking to lose the "baby weight?" Honestly, I hate that term. I mean I get it, you gain weight during a pregnancy but it’s not any different if you gain weight not being pregnant. Right? Am I the only one that feels that way? Either way I was asked to review The Baby Fat Diet. Besides the name (and the fact that it ends in "diet" another one of my pet peeves but I’ll save that for another time) the book is really cute and offers some great advice. Ignore the title and the cheesy cover the contents are very educational and support the lifestyle change approach to living healthier (not just a diet.)
• Speaking of "lifestyle" I posted Lifestyle is Not a Dirty Word, my last guest post for Diets In Review. I was their featured guest writer this month. It was fun, but honestly I welcome one less thing to do this weekend. :)

Other news…

• I’m making progress on the new blog. Dare I say I may be ready to go live this weekend? I’m not sure I want to commit but I am getting there. In preparation if you have any techie or blogging type questions feel free to ask them here. I want to the new blog to be mostly content you guys drive as I don’t know what you don’t know about blogging! Does that make sense? ;~P
• GreenLiteBites this week was all about leftover chicken breast. I made a humongous Guac Chicken Sandwich and a Roasted Red Peppers and Spinach Salad with Leftover Chicken and Flaxseeds. And the toddler and I recorded ourselves makin’ Banana Pancakes, one of our favorite breakfasts.
• Training is going… ummm.. ok? My running dropped off this week but I’ve been keeping up with (what I think) is equivalent cardio. A little ice storm and knee worry can really throw you off.
• As for the house… we had one showing to a couple of agents and they said they want to bring their client in next week. I’m not getting my hopes up but it’s a bit comforting that someone wants to see it.
• In the works… I have NO idea. I have a few thoughts (get it? get it?) but I really don’t know what I’m up to next week. :)
• Oh! and I’m totally behind on email but I’m still taking the night off. I’m in the mood for some mindless television tonight and 11th hour is on. I’m starting to like that show.

Hope you have a great evening and wonderful Friday! :)

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AMAZING!

Shauna was nice enough to ask me if she could stop by on her book tour and of course I accepted. Although I warned her that she’d have to work for it! I have a habit of doing that. ;~P

Thankfully, Shauna agreed. :)

When I am on this weight loss journey I cannot help but to think…"will I have to do this for the rest of my life?" How do your resign to this fact that this will be your reality and what did you tell yourself?
Sandra

Dietgirl: It’s sad but true dear Sandra – it never ends. I have to admit that used to depress the hell out of me. But then I realized, hang on… I’m in the drivers seat here! I may have to do this Healthy Stuff for the rest of my life… but I can decide how and what that will involve. I get to decide how and when I exercise, how and what I eat. I can make it fun and enjoyable! It gets easier if you treat it a wee bit like an adventure. It’s taken me a lot of trial and error – gazillions of crappy recipes and abandoned fitness DVDs and failed experiments to figure out the sorts of food and exercise I truly enjoy — what I find enjoyable or at least tolerable, rather than a dreaded chore. Trying taking all the bits you like from diets you’ve tried, blogs you’ve read, and make them your own. If you do what you enjoy, you will find it easier to stick to. So once you reach your goal, you won’t mind carrying on. It will just be the way you live your life, rather than a diet you’re enslaved to.

Roni: What a great question and Shauna’s answer is dead on. I’d only like to add… "do what?" I’m not asking that to be mean and make you feel bad but seriously what I do now is so much better then what I did then. "Then" when I was yo-yo’ing and fighting myself every step of the way I was unhappy. I was uncomfortable with myself, unhealthy and just, well… blech.

"Now" I feel great! I have energy! I’m comfortable in my skin and with who I am. I am healthy an it feels great. So if "doing this" is what it takes to feel the way I feel, I’m totally cool with that.

It’s a lot about mindset and attitude. If it still feels like a chore then you may want to change your approach becuase as Shauna said it should be "the way you live your life, rather than a diet you’re enslaved to."

I am noticing that some weeks when I haven’t gone over points, when I have done everything right, I lose very little weight. Sometimes it is after a big loss the week before, and sometimes it is maybe because of the time of the month or whatever. When you were in losing mode, did you ever experience this and if so, how did you keep your morale up on those weeks? I tend to be bummed if my loss isn’t very much. (For example this week it was .2 pounds.) I know I should be happy with any loss at all, its a little hard when I feel like I should be seeing results faster. Any tips?
Jen (aka SkinnyHabits)

Dietgirl: Hiya Jen, Weekly weigh-ins can be so frustrating since our bodies seem to refuse to work on a 7-day timetable like weigh-in days. How rude! Sometimes your hard work takes longer to make a difference to the numbers. So many times during my weight loss phase I’d been positively ANGELIC then the weigh-in just did not reflect that. It felt like a kick in the guts! But to keep my morale up, I’d look at my progress from a non-weigh-in perspectives, such as:

• averaging my weight loss over a four-week period. I’d lose big some weeks, stay the same or gain others, but most months it would average out pretty evenly. If I could see a downward trend over time, the weekly fluctuations didn’t phase me so much.
• taking regular progress photos, wearing the same clothes in the same place from front, back and side angles. I did this in my underwear and buried it in a dark corner of my computer, for my eyes only! But it helped me see visual proof of my hard work – subtle changes in shape or new muscles emerging… hooray!
• making a list of all the great things I’d done that week – exercise, eating choices, trying something new – and patting myself on the back!

The scale is not the only measure of your progress. Each week you’re building up new habits and skills to help keep you healthy for the rest of your *life*, so don’t let that once-a-week encounter drag you down :)

Roni: Wow Shauna, I LOVE those tips. I’d just like to add (and I know no one ever wants to hear this) slow and steady does win the race. Every little bit counts. I always like to ask people how they think the scale would have looked if they ate off plan. Do you think you would have seen the same number? Or would it have been less weight? Maybe a gain? Own your achievements, every little decision you make, every .2 that comes off is something you worked hard for. I say pat yourself on the back!

Hi Roni! My name is Hollie and I have been reading your blog for a while now and find it to be a wonderful source for motivation. Thanks for all you do! My question has to do with motivation. I know you\’ve talked a lot about this, so I apologize if this seems repetitive. I began my weight loss journey a few weeks ago and have been eating very well according to Weight Watchers, abiding by the points system and exercising by walking and jogging and doing tae bo. My goal is to lose 125 pounds, and I feel confident that I am ready to tackle my weight demons once and for all after doing some major soul searching. However, this is not the first time I have tried Weight Watchers and a journey towards weight loss. During my past attempts to get healthy and fit, I would do the same thing I seem to be doing now. I would go all-out and be completely gung-ho about it for a few weeks, then feel like it\’s not working and therefore begin to lose motivation. I\’ve always been an instant gratification kind of person (hence the weight issue), so it makes sense why I would want to see big results NOW! However, the practical side of me realizes that trying to lose as much weight as I want to lose takes time and patience and that it won\’t happen over night. So finally, the question – what advice can you give to someone who is antsy about seeing results immediately, and how can they stay motivated to continue living a healthy lifestyle?
Hollie

Dietgirl: Hiya Hollie. I can relate to your wanting to see results immediately being a very impatient person myself! I had 175 pounds to lose and after a few months, I felt like I’d worked so darn hard and made so many changes, so why hadn’t all the pounds vanished already!? But the reality is, it’s going to take awhile. My answer here is a combination of what I said to Jen and Sandra above. It’s easier to stay motivated if you do things you enjoy, and make sure your focus is not all about the scale.

I had to find a variety of ways to indulge the gung-ho part of my personality that needed to see RESULTS. An example: I took up weight training, so 1) I had a new interest to learn about and throw myself into and 2) I could challenge myself to gradually lifting heavier weights as another measure of seeing results.

There are so many ways you can challenge yourself:

• buy a fitness DVD with multiple levels of difficulty and challenge yourself to progress
• train for a 5K race with something like the Couch to 5K program – gives you a great goal that’s not about weight loss
• make a list of healthy recipes (don’t forget Green Lite Bites!) and try two each week

The other thing I found helpful was writing a list of reasons why I wanted to lose weight and exactly what I hoped to achieve. I’d read through that list whenever I needed a positive reminder of what all my efforts were for. It would also cheer me up to see how far I’d come!

Roni: I agree with Shauna, again, of course. :) But seriously, I look at it this way… It took me a long time to gain weight (although I agree it seemed easier and more fun to do so) I didn’t wake up after one meal, look down and realize I needed a bigger size. Same is true sending the scale the other way. What Shauna said is great because all of those things give you healthy distractions. Sad to say but that’s what you need to do, distract yourself. Stay on your plan, have faith in it and find something to do with your mind. Have you ever noticed how times flies when you are really involved in something? Well weight loss is susceptible to that effect. Focus day by day on your plan. Focus on a new activity outlets, taking walks, going to the gym. Have fun in the kitchen, catching up with online friends instead of focusing on the scale, time with pass. All of a sudden it’s weigh in day and… boy! look at that… you lost, again! :)

WOW how awesome was that?! I can’t Thanks Dietgirl enough for sharing her insights and fabulous tips!!

OH! and how cool is THIS! Shauna is going to be on The Early Show on CBS this Friday Jan 16!! Tune in to hear her awesome accent! It will give you a whole new perspective when reading her book and blog. :~P

If you are interested in purchasing The Amazing Adventures of Diet Girl click here to order it on Amazon.

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The book features the Think Thin Eating Plan. At first I thought it was going to be just another "diet" book telling me to eat this and not that, watch carbs, limit fat, increase protein, yada yada. That’s what they all tell us, isn’t it? The funny thing is most of us know WHAT we should be eating yet we still continue to make the bad choices. Why is that?

Cue The Beck Diet…

I was surprised to find in its pages a focus on mindset, thinking and motivation. Strategies on how to start, while stopping sabotaging thoughts (something I know very well). Activities were broken down into easy to follow tasks. Seriously, and I’m not kidding this book highlights a lot of the same strategies I use and try to share with you. For example Dr. Beck even has a "Prove to yourself that hunger is not an emergency" experiment! I tell myself that ALL the time (an coincidently post about it. ;)

The book spends most of it’s time really teaching you how to change your thought process and approach to dieting. Even at one point saying….

…you will focus primarily on building skills now. If you would like to get a jump start, you can do the following:

• Limit junk food to once a day.
• Eliminate caloric beverages.
• Eat vegetables and/or salad at the beginning of each lunch and dinner.
• Include Protein-rich foods at every meal.
• Eat fruit or protein at the beginning if (or for) each snack.

Once you get a good introduction to the "attitude" side of the diet. Dr. Beck moves to the plan. Which, based on a simple calculation, puts you into a calorie level. The book continues to give great strategies for dealing with different situations, like going out, Holidays, traveling, etc. It also has great activities, recipes, food lists, worksheets and even a weight loss graph to fill in.

Honestly, no matter the "diet" plan you are on (Weight Watchers, South Beach, even your own) this book can help you approach dieting from a new angle. Yes it’s about losing weight but this is the first book I’ve seen in a long time that doesn’t focus mostly on the food. It’s really more about your mindset. Which I think is the hardest part of weight loss. I know I used to self-sabotage all the time and still have to call myself down from the ledge now and then.

If you are intersted in checking it out Click here to order The Complete Beck Diet on Amazon for only $16.47! I thought that was a great price!

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