NW - Pg 76 - Be your own diet guru

Six tips to help you use your mind as well as your body to lose weight. The ideas range from seeing a hypnotist, using a measuring tape (my favorite), and distracting yourself before you eat something you don’t really need. Underneath each idea is a way to make it work for you. Some good advice, even you only end up using a couple of tips. ***

On the same page is a small article about trans fats, and how they release more kilojoules than others during digestion. They’re also bad for you in many other ways - so before you eat cakes, biscuits, cheese and icecream, check the label to see if it contains any evil trans fats.

OK - Pg 82, Body talk with Patsy Kensit

Patsy looks pretty fantastic for someone who used to use heaps of drugs, and she sounds like she uses a really sensible approach to do it. She works out four days a week with a trainer (you don’t have to use a trainer), and makes sure she exercises for an hour every day. She eats fairly sensibly, except for stupid egg white omelettes, but incorporates heaps of fresh fruit and veggies into her diet, still has an occasional glass of champagne, and eats roasts on Sunday. Good for you, Patsy ***

On the same page, there’s a small article about Erika Heynatz, and her daily detox ritual. I’m not a huge fan, but I like her style as far as a daily beach run followed by a swim. I also like the juice she has, which is beetroot, ginger and lemon, except I’d add an apple as well. This is a far better idea than the crazy detox’s listed in the recent Cleo mag here, and as long as you live near a beach, totally doable. Somehow I doubt the Yarra would cut it as far as a detox goes …

Woman’s Day, Pg 60 - The Biggest Loser returns

Tie in article with the disturbingly addictive reality show. This details how the two teams will be following different diets - one low GI, the other CSIRO-style. It also has the trainers talking about using the new Aussie counterparts during the show. While this is a two page spread, it doesn’t really say a whole lot. More publicity than usable info. **

New Idea, Pg 66 - Be your own Biggest Loser

Unlike the previous article, this is more a list of diet and health tips to help you get into shape. It’s got some really useable information, especially on pg 67, with 14 pointers of how to make eating more user friendly. Some of them are fairly extreme, but if it works, I say go for it. I like lots of these ideas, the food diary is something I use a lot with my clients, goal setting is also good. Definitely some good tips here. I also have to confess a soft spot for the new Aussie trainer Shannan Ponton, who was on one of my favorite Foxtel shows Crunch Fitness. He’s really inspirational, and I like his style. ****

Who - Pg 55 - Exercise Bulimia

While this isn’t a how-to article, it’s focuses on a problem which is not uncommon. There are several members of the gym I work at who could really benefit from reading it. With three case studies of recovered sufferers, it’s easy to see how an obsession with exercise could spiral out of control. Scary, but informative. ****