Amazon.com's Best of 2001
The National Bestseller Based on Harvard Medical School and Harvard School of Public Health Research...A Revolutionary Guide to Healthy Eating That Topples the USDA Food Pyramid

In Eat, Drink, and Be Healthy, Dr. Walter Willett explains why the USDA guidelines -- the famous food pyramid -- are not only wrong but also dangerous. Dr. Willett sets an all-new nutritional standard. You'll discover:

• eye-opening new research on the healthiest carbohydrates, fats, and proteins
• why weight control is the single most important factor
• menu plans and recipes that make it easy to reinvent your daily diet

Evelyn Tribole, Elyse Resch
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We've all been there-angry with ourselves for overeating, for our lack of willpower, for failing at yet another diet that was supposed to be the last one. But the problem is not you, it's that dieting, with its emphasis on rules and regulations, has stopped you from listening to your body.

Written by two prominent nutritionists, Intuitive Eating focuses on nurturing your body rather than starving it, encourages natural weight loss, and helps you find the weight you were meant to be.

Learn:

• How to reject diet mentality forever
• How our three Eating Personalities define our eating difficulties
• How to feel your feelings without using food
• How to honor hunger and feel fullness
• How to follow the ten principles of Intuitive Eating, step-by-step
• How to achieve a new and safe relationship with food and, ultimately, your body

With much more compassionate, thoughtful advice on satisfying, healthy living, this newly revised 2003 edition also includes a chapter on how the Intuitive Eating philosophy can be a safe and effective model on the path to recovery from an eating disorder.

Fitness and Health

by Brian J. Sharkey  ISBN: 0736039716

A solid, science-based explanation of fitness and health.

You know that exercise is good for you. Now you want to know why and how, and what you might do to achieve additional benefits from your physical activity. Fitness & Health is your guide to both a deeper understanding of the activity-health relationship and a map for meeting your needs and goals. The text clearly explains how the body responds to physical activity, why physical activity is so beneficial to health, and the way in which physical activity boosts the following:

• Aerobic and muscular fitness
• Weight control
• Performance in work and sport
• Energy and vitality

Author Brian Sharkey, former president of the American College of Sports Medicine and a world-renowned fitness authority, presents a wealth of research-based advice and activities. Sharkey provides fitness tests that are easy to administer, specifies the appropriate amount of fat intake, describes measures to prevent low back pain, and much more. Using his knowledge and examples, you will be able to design your own effective activity program.

Very easy to read and to understand, every concept is given with statistic/scientific demonstrations. Especially good for people interested in going deeper in the subject of from every different point of view.

Complete guide to fitness for all ages. Explains how the body responds to physical activity, why physical activity is beneficial to health, and the way in which physical activity boosts aerobic and muscular fitness, weight control, performance in work and sport, and energy and vitality.

ACSM Fitness Book

by American College of Sports Medicine  ISBN: 073604406X

An excellent starting point for those of us who have been inactive for awhile.

Start where you are—then go wherever your goals take you! The fitness experts from the American College of Sports Medicine have put together a comprehensive plan for developing a personal fitness program and sticking with it.

ACSM Fitness Book includes a simple and scientifically proven fitness test to determine your starting point and monitor your ongoing progress. The book includes step-by-step instructions; sample programs; and insights on nutrition, weight control, motivation, and overcoming setbacks.

Whether your objective is to improve cardiovascular endurance, muscular strength, flexibility, or overall body condition, the ACSM Fitness Book is the one book you need for the tools—and the motivation—to put your personal program on track.

"This book is full of good advice on the health benefits of regular physical activity. It provides information about specific exercises and activities, helps you increase your motivational readiness, and gives you the behavioral skills to become more active. Use this material to permanently increase your physical activity and reap teh enormous health benefits that will result."  Steven N. Blair, PED, FACSM, Former president American College of Sports Medicine

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW BEFORE THE FDA'S NEW LABEL LAWS GO INTO EFFECT IN 2006

Identify foods made with trans fatty acids -- the dangerous manufactured ingredient in partially hydrogenated vegetable oils. Rid your diet of trans fats -- at home, in restaurants, in take out, and in packaged foods.

Judith Shaw has managed to make a subject that could be dry and boring into a very interesting and exciting read. The level of scientific evidence and and historical detail is impressive. It is a fine piece of scholarship which includes a lot of helpful information for people who want to learn more about the dangers of eating foods that contain trans fats.

Thin for Life was chosen one of the "Three Best Diet Books on the Market" by the Tufts University Health & Nutrition Letter. This revised edition won a 2004 National Health Information Award which recognizes quality consumer health materials.
 

I find "Thin for Life" both helpful and consistently motivating, providing clear insights into how to successfully lose extra fat tissue and maintain a healthy weight thereafter. The Ten Keys are honest and health centered instead of the usual gimmicky unrealistic clap-trap found in fad diet books. This is NOT a fad diet book or even a "diet book" in the usual sense. I don't think much of the recipes offered up by some of the "masters" or the so-called, Jump-Start Diet, in the back of the book. I suggest it be ignored entirely, but the rest of the book is a clear winner. ~~ Dave

This is by far one of the very best books on spirituality that I've ever found. It's one of my very favorite all time books. It is not a read; it's an experience. Ernest Kurtz probably understands 12 Step spirituality better than most and in part two of this books demonstrates that he can explain it better than anyone else. This book looks beyond AA's 12 Steps to the origins and significance of their inherent, abiding message. It is not just about the Steps or AA, it is about being human and whole.

The dog-eared copy that I own is titled slightly differently, The Spirituality of Imperfection: Storytelling and the Journey to Wholeness, instead of the current "...Search for Meaning". The text inside is apparently the same. Not sure why they changed the name.

Ernest Kurtz relates how early members of AA came together with high hopes, only to discover their own limitations and the importance of humility. Documenting AA's philosophical and social development within the context of American culture. The follows the remarkable story of the evolution of a small group of Depression-era alcoholics into a worldwide movement.

This book is very honest and shows AA's history, warts and all. Lovers of AA history and students of the 12 Steps will consider this book one of their most treasured resources.

I consider this the very best and most in-depth study about AA there is. Kurtz explores and explains the psychological and theological underpinnings of AA and presents them in a highly readable historical context.

A non-traditional guide to the 12 Steps that explains the steps in a very understandable and personal way. Even-handed help for those who respond to matters of a supreme being and religion with skepticism, anger, or fear. Well worth the read for those who believe that the spiritual experience can occur without religion.

Phillip Z shares his struggles, discoveries, and personal changes as he takes his journey through the Twelve Steps, drawing on Jungian and transpersonal psychology and eastern spirituality. The author searches for the essence of each step that both transcends religion and makes them practical to the basic psychological processes of recovery.

Even people who are just fine with the traditional Big Book wording and view, will gain new insights and widen their perspective of the steps as a process for growth and healing.

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"You don't need to be thin, young, and a contortionist to do this program," says instructor Peggy Cappy. Yoga for the Rest of Us is a yoga practice for people who might be inflexible, out of shape, overweight, or who suffer from chronic pain. Cappy presents three 20-minute routines that work separately or together. Part 1 is a series of warm-up seated stretches. Part 2 presents standing poses, holding a chair if needed. Part 3 is a flowing series of Sun Salutations, building stamina, and again using a chair if necessary, followed by relaxation. Public television yoga instructor Cappy teaches gently and quietly, accompanied by demonstrators of various ages and conditions. Peggy gently, steadily coaches her students through the cycle of poses, reminding them to breathe deeply and to use a straight chair for support if they feel wobbly. Recommended for people who thought that yoga was beyond them because of age, medical conditions, or fitness level, especially those with functional challenges, such as not being able to bend down or reach for a top shelf.

Peggy designed the video in three twenty-minute segments so that you can fit it into your busy lifestyle. You can do one segment a day or invite a friend over and do the whole hour.

• Part 1 leads you through some warm up stretches and breathing exercises to get your yoga work-out started.
• Part 2 moves on to standing yoga poses, all of which can be done with the help of a chair.
• Part 3 finishes with Sun Salutations and a wonderful guided relaxation.

The video also includes special bonus footage. See Peggy in a class of students of all ages and abilities. Hear what her students have to say about the benefits of yoga. You will be inspired and amazed. All of Peggy's videos (DVDs and VHS tapes) are closed captioned.

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More Yoga for the Rest of Us with Peggy Cappy

Peggy Cappy's More Yoga for the Rest of Us takes up where the first volume (released in 2002) left off, with a gentle, easy-to-follow series of yoga poses recommended for novices, those who are older and less active, or anyone dealing with injuries or recovering from illness.

How are the videos different? "MORE Yoga For The Rest Of Us", Peggy's second video is all new. The poses are different. The stretches are different. And the guided relaxation is different. "MORE Yoga For The Rest Of Us" includes a section of poses on the floor which replaces the warm-up series in a chair on "Yoga For The Rest Of Us". If you have enjoyed "Yoga For The Rest Of Us", "MORE Yoga For The Rest Of Us" will give you a new and varied way to do yoga in the comfort of your own home.

It's not necessary to have done "Yoga For The Rest of Us" before doing "MORE Yoga For The Rest Of Us". The yoga on both has been modified for beginners. Peggy developed the second video with the same guiding principle as the original video—that every body should have a yoga that they can do. The first video has a gentle beginning section of chair warm-up stretches and no requirement to get down on the floor. The second video starts with a section of floor stretches and is a great companion to the first video.

American Yoga Association's Easy Does It Yoga: The Safe and Gentle Way to Health and Well-Being

Unlike classic "beginner" guides, American Yoga Association's Easy Does It Yoga is for people of all ages who can't stretch their joints or maintain a high level of exertion but still want to enjoy the many healthful benefits of yoga. Alice Christensen, who developed Easy Does It Yoga, a nationally recognized program for older adults, gives special attention to various physical limitations as she guides readers through the basics of yoga exercising, breathing, and meditation. Although it is modified to suit special needs, the program is just as effective as more strenuous ones for building flexibility and strength, enhancing concentration and emotional stability, increasing energy, relieving stress, and developing the ability to relax at will. American Yoga Association's Easy Does It Yoga includes:

• Exercises shown in easy-to-follow photographs
• Easily customizable programs
• Chapters covering pregnancy and improving sports performance
• And many other specific concerns or goals

For the many people who believe that their age or infirmities puts regular exercising beyond the realm of possibility, American Yoga Association's Easy Does It Yoga opens the way to a new level of physical fitness.

The author, Alice Christensen, has written a comprehensive and compassionate book on Yoga and its tremendous health benefits for the older person or anyone physically challenged by bad health, addictions and inertia.