Many dieters have discovered fiber helps weight loss. It helps us feel fuller, and keeps everything moving and healthy from the inside out. But when we think of high fiber foods, we usually think of bran muffins or beans or cardboard. If you’d like to try something new and tasty, try a Gnu Bar! Gnu Bars contain a whopping 12 grams of fiber in a 130 calorie snack bar. Gnu Bars are made of a high fiber mixture combined with fruits and other natural ingredients. They are chewy and sweet. They come in flavors like chocolate brownie, banana walnut, cinnamon raisin, orange cranberry, and peanut butter. We tried them and really liked them! They all taste a little like raisins, with other layers of flavor. They are dark and very dense. It takes a while to eat one, so they have time to satisfy the munchies.

More good gnus - There’s not any high fructose corn syrup, refined sugars, preservatives, hydrogenated oils, artificial flavors, hard to pronounce chemicals, or cardboard in Gnu Bars!

To learn more about Gnu Bars visit http://www.gnufoods.com/

A lot of people ask us which protein bars are good. If you ever go to a supplement store, the assortment of protein bars can be mind boggling. Which ones are good? We’ve tried a lot of bars, and have been disappointed many times. A lot of bars have an off taste that isn’t pleasant, especially when they contain high amounts of protein. Others are more like candy bars with just a little extra protein. I tried Detour Bars a couple of years ago, and I really don’t remember why I never bought them again. I guess I didn’t care for them. Detour recently came out with several new varieties that sounded worth trying, so I gave them another shot.

The new Detour bars are ‘Activity’ bars designed for specific sports. Detour Runner bars contain ingredients to help improve joint health and function. Detour Core Strength bars contain an ingredient which is claimed to boost endurance and promote muscle recovery after exercise. Detour Biker bars offer to enhance muscle energy and stamina during exercise.

Do they live up to their claims? I have no idea. But I do know that the new varieties taste good, and there are so many varieties that you won’t get bored! You’ll find flavors such as Chocolate Chip Cookie, Lemon Yogurt, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Toffee Almond, Raspberry Dark Chocolate, Caramel Peanut, and Chocolate Caramel. My favorite was the Lemon Yogurt. My least favorite was the Toffee Almond, because it left a slightly bitter aftertaste in my mouth. Each of the varieties that I tried were sweet and they were satisfying because they took a while to eat. They aren’t wimpy bars!

The Detour Activity bars contain 12 grams of protein, which is a decent amount for a supplemental snack. The bars average 210 calories and are low fat. They have a lower sugar bar which has fewer calories, but I haven’t tried it.

If you try any of the Detour products, let us know what you think!

Imagine if you were given a book by one of the most respected health organizations in America, which would guarantee good health and and help you lose weight. Now imagine you never had to read a word. Everything that you can imagine in a diet book has been brought to you in DVD format by the Mayo Clinic in conjunction with Gaiam. Even better, the DVD includes exercise and stress relief through yoga and meditation, so it’s like a book and fitness program in one. You get all this for less than $20!

The Mayo Clinic and Gaiam have teamed up to create a series of DVDs called Wellness Solutions. They are based on integrative medicine that combines conventional and alternative therapy options. The DVD series cover topics such as high blood pressure, insomnia, IBS, and heart health, and you can choose to purchase just the editions that you need. We chose the weight loss DVD and plan to purchase other editions because we liked this one so much.

The Weight Loss DVD includes helpful information by Dr. Donald Hensrud, M.D. and Dr. Amit Sood, M.D., both from the Mayo Clinic. The doctors explain the effects of obesity on our bodies and emotions. They discuss the causes of obesity and how our environment as well as our actions affect our weight. For example, we live in a new society where we’ve engineered physical activity out of our environment. We are surrounded by step saving, efficient transportation, computers, and remote controls. Dr. Hensrud quips “My favorite joke is not only having a remote control, but asking a child to go and get it for you.” Oh boy, can we relate! You’ll find many points in their discussion will hit home. Most of it involves common sense advice, such as eating more natural foods and increasing activity. But it really helps when you watch it all fall together as they have accomplished with this DVD.

After this discussion, Dr. Hensrud takes us to a grocery store and shares advice on shopping for the best foods. Then the Mayo Clinic dietitian, Cailie Fura, R.D. shows us how to eat better with the Mayo Clinic Pyramid. This diet plan is mostly plant based, and concentrates on higher quality foods. It’s a simple plan that is easy to follow.

We are taught that meditation to reduce stress is important for weight loss, because it helps us to control our emotions and become less likely to stress eat. Rodney Yee, a well known yoga instructor, guides us through a 10 minute meditation session that truly is relaxing.

Our favorite part of the DVD is the yoga session. This 20 minute yoga workout by Yee is different from any other yoga workout we’ve tried. It’s designed for any size, unlike most. It was easy to do, yet left us feeling energized and refreshed! We loved this yoga workout because they took great care to make sure anyone of size could follow along. Part of the workout involves using a chair to brace the body, as well as folded towels and yoga blocks. You can see from the image at the left how these props allow you to accomplish what you need to, and it’s just as effective as a conventional yoga routine!

Overall, we were impressed with the Mayo Clinic Wellness Solutions for Weight Loss. The DVD lasts 98 minutes, including the meditation and yoga sessions which you’ll return to regularly. We learned a few things, and felt good after following the routines. We look forward to trying other DVDs in this series.

You can purchase this DVD online at Amazon.

We love trying new foods, and it’s not often that one of the big 3 frozen dinner companies introduces a new variety. Weight Watchers new Dragon Shrimp Lo Mein sounded too good to pass up! This new dish is low in fat and calories, and high on flavor. However, we found that ours was also missing something else very important.

We cooked the frozen dinner in the microwave as instructed on the package, then carefully plated it onto a beautiful red dish. Actually it’s a saucer, so don’t get too excited by the edge to edge presentation in our photo The noodles seemed perfectly done and had just enough sauce on them. The mixture was loaded with crunchy water chestnuts, which were a nice contrast to the noodles and sweet sauce. True to the photo, there were exactly 3 sugar snap peas in our dish. The meal tasted pretty good, and it was filling enough.

What’s wrong with this picture? If you haven’t noticed, our Dragon Shrimp Lo Mein is missing the shrimp. We had a huge helping of water chestnuts, but zero shrimp. Three sugar snap peas, zero shrimp. Our cluck has quickly turned into a squawk! Shame on quality control for letting this one out the door.

Weight Watchers Smart Ones Dragon Shrimp Lo Mein contains 240 calories, 4 grams fat, 3 grams fiber, and 5 WW points. Protein is listed at 14 grams, but that may depend on the presence of shrimp What’s in your box?

Note: This is an update to our original review from last year. Fiber Gourmet has created a new and improved version that is even more like regular pasta, with a smidgen more fiber!

Are you getting the recommended amount of fiber to help prevent heart disease, diabetes, and some forms of cancer? This past year, we reviewed Fiber Gourmet Light Pasta, which packs an enormous amount of healthy fiber in each serving. They recently came out with an updated formula that packs up to 20 grams of fiber in each bowl - 2 more grams from the previous recipe. This could be the perfect ‘diet food’, because the excellent fiber content alone may subconsciously prevent us from overeating! We don’t fancy the effects of 40-60 grams of fiber in one go! Add a touch of marinara to the pasta, or blend in with sauteed vegetables, and you have a delicious and very healthy fettuccine style pasta to pair up with a salad or lean meat. Extra fiber means slower digestion, which means this will be a satisfying meal that will stick with you for quite some time.

It’s hard to resist a steaming hot bowl of pasta, dripping with fresh tomato sauce and veggies! But pasta is the devil, right? Not if it’s Fiber Gourmet! This new pasta is loaded with a whopping 18 grams to 20 of fiber and has fewer calories than regular pasta! Fiber Gourmet is available in regular, spinach, and tomato flavors. How does it taste? We put each flavor variety to the test.

We love pasta, but it doesn’t pack a lot nutritionally, and it’s just an occasional treat in our house. When we heard that Fiber Gourmet pasta contained just 130 calories and 18 grams of fiber, we couldn’t wait to try it. We started with the Classic flavor, but it didn’t have a lot of flavor. But who eats pasta plain! We added our favorite sauce and we couldn’t tell the difference between this and regular pasta. The texture was exactly the same, and it was filling! We then tried the spinach and tomato flavors, and they each had a nice, mild flavor that didn’t need a heavy sauce. Each of these varieties also cooked up al dente and were very satisfying.

How can this pasta contain just 130 calories? Fiber technically has 4 calories per gram, but the body doesn’t digest it. It just passes right through your body. You can safely deduct the calories from fiber from the total calories to learn how many calories you are really consuming. Since Fiber Gourmet contains 18 grams of fiber, they deduct 72 calories and let us know we are really just getting 130 calories per serving. That’s not the only benefit you get from the fiber. It helps us feel full and satisfied from a normal portion of food. Plus fiber helps keep us regular, fights cancer, and helps lower our cholesterol. Maybe this is a pasta of angelic proportions!

If you’d like to try Fiber Gourmet pasta, check out their website at www.fibergourmet.com

If you make New Years Resolutions, chances are that fat loss is somewhere on the list. If you like exercising at home instead of the gym, or if you just want a good backup workout for home, then you may be interested in our most recent reviews of Fat Burning Videos. We chose two excellent videos to help you get your goals moving forward on the right foot.

First up, we have one of Prevention Magazine’s video lineup, led by Chris Freytag. Chris is a board member of the American Council on Exercise, and an editor at Prevention magazine, so you’ll know you are in good hands. We watched Prevention Fitness: Shortcuts to Big Weight Loss, which has 3 energy packed, 10 minute workouts. Do one or all three, if you can handle it! These videos are fun. Chris will keep you hopping from one move to another so boredom doesn’t settle in.

The first routine in Shortcuts to Big Weight Loss is Cardio Sculpt - a fun routine that even though dumbbells are light, you will feel it! Beginners can skip weights, and intermediate exercisers can use slightly heavier dumbbells. Pilates Sculpt is approximately a half standing - half floor routine, with a beginner modification. The last section is Kickbox Sculpt - a short, but high energy workout. It’s full of fast punches, kicks, squats, working in intervals that get your heart rate up and your muscles working. There is also a beginner modification if you need help. In all three segments, Chris is a pleasant leader - very upbeat and not chatty. This is a very well rounded workout for beginners and intermediates alike.

Our next video is Ultimate Fat Burn! by Women’s Health Magazine, who tout that this workout, led by celeb trainer Amy Dixon, burns up to 500 calories! This is also a high energy, weighted workout. It is slightly more difficult with foot movement, but even those of us with two left feet can keep up. Even an experienced weight trainer will let out a few grunts in this video. Between grunts, though, you’ll get good tips and also some non-weighted cardio. You’re going to alternate weights and cardio throughout the video. Towards the end of the workout, there are a few more advanced move, but modifiers are available until you are able to keep up. This is probably not a good choice for a brand spanking new exerciser, but if you consider yourself slightly above beginner, give it a shot and find a deliciously motivating workout to challenge you! The trainer is only slightly chatty, and you can tell she is working hard - always a good combination in our book. Choose this video, and weight loss is imminent!

Both of these videos are available at Amazon at reduced prices. Check out Prevention Fitness: Shortcuts to Big Weight Loss and Ultimate Fat Burn!

We all know exercise is good for us, that’s a no-brainer. It helps us to lose weight and firm up the jiggly bits, and keep us in shape later on. What if we told you that a quick and easy workout could actually extend your life, lower your blood pressure, and give you energy? Drs. Oz and Roizen, of the YOU book fame, have given us the YOU Staying Young workout. This DVD contains 3 workouts, each lasting between 15 and 20 minutes. Two are geared towards strength training, and the last one is a Chi Gong workout that calms the spirit and the mind and is equally important.

The YOU workout offers both a level 1 and a level 2 of a strength and stretching routine led by Joel Harper, from www.fitpackdvd.com. The workout is designed for any level of fitness, and it seems plus-size friendly. The moves are very simple to do and involve exercises while standing and laying down. If you are new to exercise, this is the perfect DVD to get you started. If you’re already in shape, you’ll love level 2. The benefits of the workout include learning how to properly breathe, stretch, strengthen, and balance your body.

We enjoyed the final workout the most. Chi Gong is similar to Tai Chi, but is easier - so we’re told. The 15 minute routine will reduce stress and improve cardiovascular performance. The workout is led by Karl Romain, Kung Fu World Champion! It was an extremely easy and pleasant workout, which was very calming, but also left us feeling energetic and refreshed in a way that was new to us. We plan to do this on a regular basis!

While these workouts are quick and easy, there’s much more to the YOU: Younger workout. The doctors advise us to walk at least 30 minutes every day, no excuses. Do either level 1 or 2 of the YOU workout two or three times a week, and do Chi Gong three times a week. Meditate for 5 minutes at some point each day. Drink green tea, plenty of water, and sleep 7 or 8 hours every night. That’s just part of it. If you want to really work on extending your life and getting the most out of it, we recommend reading their latest book, YOU Staying Young: The Owner’s Manual for Extending Your Warranty which is available at your local bookseller or online at Amazon.com along with the workout DVD.

It’s the beginning of a new year and most of us are thinking about ways to eat less and lose weight. Sadly, there are millions of hungry children that desperately need to be fed. Amazon has stepped up to the plate to help feed children through the United Nations World Food Programme. When you purchase an exclusive FEED bag through Amazon, you will feed lunch to one child every day for a year! Since the children are fed through the school lunch program, families are encouraged to send their children to school so they benefit from education as well as nutrition.

Amazon has taken a bold and important step in teaching us about world hunger and making it easy for us to help. According to Amazon:

• Hunger and malnutrition are the #1 risk to global health, killing more people than AIDS, malaria, and TB combined
• Every 5 seconds a child dies because he or she is hungry
• In 2005 WFP fed 21.7 million children in 74 countries
• Research shows that free school lunches can increase attendance rates by 100% and boost academic performance

What is the Amazon FEED bag? It’s a very large tote bag that is reversible with burlap on one side and white canvas on the reverse side. Each side has large stenciled lettering that says FEED and is made to resemble the bags of food that are distributed to schools around the world. The bag has pockets on the cotton side to make it a convenient and practical tote. We bought one and were surprised by the large size and how well made it was. Our only reservation is that some of the ladies may not want to walk around with a burlap FEED bag since it also resembles livestock feed bags. However, it’s casual, roomy, practical, and it makes an important statement that will hopefully give others something to think about.

We’re all concentrating on our diets right now, and it’s so easy to become focused on our own appetites and meal plans. We can’t think of a better time to help feed the children. When we’re cutting back on restaurant food and unnecessary snacks to improve our own health, lets consider sending the money saved to worthwhile organizations such as the World Food Programme.

When you purchase the bag for $59, $20 goes to the WFP and pays for lunch for one child for an entire year. Visit Amazon for more information.

If you’d prefer to donate the entire $59 or any other dollar amount and bypass the bag, you can do so by visiting the WFP website.

With the holidays coming up, we’d probably all rather look less like Santa, and more like a cute elf. Preferably one without a muffin top and with a belly ring. If you’ve got a little more jiggle in the middle than you’d like, try out one of these hot new workouts that focus on the belly. Regardless of your style, you’ll find one that works for you. We were lucky to find two awesome workouts that couldn’t be more different, but give the same ab burning results.

CRUNCH has a scorching hot ‘Belly Butt and Thighs‘ workout from their Boot Camp series. This workout is a high velocity, super effective combo of cardio as well as muscle conditioning. The instructor, Teri Ann Krefting, is a very likable, as well as motivating, instructor. She’s not chatty, and she doesn’t tell cheesy jokes, which are ingredients for our favorite recipe of a repeat performance! This is one you can do over and over without having to dub the dialogue.

This is an approximately 41 minute workout that includes a warm up with refreshingly original moves, a post workout stretch, plus 4 boot camp workouts that last around 7 1/2 minutes each. Thighs and glutes are a major focus of the first three workouts. Ooooooh yeah, THIGHS. This is definitely a guarantee for spaghetti legs for newbies. a challenge for WATP lovers, and a solid workout for rainy day gym rats. If you are very overweight, have joint problems, or are just plain new at exercising, you can adapt to this workout with the low impact modifiers throughout the video.

CRUNCH Belly, Butt and Thighs Boot Camp has simple choreography, yet it is very fresh and fun. We weren’t blessed with rhythm, but we don’t need it for this workout. What we do need is a little floor space, and a towel to soak up all that sweat! This is definitely staying in the 3FC library.

For a complete 180, try Prevention Fitness Systems Better Belly Yoga. Instead of camouflage and techno music, we have Namaste, deep breathing and peaceful tunes. What a great way to sculpt the stomach area after a stressful day at work!

The instructor, Desiree Bartlett, is a natural in front of the camera. She leads us through 3 - 10 minute workouts, each one focused on a different part of the belly. This is also a multi dimensional DVD, with a beginner as well as an advanced modifier. The workout may be difficult for those with a very large belly or heavy legs, but with a little practice, strength will increase quickly.

We felt very trendy doing poses we were familiar with, such as Planks, Downward Facing Dog, Boat pose and Warrior pose, so we had to giggle when we got ‘windshield wipers’. Giggles turned to grunts, though, when we felt our abs getting the brunt of it! With the modifiers, this is also a great workout that will take each of us through our own quest for a Better Belly.

Are you tired of Lean Cuisine and Healthy Choice dinners? We gave those up ages ago. They are usually boring, bland, and the quality has been questionable. Check out their ingredient panels and you’ll see what we mean! If you are looking for something better, we think we’ve found it. Seeds of Change offers a frozen dinner line that is certified organic, and has all natural ingredients that don’t require a food scientist to decipher. Best of all, they are extremely flavorful, filling, and still low in calories and fat!

We haven’t tried all of their varieties yet, but what we’ve tried so far have quickly become favorites. The Spinach Lasagna di Parma in particular is out of this world! It’s so cheesy and creamy and rich that you’ll never guess it only has 340 calories. It also has a whopping 20 grams of protein! Another favorite is the Spicy Yucatan Frijoles & Vegetables. This dish combines a variety of vegetables, rice, and tofu with exotic seasonings from the Yucatan for an unusual - and addicting - flavor combination.

If you like the convenience and portion control of frozen diet dinners, but are ready for something new, try Seeds of Change frozen dinners. You may have go to your local natural foods store or a Whole Foods to find them, but the variety and quality is worth the trip!

To learn more about their products and locate a store that carries them, visit www.seedsofchange.com today