“Change. It’s the most popular topic on the Internet this week. Some folks love resolutions; some rally against them. Some may call them intentions, rituals, goals or promises.” ~Kris Carr, author of Crazy Sexy Cancer.

This week I compiled a list of e-book Healthy Discoveries to help you create healthy habits and achieve great things via your 2012 resolutions. Regardless of which part of your life you resolve to change, these resources can help you get clear about what you want and why. They’ll teach you how to follow-through and maintain your focus throughout the whole year.

1. Unraveling The Year Ahead – Susannah Conway hosts a popular photography e-course which takes people through The Unraveling Process- using a camera as a tool to unlock how we see not only ourselves but also the world we live in. We do this in the simplest way: we stop and look. Beginning with your feet, you’re going to go on a photo safari into your own life to reconnect with who you are, where you’ve been and where you want to go next.

Susannah also created this FREE download for you to write about and reflect on the past year while focusing on a fulfilling New Year.

2. How To Live Your Best Life- Marelisa and I frequently chat on Twitter. She has a fantastic blog, she writes great eBooks, and she’s a true Healthy Discovery. You can download, How To Live Your Best Life, and all the wonderful bonuses Marelisa provides for only $17.95  Click here to view more details

3. The Right Brain Business Plan - Are you an artist, health and wellness professional, educator, coach, designer, writer, photographer, non-profit leader or all-around creative soul wanting to make a positive impact with your entrepreneurial endeavors? Do you dream of making a living doing what you love but find the process of creating a viable business plan like trying to fit a square peg into a round hole? Jennifer Lee knows what it’s like to make the entrepreneurial leap — and how to do it successfully. The key is using, rather than stifling, imagination and intuition. Lee’s illustrated, colorful worksheets and step-by-step instructions are playful yet practical, transforming drudgery into joy. They’ll enable you to define your vision and nail down plans for funding, marketing, networking, and long-term strategy.

Click this picture for more information.

4.  Sustainable Creativity - Learn to use whatever energy you have available, however limited it may be, to maintain a creative life (or livelihood). Maybe you’re someone, like the author, who has a chronic illness which means the energy available for creative endeavors is severely curtailed.

Or maybe your days are so full of the busyness of life that you have very little time or energy left over to pursue your creative ambitions. Either way, Sustainable Creativity could be for you.

• Keep things simple
• The 20-minute a day challenge
• The three-thing (or even one-thing) to-do list
• Recognizing and celebrating your achievements
• Being kind
• Enjoy the journey (or try to anyway)
• Practical ways of working with your energy bank
• The magic of saying “no”

The suggested price is $15.00 but you’re welcome to pay as much or as little as you can afford. Click here to visit Sustainably Creative.

5.  The Spark Kit- A digital book-meets-video seminar to help you rock your business… your way, right away. You: are likely sitting on an empire of content, product, services, and prosperity that needs a spark — or blow torch — to take it to the next level. You: want to rock your revenue and do meaningful things in the world. You: want to do it as soon as possible.

Click this picture to order your Spark Kit today.

6. Secrets of Lasting Weight Loss Revealed – I’m a fan of Kat Eden’s blog because she trained with Charles Poliquin. Poliquin is the creme de la creme when it comes to nutrition, fitness, supplementation, and fat loss. Kat Eden takes the knowledge gained from Poliquin and wrote her own eBook. If you want a legit, top-notch nutrition and weight loss plan for 2012 I highly recommend, Secrets of Lasting Weight Loss Revealed for $37.00 - Click here to visit Play Life Health and Performance Coach and purchase:

7.  I Quit Sugar- Are you ready to take the plunge and remove sugar from your diet? You will look and feel 100% better, plus you’ll have that much more energy to accomplish great things this year!

• An 8-week program that walks you through each crucial stage, week by week
• How + why sugar is making us fat + sick
• A sugar replacement plan: tested + nutritionally sound
• “Sweet” sugar-free recipes
• New treat ideas
• A detox + a suggested supplements list
• A downloadable shopping list of new ingredients to replace sugar in your life

Click here to view more details

As the calendar flips from one year to the next, you may perceive your experiences from the past year as fair or unfair, burdens or gifts, triumphs or struggles. Either way, I love this quote by Ali Smith, “In the end, everything simply began.”

Happy New Year!

 

I zig and I zag all over the place with this blog, which means I pretty much write about whatever is on my mind at the moment.

However, my original mission statement was, and still is:  ”To connect you to healthy people, products, ideas, books, events and places.”

So let’s revert back to that mission statement for today’s post, shall we?

Here are some of my recent Healthy Discoveries For the Fall of 2011.

1.  You Are The Best Medicine –

Julie Aigner Clark is the creator and founder of the Baby Einstein company.

In 2004, at age 37 Julie was diagnosed with breast cancer. In 2008 the cancer returned and she continues treatment for stage 4 cancer today. She is an amazing woman, mother, entrepreneur and Colorado resident! She recently authored the children’s book, You Are The Best Medicine, that helps mother’s explain cancer treatment to their children in an optimistic and loving way. Julie donates all proceeds from the book to UCLA Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center. Donations to date: $34,600.

If you know a child who has a parent going through cancer treatment this is a great Healthy Discovery.

2.  Lunch Box Awesome -

My friend, Heather Sitarzewski is a talented artist. She has been making Bento Box Lunches for her son this year. She creates a different Bento lunch for him each day and posts a picture on FaceBook and her blog. Follow along, get inspired and start making fun, healthy lunches for you and your kids!

3. The Science of Food Addiction – Can a donut act like a drug?  This is a well produced video by the University of Berkeley regarding will power, biochemistry and over-eating.

Food Addiction from News21 Berkeley 2011 on Vimeo.

4.  Topricin - 

I tried CrossFit for the first time last week. It was hard. My leg muscles hurt for days. As I staggered (literally) into Whole Foods Market one day looking for relief. I stared blankly at the homeopathic cream shelf trying to make a decision. The nice Whole Foods employee took pity on me and gave me a handful of Topricin sample packets.

“Here, try these” she said. “I swear by this stuff, it works miracles”

So I tried it.

She was right, after 5-days of strained muscle pain, the Topricin cream gave me instant relief. I felt 90% better within minutes of applying Topricin.

Hey, I sound like an infomercial and Topricin isn’t paying me to say this. Topricin is an anti-inflammatory cream that is formulated without parabens, petroleum or other harmful ingredients. It’s for arthritis, carpal tunnel, back pain, fibromyalgia, neck and shoulder pain, neuropathy, plantar facitis, shingles, sports injuries, nerve, joint or gout pain.

After I used up my sample packets I went back and bought a jar of this stuff. It’s a good thing to have on hand.

5.  My new favorite cartoon. 

6.  And finally, my business coach just posted this on FaceBook. I love it!  It’s too good not to share.

LOOK at the camels first and then read the message below.

This is a picture taken from directly above these camels in the desert at sunset. It is considered to be one of the best pictures of the year. When you look closely, you can see that the camels are the little white lines in the picture.
The black images you see are just the shadows!

Sometimes, our “problems” seem to be as big as the shadows…but they are little. Have a lovely day!
LOOK ONCE MORE. YOU CANNOT BELIEVE IT, RIGHT?

Just like clockwork as soon as the calendar flipped over to September the Colorado air started to smell like fall. The mornings are cooler, crisper and one day the high temperature only made it to the mid-60’s.

The seasons are changing.

Personally I’d be happy with summertime year round. I know, that’s blasphemy coming from a Colorado native. Pretty much everyone who lives in Colorado takes pride and boasts about how lucky they are to live in a place where they experience all four-seasons. What can I say, I’m just a warm weather kind of girl!

Anyway, I digress.

As I was researching and working on another project, I pulled Sara Avant Stover’s book out of my home library.

Her chapter on Autumn made me pause.

I was already in the beautiful Colorado mountain town, Crested Butte, by myself when I was re-reading Sara’s book. My intention was to take some time and down-shift a bit as I re-focused my energy. A solitary working retreat, if you will.

But I found Sara’s recommendations so poignant that I want to share them with you now.

According to Sara, “Autumn is a time to gather, store, organize, and wind down from summer’s high tempo and the relentless forward momentum that modern living usually demands.”

Traditional Chinese Medicine suggests that autumn is the season to acknowledge the grief and sadness we’ve accumulated but have yet to release. It’s a time to reflect and nurture ourselves.

Here are some of Sara’s recommendations for Self-Care During The Autumn Season:

1.  Allow yourself more time to rest since your circadian rhythm is shifting. This could mean going to bed a little earlier (drink some chamomile tea before bed) waking up a little later, or even taking a catnap in the afternoon.

2.  Indulge in quiet walks through nature if possible.

3.  Let yourself cry when you need to.

4.  Turn to the healing power of prayer and ask for guidance, support, and protection during transition.

5.  Infuse your home or bath with essential oils of sandalwood, neroli or geranium.

6.  Light candles or a fire inside. Or even better, sit at a bonfire outside with friends -release whatever you need to let go of into the flames.

7.  Drink warm water with fresh lemon first thing in the morning.

8.  Make yourself a cup of hot almond milk with nutmeg and drink before bed.

9.  Let go of relationships, thoughts, situations and beliefs that are holding you back. She recommends writing a letter to someone or something you’re ready to let go of. Record the things you learned, the unsavory pieces as well as the blessings that you will carry with you as you move forward. This letter is for your eyes only so don’t hold back, write it all down. When complete, burn (release) the letter.

10. Build stability in your body and clarity in your mind through a flow yoga practice.

11.  Massage warm sesame oil into your head (hair if you’re washing it) around your ears and face. Then work downward to your feet, paying extra attention to your belly (use circular motion there) and the soles of your feet. Use long strokes on your limbs and circles on your joints. Sit on the edge of your tub, or lie down on a towel on the floor. Relax and breathe deeply for ten minutes while the oil sinks in. Take a hot shower or bath, washing the oil off with a gentle soap. This is an Ayurvedic practice that helps to ground, warm and calm you during an otherwise cold and dry season. It draws toxins out of the tissues and into the blood stream for elimination.

12.  Choose heavier, denser, cooked foods to ground and insulate you during the cold weather. The dominant color of this season is white. Add daikon (Chinese radish), quinoa, millet, bananas, apples, garlic, ginger, oats, pears, parsnips, turnips, cauliflower, okra, and onions to your diet whenever possible.

13.  Make the nightly ritual of writing down all the things that you are grateful for from that day. If you sleep with a partner, share your lists with each other.

14.  Create an “absolute yes list”. For example, sleep at least eight hours a night, take a candle light bath a few times a week, go for walks outside even it’s just for 10 minutes a day, spend your mornings in silence, eat simple wholesome foods, meet up with friends a couple times a week, totally unplug one day a week.

After a health scare in her early twenties, Sara Avant Stover moved to Thailand where she embarked on an extensive healing and spiritual odyssey throughout Asia and served as one of the pioneer Western yoga teachers in that part of the world. She now lives in Boulder, CO and continues to teach around the world.

It’s been awhile since I shared some of my favorite “Healthy Discoveries” a.k.a. books, people, places, products and events.

I recently stumbled across two great cookbooks.  Not only are they great books but the author’s personal stories are a lot of fun as well.  For me, the positive stories behind the products (or books) influence my selection when deeming something a “Healthy Discovery.”  I love down-to-earth-people who are doing interesting things and making significant contributions.

Without further ado and with that criteria in mind, here are two of my latest “Healthy Discoveries”:

1.  Food Heroes

Georgia Pellegrini says “I hunt and gather myself, and hone my pioneer skills. I seek ingredients that are anchored to the seasons and a definite place. It is the kind of food once served in simple restaurants and in homes by housewives, by grandmothers, by families for generations, and today by people – culinary artisans – choosing to do the hard work required to live off the best their hands can produce.”

Goodness, it sounds like Georgia is speaking my language.

She grew up surrounded by chickens and honey bees on the same land that her great-grandfather owned and worked.  After attending Harvard and working a short stint on Wall Street she left to attend the French Culinary Institute of New York.

She then worked at some farm to table restaurants in France and the US where she found that she was most interested in the foragers and fig collectors and salami makers that arrived to the restaurants with their goods.  She soon befriended them and went on journeys with them, through the woods, into curing rooms, and over the rolling hills of olive oil vineyards.

Her fabulous book, Food Heroes, tells the story of the culinary artisans across the world who are fighting to preserve their food traditions.  You can also follow all her adventures and recipes on her blog, Georgia Pellegrini.com.

2.  Perfect One-Dish Dinners

First of all, I love the concept and title, Perfect One-Dish Dinners.

As I’ve mentioned before, if I can cook something that tastes good with only 4-7 fresh ingredients and very little prep time, I’m a happy girl!

Pam Anderson is the former executive editor of Cook’s Illustrated magazine and a monthly food columnist for numerous publications.  She has authored many books including How To Cook Without A Book, Perfect Recipes For Having People Over and The Perfect Recipe For Losing Weight and Eating Great.  You can also follow her and find more recipes on her blog, Three Many Cooks.com

But her story becomes interesting to me when she realized her life balance needed to be reworked and she left the corporate world.  She lost 40 pounds and started a new chapter in her life.  I love this video with Pam and her daughters.

They sum it up well at the 2:37 mark:

“Being in the kitchen and being able to cook with my family and friends is an incredibly empowering thing.  You’re able to build relationships between people because that’s really what happens at the dinner table.”

YES!

When a meal is prepared by you or a loved one with an upbeat, positive mood, the nourishment you gain from that meal will be that much more enhanced.  While this may sound a bit esoteric I believe it to be true.

“Breaking bread” with loved ones, preparing home cooked meals for those near and dear to you and participating in nourishing conversations at the kitchen table is just as important as what you’re actually eating. Nutritionists love to carry on (and rightfully so) about highly-processed-low-nutrient-value-food.  Yet I believe educating people about physical nourishment is only one piece of the equation, we must remember the emotional nourishment that can be gained or lost at meal times as well!

Just like our grandparents and generations before; sit down, eat slowly, choose your dining companions carefully and try some new recipes during this winter season – it’s good for your overall health and well-being.

First of all I want to welcome and thank those of you who recently joined my Healthy Discoveries Fan Page on Facebook. I occasionally post pictures, videos and updates, but my published blog posts are what I link most frequently to this facebook page.

I usually write 2-4 blog posts a month.

My intention with my blog is to connect you to healthy people, products, ideas, books, events and places. I have been blogging for 2.5 years.  Some posts I have written during that time period include;  transfats, dealing with weight loss plateaus and people like my friend Jo, who overcame a traumatic brain injury.

I also share my favorite “Healthy Discoveries” such as Float Tanks, Coconut Water, The Nia Technique, and Wet Sock Therapy to name a few.

Sometimes I write about my own life, for example;  my struggle with hypothyroidism, a great business trip turned weekend get-away to Seattle, my thoughts on running my own business and some insights I gained while climbing my first 14′er.

In other words, under the umbrella of the Healthy Discoveries Blog, you get a little bit of everything- meaning whatever is on my mind at the time.

So thank you again for joining my page, it means a lot and I appreciate knowing that you’re out there reading once I hit the publish key!  I also welcome your comments on my blog or facebook so please don’t be shy.

And now onto today’s Healthy Discovery:

The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show

People often ask me which websites and on-line resources I recommend for reliable health information?

To be honest, those sites are few and far between.

But The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Podcast is one of those rare gems on the Internet that provides top-notch health information.  Jimmy Moore interviews the best of the best in the health industry. You can download any and all of his podcasts to your computer or iPod for FREE!

Jimmy believes (as do I) in a low sugar, low grain diet, hence the name – The Low-Carb Show.  But don’t be turned off by that name if you don’t subscribe to that diet philosophy (although you may want to listen to some of his interviews with doctors about the negative effects of wheat gluten).

Nonetheless, scroll through Jimmy’s podcast archives (he’s been recording his interviews with top experts, doctors and authors since 2006) you’ll find a treasure chest of cutting edge health and nutrition information.

These are some of my favorite interviews:

Dr. Uffe Ravnskov – The Cholesterol Myth

Dr. Nancy Appleton – Lick The Sugar Habit

Lierre Keith – The Vegetarian Myth

Julia Ross – The Mood Cure

Dr. Richard Bernstein – The Diabetes Solution

Gary Taubes - Good Calories, Bad Calories

Dr. Bruce Fife – The Health Benefits of Coconut Oil

Dr. Jonny Bowden – Finding The Diet That’s Right For You

Mark Sisson - The Primal Blueprint

Sally Fallon - President of the Weston A. Price Foundation

James LaValle – Cracking The Metabolic Code

I admit these are many of my nutritional hero’s.  I have read their books and heard most of them speak at medical conferences over the years; that’s why I’m so excited that Jimmy interviews them for the public to download.

Information is power and I think these podcasts are excellent resources to help individuals create optimal health.  I encourage you to listen and learn.  You’ll gain practical tips that will improve your energy, mood, weight and overall health!

The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Podcast is an amazing Healthy Discovery.  Click on over and start listening today!

The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl – When I first discovered the popular Black Heels to Tractor Wheels on-line love story last spring I was instantly hooked.  I sat at my computer for the next 3-hours and I didn’t move. I devoured Ree Drummand’s (aka Pioneer Woman’s) true story about how she met her husband, fell in love and lived happily ever after.

Apparently I’m not the only one, as I’m editing this post tonight I saw on Twitter, via the LA Times, that 2 million people visit Pioneer Woman’s blog monthly.  Wow!

I am also partial to Pioneer Women because she and I have lived a similar life – only in reverse order.  For the first 18 years of my life I grew up on the farm that has been in our family for over 120 years; then I moved to live life in the city (London, Los Angeles, Orlando, Denver).

Pioneer Woman, on the other hand, grew up in the city, attended USC and was on her way to become a young professional in Chicago when a handsome cowboy unexpectedly came into her life and whisked her off to the country.

I now read Pioneer Woman’s weekly accounts of life on the ranch.  She talks about hearding cattle, annual pasture burns, and the isolated life on the ranch.  I often think, “oh, better you than me, as I’ve been there done that, and it’s not exactly my cup of tea.”  Yet her adventures on the ranch are so fun to read.

Pioneer Woman makes home-cooked meals for her four kids and husband every day.  She recently put her favorite recipes into her first cookbook and she is gearing up for a national book tour. Here is her promotional video about the cookbook.  It’s very cute.  I’m excited for this down-home-farm-style-cookbook to arrive in bookstores October 27, 2009.

BabyCakes: Vegan, (Mostly) Gluten-Free, and (Mostly) Sugar-Free Recipes from New York’s Most Talked-About Bakery – Once upon a time not very long ago I tossed around the idea of starting a side business making gluten-free muffins.  I quickly discovered that manufacturing, packaging, delivering and running a food company is not easy. This is why I have admiration and appreciation for what  Erin McKenna, owner of BabyCakes has accomplished.  She makes gluten-free, vegan, low sugar baked goods in her New York City bakery and her products are wildly popular.  In May she released her first gluten-free cookbook.  Here is Erin’s promotional video about her cookbook – this video is way cute!

Healthiest Meals on Earth: The Surprising, Unbiased Truth About What Meals to Eat and Why – Okay the first two are fun, speciality cookbooks but if you’re looking for healthy, super food cooking, this is my favorite cookbook. Author Jonny Bowden is my nutritional hero!  His cookbook is dedicated to healthy, easy meals that taste great. Love that!

Make It Fast, Cook It Slow: The Big Book of Everyday Slow Cooking – I loved Stephanie O’Dea’s 365 days of crock pot cooking blog last year.  This year she put those recipes into a book and it will be in bookstores on October 13, 2009.  I’m adding this one to my Christmas wish list.

And finally, if you haven’t seen the movie, Julie & Julia it is worth seeing.  Blogger Julie Powell made every recipe in Julia Child’s, Mastering The  Art of French Cooking Cookbook in 2002.  She blogged about it, wrote a book about it and then Hollywood made a movie about it this year.

It will inspire you to live your dreams (Julia Child didn’t start cooking until she was in her 50′s), create beautiful partnerships, both Julie and Julia (like Pioneer Woman) have amazingly supportive husbands.  And most of all, it will remind you to laugh at yourself and have fun along the way!

Bon Appetit!

When I teach and write about health I try to focus on all the fabulous things (Healthy Discoveries) that people can “add into” their lives. I think focusing on deprivation, and telling someone they should “stop doing something” often has a backlash effect.

With that said, when things like trans-fats , artificial sweeteners and SOY PROTEIN ISOLATES cross my path I have to digress.

I didn’t watch Oprah’s 2009 season premier on Monday, but I heard it was all about healthy living. Oprah’s recent weight gain, which she attributes in part to her thyroid gland, was the motivation behind the show.

I did watch Oprah and Dr. Oz on Tuesday. They talked about things like Omega 3 fats, anti-oxidants, fiber, exercise, and Vitamin D. I can’t criticize, it was all good.

However, I do want to say this. In the past Oprah has talked about her “health drink”, soy milk. While Tuesday’s show didn’t specifically address soy milk, it gave me the inspiration to write about it here.

I do not think we all should be jumping on the SOY BANDWAGON! Gasp! Did I just write that? Yeah, I did. Sorry!

I know, you’ve heard that soy is “healthy” and you should add copious amounts of soy to your diet. Oprah certainly has.

But here’s the thing. I think there is strong evidence that connects soy isolates to potential thyroid issues, which could trigger frustrating weight struggles.

Don’t take my word for this. If you’ve taken one of my workshops you know that I always say, “get second, third opinions. Do not take one thing you hear and turn it into your health dogma. That includes things you hear from Oprah, your own doctor, AND ME!“. Never stop questioning and doing your own research!

Here’s a “Healthy Discovery” research resource. It’s called The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America’s Favorite Health Food I heard the author, Kaayla T. Daniel Ph.D, speak this summer at a functional medicine conference. I was impressed by her thorough research.

The Israeli Health Ministry, French Food Agency, UK Committee on Toxicity and German Federal Institute of Risk Assessment have all issued big warnings against soy. Dr Daniels has exhaustively researched the inconsistent and often contradictory evidence in the U.S. on soy and disease. She focuses on three high-risk groups:

1. Babies on soy infant formula.
2. Vegetarians who consume soy as meat and dairy replacements.
3. Adults who self medicate with soy foods, soy milk and supplements.

Daniels is primarily talking about soy isolates, such as; the popular American soy protein powders, soy protein snack bars, soy milk etc.

Thyroid and reproductive problems have been connected to soy isolate consumption. When Oprah took a break in Hawaii last summer to heal her thyroid gland she was quoted as saying, ” I drank a lot of soy milk”. Hmmm?

I myself have a hypothyroid. I have written why balancing the thyroid gland is not easy. There are many factors to consider beyond soy, but this is my personal opinion (I am NOT a doctor): Thyroid patients should consider avoiding all wheat-gluten and soy. I’m waiting for the day when Oprah has her “ah-ha” gluten-free, soy-free moment! The scientific research is strong regarding the negative effects that soy and gluten can have on the thyroid gland, thus potentially leading to weight issues.

Daniel’s book has a lot of good “food for thought”. She references hundreds of epidemiological, clinical and laboratory studies which link soy to malnutrition, digestive problems, thyroid dysfunction, cognitive decline, reproductive disorders, immune system breakdown, even heart disease and cancer. Daniels also provides the information you need to determine which studies are valid, which justify hope and which are mere hype.

The Whole Soy Story: The Dark Side of America’s Favorite Health Food, might just be the missing physiological link to Oprah’s recent weight struggle; but I digress!

I went on a political and economic news fast last week. I needed to focus on things “that lifted my spirit”. During my media avoidance I came across Gabrielle Roth’s “move through your stress theory“. I heard about Gabrielle and her dance technique when I took Nia Dance classes a couple years ago, now I wanted to give this a try.

This week I have been dancing to Gabrielle’s Wave DVD . I like it, and that’s saying something because I’m not a “dancer,” but I like the let-your-body-sway-and-relax-your-mind-type-movement.

Yesterday when I was reading through my favorite blogs and watching one of my guilty pleasure TV shows last night, I found a thread about Jillian Michaels. Jillian is a trainer on The Biggest Loser. The Internet is singing praises about Jillian’s 30 Day Shred DVD. Apparently these are kick a** workouts – literally and figuratively!

Her workouts are based on the 3-2-1 method: 3 mins strength, 2 mins cardio, 1 min abs. Each workout is 30 minutes. Now I want to try this DVD after reading all of these rave reviews.

In my quest to reclaim my own sense of balance in these ever-changing times, I found some great new Exercise Healthy Discoveries!

Have you been watching the Olympics this past week? I’ve been glued to the T.V. Now that the swimming competition is over I’m going through withdrawal, I want to see more. Along with the rest of the country I’m on the Michael Phelps bandwagon. I love watching people overcome the odds, set and reach astronomical goals and push the limits.

Here’s an article from ADDitude Magazine- Living Well With ADD And Learning Disabilities. They interviewed Michael’s mom in the spring of 2007. When Michael was nine years-old he was diagnosed with ADHD and that’s when his mom got him involved with swimming. His busy schedule of swim practice and meets imposed so much structure on his life that he was able to stay focused and stop his medication. I thought his mom was very well spoken in this Today Show interview.

She talks about her trainers, daily chiropractic, massage, supplements (high intake of amino acids), and drug-free training. The Internet has been so fascinated with Dara’s ab’s that the Innovative Body Site crashed yesterday. Everyone wanted to see the resistance stretching program she did to get stomach muscles that look like this.

Dramatic, transforming weight loss fascinates me.

I admit it, I watch the TV show, The Bigger Loser. I don’t agree with the rapid weight loss that happens on the show (sometimes 10-20 pounds a week). Nonetheless, I’m hooked. I think it is interesting (physically, emotionally, sociologically, medically) to understand how and why people gain hundreds of pounds and then how they lose hundreds of pounds.

Jennette Fulda blogged about her amazing, at home weight loss on her popular blog, Pasta Queen. This month she released her first book Half-Assed: A Weight-Loss Memoir where she tells her complete story.

Jennette weighed 372 pounds when she began losing weight. She doesn’t say exactly which diet approach she used, although she lost the weight using only diet and exercise, no surgery! She says she loosely followed a diet of lean meats, whole grains, vegetables, fruits and eliminated the white flour and sugars. She had slips along the way and writes with humor and honesty as she lost over 200 pounds in two years. She “never got crazy” about following a diet and I enjoyed her insight and non-obsessive approach to eating.

Initially I wasn’t thinking of this book as a Healthy Discovery. I heard Jennette being interviewed on The Today Show . I added her book to my stack of leisure reading because I enjoy reading memoirs. Three quarters of the way through the book I realized this is definitely a Healthy Discovery. If you have a hard time staying committed to your weight loss goal, if losing weight frustrates and fails you, or if you’re curious how someone gains and then loses hundreds of pounds, I think you will like Half-Assed: A Weight-Loss Memoir; I certainly did!

Click here and watch Jennette lose 192 pounds in 7 seconds