The Diet Blog Carnival is back in town, so step right up and grab a front row seat for today's top 5 submissions. It's the greatest show on earth and it's right here at Diet-to-Go each and every Friday.Today's best blogs tackle topics like diet soda, toning your abs, sweets get svelte, and how to look your beach body best!So grab your unbuttered popcorn and get ready to be educated while you are entertained by some of the best bloggers on the Internet. Diet-to-Go's Diet Blog Carnival Top 5#5) The Svelte Gourmet gives sweets a skinny makeoverOften, one of the...

I first met Andy and Ivy Larson about 10 years ago when they were promoting their book The Gold Coast Cure. Since that time Andy and Ivy have become a major force in the world of weight loss and healthy living.Andy is a respected surgeon; Ivy is a lifestyle coach. As a team, they got you covered from head to toe.In today's edition of "7 Questions with...," the dynamic duo talk about their latest project -- HotandHealthyLiving.com -- and give valuable insights into what it takes to get healthy and then stay that way.7 Questions with Ivy and Andy Larson,...

In honor of April Fool's Day, food writer Sally Ketchum is serving up a fun look back at some of the zanier concoctions to ever grace our dinner tables.Get ready to sink your teeth into a banana 'n popcorn salad or how about a tomato frappe which is little more than a frozen can of soup!Take it away Sally... and happy April Fool's everyone.Silly Foods Through the AgesThroughout history cooks have concocted food eminently suitable for the April Fool's table. Many times, the concoctions are the result or famine or a depression.The Irish ate Seaweed (and now we have sushi),...

I first met Phill Connell just a few short weeks ago when he retweeted something I posted for Diet-to-Go on Twitter. Phill and I began to chat via email and I soon learned the Englishman shared something with millions of Americans -- and that something was diabetes.I am not the shy type so I quickly asked Phill if he'd like to blog about what it's like to live with diabetes. Phill told me he loved to write and he readily agreed to take up the task at hand.So today we welcome Phill Connell to our ever-growing Diet-to-Go family. Please feel...

Author, trainer and speaker Nicki Anderson talks the talk about weight loss but she's also walked the walk, having dropped 50 pounds and managed to keep off the weight for years now.I recently sat down with Nicki to ask her a few questions about the current obesity epidemic and to get some sage advice on what it really takes to lose weight and get healthy. 1) So Nicki, what's wrong with America's approach to weight loss?It's done for all the wrong reasons, simply vanity. Hence, it's not really taken seriously because in truth it's never enough. The truth is that...

They're ba-a-a-a-ck! I'm talking about the top 5 blogs of the week as presented in our friday Diet Blog Carnival.This week we've scoured the 'net and stormed through the many submissions from readers just like you. What you see below are our top 5 picks of the week -- everything about proper eating tips for pregnant women to the new findings related to stress and weight gain.Give 'em a look, then come back next Friday -- and every Friday -- for more great insights into your health.Oh baby, what new moms need to knowAsk almost any pregnant woman about eating...

Diet-to-Go is rolling out a new feature -- "7 Questions with..." -- and this week's premier guest is The Svelte Gourmet, a.k.a. Jenny Fox from Charleston, South Carolina.The Svelte Gourmet caught my attention while I was compiling our weekly Diet Blog Carnival round-up of interesting and educational Internet features. Jenny's columns consistently appeared in our "best of" round-up so I decided to extend an offer for her to appear in this inaugural question-and-answer series."7 Questions with..." will feature top names in the fields of food, diet, nutrition, fitness and motivation, so be sure to come back regularly.. and to tell...

I love St. Patty's Day. It's a holiday where people socialize and act genuinely happy. It doesn't matter if you have any Irish blood in you. It's more the spirit of the occasion.And in keeping with that spirit I called on my dear friend Sally Ketchum, Michigan's finest food writer, for a little taste of the Old Country -- recipes for Popover Pudding with Irish Bacon, Bird Flanagan Potato Pancakes, and Pride of Erin Soup.Feel free, of course, to wash the food down with a pint of Murphy's or Killian's... or maybe even Guinness!Okay Sally, so feed our minds about...

To me, a diet that doesn't involve snacks is a sad thing indeed. Somewhere along the line I have developed a habit -- maybe even a NEED -- to eat or drink something while I work on a computer. And since my job requires me to plow through my workday hand-in-mouse with my computer I tend to eat and drink a little too often.Luckily for me -- and millions of other overweight Americans -- snacking is a perfectly acceptable part of a healthy diet. Please keep in mind that between-meal snacking does not mean padding your daily caloric intake. It...

The Diet-to-Go weekly Diet Blog Carnival returns with five great features culled from reader submissions. Today's hot topics include serving up a healthy St. Patty's Day, taxing soda and strength training for better weight loss.If you haven't sent us a link to check out, be sure you do -- we rely on health-minded individuals like you to keep us submerged in scores of entertainingly informative blogs from around the Internet.The topics we especially love are those having to do with dieting, eating healthy and getting fit so be sure to submit your favorite blogs that fit those categories.5) Serving up...

"Excuses are the nails used to build a house of failure." Ah, excuses. We all make them. And, in turn, excuses make us less likely to achieve the things we want to achieve -- like a lighter weight or a better shape.As a total wellness professional I have heard most every excuse known to man. So today let's recount the top 7 excuses people use to avoid exercise.I will give you the way to overcome each excuse. Of course, to get it done, you need to stop making excuses!The 7 Worst Excuses for Not Exercising1. I hate to sweat!But seriously...

I have two young children. One is 12 and he will eat -- or at least try -- just about any food. The other is 10. She subsists on a diet of chicken nuggets, fries, cheese sandwiches, grilled steak and peanut butter toast. Oh, and ketchup... lots and lots of ketchup.I'll admit here have been times when my youngest has nearly driven her mom and dad over the edge. In fact, I harbor one shameful memory of a desperate time when we tried to force our daughter to simply try a bite of a new food.I still shake my head...

A while back I had the pleasure of interviewing Victoria Moran, author of The Love-Powered Diet (Lantern Books). I really liked Victoria'a message because, unlike nearly every other trendy or fad diet out there, her love-powered diet starts from within and rebuilds the follower into a happier, healthier individual.What I want to share with you today are a pair of key passages from The Love-Powered Diet -- "Things Foods Addicts May Think" and "Things Food Addicts May Do."See how many of these remind you of yourself.Things Food Addicts May Do • Hide food • Sneak food • Go on diets,...

I don't know about you but there are too many days I awake and ask myself, "Why did I have that third slice of pizza when two were more than enough?" or "Why didn't I stop at four wings rather than stuff down seven?"The bigger question is, "Why do we overeat?"The Nutrition Diva -- Monica Reinagel -- tackled this subject in the Diet-to-Go February newsletter. In case you missed it, here is the beginning of her insightful blog.At the bottom of today's blog we have the podcast link you can use to listen to Monica discuss this important subject. Stop...

Step right up and feast your eyes on the five wonders of the dieting blog world -- it's Diet Blog carnival time here at Diet-to-Go and we've selected the best of the best from the blogs submitted by readers and experts just like you.The topics we love are those having to do with dieting, eating healthy and getting fit so be sure to submit your favorite blogs that fit these categories.You don't have to be the author to submit a blog. Your pick could be something you read -- something that inspired or educated you. If you've stumbled upon a...

Ever feel like you aren't getting enough veggies in your daily diet? How about your kids -- can you get the youngsters to enjoy a variety of nature's bounty?If you answered yes to question one and no to question two, you need a little help from my good friend Patty James, co-author of More Vegetables, Please! (New Harbinger).Patty's enjoyable new book provides more than 100 easy and delicious recipes for eating healthy foods each and every day!Patty is currently traveling coast-to-coast in an RV. Why? It's a www.shinethelightonkids.org project "to ascertain the real world lives of American kids and their...

My scale and I are happy to report another great week of weight loss. A few minutes ago, my digital scale announced I had shrank to 218.8 which means I've dropped a full three pounds since last week AND a super 17.2 pounds since I started my Diet-to-Go Balance meal plan! I've got two words for you -- WOO HOO!I've said it before and I'll say it again: Diet-to-Go is the best diet I've ever followed. They plan the meals, they make the meals and they ship the meals right here to my home.All I have to do it...

Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. One in three adults has some form of heart/cardiovascular disease.What you may not know is many of these deaths and risk factors are preventable, or that food choices have a big impact on your heart health - even if you have other risk factors.The good news: You can take control of the problem by taking these five steps to lower your risk for heart disease.Step 1: Lower the saturated and trans fats in your diet.Saturated fats are found in some meats, dairy products, baked goods and deep-fried and...

Another week has flown by and here we are at the carnival again... the Diet-to-Go Diet Blog Carnival where we post some of the best blogs from around the web.The topics we love are those having to do with dieting, eating healthy and getting fit so be sure to submit your favorite blogs that fit these categories.You don't have to be the author to submit a blog. Your pick could be something you read -- something that inspired or educated you. If you've stumbled upon a great blog recently be sure to share it with the world here at the...

With a tip of the ski cap to the Winter Olympic Games, I'm awarding gold medals to a trio of exercises that can help you tighten and tone your butt.Before going into workout details, however, I need to dispel a few myths and misconceptions surrounding the topic.First, it's important to understand that you can't spot reduce body fat. There is no way to dictate what are of your body you lose fat from. Fat is burned globally from all areas of the body, and how this plays out is largely dictated by genetics.The bottom line: You can do butt exercises...