“What to eat? When to eat?” These are the all too familiar words that I often find myself muttering now-a-days when planning meals. Prior to my participation on “The Biggest Loser” I never planned meals, I ate whenever and whatever. I was baffled by my weight; “It wasn’t like I was spending all my time eating. Why was I overweight?”

When with my “skinny” friends most of our conversations revolved around food; “When are we going to eat? What are we going to eat? Where are we going to eat? Who is going to make it? How are they going to prepare it? What ingredients will it contain?” the questions were never ending. It was frustrating; my friends were the ones talking about food, practically obsessing, and I was the one gaining weight, almost as if I was paying the price for each of their food-filled conversations.

What I realize now is, that what I thought to be a strange food obsession was actually their way of planning out their meals, only they were doing it subconsciously. I, however, am not that fortunate. I have to make the very conscious decision of planning each of my meals and snacks. Initially this was hard and extremely time consuming, but in the end it has been well worth the effort. I have not only been able to maintain my weight, but more surprisingly find that I am looking forward to the meals I have planned. I have been able to remove the guilt I previously associated with the food I ate, because I now know that the meals I am eating not only taste good, but also are good for me.

Now when I get together with friends I am able to contribute to the food discussion and actually offer suggestions instead of sitting back and waiting for a decision to be made, so that we could go eat. “What to eat? When to eat?” are important questions to ask not just to lose weight and maintain weight loss, but most importantly to provide you piece of mind come mealtime.

Everywhere we look we’re barraged with images of Hollywood celebrities and their gorgeously toned bodies. We always hear about the latest diet and weight loss crazes to come out of Hollywood, and how these stars shed impressive weight in almost no time at all. We’ve got the skinny on the 15 most popular celebrity diets. While most of us can’t afford their trainers and personal chefs, you can find the truth behind these diets and if there’s one that will work for you. Some aren’t the healthiest, but others offer a smart approach to weight loss.

1. Weight Watchers
Even Hollywood can’t resistant this tried-and-true, super-flexible weight loss program. Jenny McCarthy and the former Duchess Sarah Ferguson both owe their leaner figures to the Points.


2. Atkins Diet
The original low-carb crusader took the likes of Renee Zellwegger, Kate Hudson and Calista Flockhart back to its dieting lair. Singing sensation Rihanna has been known to follow a low-carb diet.


3. 5 Factor Diet
Created by celeb trainer Harvey Pasternak to help schedule-crunched celebs eat properly while touring or on set, his mini-meal, mini-exercise approach has wooed Jessica Simpson, Katherine Heigl and Kanye West.


4. Eat Right 4 Your Type
It’s Dr. Peter D’Adamo has created a customized diet that is designed around each individual’s blood type. Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Lopez and Elizabeth Hurley have all taken the good doctor’s advice to heart… and waist.


5. Jenny Craig
With a counselor to lead the way and meals delivered to their homes, or rather mansions, Queen Latifah, Valerie Bertinelli, Kirstie Alley and even Joy Behar have lost considerable weight following Jenny’s plan.


6. Master Cleanse
It has a few names- Maple Syrup Diet or even Lemonade Diet, but one-name stars like Beyonce and Denzel have followed this week-long liquid diet in an effort to cleanse and detoxify their bodies, and also lose weight.


7. Vegan
“Just say no to animal products” is the anthem you’ll hear a host of stars like Pamela Anderson, Thom Yorke, Andre 3000, Alicia Silverstone, Natalie Portman, Heather Mills and Casey Affleck singing.


8. 3 Hour Diet
Trainer Jorge Cruise advises stars like Jessica Biel and Heidi Klum to eat every three hours throughout the day. These lucky ladies get to eat all day, nearly anything they want, have enviable figures and fall in love with two of music’s hottest guys.


9. Hollywood Cookie Diet
It might sound like a fairytale ending to a movie script, but Mandy Moore and American Idol’s Kelly Clarkson and Jennifer Hudson manage their weight with sweet little cookies. The cookies replace breakfast, lunch and mid-day snacks.


10. NutriSystem
A meal delivery diet that has been the saving grace of men and women like Dan Marino, Nick Carter and Larry the Cable Guy, as well as Marie Osmond. Just like these stars, there are critics on both sides of the line.


11. Baby Food Diet
Reese Witherspoon, Marcia Cross and Jennifer Aniston show that this diet is as easy as taking food from a baby. The small portions in a broad range of organic flavors easily help these ladies put their hunger down for a nap.


12. Vegetarian
Unlike their vegan friends, these stars just refrain from eating meat. Carrie Underwood, Prince, Tobey Maguire, Christina Applegate, Eddie Vedder and Paul McCartney can often be found cruising the grocer’s produce section.


13. The Lunch Box Diet
If you spot Cameron Diaz carrying a lunch pail, she hasn’t decided to go back to school. She’s just keeping plenty of fresh veggies, fruits, lean proteins, nuts and other healthy snacks close at-hand, to regulate blood sugar and lose weight.


14. The Zone Diet
Where can you find Sex and the City’s Kristen Davis, Cindy Crawford and even Demi Moore? In the zone, the diet zone that is. They’re watching their weight, and protecting themselves against chronic illnesses.


15. Macrobiotic Diet
If Madonna only had four minutes to save herself, hopefully her adherence to a holistic lifestyle and eating only whole, organic foods will be her best protection. While to most it will seem restrictive, the Material Girl finds it to be quite freeing.

The “core” consists of several different muscles that stabilize the spine and pelvis and run the entire length of the torso. These muscles stabilize the spine, pelvis, shoulder, and provide a solid foundation for movement in the extremities (arms and legs). The muscles that make up the “core” are Rectus Abdominis, Erector Spinae, Multifidus, Internal/External Obliques, Transverse Abdominis, Hip Flexors (which consist of several muscles as well), and the Glutes.

Training the muscles of the core corrects postural imbalances that can lead to injuries and the biggest benefit of core training is to develop functional fitness (fitness that is essential to both daily living and regular activities).

See more of Matt’s Fitness Tips, or email him your own questions.

Fight for healthier school lunches.

Ladies and gentleman, welcome to the very first DietsInReview.com Food Fight. You won’t get messy, but you will be a little more informed. Every two weeks (alternating with Food Finds), we’ll present a food match-up: two similar foods, both claiming to be the healthiest option, will go head-to-head in our nutritional ring to find out which prevails as the best. We’re looking at a three-round match: Nutrition Facts, Taste and Ingredients, Cost and Accessibility. So, let’s get started.

Our first Food Fight is between Fiber Gourmet Light Pasta (FG) and Barilla Plus (BP) pasta.

FIGHTER NOTES
Fiber Gourmet says it is “the world’s first ‘light’ or reduced-calorie pasta with 40% fewer calories. It has been engineered to taste like “regular” pasta, but offer more nutritional value.

Barilla Plus is a multigrain pasta, endorsed as part of the Bob Greene Bestlife diet. It offers a good source of protein and ALA Omega-3.

ROUND 1: Nutrition Facts
Serving size, printed on the package, based on 2oz. of uncooked pasta.
Calories: FG = 130, BP = 210
Fat: FG = 1g, BP = 2g
Sodium: FG = 120mg, BP = 25mg
Total Carbs: FG = 42g, BP = 38g
Dietary Fiber: FG = 20g, BP = 4g
WW Points: FG = 2, BP = 4

Fiber Gourmet seems to lead the round, based on having significantly less calories, more fiber and less fat than its competitor. The near 100mg more of sodium found in FG is definitely cause for concern. Barilla Plus does have calcium and more iron, where the FG does not.

ROUND 2: Taste and Ingredients
This is a tough round because each person’s personal preference will vary. I only eat whole grain pasta, and often the Barilla. I’ve grown accustomed to the taste. The Fiber Gourmet was definitely the right pasta for someone who enjoys that “traditional” starchy white pasta taste. It did seem a bit pasty to me, but firm and when blended with sauce was not too bad. The Barilla has a taste that does vary from the “traditional” pasta, but not so much that its a turn off. It’s not grainy and actually has a lot of flavor, it also cooks to a perfect al dente stage and tastes great no matter what it is in.

FG only comes in a fettucini-style noodle, but in flavors like whole wheat, classic, spinach and tomato. BP only comes in its regular multigrain pasta, but in six noodle styles.

As for ingredients, both have great lists that don’t call out any concerning items. Both have semolina, niacin, iron, riboflavin and folic acid. The FG has modified wheat starch and wheat gluten, while the BP has a grain and legume blend with lentils, chickpeas, egg whites, barley, flaxseed, oats and a few other items.

This round goes to Barilla Plus.

ROUND 3: Cost and Accessibility
Fiber Gourmet is available in 23 states in a variety of health food and chain grocery stores. Individual bags in store will vary, but cost about $3.00 for an 8oz. package. Their site lists each store in which you’ll find it. It’s also available for purchase online in bulk for prices ranging from $18.49 to $44.99.

Barilla Plus is sold in major and private grocery chains across the U.S. and the site lets you search availability by ZIP code. 14.5oz. packages sell for about $3.00 each. Online retailers like Amazon have it available in two-packs for $6.00.

This round goes to Barilla Plus.

POST-MATCH COMMENTARY
There is no doubt that Fiber Gourmet is a quality product- especially for those looking for a traditional white pasta flavor, with healthier nutritional value. However, due to taste, its wholesome ingredients and greater accessibility, we deem Barilla Plus the winner of the Food Fight: Pasta.