Continued from TOPS Club.

Diet This is not a diet plan but a personal consultation. Based on your individual needs and weight-loss requirements, a registered dietitian (R.D.) can provide a nutritionally sound diet plan.

An R.D. possesses the minimum of a bachelor’s degree in nutrition, must complete an internship, and pass a national registration exam.

Philosophy An R.D. is trained to promote good nutrition, separate facts from fads, and translate the latest scientific findings into easy-to-understand nutritional information.

Components An R.D.-recommended meal plan takes into account your individual needs based on your height and weight, likes and dislikes, daily schedules, and health concerns. (more…)

Achieving a photo shoot-worthy physique is made substantially more attainable when your office is essentially a weight room.

M&F March 2006 cover model Jim Romagna, whose full-time gig is that of strength and conditioning coach at Loras College in Dubuque, Iowa, relies as much on training variety as he does proximity to a squat rack.

In fact, it was difficult for him to nail down a typical week in the gym, as he’s apt to try just about anything. Somehow, he managed to sum it all up, though. (more…)

Need a little inspiration to go to the gym? Check out Work Out on Bravo.

And if you are in the area, you may want to head over to Sky Sport & Spa, or better yet, see if you’re tuff enough to hang with the big boys and Jackie Warner at the Beach Boot Camp.

But this is not what this post is about.

Once reserved for elite athletes, and fancy gyms like Sky Sport & Spa, high-tech physiological testing is now available to help weekend warriors find out what they’ve got under the hood – and how to get a tune-up. (more…)

Continued from The Best Diet: Milk and Cheese Department.

Fats, Sweets, Alcohol, and Other Extras

Many of you probably wonder what place fats, sweets, alcoholic beverages, and other foods, such as refined but unenriched breads, pastries, and flour products, play in your diet.

Well, moderation should be the byword here. As a serious weight-watcher, you don’t need to eliminate these foods totally — just go easy. (more…)

What is policosanol? It’s a derivative of sugarcane wax that claims to “reduce LDL cholesterol as effectively as statin drugs.� It’s also found in beeswax.

Does policosanol reduce cholesterol? A recent 12-week double-blind clinical trial of 143 people with high cholesterol found no change in LDL, total, or HDL cholesterol, compared with a dummy pill.

Almost all research showing positive effects was done by a single group of researchers from Cuba. (more…)

I’m not sure why so much attention is being devoted to Carrie Underwood’s weight, but many magazines are going crazy over Carrie Underwood’s weight loss. Personally, I think she looks awesome and healthy. Here’s what they report:

Star: Carrie Underwood Drops 27 Pounds!

When 2005 American Idol Carrie Underwood, 24, returned to the show on March 8, fans noticed there was less of the country crooner. A vocal vegetarian, Carrie credits her diet for helping her slim down from a size six to a two.

“My meals usually consist of veggie burgers or veggie hotdogs,” the singer says. While we think she looks great, not everyone agrees.

“She looks 10 to 15 pounds lighter than a girl her height should be,” weight-loss specialist Dr. Stanley Title tells Star. “But she’s fine unless she’s depriving her body of nutrients.”

In Touch: Carrie Underwood Is So Thin.

She’s 30 pounds slimmer than when she was on Idol. Will she stop now? (more…)