The Diet-to-Go Book Nook is back and today we're showcasing Nicki Anderson's Single-Step Weight Loss Solution (Healthy Learning).I've worked with Nicki for the past decade and have always valued her insightful advice and sane approach to losing weight and getting fit.So check out Mr. Bad Food's 10 questions for Nicki, then get yourself a copy of Single-Step Weight Loss Solution by clicking here.As you read Nicki's comments please keep in mind that Diet-to-Go is not your typical "diet" -- we are a meal company with food that meets the health guidelines set forth by major organizations like American Dietetic Association...

I gotta get me a good scale...I did my week two weigh-in this morning and was shocked and saddened to see the same number showing as last week... this, despite the fact I stuck to my guns this week and didn't cheat.I am officially blaming it on the cheap scale I bought at K-Mart. I guess I was pennies wise and pounds foolish!For those just checking in: I am down almost 11 pounds over the past two weeks... well, according to this scale anyway.This is why I hate scales. I awoke this morning feeling great... so slimmed down and so...

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has issued a warning about bogus diet pills. The warning concerns counterfeit versions of Alli, an over-the-counter weight loss product. The counterfeit products have been sold online.Read more about it here: http://www.kpho.com/health/22269318/detail.html...

A lot of companies say they care about their clients, but Diet-to-Go talks the talk and walks the walk. Last year, our motto became "It's more convenient than ever to be a customer!" and our small but energetic team pushed through a lot of great things.I asked our Vice President of Administration, Rachel Lynch, to select and comment on the top 5 things that Diet-to-Go did in 2009.Here are her choices:"We never rest on our laurels here at Diet-to-Go," says Rachel, who spends much of her day making sure our customer service is second to none."We're always looking for new...

You don't have to be a football fan to enjoy a super bowl... not when we're talking about a super bowl of hot steaming soup on a chilly winter's day!Soup can be a dieter's best friend. A bowl of vegetable-rich, nutrient-dense soup will fill you up without filling you out.To avoid extra sodium and other unnecessary ingredients, I urge you to take a few minutes to whip up your own homemade soups.In honor of National Soup Month, I turned to Diet-to-Go's registered nutritionist, Rebecca Mohning, for three great, easy to make soup recipes.Easy Vegetable Soup1.5 quarts of water2 quarts of...

Whenever my friend orders a drink or a glass of wine, he always jokes that it's "strictly for medicinal purposes" or "doctor's orders." After all, moderate alcohol consumption appears to have a number of well-publicized health benefits. Statistically, people who have a drink or so a day live a bit longer than teetotalers.Why? Mostly because moderate alcohol consumption is good for your heart. It reduces your risk of heart disease and stroke-presumably by thinning the blood and reducing inflammation. Although the cardiovascular benefits account for most of the impact on longevity, a bit of alcohol also seems to reduce the...

You are what you eat. Eat too much junk and chances are you'll have too much junk in your trunk. Eat good foods and odds are you'll have good health and a better body.Today's blog has the word "secret" in its title but there really isn't any secret to slimming. You have to eat right, keep your calories in check and watch portion sizes -- even when feasting on the so-called "healthy" foods. Oh, and it sure helps to mix in a little activity.Diet-to-Go registered dietitian Rebecca Mohning contributed the following to our January newsletter. If you haven't read it,...

If you heard an excited scream this morning, it was probably me... right after I stood on my new scale and saw that I had dropped a tremendous 10.8 pounds my first week on the Diet-to-Go Low-Fat Traditional meal plan!Yes... I said 10.8 POUNDS!My first mini-goal of my new diet is to drop 10% of my body weight. That equates to 23.6 pounds since I started at an unhealthy 236 pounds.Thanks to my great first week I am only 13 pounds away from that mini goal!I am traditionally a great starter when it comes to weight loss, but I wasn't...

I've been fooling myself for the past few years. I love basketball and I used to be fairly good at it. So when I was living in Massachusetts from 2008 until this past August I started playing pick up games with the neighborhood kids...Sure I was a little sore afterwards but I felt like a champ. The kids thought I was the second coming of Michael Jordan. And, you know what? I began to believe some of the hype.Oh, did I mention these kids were no older than sixth grade... and that the basket we played on was just 8...

It's January 11th -- how are your diet and exercise resolutions faring?My new diet is going very well, thank you. Sure I'd like to be more active. I have done some walking and I have run the basketball court with the team I coach.Okay so I really haven't done a lot in the way of fitness. I do know that has to change soon or my weight loss progress will plateau. And there's nothing more frustrating than a stuck scale needle!Fitness guru Brad Schoenfeld wants to help you and I get on track. The author of such popular books as...

I succeeded in finding a scale and performing my first weigh-in yesterday, which happened to be the first day of my brand new diet. I had feared my starting weight would sicken me. Happily, I was wrong.Although the digital readout said I weigh 236 pounds the number actually made me smile... and not because I stand 6-foot-8 and 236 is a good weight for me. I am only 5-foot-7.But I still managed to smile because 236 means I am several pounds LIGHTER than the last time I got motivated to lose some weight! I am traditionally the stereotypical yo-yo dieter...

I'm using my laptop to post today's blog because some jerk decided it was fun and/or profitable to slip a virus into a file or page I recently opened on my office PC. Whatever is running rampant throughout my PC has slowed it to a crawl, causing it to freeze up every so often.Worse than that... when I tried to log-in to AOL I got this stupid message that said I needed to input my credit card info (including the CV number and ATM pin #) to update my account and access my email.When I tried to contact AOL to...

Good news: My fresh cooler of Diet-to-Go food -- all the breakfasts, lunches and dinners I will need for the next seven days -- has just been delivered by Fed Ex.The bad news: My fat-addled brain is already spinning at the thought of cutting out the junk that has plumped me up and put me in need of a weight loss plan!Luckily, the food that I will start eating tomorrow is not only delicious but also extremely filling. And included in the package are apples, oranges, string cheese, yogurt drinks and other little extras that can easily be removed from...

Can the same fast-food company that nudged us into eating a late-night "fourth meal" and entertained us with a talking chihuahua really give us a Drive-Thru Diet plan that will help us drop a few pounds?Ay caramba... do you really have to ask?OK, so maybe Jared was able to lose some weight eating Subway's low-fat line of sandwiches, but Mr. Bad Food is finding it hard to swallow that "Christine" trimmed off 54 pounds by making repeated runs for the border.In case you haven't seen the ads, a gal named Christine claims she lost 54 pounds by eating the bulk...

The nationwide recall of 248,000 million pounds of beef by Oklahoma meat-packer National Steak and Poultry affects beef shipped to restaurants, hotels and institutions... NOT the beef you buy at the supermarket.As of Wednesday morning, 21 people in 16 states have been sicked by a potentially deadly E. coli bacteria linked to the tainted cuts of beef that range from steaks to sirloin tips.According to the Washington Post, the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Food Safety and Inspection Service had listed Moe's and Carino's Italian Grill as restaurant chains affected by the E. coli 0157:H7 bacteria. A number of independent eateries...

Mr. Bad Food feels a need to come clean this holiday season. Not only do I watch American Idol, but over the years I have used my home phone to cast votes for a select few contestants. The only eventual winner I voted for: Carrie Underwood who took top honors in Season 4.So why I am risking my Man's Club membership with such a confession? The truth is I was seeking a lead-in for today's blog on Carrie's fitness and diet secrets!The gorgeous queen of country music discusses all aspects of her life in the January issue of Self magazine,...

Do you hear what I hear? A paunch of politically correct individuals is waging a smear campaign against our beloved Titan of Toys, Santa Claus!The issue: Santa's jelly belly! Some folks who are bound to end up on the naughty list are claiming a fat Santa is not only a bad Santa but also a poor role model for our youth! "I'm pushing to reduce the size of Santa by 25 percent," said Ernest Berger, president of Santa America, a non-profit that arranges Santa visits for kids in tumultuous home situations.With an elfish twinkle in his eye, Berger told The...

Oprah's got her Book Club and Mr. Bad Food has his Book Nook.Consider this a place where you can get insights into hot-off-the-presses releases like this month's gem: Love Your Body, Love Your Life by body image expert Sarah Maria.While New Year's is often a time for hope, the bustling end-of-the-year holiday season can be a time when we are especially hard on ourselves.We feel fat or maybe we're depressed about our inability to stick with a diet. We get to a point where we don't even like to look into a mirror.Sarah Maria wants to end your negative body...

I don't know about you but whenever I see TV commercials that show active men and women looking all smiling and happy because they take vitamins or supplements... well, I start to feel bad about the fact that I do not choke down such things on a regular basis.I usually make a mental vow to start taking a daily vitamin. The new gummy ones for adults are especially attractive to a kid at heart like Mr. Bad Food.But after watching a recent Good Morning America report that basically says most people can get the vitamins and minerals they need from...

If you've been stocking up on Slim-Fast drinks in preparation for a New Year's diet, you need to know that Unilever is recalling some 10 million cans of its ready-to-drink products in the U.S. and Canada. The problem: The drinks may be contaminated with a bacteria that can make you sick.This past Thursday, a spokesman at Unilever's U.S. office said the recall is "due to the possibility of contamination with Bacillus cereus, a micro-organism, which may cause diarrhea and possibly nausea and/or vomiting." I don't know about you, but it's certainly not the way I want to lose weight! The...