BOOK REVIEW: Cook's Companion

Stephanie Alexander's Cook's Companion is a must have cookbook for any budding chef. The hundreds of recipes this cookbook contains loads of information about cooking terminology, the best herbs and foods to serve together and also information about different types of food. The Cook's Companion is definitely that. Cook's Companion retails for about $130.

BOOK REVIEW: If not dieting, then what?

Dr Rick Kausman's book, If Not Dieting, Then What? is a book about empowerment. This book is a no-nonsense guide to weight management and focuses on changing your attitude to weight loss. If Not Dieting, Then What? shows you how to look at food in a more positive way. It will have you enjoying food, whilst fine-tuning the fat and not feeling guilty. This great weight management book will also have you feeling great about yourself.

If Not Dieting, Then What? can be purchased for $14.95 from all local books stores.

BOOK REVIEW: The No Diet Diet - Do Something Different

So many of us try fad diets in an attempt to lose weight. Most do lose weight, only to put it all (plus more) back on again. Then another new fad diet comes along and the same results happen and we're left weighing more than when we started the diet. If you're one of these yo-yo dieters, maybe you should consider that it’s time to do something different. You can start by purchasing the book The No Diet Diet - Do Something Different!

The authors of this great book, claim to have discovered the secret to losing weight, and it has nothing to do with what you put in your mouth. This book discusses the idea that people are overweight because they are imprisoned by their bad habits. The No Diet Diet shows you how to break your bad habits which you don't even know exist. Breaking these habits is the key losing weight effortlessly and without feeling hungry. The book is based on years of research and there's no diet for you to follow.

The No Diet Diet - Do Something Different can be purchased for $32.95.

BOOK REVIEW: Change Your Thinking

We all experience negative thoughts at some stage in our lives which can be difficult to manage, and can leave us feeling stressed and self-defeated. Sometimes we are aware that our negative thoughts contribute to the way we are felling but we don't know what to do about it.

The second edition of Sarah Edelman's Change Your Thinking is a practical guide to help you change your outlook on life and the different situations that arise in it. This book uses cognitive behavioural therapy to help you find a more positive way of dealing with negative thoughts and emotions. Change Your Thinking explains how it is within our ability to interrupt and challenge these patterns and change habitual responses. Learning to change your perception on things can give you a sense of self-control.

You can find Change Your Thinking in local bookstores for $32.95 rrp.

BOOK REVIEW: Total Home Workout

Here's another excellent book for those of you who want to workout at home. Total Home Workout, is also a great book for those gym-goers who want to take some different exercises to the gym with them. This book is full of coloured pictures outlining the huge variety of exercises that can be completed at home. The exercises are separate into muscle groups such as abs and back. There is also a detailed warm-up and cardiovascular exercises. Minimal exercise equipment is used throughout the book, making it practical fo any setting. Total Home Workout retails for $29.95.

BOOK REVIEW: Ball: Cardio, strength and core stability at home

If you can’t seem to find the time to get to the gym or don’t want to spend the money on a membership, then this book is perfect for you. Ball: cardio, strength and core stability at home, contains three complete home workout programs in one. This book is a compilation of 3 separate exercise books: Simply ball with pilates principles, Simply ball and band, and Simply ball and web. You can purchase the three books together or separately.

At the beginning of each book, practical matters such as benefits and breathing are covered. All programs clearly explains how to perform each exercise, with colour photos accompanying the explanations. There is also a glossary for any words you don't understand. To get started, all you need is:

• a fitball ball - an air filled rubber ball which is used to give a more challenging and effective workout
• a theraband - elastic strength band used in resistance exercises
• a web - a flexible cord system designed to fit Swissballs, and helps to strengthen the entire body

Now there's no excuse for not being able to exercise everyday.

BOOK REVIEW: Zest

Catherine Saxelby and Jennene Plummer have teamed up to bring you Zest – the cookbook that puts nutrition principles into practice. In fact Zest is the companion for Catherine Saxelby’s bestselling nutrition book, Nutrition for Life.

Containing more than 120 recipes, this cookbook is designed to give you vitality and good health. All the recipes incorporate a superfood such as oats or mango, whilst meal plans can help you to organise these recipes into your day. Presented in a magazine style format, Zest provides helpful hints for you to nourish your whole self. It even uses icons on recipes showing if they are low fat, high fibre, low GI, gluten free or low salt.

Zest retails for $35.00 (including GST) and can be found in any leading bookstores.

BOOK REVIEW: Dieting Causes Brain Damage: How to lose weight without losing your mind

Bradley Trevor Grieve’s Dieting Causes Brain Damage – how to lose weight without losing your mind, is comical and spot on. When Grieve himself tried to lose weight, he grabbed the diet books and started watching the health and fitness shows. From this he realised how extreme, stupid and potentially dangerous some diet books and television shows can be. So he thought he would put his own spin on how to lose weight without losing your mind.

Using animal photos, Grieve goes back to the basics of eating and exercising to highlight that you as an individual are in control of your weight. No extreme diet or miracle pill will give you the perfect body, but weight loss is as simple as keeping your mouth shut! This is the perfect gift book for anyone who would like to be in better shape and could use some smiles and laughs along the way. Buy it from your local book store today for $16.95.

BOOK REVIEW: The Truth About Food

Confused over what is fact or fiction about food? Well it’s time to find out the truth. Jill Fullerton-Smith’s The Truth About Food exposes the common myths about food and reveals the real science behind food, using the latest research. This book cleverly moves away from concept of pill popping to lose weight and gain slimness, and promotes foods that help to control appetite, fight ageing, boost happiness, improve memory or increase fertility. The book The Truth About Food accompanies the television series of the same name, with six chapters focusing on the six different series from the show. From reading this book you can learn “How to be healthy”, “How to be slim”, “How to feed the kids”, “How to be sexy", “How to be the best” and “How to stay young and beautiful”. This book is a must read for those of you who wonder about what the food you put in your mouth is doing to the rest of your body. Buy it from your local book store for $39.95.

BOOK REVIEW: Eat To Beat Cholesterol

Nicole Senior and Vernonica Cuskelly’s Eat to Beat Cholesterol is a positive, practical and accessible resource for people with high cholesterol, and is based on the latest evidence for optimal nutritional management of high cholesterol and Coronary Heart Disease. With other 100 delicious recipes, Eat to Beat Cholesterol provides inspiration and practical tips for enjoying heart healthy food. Professor of Nutrition and Dietetics, University of Newcastle, Sandra Capra says Eat to Beat Cholesterol “is not another diet or cook book....It incorporates the most recent evidence about fats and nutrients into this well set out book.” Eat to Beat Cholesterol retails for $29.95.