The battle against the bulge isn't an easy one. Most people these days are trying to eat healthier but it's tough to keep up with the onslaught of diet-related information and to stay motivated to choose nutritious foods. So here's a tip. Listen your way to a better diet.
There are some excellent audio books available on the subject of nutrition. Try popping one of these into your car stereo or listening to them while you're in the kitchen making dinner. It's a great way to learn more about the impact of food on your body. It can also help you to discover new foods and recipes that you might not have been familiar with. And it's a great way to stay accountable to a healthier diet. Just try preparing a greasy hamburger while listening to an audio book discussing the health risks of saturated fats!
A great audio book to start with is The South Beach Diet by Arthur Agatson. The South Beach Diet isn't as extreme as some other diets so it's a great way to transition into a healthier way of eating. You'll still be able to eat a lot of the foods you enjoy but if you're like many others you'll find that the foods that you limit (e.g., refined carbs) will help you to shed pounds quickly.
Another great source of information is the audio books from Dr. Andrew Weil. Weil has written dozens of books on health and many of them are available on audio. I find his dietary recommendations very sensible and enjoy that he views food a source of pleasure (something many diet book writers surprisingly fail to consider). A few recommended Weil titles on audio are Eating Well for Optimum Health, The Healthy Kitchen (with Rosie Daley) and Taking Care of Yourself.
If you're ready to step it up to a notch, you might want to give a listen to Tony Robbins' Living Health course. While Tony's dietary recommendations aren't the easiest to follow, the alkalinity theory of nutrition that he espouses might well be a breakthrough in the nutrition world. And you certainly can't argue with Tony's energy. The guy is a live wire!
A few other audio books that you might to pick up include Diet for a New America by John Robbins (no relation to Tony), Eat to Beat Cancer by J. Robert Hatherill and Ultraprevention by Mark Hyman and Mark Liponis (the co-directors of medicine at the Canyon Ranch spa). There are also some interesting nutrition-related podcasts out there such as Tracy Jorg's Vegan Cooking School podcast. And don't forget about about Eric Schlosser's best-selling audio book Fast Food Nation. If you're looking for some reasons to never eat fast food again you'll find them there.
Immerse yourself in a few of these titles and see how your diet changes. Once you discover an enjoyable way to eat better don't be surprised if you never go back to your old ways.
About the Author
Jon Bischke is the Founder of LearnOutLoud.com and is passionate about helping you improve your life. He invites you to check out the complete selection of educational and self-development audio and video material at http://www.learnoutloud.com For the HTML version of this article complete with links to the titles that were mentioned, please visit http://www.learnoutloud.com/diet01