Photo: Allison Fishman

As we head into the holiday season chef Allison Fishman, owner of The Wooden Spoon, a cooking school in New York, shares the best ways to prepare your favorite holiday meals and desserts without adding to your waistline and without scrimping on taste.

First and foremost, "Prepare your favorites. It's not the time to skimp," Fishman explained. If you don't, she added, "As my dad would say, you're going to be sitting there with a 'broygis punim,' [that's sad face in Yiddish]. This is family, this is Thanksgiving. Let loose and enjoy." But there is room for a little diet-friendly compromise. "If pumpkin pie's your favorite thing in the world, I'm not going to tell you not to have it, but you could make crustless pumpkin pie. [The crust] contains a tremendous amount of calories, fat -- leave it off. The only food that should go into your mouth is food you absolutely love."

That's Fit: How do you go about changing your cooking style for health considerations?

Allison Fishman: I grew up with mashed potatoes that were made with a container of sour cream. Now I make mine with buttermilk. Buttermilk is naturally fat-free. I think they're a little bit gross and heavy now that I've got the other version.

Photo: Michelle May, M.D.

The trademarks of yo-yo dieting -- overeating, followed by deprivation in guilty repentance -- may seem like something a doctor would have the self-control and training to be above, but Michelle May, M.D., former yo-yo dieter and author of the new book "Eat What You Love, Love What You Eat," explains that "health care professionals are people too," and that the restrictions of diets -- not the dieters -- are to blame for failed weight-loss plans.

The reason? In her book, she explains that the very basics of dieting -- the counting, planning and constant need to think and plan your eating based off of someone else's rules (often "before you're even out of bed!") is tiring. So much so, that any good aspect of the diet is essentially canceled out by the end result: "This constant effort and vigilance may wear you out and cause you to return to overeating to escape." Once Dr. May ditched diets, and adopted long-term successful strategies she describes below, the weight came off.

That's Fit: What do you think was most effective in helping you achieve a healthy weight?

Dr. Michelle May: I had to pay attention not just to what and how much I was eating, but why I was eating in the first place. I didn't have any deep, dark emotional issues, but I had certainly learned to comfort and entertain myself with food. Even when I was on a diet and following the rules about what to eat, I was still eating when I was bored, stressed or tired. When I felt too deprived of the foods I loved, I'd go off my diet. Nothing had fundamentally changed about my relationship with food so I just went back to overeating my favorites. This is what I called my eat-repent-repeat cycle.

I've since worked with thousands of people who are doing exactly the same thing, and the reason is that with yo-yo [dieting you don't] have any middle ground -- you are either on your diet or off. I kicked yo-yo dieting by changing the paradigm completely from a yo-yo to a pendulum. There is still the possibility of extremes but as you give overeating and dieting less of your energy, the pendulum settles into a smaller arc in the middle where you have the flexibility and the mindfulness to nourish your mind, body, heart and soul.

Photo: Barnes and Noble

We've been "Ewwing" and "Ahhing" over the outrageously obese eats at This Is Why You're Fat nearly all year (the book cover above will give you a good idea what kind of foods they feature if you've never visited the site), so it was only a matter of time before we asked the brains behind the Website, Jessica Amason, what inspired her to create it.

"I'm always on the Web, so I'm attuned to the new trends," says Amason, editor for BuzzFeed.com and former blogger for AOL's Urlesque.com. "And of course I'd noticed there were sites like Serious Eats and Pimp That Snack that were popping up everywhere. And so it made sense that there should be a one-stop shop kind of site." That's Fit also talked to Amason about her exercise regimen ("I go to a gym and I try to eat pretty healthy, but my motto has always been everything in moderation"), and if her eating habits have changed ("I was an athlete growing up, so I've always been a fairly healthy eater, but I have become very knowledgeable about the crazy fatty foods that are out there.") Read on for her favorite foods from the blog, and if she thinks these meals are really why you're fat.

That's Fit: What's your favorite guilty pleasure?

Jessica Amason: My weakness is baked goods, that's a pretty tough one from me. From the site, though, I think that my favorite is probably either the pizza burger, or the snack stadium. Just because there's real commitment there, those guys know how to go big. Because I know it's my weakness, I try not to indulge all that often, but with the holidays coming up I'm sure I'm gonna go a little crazy and then have to crack down once I get back.

Victoria Pearson

Alicia Silverstone's got a thing for animals. She tried going vegetarian for the first time at age 8, subsisting on a month-long diet of ice cream and eggs. It was touch and go, however, she "stopped and started a lot or 'forgot,'" she explains in her new book "The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight and Saving the Planet" which is part weight-loss advice, part holistic living wisdom. Not being able to rescue all of the world's abandoned or endangered animals (once she adopted 11 dogs who were slated to be euthanized the next day) and learning more about the meat industry helped her become a committed vegetarian as an adult. Even so, she "doesn't expect that to move everyone. What would move me now as a 33-year-old woman," Silverstone says, "is if someone said, 'Hey, do you want to look your best, or feel your best?' Your skin is going to be amazing when you eat well. There's a grayness when people eat a lot of unhealthy foods, specifically meat."

Since going veg 11 years ago, Silverstone says she's experienced "amazing, amazing" results, while still indulging in her favorites like dairy-free chocolate peanut butter cups and a waffle, sausage and cheese panini, which she "loves." She also never feels deprived, unlike her past diet attempts, including Weight Watchers. "What those diets offer you is weight-loss period," she says. "And yeah, weight loss is good. But you're not learning how to eat, you're learning how to eat less. I haven't had to think about calories in 11 years. That's what I want to offer people -- a plan that is going to nourish your soul and make you healthy on all levels."

Silverstone's plan includes three levels of commitment: "Flirting" (going meatless and dairy-free when you can), veganism and becoming a "superhero" (based on the macrobiotic diet, it focuses on eating locally grown, seasonal foods, which she's been doing for six years). Making these changes in eating, Silverstone says, has anecdotally helped people with everything from diabetes and losing weight, to acne and even her friend's "poo" problem.

That's Fit: What do you do when you crave non-vegan foods?

Alicia Silverstone.: Well, I never crave non-vegan foods, because vegan foods are so delicious. When I'm out and there are no vegetarian foods available, then I just make the best choices I can. Sometimes, it's to eat nothing at all, or I'll have the least offensive thing. Maybe there's a salad with goat cheese, or potato salad with a little mayo. That's what it's about -- making the best choices under all circumstances.

Amazon.com

Her new book, "The Scientific American Day in the Life of Your Brain," tracks what's happening in your brain during the average day -- the best food to fuel you through your waking hours (she recommends complex carbohydrates and lean protein; "be wary of fad diets that focus on one food type or group. These can wreak havoc by upsetting your body and brain balance"), when the peak time for exercise is ("Some research shows body temperature may peak around late afternoon or early evening, so that might be the best time to work out" but we are individuals so we'd "do best to keep a kind of daily energy diary" to see when we're at our personal best) and more in the interview below.

That's Fit: How does self-control suck your energy?

Judith Horstman: Like most activities, self-control takes energy, and that requires fuel. And yes, not doing something is an activity. A part of your brain -- usually the reasoning thinking part -- has to expend energy to not react to stimulus such as a luscious piece of calorie-laden pie. As one researcher says in the book, willpower is more than a metaphor: It's an expensive metabolic activity. That seems doubly unfair, doesn't it? You need to take in fuel (eat) to control your urge to eat.

Travis Lindquist, Getty Images

Golf.com named her one of the sexist ladies out on the green. Time.com likened her golfing activities (with Play Golf Designs, which pairs up professional female golfers like Rawson with a corporate golfing event or bachelor party, for a fee) outside the Ladies Professional Golf Association (LGPA) to an escort service. And Fanhouse.com says she could save the LGPA. With that kind of resume -- not to mention the modeling career -- we had to ask her how she feels about being known as the model golfer ("I feel that athletes who have unique stories help shed light on their sport") and what she does to stay fit outside the green ("I focus on my core, back, shoulders and glutes" and " drink lots of water"). Plus, hear what she has to say about her Play Gold Designs gig, why women are poised to become the forefront of the golf scene and what advice she has for beginners.

That's Fit: Throughout your years playing golf -- both as an amateur and as a professional athlete -- have you felt like you're playing a game that is still largely a "man's" game?‬‪‬‬‪

Anna Rawson: I believe golf is becoming much more popular among young people and especially women. Many women are becoming intrigued by a game that monopolizes so much of their boyfriends' or husbands' time. They tell me every day that they are curious why golf has this power over people, and they seem anxious to get involved. Tiger Woods revolutionized the sport, making it much more popular among people of all ages and socioeconomic classes. I do think that Tiger inspired many men and has helped inspire golf through a tremendous growth period. The way I see the game is that it has reached a steady growth rate now. I think men's golf is getting close to its saturation point. This creates an incredible opportunity for women golfers. The women's golf market is waiting to explode. Women's golf is waiting for someone to revolutionize it like Tiger did in men's golf, except a woman would have to do it quite differently. The woman would not only have to be good at her sport but also relate to women as a personality or even a role model.‬ I am not sure that golf really needs to change. Old school attitudes, strict dress code and respect for the sport keep golf classy. I think it is up to the people who play the game to mold it a bit differently.

WNBA

M.V.P. ('08). Rookie of the Year ('08). Fit mama back on the court ('09). Twenty-three-year-old basketball champ Candace Parker's resume is beyond impressive, so when we got the chance to interview her, we had plenty of questions we wanted answered, but since this is a three-questions-only post, we'll sneak some of the extra tidbits we learned up here in the intro. How she slimmed down post-pregnancy? She watched what she ate, "not necessarily cutting back ... but eating healthier things. I would snack on fruit instead of cookies." Her favorite (non-basketball) way to get active? "I love to go out in the yard and throw the football around."

That's Fit: It's hard enough for most career women to take time off to start a family, how did you deal with the added pressure of needing to really take care of your body so you could get back to playing professionally?

Candace Parker: I was really focused during my entire pregnancy on eating right, exercising and just taking care of my body. Being active during my pregnancy and having a solid foundation really helped me when I wanted to come back. I rode the elliptical a lot. I still shot baskets. I went on walks with my dogs a lot. I just stayed active.

Timothy Norris, Getty Images

It's been a busy week for Bob -- what with the start of the newest season of "The Biggest Loser" and his teaming up with Dr. Oz to help launch the "Highway to Health Bus," (a challenge to Americans to add 10 years to your life in 60 days) -- but he managed to find time to chat with That's Fit about the latest season of the show, his favorite foods and a chance to win a personal training session with our favorite (male) trainer from "The Biggest Loser."

That's Fit: This season is about second chances and a previous contestant is returning. What advice to you have for people who have lost weight in the past only to gain it back?

Bob Harper: I try to tell people not to be so discouraged when you get yourself in that situation. I've worked with so many people who have lost hundreds of pounds and then put it back on and what I try to get people to focus on is why they need to lose weight in the first place and to get healthy the goal should be to learn better habits and have new tools while you're losing the weight so whenever you have reached your "goal" you have a new lifestyle. So many people are thinking, "Once I lose the weight I can go back to the way it used to be," and that's just not the case.

Amazon.com

We've long known that self-defense is a good backup skill to have, but when we wanted to know how good of a workout it really is, we went to Tayah Kansik for the details. She told us who should try it (Kansik says anyone can learn it, as long as its in a contained environment, and starting at a young age is ideal), what kind of workout you can get from a DVD (her advice: a "DVD is a great place to start, and is a confidence builder" but it is better to be in a class environment to get more interaction and be able to learn a constant variety of moves and training tips) and more below.

That's Fit: Why do you think self defense makes for a great workout?

Tayah Kansik: From an early age I have competed in most sports from dancing to athletics. I was always fascinated by fighting scenes in films so I decided to take up Thai Boxing. The benefits of martial arts have conditioned me to be disciplined in mind and body. The workout is as hard as the individual wants to make it. The more you put in the more you get out! Many other classes that are taught may only concentrate on separate training, i.e., cardiovascular, endurance, muscular strength, toning, core stability, technique and/or agility. Self defense hits all these areas. Good technique, fitness, strength and speed come with practice and patience.

Photo: Christine Gaugler/Diane Meacham

Putting a new twist on sound weight-loss advice, UK-based fashion and beauty journalist Mimi Spencer's new book, "101 Things to Do Before You Diet," introduces new ways to think about body image and achieving the look you want. Some is fashion-based wisdom, such as the "10-pounds lighter print," which Spencer says, "will carve off weight simply by tricking the eye." Some is research-based, such as the one tip she'd pick of the 101, which is to advise women who "give a great deal of thought to the number of calories in a sandwich, but have little idea about how their body demands, absorbs and utilizes those calories" to understand their hormones and learn to maximize their weight-loss potential.

That's Fit: How much of your personal experience was the inspiration for "101 Things to Do Before You Diet"?

Mimi Spencer: So much! After I had my kids, I ended up with the kind of body I didn't really love anymore -- a softer belly, heavier thighs -- and a bathroom scale that could make me weep. I tried all kinds of diet fads (I remember the maple syrup diet was big at the time, but I also tried to combine diets, drink cabbage soup, and of course, do Atkins and GI like everyone else). But not a lot changed. I was the same size and doubly unhappy.

So I started to think about all of the things that affect weight -- not just calories-in (though those are important), but also things like psychology, hormones, sleep patterns and habits. I also knew from my years in fashion journalism that there are hundreds of ways to appear slimmer, simply by knowing the tricks of how to dress thin. What it came to was a 360-degree view of a woman and her life, not just a narrow "don't eat!" message.

Photo: Courtesy of Frank Bruni

Amidst a childhood of overeating -- we're talking tantrum-throwing if he didn't get that third burger he wanted -- Frank Bruni, 44, went on his first diet at age 8, beginning a what would become a decades-long struggle of weight-loss and weight gain. "I was born with just an enormous appetite, clearly," says Bruni. "Going on the Atkins Diet at 8, that was a measure of how self-conscious I'd become about my weight, just how much teasing I'd been exposed to and just how intensely eager I was, even at that young age, to do something about it. And so I kind of stepped on that whole binge-purge cycle at an early age."

After reaching his largest size -- upwards of 270 pounds (Bruni, then as now, didn't measure his size by the scales) and a 42-inch waist -- a breakdown helped him confront his compulsive eating habits. A new job with hours he could control allowed him to stress less and exercise more. Bruni, who now wears a size 34, says he's content with the way he's managing his eating. Instead of bingeing three to four nights a week like he did in the past, Bruni has an episode once every three or four weeks, at most.

In an interview with That's Fit, he shares how he quit the yo-yo dieting cycle, what his fitness routine entails and how others can begin to address their issues with food.

That's Fit: How did you break your pattern of yo-yo dieting?

Frank Bruni: A couple of things happened. I hit rock bottom in terms of I just so hated the way I looked and I felt so disgusted by it, there was a certain point where I was like, "I just can't put up with this anymore. It just makes me too sad and ashamed." At that time, I had just changed jobs, so I had less stress because I had more control over my hours. I was able to commit to 90 minutes to two hours of exercise every day -- and that's what I would do. I mean hard exercise. After that, when I was in more of a weight-maintenance mode, I happened to reassigned to Italy and the natural portion control and the emphasis on food quality over quantity that you find in Italy was like the perfect recipe to help me maintain the weight loss.

Photo: Courtesy of Hachette Book Group, Inc.

You may have heard of Zumba -- a.k.a. the Latin dance-exercise craze that's taking over a fitness center near you, or perhaps your very own DVD player. Now there's a new component (available in stores September 10, 2009) -- a book with workouts, diet plans, menus and recipes, along with an instructional DVD, plus a "5-Day Express Diet." Beto Perez, Zumba founder and celeb fitness guru, says that even his dance exercise routine needs the other key component to weight loss, watching what you eat, as "the symbiotic relationship between diet and exercise is the secret to weight loss success." Below, Perez and co-author Maggie Greenwood-Robinson, explain how fitness newbies and know-it-alls alike can benefit from Zumba and if losing nine pounds in five days, like the express diet claims, is really safe.

That's Fit: What separates Zumba classes and workouts from other routines?

Beto Perez: One word -- fun. Most people who begin taking Zumba used to hate exercising. Because they enjoy and look forward to their Zumba classes, it makes it much easier to stick with it. There is also a lot of variety involved in Zumba because of all the different dance styles used from merengue and salsa, to rumba and reggaeton.

Photo: Mitch Haaseth

With a personal history of weight issues, and a brother who died as a result of undiagnosed diabetes, Mara Hall, 32, saw dancing as a way to get her own diabetes and weight in check. Weighing in at over 290 pounds, she began taking dance classes. By the time she tried out for "Dance Your Ass Off," she'd dropped down to 261. During her last performance on the show, which ended this week, she had dropped an additional 26 pounds. In an interview with That's Fit, she gives the inside scoop on how the show helps its participants achieve weight-loss success and what her fitness goals are for the future.

That's Fit: You struggled with weight issues all your life, and when your brother's diabetes-related death was followed by your diagnosis, you knew you needed to achieve a healthier weight. Why did you choose to try out for "Dance Your Ass Off"?

Mara Hall: I was in denial [for a long time]. Diabetes is a silent killer. It's not like other disease where you automatically get sick. You don't really know the magnitude of the disease until it hits you. I didn't exercise. I didn't lose weight. I continued to overeat. Even after my brother died, I didn't think that it couldn't happen to me. But I grew up and matured and I said, "Look, Mara, you really have to get this under control and you have to get this together, because if you don't, you're not going to make it to the age of 40." So I started working out. As an adult with early onset diabetes, I began taking dance classes in 2003. I thought it was a great way to lose weight. And "Dance Your Ass Off" [appeared in my life] right on time.

Initially, I thought that "Dance Your Ass Off" was just a dance show. I love dancing. I've been dancing -- tap, jazz, all kinds of dance -- ever since I was a little girl in Detroit, MI. Once I did some research, I found out that it was a weight-loss show as well. I thought, How great is that to be able to do what I love and lose weight as well?

Photo: Michael Fusco

Why calorie restriction? Brian M. Delaney, co-author of "The Longevity Diet" and president of the Calorie Restriction Society says, "the evidence in virtually every species studied indicates that calorie restriction slows the aging process, and extends 'youth span.' Studies in humans that actually measure mortality may never be done, since they would take over a century to complete, but shorter-term studies in humans indicate that 'biomarkers' of age and rate of aging shift in the same way they do in the calorie-restricted animals." An added bonus? He says he feels better, all his health markers have "moved dramatically in positive directions" and "generally, I feel much better now than before I started calorie restriction." In an interview with That's Fit, he describes an average day of eating, what he does in social settings and what he does to avoid pigging out.

That's Fit: What is a typical day's worth of meals and number of calories for you?

Brian M. Delaney: I eat a hearty breakfast -- usually a large bowl of whole grain cereal with non-fat yogurt and soymilk (or some other, less fatty "legume milk" of my own making, using for example navy beans), [served with] lots of blueberries and usually some other fruit.

I skip lunch, mainly because it saves time! But I also skip lunch because I love eating a large breakfast ("Breakfast like a king..."), and, for social reasons, often need to eat a normal-sized dinner, so I can't be on calorie restriction unless I skip lunch.

Dinners are usually a very large salad with lots of colorful vegetables, some kind of thick lentil or other legume soup (pinto beans, navy beans, etc.). I usually eat a bit of dark chocolate for desert, and often drink red wine.

I follow a vegetarian diet at home; when I'm invited out, I gladly eat what I'm served!

At the moment my daily caloric intake is around 2,000. (I could go lower, but I don't want to be that scrawny, for reasons of pure vanity.) [Reporter's Note: According to USDA recommendations, a moderately active adult male should consume, 2,200 to 2,800 calories; Delaney says he's active, so he may even fall in the 2,400 to 3,000 calorie range.]