• Juice. Dilute it with water or add a few ice cubes (each cube generally holds an ounce) into flavored seltzer for a low-sugar treat. If you must serve juice, make it OJ -- at least you'll be boosting your little ones' folate, potassium, calcium, and vitamins A and E. And serve no more than four to six ounces of juice per day. Too much sugar and calories, so don't go overboard. There isn't anything your kiddos need in juice that they can't get from whole fruit.
• Pizza. Order pizza "easy on the cheese" and pick thin crust instead of thick (it will slash about 80 calories). Top slices with veggies, chicken or ham (better than pepperoni or sausage) and pass on extras, like stuffed crusts and breadsticks.
• Mac and Cheese. For boxed brands, use skim milk and reduce the margarine from four tablespoons to one (this will save 100 calories and 10 grams of fat per cup). When making your own, whip up a sauce of skim milk, margarine and flour and melt in shredded cheese. Boil whole wheat noodles for six grams of fiber per cup. Stir in broccoli bits and diced carrots.

For the skinny on bettering ice cream, cookies, chicken nuggets and French fries, take a stroll over here.

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Regretting that fatty meal or snack you just inhaled? I feel your pain. No worries, though -- just hop outside or on a treadmill and get walking.

A recent study suggests that taking a walk can counteract the negative effects fatty foods have on your arteries. Here's how: Eating high-fat foods breaks down the endothelium (the layer of cells responsible for preventing heart disease) in your arteries. But walking after you eat these foods helps your arteries recover. Amazingly, it helps them get stronger too. The experts at Family Circle magazine (November 29, 2008) recommend this walking workout for maximum benefits.

• Walk slowly for five minutes to warm up at an intensity level of two (about 2.5 mph on a treadmill).
• Walk briskly for 45 minutes at an intensity level of five (about 4 mph on a treadmill).
• Walk leisurely for five minutes to cool down at an intensity level of three (about 3 mph on a treadmill).

Think walking isn't enough to combat the effects of fatty foods? Try fighting the fat by slashing the worst of it from your diet.

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I've got hills -- seven of them in my neighborhood, and I often truck up and down each one for exercise. I've never given much thought to how exactly I move up and down my inclines but apparently, I should.

According to the Family Circle fitness folks, we shouldn't barrel up inclines as fast as possible. Instead, we should shorten our strides and focus on maintaining an easy and constant pace. On the way down, we should elongate our strides, while keeping core and leg muscles engaged. We'll gain energy this way, which will help propel us forward.

Good tips. I'm going to try them next time I hike up and down my hills. And you?

For guidance on how to approach a treadmill incline, read on here.

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Next time you find yourself salivating over that scrumptious-looking slice of pizza, think long and hard about the calories, the fat, the grease – and just imagine how long it will take you to burn off all that yuck.

The key to making good food choices may be focusing on the negative, say Boston College researchers. It seems scaring yourself away from something fattening can be more effective than thinking about something nutritious.

Time to practice: Turkey sandwich on whole wheat bread or bucket of fried chicken? Don't think about how healthy that sandwich is. Instead, think of how hard you'll need to work to remove the fried stuff from your hips, butt, and gut. Yep, that turkey sounds pretty good, now, doesn't it?

(via Family Circle magazine, October 2008)

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My new personal trainer guy -- he's only mine for one more session, because I can't afford him full-time -- told me he prefers to train his clients to strength train using three sets of repetitions. Someone else once told me to do one set with heavy weight and to strive for momentary muscle failure. Which way do I go?

Perhaps there's value in each approach. I don't know. What I do know is what fitness trainer Jim Karas, author of The Cardio-Free Diet, tells Family Circle magazine -- that it's important to use the right amount of resistance when strength training to build more muscle and burn more calories. "By the tenth repetition, you should be struggling to lift the weight," says this exercise guru.

What are your rules for lifting?

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