Turns out you might not be fat, just bloated. And since getting rid of the bloat could be a whole lot easier than shedding pounds, the four tips that follow might be all you need to feel slim and trim.

Bloating is usually caused by either a buildup of gas or fluid retention, say the "Body Talk" folks at Ladies Home Journal. Both can make your belly feel heavy and distended, and we all know that zipping jeans over a poochy tummy is a real downer. Help is here -- LHJ offers these ideas for blasting the bloat.

• Fiber. If you have a bowel movement less than three times per week, your digestion might be on the sluggish side, and your gut may be growing as a result. A high-fiber diet can help -- get 25 grams per day if you're under 50 and 21 grams after that. Increase your fiber by three to five grams per week (one apple, one cup of oatmeal) -- any faster and you might make the bloating worse.
  
• Gassy Foods. Fried and fatty foods, and some high-fiber goods, like beans, broccoli and cabbage, can boost your bloat. Try avoiding some of these items for a few days and see if your mid-section melts away. You don't want to eliminate veggies, though, so just cut back and try to find some options that don't bother you. You can also try Beano drops or tablets before eating your favorite foods. Anti-gas medications can help too.
• Gulping Air. When you chew gum, drink through a straw, down sodas and smoke, you swallow air, and this can put carbon dioxide into your digestive tract. You don't want that, so stop smoking, cut back on the gum and straws and eat and drink slowly to reduce air intake.
  
• Hormones. Progesterone surges prior to your periods, and water retention and slower digestion follow. Avoid salty foods and alcohol consumption prior to your period, and up your exercise to stimulate your system.

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If you missed our daily postings this past week, we invite you to take some time to catch up on our prior week's news and gear up for a new week of healthy living information and inspiration.

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Trying to squeeze into a slinky black dress for that holiday party? Fitz tells you how to banish the bloat from your belly for the big night.

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A lifetime of crash dieting may (may) leave you thin, but happy? Not so much. Valerie Frankel speaks out about the 150 diet plans she's tried over the years.

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Don't wait until 2009 to make your New Year's resolutions. Bev has 13 things you can do right now for a fitter 2009.

He's not only President-elect, he's also a great role model for good nutrition. Find out how Barack Obama eats.

Have a great week everyone!

'Tis the season for bloating. Starting with the onslaught of Halloween candy and ending -- hopefully -- with a New Year's celebration, many of us are about to eat, drink, party, indulge, and ditch our dutiful exercise routines. We'll be stuffed, stretched, filled to the brim, and -- yuck! -- bloated. I hate that.

On any given day, women are especially vulnerable to bloating, because gastrointestinal ills occur up to six times more often in women than in men, say the experts at Redbook magazine. Give us girls some holiday cheer, and the tummy troubles really ramp up. We can minimize the stress on our systems, though, by understanding why we bloat and how we can prevent those bothersome bulges. Check out these three thoughts.

• Holiday over-do in progress. Raise your hand if you over-do it at holiday meals. Many of us do, with hard-to-digest, rich, fatty foods -- gravy, stuffing, pie with whipped cream, even peppermint -- which cause indigestion. Redbook says you should ease your symptoms with an antacid such as Pepto-Bismol, Maalox, Tums, or Rolaids. I say head this stomach stuff off by avoiding the over-do. If you simply must indulge, make it small -- think you can succeed at the three-bite rule? Also, keep your body upright for a few hours after a feast, instead of curling up for a nap.
• More eggnog and hot cocoa, please. If your belly aches and bulges after these treats, it's probably because you can't tolerate lactose, the main sugar in dairy products. The trick for a settled stomach is to find your own lactose limit and respect it. You can also opt for lactose-reduced milk.
• Belly up to the bar. Besides the overload of calories you'll consume by knocking back too many cocktails this season, you'll likely be left with a bad hangover after an alcoholic indulgence. And maybe a scary condition called acute pancreatitis, caused by an excess of alcohol. One symptom is bloating -- others include pain in the upper abdomen that worsens and wraps around your back. See a doctor right away if this occurs. A better option than alcohol -- since we women don't tolerate alcohol as well as men -- is sparkling water. It's better for the diet overall.
  

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Paunch, Buddha belly, spare tire, food baby -- whatever you call it, you're sick of the excess belly bloat you're carrying around. Dieting is one way to get rid of it, but what if you need results fast? The experts over at Prevention magazine put together a four-day jumpstart plan for reducing belly bloat, and they claim that if you follow it, you could lose up to seven lbs!

Here are some tips to follow over the four days:

• Avoid salt, meaning don't add any to your food and don't eat really salty foods either
• Avoid excess carbs, especially white breads and pastas
• Avoid gassy foods, like peppers, legumes, broccoli and citrus foods
• Avoid gum. Strange but true -- instead of helping you lose weight, it causes bloating because you're swallowing air.
• Cook your veggies. You get just as many nutrients in a smaller amount of cooked veggies than you do in a large amount of raw veggies, taking up less room in your GI tract.
  

For more info, check out the Flat Belly Diet on Prevention.

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Water weight is an amazing phenomenon. Step on the scale just before you go to bed, and you might find that you've gained one, two, even five mystery pounds since morning.

Our bodies need water, but certain lifestyle habits can make us retain more than we need. Lack of exercise, too much salt, too much sugar, poor nutrition -- these things can lead to bloating and unnecessary water weight. AOL Body has 11 tips for losing the water weight in a safe and healthy manner, including:

• Cut out processed foods, which often have far more salt than you need.
• Eat a minimum of 1200 calories a day. Under eating can make you retain water as well.
• Avoid sugary snacks.
• Exercise several times a week to help your lymphatic system work more efficiently.
• Drink plenty of water.

Click on the full article for more tips, and remember -- it's not too late to join the Summer Quick Fix Challenge!

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Got a sensitive digestive system? I sometimes do. Mostly, my trouble comes in the form bloating and I never really know exactly why it happens. I've stumbled upon a few possible reasons, though. Here they are.

Maybe I'm not eating enough fiber. The recommended intake for adults is 25 to 35 grams a day but the average American gets only half of that. Slowly adding fiber to my diet and keeping my intake consistently high should minimize bloating, and cramping too.

Perhaps I'm lactose intolerant, which tends to happen at midlife. I'm 37. Antibiotics could be the culprit -- except that I'm not taking any at this time and haven't for a while now. Maybe I need a probiotic to replenish bacteria in my tummy. It could also be water -- I know I need more of this staple in my diet.

In order to pinpoint my exact problem, I'd be wise to keep a diet and symptom diary -- I'm already toying with a food journal for calorie counting purposes so I suppose I could blend the two -- to help me detect exactly when my problems arise. I might see some connections between bloating and eating this way.

Is bloating a bother for you? If so, what ever do you do?

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Does it ever seem like no matter how consistent or good you are on your diet the scale seems to go up and down, by just a few pounds, on an unpredictable basis like it has a mind of its own? You're not alone -- women the world over experience this same frustrating phenomenon. It can be due to any number of reasons, from hormones to something you ate the day before. According to Women's Health here are a few of the most common causes:

• You just drank a big glass of water. You can gain up to a pound instantly just by drinking 16oz of any fluid.
• You're constipated. Believe it or not as much as 2 pounds can be caused by this alone.
• You had an extra salty dinner last night (Chinese anyone?). Your body can retain as much as 2 or 3 pounds overnight trying to dilute all the sodium.
• You're on a vacation overseas. Taking a flight of more than 4 hours can cause your body to retain water due to the changes in air pressure.
• You're expecting your period. Hormonal fluctuations in the days right before your period can cause weight gain and bloating (I think we all knew about that one already).

Any others that you've noticed?

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Ladies, of course you can choose to see the negatives and focus on PMS and bloating or whatever, but when your period rolls around every month why not focus on the positives instead? And the rest of the month, as things are happening and changing in your body, why not use all that to your advantage also? Although hormone fluctuations generally have a bad reputation, they can have benefits if you understand them. For example, in days 1-10 of your cycle (1 being the first day of your period) it'll be easier to quit smoking, days 11-14 are the best times to schedule a routine OB appt or to make a large corporate presentation, and days 15-28 are the most conducive to burning and losing belly fat.

Who knew? Mark your calendars!

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Have an event to go to in the next few days and want to lose some extra weight quickly? Celebrity trainer Jillian Michaels has this quick tip: Take 16 oz of distilled water, and add:

• 1 tablespoon of sugar-free cranberry juice
• 2 tablespoons of lemon juice
• 1 dandelion root tea bag

Chug this mixture, and do so every day for a week. Apparently, the mixture is a natural diuretic that will get rid of any excess water bloating. Obviously, this isn't a long-term solution but it sounds like a healthy way to fit in into those jeans -- if it works, that is.

Have you tried this?

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When you think of indigestion you think of stomach acid. In most cases it is not the stomach acid creating the indigestion but a lack of it. Hydrochloric acid and pepsin, an enzyme working in an acid environment are needed to break down food effectively. A shortage of the two will result in sluggish digestion of food and indigestion. In this pill popping era we live in, getting rid of indigestion could be as simple as a shot of Apple Cider Vinegar after a meal to get rid of the bloating and indigestion we sometimes experience. Now I am not a doctor and this is just my personal experience, but for the last 5 weeks I have been using natural organic Apple Cider Vinegar with "Mother" that I bought in a health food store and it has worked wonders for me. So much that I recommended it to a friend and it is helping with their indigestion problem also.

Vinegar is a popular folk remedy to be sure, and there is limited science research behind it. One thing doctors agree on is that in limited doses, vinegar will not hurt you and it just might work. So you can be the judge.

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Ladies, next time you find yourself overtaken by irrational cravings for anything sweet, salty, savory or just plain bad for you, check the calendar--it's probably that dreaded PMS rearing it's ugly head yet again. Myself, I crave carb to the point where I could pretty much consume a loaf of bread on my own, but don't.

AOL has put together this guide to the most common cravings and suggests healthier choices that should satisfy the craving just as well. Chocoholics should try for some chocolate-covered fruit to get their coco fix with along with some vital nutrients as well. Salt fiends should try some nuts. And carb-fiends like myself should opt for whole grains and limited servings.

What helps you through that time of the month?

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For as long as I can remember, I've struggled with IBS (irritable bowel syndrome) and while I try not to let it control my life, I find myself avoiding foods I know are hard for me to digest because, even though I love them, it's not worth spending the day in pain for. But even if you don't have a digestive system condition, there are just some foods that are harder for your body to break down than others, leading to an array of problems from heartburn to bloating and everything in between. MSN has come up with this list of things that are hard on your digestive track. Things to avoid include beans, ice cream, chocolate, broccoli, citrus fruits and spicy foods, plus some surprising things like chicken nuggets and--who would've thunk it--mashed potatoes.

What do you think? Do these things leave you running for the bathroom?

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For millions of Americans that are lactose intolerance, how can you make sure that you get enough vitamin D and calcium in your diet needed to build strong bones and help ward off osteoporosis later in life. Lactose intolerance is the inability to digest significant amounts of lactose, the major sugar found in milk. Lactose intolerance is caused by a shortage of the enzyme lactase, which is produced by the cells that line the small intestine. Lactase breaks down milk sugar into two simpler forms of sugar called glucose and galactose, which are then absorbed into the bloodstream. People who do not have enough lactase to digest the amount of lactose they consume may feel very uncomfortable when they digest milk products. Common symptoms, which range from mild to severe, include nausea, cramps, bloating, gas, and diarrhea. Symptoms begin about 30 minutes to 2 hours after eating or drinking foods containing lactose.

Here are some foods to add to your daily diet when milk and dairy products are not an option. A 3-ounce serving size of canned Atlantic sardines contains 325 milligrams of calcium, compared with 336 milligrams for a 1.5-ounce serving of Swiss cheese. 1 Cup of fortified soymilk contains 200 milligrams of calcium. Sardines are an excellent calcium source because they contain soft bones. An orange has 48 milligrams of calcium. A cup of raw broccoli contains 43 milligrams, a cup of raw kale, 90 milligrams, and an artichoke delivers 56 milligrams of calcium. A 3-ounce serving of fish such as salmon, mackerel, and tuna has more natural vitamin D than a cup of milk. 1/2 cup of pinto beans contains 40 milligrams of calcium. Calcium supplements are helpful, especially for people who need more calcium or aren't able to get enough in their diet. But remember that getting calcium from food offers other benefits, such as fiber, antioxidants, and protein.

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