2nd Annual Great Start Giveaway Winners!

Hey Everyone! It's finally that time - time to announce the winners of our 2nd annual Great Start Giveaway! Wow has this month gone by fast. It seems like it was just a few days ago when all this fun started. But now here we are at the end and I know you are dying to see if you won, so I'll do my best to make this short and sweet. :)

First I want to thank all of you who read here daily. It's an honor for me to connect with so many people in such a simple way. And if some of my babblings are helpful, then I really get excited! I also want to say that I wish I had prizes to give all of you. I seriously would if I could work it out. I wanted to last year as well, and I joked about how I'd be bankrupt if I tried. Well last year was nuthin' folks. This year we literally had HUNDREDS of entries. I could barely keep up. And let me tell ya, your guesses were fabulous! Even if you didn't get them all, I could see some real creative wheels turning through your entries. Some of you flat out made me laugh with your intentional off-the-wall guesses. (You know who you are!)

So, per tradition (aka the way I did it last year), I'll announce the Honorable Mentions first.

Honorable Mentions are the folks who guessed the most correct. Unlike last year, (where we had no one guess them all, but a few came close) we had several guess every last one of them. So, in no certain order, here are the honorees...

Honorable Mentions

Mandy F. from OR
T.J. F. from GA
Jamie H. from SC
Erica G. from AR
Jennifer A. from MI
Misty C. from OH
Denise B. from MO
April M. from IL
Kyle R. from TX

Congrats to these folks for guessing the correct answers for all 7 photos! I'm impressed! If you didn't guess them all, don't feel bad. If I hadn't been the one that took the photos, I guarantee I wouldn't have known what most of them were. They really are hard to figure out sometimes!

Ok, next we'll announce the answers to the mystery photos. He ya go:

Photo 1

Rubber Bands

Photo 2

Bendy Straw

Photo 3

Key

Photo 4

Digital Timer/Clock/Numbers/Calculator (Any of those are acceptable.)

Photo 5

Toilet Paper Roll/Paper Towel Roll (Both are acceptable.)

Photo 6

SOS Pad/Brillo Pad/Steel Wool

Photo 7

Flyswatter

I really appreciate everyone who gave these an effort. You all did very well!

Ok, now on to the big news. The winners! I do need to take a moment to thank all the wonderful people and companies who donated prizes to this years giveaway. Without them, I'd be handing out stick figure drawings... and while I'm sure you'd all love to have one, I'll bet you like these prizes much better. :) Each of the following winners will be receiving an email from me this week in regards to their prizes.

PureVia Winners:

1. Timothy A.from WI
2. Kyle R. from TX
3. Cindy B. from OR
4. Beth P. from KS
5. Carol A. from MA
6. Maria D. from AL
7. Vickilynn H. from NC
8. Justin W. from TX
9. T.J. F. from GA
10. Shari H. from OK
11. Cate N. from CA
12. Jamie V. from CO
13. Ruth A. from MI
14. Jennifer F. from CA
15. April A. from MI
16. Karolyn S. from CA
17. Dawn H. from TX
18. Dana A. from FL
19. Saira H. from MO
20. Burton B. from UT
21. Dawn V. from MD
22. Jan C. from NY
23. Greg M. from TX
24. Jamie H. from SC

Sugarettes Book Winners:

1. Sandi M. from Canada
2. Melissa P from TX

Cereal Killer Book Winners:
1. Dawna B. from CA
2. Jodi A. from LA
3. Faye D. from CO
4. Deborah E. from IN

Autographed Copy of Carb Wars:
1. Lisa B. from KY

Splendid Low-Carbing Winner:
1. Katina M. from NC

Atkins Gift Pack Winners:
1. Kathy S. from WI
2. Beth A. from NC
3. Trina S. from GA

Dana Carpender's Every Calorie Counts Winner:
1. Shirley S. in OH

Dana Carpender's 500 Low-Carb Recipes Winner:
1. Lynn S. from AK

Dana Carpender's Glycemic Load Diet Cookbook Winner:
1. Sally F. from FL

ChocoPerfection Assortment Pack Winners:
1. Shannon F. from MA
2. Angie E. from TX
3. AnnMarie M. from CA

EatSmart Scale Set Winner:
1. Mindy F. from OR

Congrats to all of you! I'm so excited for each of you!!

Again I want to thank you for reading my blog! I hope my old friends will continue to visit me for years to come. I hope the new readers will continue to come back so I may call them my friends as well. :)

Be on the lookout for more fun, information and giveaways in the future! I can't wait to see what this year has in store for us all. Here's to all of us and our healthy low-carb lifestyles!

Atkins bars could be yours!

Well, we are down to the final day of the giveaway AND the final prize. Hopefully you have sent in your entry and are ready for the big announcement tomorrow. :)

Today I want to tell you about a nice gift pack put together by the generous folks at Atkins Nutritionals. Three readers will each win a gift pack of Atkins bars containing the following:



Atkins Endulge Peanut Butter Cups

Atkins Advantage Peanut Butter Granola Bars

Atkins Endulge Caramel Nut Chew Bars

Atkins Advantage Peanut Fudge Granola Bar

Atkins Advantage Marshmallow Mudslide Bar

Atkins Advantage Chocolate Chip Granola Bar

Atkins Advantage S'mores Bar

I've tried all of these flavors and liked every one. How can you go wrong with peanut butter and chocolate?? :) While not something you should eat everyday, you can use Atkins bars and shakes for quick snacks or on-the-go meals when you have no other healthy options. I use them when I need to and they have been a lifesaver at times when I was starving and it would be a good while before I had access to low-carb food. I know some people are really against the low-carb "frankenfoods". But let me tell ya, they are certainly better than giving in to the ice cream and cake at Timmy's birthday party. And if used wisely, can be a tool to help you with your weight loss goals.

Never tried Atkins products? Here's your chance! As I said before, three lucky winners will get a gift pack with each of the aforementioned bars. So today is your last chance to send in an entry and win one of the many great prizes we have this year. Don't wait too long or you just might miss out!

Giveaway Friendly Reminder!

Hey gang! Tomorrow is the last day we are accepting entries into the Great Start Giveaway.

I need to remind everyone that along with your guesses I need you mailing information or I will be unable to send you a prize should your name be drawn.

Also we've had some entries from outside the United States. I've looked over the possibilities and at this time am sad to report that I can currently only send prizes to the US and Canada. I'm so sorry my dear friends who live elsewhere, but the costs of shipping is just not doable right now. :(

Dana Carpender Cookbooks - Win one!

Everyone loves good food. I think we are all foodies at heart. With low-carb cooking you can seriously enjoy your food without guilt or worry. Does it get any better than that??? (OK, yeah.. winning the lottery might top it, but I'm talking things that actually can apply to us all.)

If you like good food, easy recipes and great health - look no further than cookbooks from my friend Dana Carpender. You will find everything you need to keep your meal plans interesting and enjoyable. Over the years Dana has given us a great collection of cookbooks to cover just about every cooking style and preference. From smoothies to barbecue to slow cookers, she has helped us with it all!

Dana has generously donated three of her cookbooks to our Great Start Giveaway and I want to tell you about them now.

First, the mother of all lc cookbooks... 500 Low-Carb Recipes: 500 Recipes from Snacks to Dessert, That the Whole Family Will Love.




When I first started low-carbing back in 2001, I knew very little about cooking anything other than low-fat meals. I had a lot to learn! I quickly picked up the basics and spent lots of time searching the Internet for recipes. In 2002 a good friend of mine bought a copy of Dana's 500 Low-Carb Recipes for me as a gift. It is one of the most used cookbooks I own! I enjoy this particular cookbook so much that I bought several and gave them out to family and friends.

The first several pages of this cookbook are dedicated to helping low-carbers understand the use of various ingredients, as well as how the carb counts are calculated in each recipe. Dana also give us helpful tips for enjoying and succeeding in our low-carb lifestyles. And then there are the recipes!


Just a few of my favorites from 500 Low-Carb recipes include:

* Heroin Wings (The name suits.. they are addicting!)
* Taco Omelet
* Country Scramble
* Turnips Au Gratin
* Spaghetti Squash Alfredo
* Shrimp Scampi
* Skillet Stroganoff
* Mexican Meatballs
* Mom's Chocolate Chip Cookies
* Kathy's Peanut Butter Protein Bars
* Cocoa

Not to mention all the sauces, dressings and even condiments she teaches us how to prepare in this amazing cookbook!

If you are looking for great low-carb recipes that will satisfy the whole family, then look no further! This is the cookbook for you. No low-carb library should be without it!

Next we have her cookbook titled Dana Carpender's Every Calorie Counts Cookbook: 500 Great-Tasting, Sugar-Free, Low-Calorie Recipes that the Whole Family Will Love.




Dana caught a little heat over this title, but I can assure you this cookbook is every bit pure low-carb cooking. So how did she cut calories in this cookbook? By cutting the carbs of course! :)

From Dana's Website:

Are you counting carbs? Are you counting calories? Or are you just plain trying to eat healthy? This is the cookbook for you!

...we all need to eat food that's both healthy and delicious, that keeps us full, and makes us feel and look fabulous. And since we're all seriously busy, it sure would help if it wasn't a pain to cook!

Here you go! Five hundred recipes, from family suppers to party fare. Plenty of protein, a harvest of fruits and vegetables, the good fats you need for vibrant health. Great whole grain flavor without the high blood sugar impact. And every recipe has the carbs, calories, fiber, fat and protein counts worked out - plus a vitamin and mineral breakdown! You'll know you're getting what you need.

Try:
Chile Verde Cheese Burgers * Crab Fritters with Lemon Aioli * Skillet Buttermilk Cornbread * Grilled Asparagus with Wasabi Mayonnaise * Apple and Wild Rice Salad * Blinky's Texas Red * Tequila-Lime Chicken Skillet * Sizzling Moroccan Shrimp * Ginger-Melon Frappe * Plum Sorbet * Chocolate Velvet * Better-Than-Whole-Grain Pancakes

If those recipes don't tempt you, your dead. Wait.. even a dead person might rise from the grave for some Tequila-Lime Chicken Skillet. I would!

Last but not least, we have Dana's newest masterpiece, co-written with Dr. Rob Thompson, The Glycemic-Load Diet Cookbook: 150 Recipes to Help You Lose Weight and Reverse Insulin Resistance





While specifically written to help those following Dr. Thompsons low-carb plan, naturally this will work for any low-carber. I personally follow Atkins, but found Dr. Thompson's suggestions in this book helpful and accurate. I found myself liking Rob Thompson more and more with every word I read. I believe this is a fantastic and simple plan should anyone want to try it. Dana agrees and delivers once again with amazing recipes that are easy, delicious and healthy.

The back cover entices you with recipes such as:

Spinach Mushroom Frittata
Apple Walnut Pancakes
Oriental Chicken Salad
Oyster Bisque
Ham and Pineapple Slaw
Sesame Short Ribs
Lemon Mustard Pork Chops
Indian Lamb Skillet
Coconut Chocolate Chip Cookies
Lemon Vanilla Cheesecake

I could probably live off of those 10 recipes for the rest of my life and be happy. Thanks to the genius of people like Dana, we have a huge variety of ways to keep our low-carb lifestyle from becoming ho-hum. If it were up to my creativity, we'd probably all be eating bunless hamburgers and salads for the rest of our lives. (I'm simple minded and lazy.. what can I say?)

Three of you wonderful, gorgeous, fantastic, amazing, adorable readers are going to win a copy of one of these books. Are you excited yet? Do I need to tell you once again how wonderful you are? :)

Make sure you have entered by midnight tomorrow night, Jan. 1st, for your chance to win these must-have cookbooks, or any of the other amazing prizes we have up for grabs!

Win an autographed copy of Carb Wars!

In Carb Wars: Sugar is the New Fat, Judy Barnes Baker certainly gives us a glimpse of what true luxurious eating can be like with the low-carb lifestyle. While flipping through my copy I found so many recipes I wanted to try that I couldn't decide where to start!

And this book isn't all recipes. Judy took the time to share some eye opening history about today's dietary recommendations, as well as information for getting started on a low-carb plan and explanations about specialty items commonly used in low-carb cooking.

There is a great assortment of tantalizing recipes in this book. I haven't made them all yet, but I'm doing my best! So far, not one recipe has been a disappointment. And I expect each new dish I try to continue to please.

In this years giveaway you could win an autographed copy of Carb Wars! So be sure to get your entries in asap. There are only 2 days left! We will be drawing the winners on Feb. 2nd, do don't miss out!

ChocoPerfection - eat your winnings!

One of the great prizes we are giving away this year is a variety pack of ChocoPerfection bars! Three luck winners will get the opportunity to enjoy all three flavors available; Milk Chocolate, Dark Chocolate and Raspberry Dark Chocolate. If you've never tried this amazing sugar-free low-carb treat, you've been missing out! Seriously, it's chocolate. Do I really need to say anymore??



ChocoPerfection is aptly named! It is the perfect chocolate bar for low-carbers or anyone who is watching their sugar intake. The best part, besides the rich decadent taste, is the lack of maltitol, which has recently been proven to be high on the glycemic index. Sweetened with oligofructose and erithrytol (a non-gastric-distress sugar alcohol), ChocoPerfection has a luxurious creamy texture that it's competitors have yet to prefect. And oligofructose has benefits! According to a flyer I got about Chocoperfection, oligofructose has scientists proclaiming it as "part of a new breed of 'functional foods' that have a variety of properties to improve your health, including curing the body of infections and supporting weight loss." Want to hear more? They also tell us that oligofructose is derived from the chicory plant and is classified as a "prebiotic fiber" which means it will "take root in your digestive tract and support the growth of beneficial probiotic microflora."

You can purchase these directly from Low Carb Specialties, or from retailers such as CarbSmart, Netrition, and the dark raspberry bar from Amazon.com.

Thanks to Mary Jo Kringas, creator of ChocoPerfection, three of my lucky readers will have a chance to win an assortment of these fantastic bars in our drawing on Feb. 2nd! If you haven't already entered the giveaway for a chance at one of these delicious prizes, do so today! Time is running out! We must have all entries by Midnight on Feb. 1st.

Win Splendid Low-Carbing by Jennifer Eloff!

Another fabulous prize in our giveaway this month is Jennifer Eloff's national best selling cookbook Splendid low-carbing: A complete guide for low-carb living. Just looking at the photos on the back of the cover start my mouth watering.

This book contains 191 pages of recipes that will knock your socks off, so hang on to your other apparel. You'd look strange sitting there in your birthday suit reading a cookbook. :)

Seriously though, how can you go wrong with recipes like these:

Cream of Cauliflower Soup
Avocado Walnut Salad
Bacon-Wrapped Meat Loaf
Buttermilk-Parmesan Dressing
Cinnamon-Swirl Egg Bread
Apple Walnut Torte

I could go on and on, but I won't. I'll do something better. I'll share a recipe from this amazing cookbook so you can see for yourself.

BACON CHEESE SPREAD
Your friends will beg you for this recipe!

8 oz light cream cheese, softened (250 g)
1/2 cup mayonnaise (125 mL)
11/2 cups Cheddar cheese (375 mL)
2 tbsp chopped chives, OR (25 mL)
green onions
1 tsp dried parsley (5 mL)
1/4 tsp garlic powder (1 mL)
8 crisply cooked bacon slices

In food processor with sharp blade or in blender, process cream cheese and mayonnaise until smooth. In medium bowl, combine cream cheese mixture, Cheddar cheese, chives or green onions, parsley and garlic powder until well combined. Spread evenly in 9-inch (23 cm) glass pie dish.

Place bacon on bacon rack and cover with two paper towels. Microwave on high power 7 to 8 minutes. Cut into small pieces with pair of kitchen scissors. Garnish top of cheese spread with bacon pieces. Bake in 350°F (180C) oven 15 minutes and serve with low-carb crackers or slices of English cucumber.

Yield: 12 servings
1 serving
176.4 calories
7.5 g protein
15.7 g fat
1.1 g carbs

This is just a tiny taste of what awaits you in this fantastic book. If you are interested in ordering it, you can find it on Amazon.com or on her website.

Of course, you may just win a copy on Feb. 2nd when we draw the winners for our Great Start Giveaway. Have you entered? Well what are you waiting for - Krispy Kreme to announce a healthy menu? Ain't gonna happen, so enter while you still have time!

Win Sugerettes by Scott Olsen!

Only a few days left in the giveaway and yet so many prizes to tell you about! (As I type with a burnt index finger...)

I've had the opportunity to read some fantastic books in the past few months, despite what little time I seem to have. One of those books was Sugarettes by Scott Olsen. This was another one of those books I just couldn't put down.

Sugarettes - sugar plays the unassuming Villian
Reprint from Examiner.com



Sugar, the bane of our existence. Once considered a luxury, it can now be found in every food imaginable. Its many forms can be located in the ingredients list of edibles ranging from the expected, like ice cream, to the unexpected, like tomato sauce. (Why again do we need sugar in tomato sauce?) I call it a bane because it’s difficult to imagine life without it, and yet we’d be better off if we never touched the stuff. You may think this is just my personal opinion, but there are many people, not to mention studies, that agree. It’s a poison of sorts, but unlike arsenic, it kills us slowly. Sadly, too many of us don’t understand that and continue our addiction to a substance that is just as dangerous as any other drug available.

Dr. Scott Olson ND understands the sugar problem we have in our society and wrote a fantastic book on the subject. Sugarettes, Sugar Addiction and Your Health is a tidy little book with wonderful nuggets of information that will keep you interested and educated. The cover and title are clever and give you a real sense of what you’ll find inside. There are illustrations about cells, sugar, and insulin response which are a great aid for those who need to visualize the process. (That'd be me!) Not only does Scott explain how sugar destroys our health, but he includes some history behind the human diet, and gives us some ideas of ways to rid ourselves of this white poison for good.

If you have a sugar addict in your family, or are one yourself, I highly recommend this book. It would make a fantastic gift for anyone in your life that is concerned about staying healthy. You can learn more about the book and Dr. Olson by visiting his website. He’s also currently holding a 30 day sugar free challenge and invites anyone interested to join in.

This a great book and if you enter our Great Start Giveaway you will have the opportunity to win one of two copies we are giving away! Be sure to get your entry in by Feb. 1st or you'll miss out an all the great prizes we have to give out.

PureVia among prizes you can win next week!

This years Great Start Giveaway has some really fantastic prizes. Today I want to tell you about PureVia from Whole Earth Sweetener Company, which has generously donated 24 boxes to this giveaway! That's right! We will be giving 24 lucky winners a box of PureVia to try for themselves!

Below is a recent review I did of PureVia from my Examiner column.

PureVia Enters the Sweetener Race
Reprint from Examiner.com



Stevia is the hot ticket item in the sweetener world these days. With lots of research to back up its safety, it’s become the go-to substance for sweetening a variety of foods and beverages. Several companies are noticing this trend and trying to give their customers a more natural alternative to sugar. In recent months Cargill has released its stevia based sweetener Truvia. Another new product, NUVA from DWS Inc., has emerged as a real contender in the race to be the perfect sweetener. Now we can officially add PureVia to the list of better sweetener alternatives.

The long awaited PureVia, by Whole Earth Sweetener Company, has arrived. It has the same texture as real sugar and, like the others, a great taste. As of this writing their website does not yet tell us where PureVia can be bought or its approximate price. The sample box I received from the company contains 40 single serving sticks which are said to sweeten up to the equivalent of two teaspoons of sugar. As with most sweeteners, if you use it in a cold beverage, you should mix it thoroughly before you drink. I made the mistake of not mixing it too well and almost choked on a throat full of PureVia lurking at the bottom of my tea glass. (Can you envision my death certificate? “She died from inhaling an artificial sweetener!”) Mix well. Enough said.

My glass of tea and a layer of sweetener at the bottom...


* Calories: 0
* Fat: 0
* Sodium: 0
* Total Carbs: 2 g
* Sugars: <1g
* Erythritol: 1 g
* Protein: 0g


Ingredients: Erythritol, Isomaltulose, Reb A (Stevia extract), Contains 1% or less of Cellulose Powder and each Natural Flavor.

Keep in mind that sweeteners are a personal choice, so there isn’t a one-size-makes-everyone-happy.

After writing this article I received a nice note from the folks at PureVia informing me that the approximate MSRP is $3.99 per box and should be available nationwide by March 2009.

Someone left a comment on my column wondering about the calorie/carb count issue. If there is 2 carbs there should be 8 calories, right? Not exactly. Here's why. Sugar alcohols, even the minor ones like erythritol, do not have the same caloric values that most carbs do. They are actually 0.2 calories per gram. We have 1 carb of erythritol and less than one gram of isomaltulose, which is similar to sucrose. This does have a normal caloric value of 4 cals per gram, but again there is less than one gram per serving. My assumption is that combination of isomaltulose and erythritol equal less than a calorie per serving. Anyone who is familiar with labeling practices knows that if it's less than 1, on any nutrient, they can legally say it's 0. So hopefully that clears up some confusion on the matter.

Now lets talk about winning, because I know that's mostly what you are interested in. Like I mentioned before, we have 24 boxes to giveaway. But you can't win if you don't enter! So be sure to get entered asap - time is running out. This is the final week of the giveaway and you don't want to miss out on any of the great prizes we have available!

You could win these great Eat Smart products!

We have a lot of great prizes to hand out in our 2nd annual Great Start Giveaway. If you asked me to pick my favorite, it would be hard for me to say. They are all fantastic items. But I can honestly say that I really get excited when I start talking about Eat Smart products. They have the most amazing nutrition scale I've ever seen. They have also recently added two new kitchen scales and a bathroom scale to their offerings. I recently acquired both the kitchen scales and let me tell ya, they are just cool.

Speaking of cool... Eat Smart has donated a fantastic weight-loss package for our giveaway! One lucky winner will receive Eat Smart's top-of-the-line Nutrition Scale AND their new bathroom scale. This is a total value of $110! That's pretty sweet!

I recently reviewed the Nutrition Scale on my examiner column and will share that with you here...

Eat Smart Nutrition Scale - Smartest scale on the block
Reprint from my Examiner.com column

I’ve owned kitchen scales before. It’s simple right? You place the food on the plate and discover the magic portion size that will keep you at a healthy weight. Then you estimate your calories, carbs, fat, etc. Unfortunately, I’ve never been a fan of estimating. It’s not exact. I like exact. I know it’s correct. What happens if you “estimate” several items wrong? Then we can be way off on our counts. Have you ever tried estimating a checkbook? Not generally a good idea. Something may bounce. The same can happen with our “carb balance” or whatever specific nutrient you are trying to watch carefully. Obviously this is why we use kitchen scales in the first place – so we can balance our intake of foods to fit our needs. But sometimes weighing the food is different from acquiring that specific amount of nutritional information. Wouldn’t it be great if the scale could do that for you? Now it can! I’ve owned the Eat Smart Nutrition Scale for almost a year now and I love it. Not only do I know how much food I have on my plate, but I now have the exact nutrient counts as well. No more guessing – and that means better results!

I can’t explain it nearly as well as the company does itself, so I’ll direct you to their demonstration video to explain how it works:

Eat Smart Nutrition Scale Demo


Granted this scale is a bit pricey at $75, but I know I’ve personally spent a lot more than that on diet gimmicks that never worked. Readers of this column can save 10% on the Eat Smart Nutrition Scale by using this link, which will automatically apply the coupon to your purchase when you check out. This would make a great gift for you or a loved one who cares about their health.

Again, you will love this scale. (If you want one now and can't wait for the drawing on Feb.2nd, you can use the link in the above article or click the banner ad in the left hand column and receive a 10% discount.)

As I mentioned earlier, in addition to this great scale, you will also win their fabulous new bathroom scale.



The product description reads:

The EatSmart Bathroom Scale is the ideal way to track your weight loss quickly and easily. Simply step on the scale and in seconds you'll have an accurate readout on the EatSmart's oversized 3.5" LCD display, allowing for easy viewing even in the most low light areas of the bathroom or home.

The EatSmart Digital Bathroom Scale is also both accurate and easy to use, engineered to the highest precision standards. The slim, tempered glass design fits perfectly in any surroundings and large non-slip platform allows weights to 330 lbs. The four high-gauge EatSmart precision sensors ensure that you will get an accurate measurement every time.

I don't yet have this scale, but I plan on purchasing one soon. Just look at these reviews!

W.B. in AZ says, "I have been nothing but thrilled with this purchase so far. The large screen allows for me to easily read the scale every time (even after I get out of the shower and the bathroom is fogged up). With my old analog I was always hunching over to figure out what major weights the dial was between. It also is very accurate (I weighed myself multiple times the first few times to test this) and has none of the huge weight fluctuations reported in the reviews of some of Amazon's other scales. Best of all the price was very reasonable versus scales with similar features I have seen elsewhere. "

J.R. from DC says, "Operating is easy. You tap the glass to wake the scale up and step on....no wasted time setting up users (which my last scale had) or programming weight loss goals. The scale reads out to the nearest .2 pounds, which is a nice feature when you are trying to gain confidence and hit short term weight loss goals (every little bit counts to me). More importantly its CONSISTANT, which means I get the same reading every time I step on and off the scale. Nothing was more infuriating than weighing myself, stepping off, re-weighing myself and seeing a completely different number (by as much as 5 lbs!). EatSmart seems to have solved this problem quite nicely."

And this is just the beginning of all the great things people have to say about this scale. To purchase one for yourself or as a gift, or to read the other great reviews on this fabulous scale, check it out on Amazon.com.


These are some fantastic prizes and I'm so excited to be offering them to my readers in this giveaway! As I said before, one lucky reader will win BOTH! Don't forget - you only have until Feb. 1st to enter, so get those submissions in asap! Start by clicking here and join in the fun!

Posts are coming soon

Hey gang. It's been nutso here at the Dungan household this week. Lots going on with 4-H, school, photography, etc. I have some things I need to finish up today, but plan to be back tonight with more posts about the great prizes available in the Great Start Giveaway. I haven't forgotten... I swear! :)

Cereal Killer Contains Scary Truths

Today I'm highlighting one of the great prizes we are giving away in our 2nd Annual Great Start Giveaway! Four lucky winners will receive a copy of this awesome book, so be sure you enter before the deadline of Feb. 1st!

Cereal Killer contains Scary Truths
Reprint from my Examiner.com column



I've certainly had my share of nightmares about cereal, Twinkies and Doritos chasing me and making me binge on them. (Admit it – you've have that dream too!) But you won’t find that kind of suspense and thrills in this amazing book by author Alan Watson. What you’ll read here is even more frightening.

This isn’t your grandfather’s cereal, or even your great-grandfather’s cereal. More than likely it’s because they didn’t eat cereal. They ate real food. Bacon. Eggs. Steak. In the last several decades we have been told that processed low-fat food products are better for us. So naturally we obliged. After all, who doesn’t want to be trim and healthy? After years and years of following what we assumed to be sound scientific advice, are we any healthier? No. In fact, we are one of the unhealthiest nations on the planet. Mr. Watson sees this problem. In Cereal Killer Alan gives us insight into how it all got started and helps us understand just what this so-called “healthy American diet” is really doing to our bodies.

People need to understand that reading the back of a cereal box for your nutritional advice is a bad idea. I’d laugh if I were actually kidding. Here’s a quote:

Keys to Healthy Living

Eating a balanced diet moderate in calories and getting exercise are keys to a healthy lifestyle. A cereal breakfast is a simple step you can take. (Their emphasis, not mine.) Research shows that people who frequently eat cereal have healthier body weights.

Then they explain % daily values.

DV’s tell you if a food group is high or low in a nutrient… Sugar does not have a DV.

And this means what… Eat sugar to your heart’s content?

Who’d like to take a stab at which cereal box this is on? Try Cookie Crisp. So according to the back of the Cookie Crisp cereal box, eating this sugar-filled processed junk for breakfast is perfectly fine. It will keep you at a healthy body weight and since there is no DV on sugar, you don’t have to limit it or consume a certain level. At the least, a statement like this is misleading.

Cereal Killer will change your way of thinking about our government backed nutrition and health guidelines.From the back of the book:

So! How are the children doing?

End of summer, 2008. A record number of American children are being diagnosed with asthma, obesity, diabetes, and bipolar disorder. Along with surging food and medical costs, Americans must come to grips with declining life expectancy – now 37th in the world…
In this explosive book, Alan Watson sheds new light now how corporate greed, government delusion, and slippery science are making our children sick and causing what the late Dr. Robert Atkins called “diabesity.”

Cereal Killer is a stinging indictment of the big cereal companies and drug industries who enjoy huge profits as Americans of all ages suffer from failed “low fat” federal nutrition guidelines and record levels of chronic disease.

After you read Cereal Killer, you will know:

Why obesity is epidemic.

Why diabetes is soaring.

Why cholesterol and saturated fat are not the cause of heart disease.

I could barely put this book down. It has great information and confirms what I think most of us have suspected for years. Health and obesity is big business in America and there are individuals and companies who’d like to keep it that way. We can fight back by staying informed and educated. Mr. Watson’s book is a great place to start and I highly recommend it.

You can learn more about this book and how to purchase it at Diet Heart Publishing or at Amazon.com.

Announcing the 2nd Annual Healthy Low-Carb Living Great Start Giveaway!

2009 is here and it's time to start reminding ourselves about the need to better our health. Whether your resolved to lose weight, shape up, control your blood glucose or just over all improve your health, this giveaway is for you! To help you get a great start on theses goals for 2009, we are going to have a little fun while giving you a chance to win some great prizes this month!

Last year we had so much fun with our guessing game that I decided we should do it again this year. But before we get to that part, let me give you a sampling of the prizes that have been so graciously donated for this giveaway.

Copies of the book Sugarettes by Scott Olsen ND

Atkins product prize packages

An autographed copy of Carb Wars from Judy Barnes Baker

Copes of the book Cereal Killer by Alan L. Watson

Several boxes of PureVia stevia based sweetener

Splendid Low-Carbing cookbook by Jennifer Eloff

Assorted boxes of ChocoPerfection

Cookbooks from Dana Carpender

A weight-loss package from Eat Smart that includes their nutritional and bathroom scale

And there are more prizes still coming in, so be sure to check back often! During each week of this giveaway, I will highlight each prize in detail so you can learn more about each one. This giveaway will run from today, Jan. 6, 2009 through Feb. 1, 2009. All entries must be received by midnight(central time) on Feb. 1 2009. The winners will be announced on this blog on Feb. 2nd, 2009.

So, you are probably ready for me to tell you how to enter, right? It's easy! Now here's how to get your hands on one of these great prizes. Below I've posted some close-up shots of different household items. Take a good look at them and see if you can figure out what they are. I tried not to make them too hard. :) (It's just for fun and has no bearing on your contest entry.) Then send me your guesses, along with your name and address to healthylowcarbliving@gmail.com. Please put Great Start Giveaway in the subject line so your entry doesn't go to my spam box! Everyone that submits their guesstimates by Feb. 1st will be entered into the drawing, which we will have on Feb. 2nd. You'll also get the answers to what each of the items in the photos are.

Remember, you don't have to get all the answers right to have your name in the drawing for the prizes. All you have to do is send me your name, address and best guesses to be entered. And all your information is kept completely confidental and will be deleted immediately after the drawing. Only winners information will be kept until prizes are recieved.

So now that you know what to do... let's get started!

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There you have it! Remember, send your best guesses to healthylowcarbliving@gmail.com along with your name and address by Feb. 1st. Have fun, good luck and be sure to tell others to join in on the fun as well!

Great Start Giveaway Delayed

Hello Everyone! Just wanted to make a quick post to explain that the 2nd Annual Great Start Giveaway will be delayed until tomorrow. I've been down with the flu all weekend and couldn't get everything prepared. I should have it all ready to go tomorrow, so please check back then and join in the fun and prizes!

Update for Jan. 5, 2009

Hey gang.

This weekend was nutso. I had lots of plans, but my body decided otherwise. I came down with the flu. I'm much better now, so it was only a 48 hour kind of thing. But wow, it wasn't fun at all. And it's still reeking havoc in my household. My daughter is almost recovered. My hubby is feeling really bad. I mean really bad. He's on day two and still dealing with body aches, etc. It hit him differently than it did the rest of us. Or else he got a different virus. My son has been fortunate enough not to have caught anything yet, so lets keep our fingers crossed that he stays healthy.

This wonderful tidbit of info, that I'm sure you were thrilled to receive, is in part here to help explain why I can't start the Great Start Giveaway today. I was too sick to get it all together this weekend. I will be getting all the info up tomorrow though. (I'll make a separate post to announce the delay.)

As for my menus, they weren't stellar with all the yukkies going around this weekend. I spent two days existing on dry toast and chicken broth. But since the contents of my stomach stayed put, despite the pain in that area, I didn't lose weight the bad way. I still managed to drop a little. Before the creeping crud attacked me, I had lost another 2 lbs or so. As of today I'm down a total of 3.4 lbs. So still making progress, and none of it is artificial progress due to being sick. :)

Ok, I need to get to work no the giveaway. Be sure to check back tomorrow as we get started.

1-2-09 Update

Hey gang! I hope you all had a safe and fun New Years! I was so busy I didn't have time to post any New Years wishes, but I know you guys and gals understand.

I'm very optimistic about 2009. I can't say why, or even what I think will be great about this year, but I just have this gut feeling something wonderful is in store. We shall see....

I've mentioned in the past that I was planning to try a sweet-free challenge in conjunction with Scott Olsen's sugar-free challenge. My start date was to be yesterday. I've made some minor changes in my plans though and I want to explain.

I'm a diet soda addict. There. I admitted it. Diet soda is going to be hard for me to give up. Even the couple of weeks leading up to yesterday had me feeling a little unsettled at the thought of not having my daily fix. Some of you may remember I tried to give it up before - only to replace my sodas with eating everything in sight. It was bad. So this time I'm going to try to wean myself off. Starting yesterday, I am slowly replacing my sodas with water. My goal is that by the end of the month I will be drinking much more water than soda and can hopefully give up that last can for good. So my challenge will not be so much sweet-free as less-sweet. Make sense? Maybe by February I'll be ready to go totally sweet-free. (This may sound like a cop out, but I'm being totally honest here. I need to do this slowly...)

I started journaling my food again yesterday. I don't know if I'll get it posted here everyday, but I'll try. As some of you have expressed interest in my doing a photo food journal, I may try to start that soon as well. Anyhoo, here's yesterday:

Breakfast: 1 fried egg, 1 sausage patty, water, supplements

Lunch: (at Ryan's) 1 roasted chicken breast, 1 med sized salad with a sprinkling of sunflower seeds and ranch dressing, 1 cup green beans, 1/4 cup steamed cabbage, water

Dinner: 2 hamburger patties, 1 tbsp lc ketchup, 2 dill pickles

Snack: 1 cup popcorn (shouldn't have had this, but I did, so I'm fessin' up!)

Counts for Jan. 1st 2009:

Calories: 1,750
Carbs: 22 - 7 fiber = 15 net
Fat: 126 g
Protein: 131

This morning my scale showed me as 1 lb lighter. :) That's always good.

I spent the couple of weeks reworking my low-carb website. It has a little bit different look and I FINALLY finished that myths page I've been meaning to do forever. I'm really excited too, because we have some new success stories going up soon. Feel free to check it all out at
www.healthylowcarbliving.com and let me know what you think!

Ok, I have a lot to get done today. Be sure to check back on Monday Jan. 5th as we kick off our 2nd annual Great Start Giveaway! Should be lots of fun and I hope you'll join us!

Are you ready???

The new year is just around the corner. Some people make resolutions, others just have general goals they work towards, some just let the last (or is it first?) holiday pass and don't think twice about the year ahead. Myself, I like to set general goals. I don't like resolutions, but I do like to say "I'd really like to accomplish such and such this year." Then I do my best to make it happen, but I don't promise myself. Promises are too much pressure.

So, are you ready for the new year? I hope you have some goals in mind for 2009 that will make it the best year for you yet!

If one of those goals is weight-loss or regaining your health, then keep your eyeballs plastered to this blog. In just a few short days we'll be starting our 2nd Annual Great Start Giveaway! We all had such a great time last year and I can't wait to get this years giveaway started. (We are going to do the photo guessing game again, but this time it won't be food.) Hope you'll join us for the fun and prizes!