Joan Price: Book Review: Fit Happens

Out of shape? Perpetually tired? Aware that you never quite feel your best? If these descriptions fit, Joanie Greggains has written this book for you. Greggains, a celebrity fitness leader since 1972, starred in TV's Morning Stretch and 13 exercise videos. Here she combines solid, up-to-date fitness advice with compassion and her own brand of pep and humor.

The key to sticking to a shape-up program is finding a healthy lifestyle that you enjoy. She encourages you to find "the fun in movement" and "foods you can enjoy without feeling deprived." She shows you how to do this with expert-backed information, motivational strategies, and practical advice that you can put into action right away.

For example, she warns you about "7 dead-end detours from healthy eating," "diets to avoid," "16 common exercise myths--and how they can hurt you," and "13 'health' foods that aren't." She walks you through starting an exercise program, finding time, burning calories, and making small but smart changes in your diet. We're all too busy, so Greggains covers ways to boost energy and decrease stress through food choices, quick exercises, and sleep tips. "The situations we view as roadblocks to fitness can be avoided simply and easily if we know where to find the detours around them," she says. Joanie Greggains is an excellent detour guide!