Since 1995, when he helped Oprah lose 90 pounds and train for a marathon, lifestyle coach Bob Greene has been in the media spotlight. But his crusade to help people lead healthier, fitter lives began years earlier, during his childhood, when Greene would lecture his father on his liberal use of the salt shaker. He went on to study health and exercise physiology in Delaware and Arizona, and was managing the fitness staff in a spa in Telluride, Colorado, when he had his life-changing encounter with the famous TV talk show host. "Oprah and I hit if off right away, although during our first meeting she wouldn’t look me in the eye. Despite her fame and accomplishments, Oprah felt ashamed of her weight," Greene recalls on his website. But the two soon settled into a successful routine. After a lifetime of gaining and losing large amounts of weight, Oprah reached her goal weight with Greene’s help and she’s stayed at a healthy weight for the past 10 years. He’s been a part of her life for those 10 years as well, making appearances on The Oprah Winfrey Show, contributing to O magazine and even helping Oprah find the perfect Hawaiian vacation home.

In his new book, The Best Life Diet, Greene expands on the fitness philosophy he’s developed over his long career (and in his other books, including Total Body Makeover and Get With the Program!). He believes that making a commitment to gradually increase your activity level and decrease your food intake (and winnow unhealthy foods from your daily diet) is the only way to lose weight and keep it off. He discusses the reasons people overeat, including the emotional ones. For Oprah, becoming aware of and dealing with her habit of burying her emotions under plates of food was the most critical component, Greene says. The Best Life Diet suggests that if you’re in the same boat, recognizing that fact will make it easier to avoid those destructive habits.

"After working one-on-one with many clients and talking to thousands of people through the years, I think I can say with some authority that the fast and furious approach to weight loss is also the fastest route to failure," writes Greene, and his slow-but-steady strategy is both simple and effective. In Phase One, which lasts four weeks, you raise your level of activity (which is as easy as doubling the number of steps you take each day if you’re totally inactive, and exercising three times a week if you’re somewhat active), change the way you eat (three healthy meals a day plus at least one snack) and take a multivitamin. Phases Two and Three each intensify the activity level, and increase food intake to three meals and two snacks per day. Ultimately, if you skip meals, you won’t save calories, cautions Greene, since skipping meals decreases your metabolism and increases the odds that you’ll overeat when you finally get a chance at food.

The Best Life Diet includes recipes for delicious meals and snacks that won’t make you feel deprived, like Salmon and Spinach Frittata, Black Bean Chipotle Burgers, Vanilla Caramel Truffle Lattes and Hazelnut Biscotti. More recipes, exercise routines and advice can be found on the book’s companion website, thebestlife.com. To help you make smarter decisions at the supermarket, Greene has joined forces with several major food manufacturers to place the Best Life Diet seal of approval (shown on the upper right-hand corner of his book’s cover) on products he believes meet the needs of anyone trying to lose weight and eat healthfully. Though Greene is an understanding, encouraging and empathetic guide through the wilds of weight loss, he’s also adamant that his followers adhere to the high standards he sets for them. " One thing you’ll never hear from me is that making changes in your life is easy. . . . Each step you take toward your weight-loss goal is a gift you give yourself." That about sums it up.

Greeks are known for their delicious food and the gusto to enjoy it. But eating your mother’s Greek cooking can leave more than a few extra pounds around your midsection, as Dr. Nick Yphantides discovered the hard way. He presents his story, and his Seven Pillars of Weight Loss and Man-agement, in My Big Fat Greek Diet. After Yphantides battled cancer, he decided to drop the excess weight (257 pounds, to be exact) he had carried nearly all his adult life. Eight months later, his nationwide odyssey, or Distraction from Deprivation, taught him that counting calories is only the start to breaking the habits of a lifetime. Sound action points pepper the upbeat, best buddy advice, with especially useful tips on overeating traps and de-emphasizing food (he follows a modified Atkins diet that minimizes high glycemic foods); learning the signs of true hunger and satiety; and burning calories by joining a gym or walking. The book truly excels in presenting the psychological and spiritual preparation needed for a huge lifestyle change, with suggestions for taking a sabbatical from unhealthy habits, courting a travel companion for the journey, and doing exercises that strengthen both the physical and emotional heart. And to that we say, Opah!

If you need to lose weight, consider taking a trip to another country. Two new entries in the ever-expanding category of diet books look at the cultural aspects of maintaining a healthy weight. Dieters often wonder, for example, why French women remain slim and sensual throughout their lives. French Women Don’t Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure examines how you can experience joie de vivre without gaining an ounce. In thoroughly charming essays full of restraint but never deprivation, French-born, New-York based author Mireille Guiliano explains the art of appreciating excellent things in smaller portions and feeling full of gratitude. Growing up in Alsace, Guiliano would pick wild blueberries and savor homegrown foods while sharing meals with her family. Now the jet-setting CEO of Clicquot, the Champagne company, Guiliano and her compatriots rarely diet or obsess over food. Instead, they emphasize quality over quantity. She outlines their old-fashioned daily regimen of plenty of mineral water, a good night’s sleep, fresh seasonal foods, moderate exercise, inspiring activity and love. Guiliano’s elegant ideas will surely inspire women looking to live a simpler, slimmer life without feeling shortchanged.

While thousands of diet and exercise experts claim to have the answer, Harley Pasternak really does have a catchy and worthwhile concept in Five-Factor Fitness: The Diet and Fitness Secret of Hollywood’s A-List. Pasternak, who has a master’s degree in exercise physiology and nutritional sciences from the University of Toronto, developed the simple, sensible five concept to work within anyone’s typical week, based on five meals a day and five intense but short cardio/strength training workouts. His nutrition advice favors quality proteins and low-to-moderate glycemic index foods (forget net carbs); daily meal plans, eating tips and easy five-ingredient recipes are included. His illustrated workouts require dumbbells, which Pasternak considers superior to gym machines, a bench and some amount of discipline, if only for five minutes at a time. But the book’s succinct approach and fresh facts (one orange juice or coffee drink per day can add 38 pounds to your frame each year; whey beats meat and eggs as quality protein) make getting in shape in five weeks seem straightforward and manageable surely the point of fitness books after all. Deanna Larson is a writer in Nashville.

Another cheerleader for the cheap and simple workout is Leslie Sansone. Her zeal for walking an easy exercise suitable for any age, shape or budget practically lifts couch potatoes off their sofas in Walk Away the Pounds. Sansone, creator of In-Home Walking and 48 highly popular fitness videos, now presents the first written game plan to her six-week program for burning fat, toning muscles and elevating mood. Basic walking steps and strength training moves are illustrated along with tips for choosing shoes and getting started. Daily Walk Log pages present each day’s walking assignment, with space to jot notes about the session and a pep talk from Sansone to keep motivation high. For those who prefer video demonstrations, Sansone provides viewing suggestions to match the training goals of the week. Excellent sections on eating right, de-stressing and walking as an older adult and during or after pregnancy are also included. Sansone recommends a delay in dieting until the high from regular exercise brings about healthier eating habits naturally, making this book perfect for brain resistance training, too.

Deanna Larson is a writer in Nashville.

Chris Freytag, ShopNBC’s fitness expert and personal trainer, knows that busy families hardly have a minute to spare. Move to Lose is her fitness guide founded on the theory that short spurts of effort over the course of a day the time that many parents spend in the carpool line, for example can make a big difference in energy and stress levels while modeling good behavior for kids. Freytag starts by outlining the building blocks of a healthy lifestyle, including a particularly helpful section on feeding families and what to do when your five-year-old has a tantrum in the cereal aisle. Her simple, illustrated cardio/strength-training program involves walking outdoors or on a treadmill with fun cross-training options, and a time-efficient, Pilates-inspired core body workout that uses dumbbells, resistance bands and an exercise ball to increase strength. Yoga stretches and sample charts for a realistic regimen round out this useful guide for those who are just too busy to get into shape. Deanna Larson is a writer in Nashville.

Lean, Long ∧ Strong is one of the best new entries in the fitness category, allowing resolution-makers to get the bodies they dream about. The six-week program of 12-minute resistance workouts by personal trainer Wini Linguvic, co-author of the best-selling BodyChange, combines yoga and Pilates, two trendy exercise methods, with strength training to keep interest high and accelerate results. Basic, intermediate and express workouts using a mat, exercise ball and dumbbells are clearly illustrated. A tinted box along the bottom of each page has tips on breathing and form, making it easy to move correctly. Linguvic also provides a guide to a precision cardio workout to maximize results in 60 minutes a week, and helps readers build their own custom program for fat blasting, core body work, or a focus on lower or upper body. A nutrition program that involves keeping a food journal (one of the biggest predictors of successful weight loss), and training log pages are also included in this beautifully designed book that banishes boredom, and body trouble spots, from women’s vocabulary. Deanna Larson is a writer in Nashville.

Each January, people across America vow to get into better shape, then beat themselves up when they fail to maintain their resolutions. The latest fitness books work with this tendency, stressing quicker, more efficient workouts that boost willpower for life-changing results. Those needing a bit of boot camp will like the style of personal trainer Bob Greene, the magician behind Oprah’s smaller shape. Bob Greene’s Total Body Makeover: An Accelerated Program of Exer-cise and Nutrition for Maximum Results in Minimum Time doesn’t sugarcoat the get-moving message. Taking responsibility might simply mean that you admit that you’ve been lazy and have chosen the easy way out every time, Greene writes. Echoing the latest trend in weight loss, his 12-week program starts with the emotional and mental cornerstones of successful change including willingness, responsibility and commitment. A traditional daily strength-training and aerobic program follows, with detailed floor exercises, weight-machine alternatives and pictures to guide good form. Chapters on the five eating rules and detailed analysis of popular diets, plus charts for weekly goals, target heart rate and other number-crunching features, are also included. Those who love to keep score and those aiming for dramatic long-term results might find Greene’s supportive but no-nonsense approach just the ticket. Deanna Larson is a writer in Nashville.

If you or someone you care about has been diagnosed with colon cancer, you’ll want to read Dr. Mark Pochapin’s new book, What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Colorectal Cancer. Pochapin is a colon cancer specialist who treated Jay Monahan, the husband of “Today” show anchor Katie Couric. After her husband’s death from the disease, Couric became a passionate advocate for colon cancer screening, even submitting to a televised colonoscopy. In her foreword, Couric writes, “This book provides the information I wish I had before Jay became ill.” Pochapin describes prevention methods, screening techniques, diagnosis and treatment. Straightforward but encouraging throughout, this book is a wonderful resource for patients and their families.

In the area of men’s health, one of the most talked-about topics is prostate cancer. Men want to know how to prevent prostate disease and what treatment to opt for if they get it. An interesting approach is outlined in The Prostate Health Program: A Guide to Preventing and Controlling Prostate Cancer. Dr. Daniel W. Nixon and Dr. Max Gomez put the emphasis on diet and nutrition, citing research that indicates 35 percent of all prostate cancers could be prevented through changes in diet. The authors offer a food pyramid, as well as specific menus and recipes, for putting their recommendations into action.

A wonderful gift for a first-time expectant mother, the Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy is a reassuring reference on what to expect in pregnancy. Arranged in a month-by-month format, the guide describes the baby’s growth at each stage and explains how the mother is changing, as well, both physically and emotionally. It’s nice to be warned, for example, that at 17 to 20 weeks, mothers may experience dizziness, shortness of breath, heartburn and urinary tract infections. The book also offers decision guides on topics such as breastfeeding and circumcision and a reference section with common concerns of pregnancy arranged alphabetically. Authoritative, readable and well illustrated, this is an excellent addition to the already ample literature on pregnancy.

“Comprehensive” is definitely the first word that comes to mind to describe The New Harvard Guide to Women’s Health. This hefty volume, an updated version of the first guide, published in 1996, covers almost every imaginable women’s health concern, from face-lifts to fibromyalgia. Incorporating new findings from the Women’s Health Initiative, the authors (two Harvard doctors and a medical writer) delve into such hot topics as estrogen replacement therapy and perimenopause. The text is detailed, but presented in a way that’s understandable for the lay reader. Helpful charts and illustrations explain anatomical references. Appropriate for readers of any age, The New Harvard Guide to Women’s Health can help to ensure that women are informed partners in their own medical care.