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.