Low-carb celebrity Dana Carpender gets us caught up on her life

Long before I ever even thought about going on the Atkins diet to lose weight in 2004, there was a woman who was championing the healthy low-carb lifestyle in a series of bestselling cookbooks. She tried the conventional high-carb, low-fat diet and it failed her, so that led her to livin’ la vida low-carb–and the rest is history! Of course, I’m talking about the one, the only Dana Carpender.

In Episode 158 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore,” Dana lets us in on what is happening in her life right now. She’s got a new companion cookbook coming out this Fall to go along with Rob Thompson’s The Glycemic-Load Diet and is currently dealing with a bit of a health scare herself with a fibroid in her stomach that she says makes her “look like I’m 20 pounds heavier than I am.” And you NEVER have to worry about Dana coming up with an opinion–she’s got plenty of ‘em to go around!

Click on the “LISTEN NOW” link below or download it to your iPod to hear Episode 158:

In the midst of the taping of this interview with Dana Carpender, I shared with her about our upcoming 2nd Annual Low-Carb Cruise in January 2009 and she got so excited about coming. Since then, Dana has confirmed she IS coming on the cruise (WOO HOO!) and will be sharing in a seminar on board the trip down to Mexico. If you haven’t signed up for the cruise, then you still can by clicking here.

We got Dana to open up in this podcast interview since she’s so shy–NOT!!! One thing you’ll never have trouble getting Dana Carpender to do is talk and she does it well. Hear her talk about the trials of the publishing world for a “low-carb” author, the dangers of low-calorie starvation diets like the Kimkins scam, diet soda, low-carb chocolate, and that recent “big breakfast” study that had all the media going crazy recently. It’s never a dull moment with Dana around, so be sure to listen from start to finish.

Connect with low-carb celebrities like Dana Carpender anytime by:

1. Listening at the official web site
2. Calling (818) 688-2763 to listen via Podlinez
3. Subscribing to the RSS feed
4. Going to iTunes–Click here to subscribe!

What did you think about Dana Carpender? She has arguably had more influence on the way people view a low-carb lifestyle on the publishing and consumer side than anyone else ever has! I was privileged to speak with her and can’t wait to have her join us on the 2009 low-carb cruse. Discuss today’s show in the show notes section of Episode 158. And be sure to bookmark Dana Carpender’s “Hold The Toast” web site and pre-order the The Glycemic-Load Diet Cookbook TODAY!

Coming up on Thursday we’ll have fitness and nutrition expert Eric Morrison and then a special two-part podcast interview next week with low-carb chiropractor Dr. Peter Jo.

Kudos to Oprah and three friends at Harpo for taking the audacious plunge to go on a 21-day cleanse in which they ban sugar, caffeine, alcohol, gluten and animal products.

Wow! Talk about ambitious! Read more thoughts on Oprah’s bold experiment here.

NFL athlete, ESPN analyst, and soap opera star Mark Schlereth

One of my regular readers recently pointed me to this Denver Post column about a former NFL player who was able to shed the pounds by livin’ la vida low-carb. It turns out 3-time Super Bowl winner and former All-Pro offensive lineman for the Washington Redskins and Denver Broncos Mark Schlereth trimmed down from his 300-pound playing days in the National Football League by implementing a controlled-carbohydrate nutritional approach. When I heard about this, I KNEW I had to interview Mark. To my delight, he agreed!

In Episode 120 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore”, we hear from Mark Schlereth describing his post-NFL diet and exercise regimen, the struggle he had maintaining the weight requirements placed on him by constantly eating, how he has transitioned his life to focus more on his television career and family, and his ideas for some non-football books that he’s been working on. It was such a privilege to speak with Mark and I hope you enjoy listening to the interview as much as I did conducting it.

Click on the “LISTEN NOW” link below or download it to your iPod to hear Episode 120:

Mark Schlereth always seems to be in the right place at the right time. Winning three Super Bowls with two different teams, turning down a 6-year, $42 million contract extension to retire from the NFL only to be given an immediate opportunity to become a football analyst for ESPN, getting noticed by the producers of the daytime soap opera Guiding Light to wiggle his way into a reluctant acting career, and so much more. Life is good for this former offensive lineman who had 29 surgeries during his NFL career, mostly on his knees. Now he sees what is most important and pursues those things. In other words, there’s more to life than football. How refreshing!

Check out these outtake bloopers from Mark playing Roc Hoover on Guiding Light:

Catch up with more low-carb advocates like Mark Schlereth by:

1. Listening at the official web site
2. Calling (818) 688-2763 to listen via Podlinez
3. Subscribing to the RSS feed
4. Going to iTunes–Click here to subscribe!

What do you think about Mark’s strategy to eat most of his 60g total carbohydrates before noon each day while eating a high-fiber diet? With an intake of around 30g net carbs consumed a day, what’s your impression of his diet and exercise routine? Discuss my interview with Mark Schlereth in the show notes section of Episode 120 and express your thoughts about this incredible man’s journey from beefy offensive lineman to the fabulously fit and trim man he is today thanks to livin’ la vida low-carb!

You’ll want to listen to “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” next week as I present a special two-part interview on Monday and Thursday with a nutritionist who actually supports the tenets of the healthy low-carb lifestyle! Yes, it’s rare these days, but you can find a few independent-thinking minds who are brave enough to admit that low-carb living indeed works for some people very well and should be implemented. Don’t miss that interview!

We’ve got LOTS more interviews coming up for you in the coming weeks from a former Kimkins member who wants to share her concerns about Heidi Diaz, a fitness guru who only recently discovered the carbohydrate connection to obesity and disease, a previous contestant on “The Biggest Loser” weight loss reality show on NBC-TV, and the author of a book who clearly understands the unique insulin connection in the weight loss and health problems that plagued our society. All this and so much more to come in the next few months! THANKS for listening!

A couple of weeks ago, I dedicated an entire YouTube video to a low-carb legend who has revolutionized controlled-carbohydrate cooking for the millions of people who have bought her bestselling low-carb cookbooks over the years. She’s low-carb cooking goddess Dana Carpender and I’ve got some pretty big news to share with you about a major career change that has been in the works for a while.

Click here to get all the details on Dana Carpender’s BIG announcement on Thursday.

Dana Carpender still reigns supreme in the low-carb community

When you stop and think about who the most influential voices in the low-carb community are in the mainstream of public health, only a handful of people come to mind. I mean people who have been out there in the trenches working to help change people’s lives for the better with the positive and healthy message of low-carb living in the midst of a world that still believe the low-fat diet hung the moon.

Who pops in your mind on a short list of low-carb champions like this?

Immediately, I think of people like Drs. Michael and Mary Dan Eades from Protein Power who are some of the strongest and most consistent voices for livin’ la vida low-carb on the planet. And Dr. Jonny Bowden, author of Living The Low-Carb Life and The 150 Healthiest Foods On Earth, who is dedicated to getting people to eating less sugar and refined carbohydrates for the sake of their weight and health.

But one name sticks out above all the rest: Dana Carpender. If ever there was a more enthusiastic proponent of livin’ la vida low-carb, I haven’t met that person yet! Want some proof of this? Okay, no problem! Just go check out this post I wrote about a column by Carpender called “Take this low-fat diet and shove it!” You gotta love the gumption of that woman!

Then, earlier this year there was a fabulous study released by researchers from Stanford University and published in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) that found the Atkins diet was best for weight loss and health improvements among a list of popular diets, including the Zone diet, a high-carb, low-fat diet called LEARN, and the ultra-low-fat Ornish diet. The results of this study precipitated a unique discussion presented by Revolution Health which I shared on my podcast show in two parts here and here. Wanna hear classic Dana Carpender? Just take a listen to that audio and you’ll see exactly what I mean!

For the sake of those who have never heard of her, Christine and I share about all of Dana’s bestselling book in Episode 19 of “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube.” Seriously, anyone who is living the low-carb lifestyle should be aware of who Dana Carpender is and they’ll be a lot more familiar with her contributions to the low-carb community after watching our latest video. And pay a visit to her web site LowCarbohydrate.net sometime for more from Dana!

Allow me to introduce you to the one, the only Dana Carpender:

There were a bunch of books listed on that video, so here’s a link to each:

- How I Gave Up My Low-Fat Diet and Lost 40 Pounds
- 500 Low-Carb Recipes
- 500 More Low-Carb Recipes
- 200 Low-Carb Slow Cooker Recipes
- 15-Minute Low-Carb Recipes
- The Low-Carb Barbecue Book
- Low-Carb Smoothies
- Every Calorie Counts Cookbook

Coming up in January, I’m going to give you a chance to win your very own Dana Carpender library with all of the books I featured in Episode 19. Additionally, I’ll be featuring my review of each of these books, although I’ve already written a review for Every Calorie Counts. That’s all coming up really soon, so keep reading for more information about this!

The winner of the THREE DOZEN EGGLAND’S BEST EGGS from the contest on Episode 17 was announced, so be sure to tune in to see if that winner was YOU! And leave your comments for Episode 19 of “Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb On YouTube” to share what you think about Dana Carpender and her dazzling set of books to help you on your low-carb lifestyle change.

We’re building up quite a listing of YouTube videos now, so be sure to go back and watch any of them you might have missed. We work hard to make these as entertaining and informative as possible on a wide variety of subjects pertaining to diet, health, nutrition, and practical low-carb living. Subscribe to our videos e-mail us your feedback at livinlowcarbman@charter.net. It’s our pleasure to serve you and we look forward to continuing our videos for you in 2008. By the way, you’ll be pleased to know “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” podcast will be returning in January. WOO HOO!

“Fat Head” movie obliterates the low-fat lie with humor-filled facts

I recently shared with you about two amazing new documentaries on the subject of diet and obesity that are coming out soon and today I have an interview with one of those filmmakers to talk about his movie designed to be a direct response to Morgan Spurlock’s Super Size Me. Tom Naughton was kind enough to send me a special advance release of his new movie Fat Head to review and I was blown away by how well done it was with all the professional quality of Spurlock’s documentary, but with the truth on his side.

Naughton says Morgan Spurlock fed us all “a load of bologna”

Currently, Naughton is seeking distribution for Fat Head and would like to expose it to as wide an audience as possible because of the potential lifechanging impact it could have on so many people who have never heard the facts he shares in this film. It’s an eye-opening experience to learn why fat isn’t so bad for you and carbohydrates are.

Watch this trailer for Fat Head posted at YouTube and then read my exclusive interview with the filmmaker Tom Naughton afterwards to find out more about this new movie and how you can help spread the word to others about it:

Click here to read my interview with the filmmaker behind the Fat Head documentary Tom Naughton.

“Leatherheads” starring Clooney and Krasinski coming April 4, 2008

Pinch me because now that it’s getting closer for the theatrical release of a movie I got to be an extra in, it kinda feels like a dream. But this is no dream and the Universal Pictures film Leatherheads starring George Clooney, Ren

Is actress Angelina Jolie following a low carb food plan, as The Skinny Website wonders?

As a trained journalist — i.e., I’m not a gossip columnist — I’m hesitant to indulge in such idle diet speculation, but what the heck, let’s go for it for a change.

Of course, lately, there’s been chitchat all about Angelina Jolie’s ultra-slim body. She reportedly denied being anorexic, insisted that she doesn

UK cooking sensation Jamie Oliver’s new book coming October 2, 2007

Although it sometimes feels like an uphill battle in the struggle to help people learn more about healthy eating, the good news is there are people who are actively engaging our culture and bringing this positive message to the masses through the opportunities they have been given. I’m always happy to share about these with you so you can support them in their work.

We seen it from people like George Stella and Blaine Jelus in the United States in recent years. But as their stardom has sadly begun to wane a bit, there is a man from the UK whose influence on healthy cooking remains very strong–it’s the “Naked Chef” himself Jamie Oliver!

You’ll recall I previously blogged about how Jamie put pressure on the British Education Secretary Alan Johnson to remove junk food from school lunch menus (which instigated the creation of his FeedMeBetter.com petition campaign) and even put on a fat suit to underscore the health and weight problem of his fellow countrymen.

Jamie Oliver is indeed a man to be reckoned with and to pay attention to because he makes a lot of sense. He’s got a new book coming in October 2007 entitled Cook With Jamie: My Guide To Making You A Better Cook and even has his own video podcast series on YouTube!

Here’s a great one he created on how to cook the perfect steak:

Click here to learn more about the work Jamie Oliver is doing on behalf of healthy living, including through his web site, books, and videos.

“How YOU doin’?” Is THIS the way we want the obese portrayed?

In Episode 78 of “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore,” I take a closer look at the movies that have come out of Hollywood in the past few years to see how they are characterizing fat people on the silver screen. It’s mostly stereotypical, but there are signs of improvement. Listen in today to hear all about it:

My wife and I enjoy watching movies together and have seen our fair share of all kinds of films, including ones that feature overweight and obese people in them. In this podcast show today, I take a look at many of these fat flicks, including Eddie Murphy’s Norbit, Ryan Reynolds’ Just Friends, Gwyneth Paltrow’s Shallow Hal, and Mo’Nique’s Phat Girlz, just to name a few. These movies offer a mixed bag of good and bad which I highlighted in Episode 78.

Wanna getcha low-carb groove on? Get on with it when you want by:

1. Listening at the official web site
2. Going to iTunes
3. Calling (818) 688-2763 to listen via Podlinez
4. Subscribing to the RSS feed

Are you happy with the way Hollywood depicts the overweight and obese in movies? Or do characters like Eddie Murphy’s Rasputia in Norbit merely set back all the progress that has been made to break down the stereotypes? Also, would you go to see a movie with an obese person as a positive featured character in a film?

Share your thoughts about this and tell us what you favorite “fat” movies of all time are. I’m sure I’ve missed a few, so let me hear from you.

THANK YOU for listening to “The Livin’ La Vida Low-Carb Show with Jimmy Moore” and please come back again on Monday for yet another episode of the Internet’s #1 podcast about the amazingly healthy low-carb lifestyle!