The non-partisan Congressional Budget Office gave universal health coverage a thumbs up. In a letter to the Senate, the CBO said:

Overall, our preliminary analysis indicates that the proposal would be roughly budget-neutral in 2014. That is, our analysis suggests that your proposal would be essentially self-financing in the first year that it was fully implemented. That net result reflects large gross changes in federal revenues and outlays that would roughly offset each other.

Everyone has certain foods that they crave. For some its cookies, other its ice cream. My weakness is chocolate.

There are two types of foods that can wreck a diet. One is foods that you will eat if they are around. These are called "trigger" foods and the only way to deal with them is to keep them out of the house (and the office).

For example, a carton of Ben & Jerry’s never lasts in my freezer. So, I don’t buy it. If it’s not there, I won’t eat it. Another example is an open bag of chips - always dangerous.

The other is crave foods. These are foods that if you get a little taste, you can be satisfied for the rest of the day. Not getting a daily taste, however, can lead to big quantities later. These are often foods and drinks that can be weaned off with a little bit of self-control.

Chocolate is a good example. A small piece of chocolate satisfies my craving for the day. It is often enough to keep me from having a bigger piece of chocolate later or, more importantly, something higher in calories such as a chocolate chip cookie.

I will eat two or three Hershey’s dark chocolate kisses a day. The calorie penalty is only about 60 calories, which is low enough to compensate for with other dietary choices. The upside is that I satisfy my craving without reaching for something that is higher calorie.

Trigger and crave foods are different for everyone. If you have a hard time parting with a certain food, start by eating less of it. For example, order a small size of fries. Alternatively, have a few bites and then throw the rest in the trash. Often just throwing a portion of the food into the trash or a container is enough to keep you eating less.

The point is cutback on calories without feeling like you are sacrifices. Most diets don’t work because they are too restrictive to adhere too. Allowing a little slack for crave foods, however, increases the odds of long-term success.

It’s worked for me.

Read part one about losing weight

An important part of fitness, in addition to exercise and diet, is regularly seeing a doctor. Multiple studies shows that people who have access to health care live longer.

Unfortunately, while the politicians are hacking out a way to either create universal health care or do something to "fix" the system as it is now, the rest of us are just trying to wade through the available information and find a policy that meets our needs -- and that we can afford. The health section of InsuranceSpecialists.com one that we have found to be a good place to start. Their quote engine will provide information for people in any part of the country (you begin by putting in your zip code) and approximately 250 companies are included in the search.

The site does a good job of explaining the differences between HMOs, PPOs, and indemnity health plans (as well as the pros and cons of health savings accounts) and the degree to which preventive care is or is not covered by a policy. It’s short, sweet, and to the point. You'll get what they're talking about without a lot of industry jargon. By laying out the information and tying that to a quote system, you can have ballpark prices from insurers in your area in you email box in a matter of hours. (Since all insurance rates are personalized, you will need to give your age, gender, weight, height, pre-existing conditions, and some information about your work, as well as contact info.)

The length of time to actually be insured will vary from carrier to carrier. If you're young, at a good weight level, and have no pre-existing conditions it’s a matter of days. If a health exam is required, maybe a couple of weeks given scheduling issues.

Overall, searching online for affordable health insurance options just makes sense. And as long as you are rate shopping, you can also use this site to search for homeowners, life, and auto insurance. (You might be surprise at how much you could save by simply getting some rate quotes.) Plus, there’s a news section and a library of relevant industry articles. (Titles include things like "Insurers Now Cover Online Doctor Visits", "Association Health Insurance Plans","Hispanic Consumers Seek Health Insurance Online", and }Growing Support for Universal Health Care".)

The one place where people fall down on the job when it comes to insurance quotes is the research. It’s boring, confusing, and really easy to just put off. The quote search feature at InsuranceSpecialists takes the sting out of the process. It will help you to narrow your list of potential insurers quickly and to go in armed with an understanding of what you're after when you actually start negotiating with a company rep to get a policy. Thumbs up for a really useful site.

Even if you don't think you can afford health insurance or you currently have a plan, it's worth getting a quote - you might be surprised at the type coverage you can get. Having access to health care is a vital part of any fitness program and will help you to live a longer and happier life.

I’ve lost more than 25 pounds. My blood pressure is down, I’m in great health, I don’t take supplements (outside of vitamin D), I’m not afraid to snack and my wife has never seen me so thin.

Oh, and I eat chocolate pretty much every day.

So what’s my secret? Good food choices, portion control, exercise and motivation.

Over the next several weeks, I’m going to detail what I’ve done to surpass my weight loss goals and how I’ve done it without dieting. The best thing about this is that anybody can replicate my success.

I originally started writing a single blog post and then realize that it was becoming increasing long. Too long for a single blog post. So rather than edit it down, I’m going to put it up in parts. This, obviously, is part one.

As a preview, here are a few things that you can do today to start losing weight, like I have done.

• Exercise nearly every day – Even if it’s just 10 minutes in the morning, it’s something
• Eat smaller portions – Put less cereal in your bowl, don’t finish off your plate, etc
• Take non-processed food to the office – fruit, vegetables and nuts all have fewer calories than what you will find in the vending machines
• Constantly keep water on you
• Eat when you’re hungry – a small nosh will prevent you from eating a big snack later
• Brush your teeth after meals – Nothing tastes good with toothpaste
• If there is something you absolutely crave, have a tiny portion every day. For example, I crave chocolate, so I have a very small portion of chocolate (usually about 60 calories worth) every day.

-Charles
Publisher, NetSweat.com

Over the weekend, we got in a discussion with a couple we met at home fitness equipment store about gyms. They had recently joined a high-end health club, which they were generally happy with.

Prior to joining the upscale club, they had belonged to one of those corporate mega gyms. Many of you know the type: huge facilities, more equipment than you could ever think about using, 24 hours (or at least early morning to late night hours), etc.

They hated it. It wasn’t so much the blaring music (though that didn’t help matters), but rather the fact they felt like the gym was constantly trying to sell supplements and other nutritional “plans”.

We understand that supplements can add greatly to a gym’s bottom line and, from a business sense, selling supplements is a good strategy. However, the overwhelming majority (we’re talking in the area of 95%) of people going to a gym do not need any supplements, except perhaps a multi-vitamin. Worse yet, supplements (especially the protein mixes and the sports drinks) are a source of extra calories and consuming them defeats the purpose of going to the gym in the first place. Not to mention that the fact that a bottle of water and a balanced diet of non-processed foods is considerably more beneficial.

If your gym constantly pushes supplements and you have a choice of going elsewhere, do so. There are several community gyms that, though smaller in size, are quite good. (We’ve often seen Precor machines at these facilities.) YMCA’s are also a good bet. There are also many smaller, private gyms that are well run. Look around, your choices may surprise you.

A study by the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Health Research and Educational Trust has found that health-care costs have doubled since 2000. According to the Wall Street Journal, "the annual cost for family coverage through an employer health plan is now more than $12,000, well over what a minimum-wage worker earns in a year."

NetSweat.com Comments: We constantly focus on health insurance because all of the exercise in the world is not going to help if you can't get afford to go a doctor. If you're not happy with the rate at which health-care costs are rising, ask your politicians to change the system.

Following a vegetarian diet does not yield a larger amount of weight loss than following a non-vegetarian diet according to a study published in the International Journal of Obesity.

Researchers at the University of Pittsburgh followed a group of 176 overweight and sedentary adults for a period of 18 months. Half the group was allowed to choose their own diet, whereas the other half was assigned a diet. Of the group that was assigned a diet, half of the participants were assigned a vegetarian diet.

Not surprising, participants who were assigned a diet lost more weight than those who chose a diet. Among those who were assigned a diet, participants who followed a “standard” diet lost 8% and those who followed a vegetarian diet lost 7.9%.

NetSweat.com comments: There is a common misperception that following a vegetarian diet will make you skinny. The reality is that there are many overweight vegetarians and vegans. (French fries made with vegetable oil are both vegan and bad for you.)

This said, the majority of overweight people do not eat enough vegetables. A quarter pound of carrots, for instance, is much healthier than a quarter pound of pot roast. Plus, since vegetables are less calorie dense than just about all processed and baked foods, they will allow you to feel more full at lower levels of caloric intake.