I’m just back from a nine-day trip to California and I am pleased to say I still was able to shed three pounds, despite some unavoidable slippage. I consider that a major victory considering that keeping my eating on track was difficult, especially during the time I was in a hotel room and attending business functions.

How did I do it? Planning, planning, planning. My dear friend Eleanor, who has been in food addiction recovery for ten years, shared some helpful ways to get organized. her major caveat: Plan your food and don’t let yourself get distracted from your plan.

I carried my injectable HCG in my check luggage. It needs to be kept cool, so I bundled it with a gel pack and a package of frozen cooked chicken breast. To my surprise, everything was still very cold when I arrived. I also had a bottle of my special salad dressing in my luggage, carefully sealed in plastic bags to prevent leakage.

For food along the way, I had some more frozen chicken breast and lots of celery sticks, sliced peppers, cherry tomatoes, raw broccoli and a couple of apples in my carryon. I gave up on salad since the TSA’s no-liquids rule precludes taking any dressing, but finger veggies made sense and were less messy anyway.

As soon as I got out of the airport and into the cary, I hit a supermarket that I had identified beforehand. It was just off the freeway and I was able to pick up some more fruit and a couple of containers of lettuce to keep in the frig in my room. My only deviation (at that point!) was a package of deli-chicken breast since the home-cooked smoked turkey breast was gone. When I[m at home, i don’t eats deli meats, but this seemed like a logical concession.

I was able to eat breakfast in my room most days and I could usually able to escape for lunch and take a break from the intensity of the business situation where I found myself. A couple of nights, I had business dinners, but was able to remain on the straight and narrow for them. It helps that California requires calorie counts on menus. My biggest deviation was a corned beef and cabbage dinner on St. Patrick’s Day, consumed mainly to humor my mother. It seemed to have no negative effect.

On the way home, I reversed the process and had my chicken and finger veggies to sustain me on the trip home.

I think my biggest problem was keeping my water intake at the optimal levels, since I was walking around a show floor. I was able to spot water coolers by the second day and I simply visited them several times daily.

My daily calorie count was probably slightly higher than usual–in the 800 to 900 calories per day range.

Planning was key to all of this, although there is a lot to be said for the ego boost I got from colleagues who were impressed by my weight loss and congratulatory about the dramatic improvement in my appearance. It certainly makes me want to continue.

Minus 63 pounds of unwanted fat and still going strong!

By Kathleen Barnes

Oh, my aching back! Ninety percent of all Americans suffer backaches at some time in their lives – and doctors say women are at high risk since periods, pregnancy, carrying groceries and kids, housework and high heels can all cause pain-triggering muscle and joint injuries. Two out of five women have suffered back pain in the last year and for 80% of sufferers, the pain is long-lasting— starting more than a year ago.

Doctors often recommend bed rest, prescription medication or even surgery to deal with the nagging pain. “More and more research is showing that natural is the way to go for better relief in the long and short term, fewer side effects and more side benefits,” say Brattleboro, VT herb researchers Thomas Newmark and Paul Schulick, master herbalist, authors of Beyond Aspirin. In fact, groundbreaking new research shows natural supplements can stop even the worst back pain – and speed healing for the pain stays gone for good!

Try these for relief:

Willow bark extract: This herb contains salicin, a pain-relieving anti-inflammatory compound similar to acetylsalicylic acid in aspirin that puts the brakes on your body’s production of pain-producing prostaglandins. Recent Israeli research shows that a 240-milligram dose daily got complete relief from back pain in 40% of sufferers in just four weeks. German researchers looking into willow bark say it works better than aspirin for long-term pain relief because it helps prevent cartilage destruction and has a lower risk of side effects.

“Like aspirin, willow bark can be irritating to the stomach, so it’s a good idea to combine it with something that would prevent those effects, like ginger, itself a powerful anti-inflammatory which soothes the stomach lining,” say Newmark and Schulick.

Find relief with: Willow bark capsules or extract containing 40 mg of salicin three times a day until the pain is gone.

MSM: An estimated 30 million people worldwide are taking this sulfur-compound derivative, with results that are nothing short of miraculous, according to Stanley Jacob, MD, professor of surgery at Portland’s Oregon Health Sciences University and author of The Miracle of MSM. And for good reason: Jacob’s research showed it cuts pain in half for most sufferers within four weeks or less. Some patients find their pain eases within days, but complete relief may take a month or even two.

Jacob, who personally treated more 18,000 people with MSM (methylsufonylmethane) for chronic pain, said, “Seventy percent of them got complete relief—even those who had no peace from any other type of treatment. I know it works and it works better than any other treatment available.”

Jacob and his colleagues at Oregon Health Sciences University learned that MSM relieves pain by working as an anti-inflammatory and it also softens scar tissues. But Jacob theorized that MSM is far more than a pain reliever: It promotes your body’s own natural healing power by dilating blood vessels and improving blood supply to injured areas. It also helps reduce muscle spasm.

Find relief with: Up to 8 grams a day in capsules or a powdered form, which is less expensive and have a bitter taste and should be dissolved in juice or water. Jacob’s suggested dosage: Start with 2 grams a day (about half a teaspoon) and slowly work up to as much as 8 grams until you get relief. If you get diarrhea, go back a notch.

Capsaicin: Derived from hot chili peppers, this heat-producing compound is used in creams like Zostrix literally blocks the pain where you need it most. British research has shown capsaicin, when applied directly to the painful spot, depletes a neurotransmitter called substance P, literally stopping pain signals to your brain! And German scientists found that nearly two-thirds of long-time back pain sufferers reduced the pain by at least 30% in just three weeks by using capsaicin cream. . You may feel a sensation of heat when you apply the cream, and that means it’s working, says Mark Blumenthal, executive director of the American Botanical Council in Austin.

Find relief with: Creams containing .025% up to 1% capsaicin. Apply several times a day until the pain disappears.

Turmeric: Michigan State University scientists say it’s three times more effective in cutting pain and inflammation that aspirin, ibuprofen or naproxen. Look for formulas like Gaia Herbs or New Chapter that contain no more than 20% curcumins and take up to 800 mg a day.

Ginger: An herbal powerhouse that contains no less than 477 active ingredients that inhibit prostaglandin production and bring a gentle internal warmth just where you need it. Take ½ tsp or 100 mg in capsules twice a day.

Holy basil: A cousin of our favorite kitchen spice, Michigan State researchers found it has at least six of the same compounds found in NSAIDS, including the powerful anti-inflammatory ursolic acid. Take one or two 400 mg capsules a day.