I don't know about you, but this is the time of year when I realize how much unwanted weight I've gained and vow to do something about it. Believe it or not, the Internet can help!

Here's a wonderful site that's one of the best for diet information: Diet & Weight Loss/Fitness Home Page. Read their weight loss tips, get help on starting your diet, or learn why we eat when we're not hungry.

Another excellent site is Mayo Clinic's Virtual Cookbook where your own recipes are made healthy. Send them a recipe and they'll reduce the fat, calories, cholesterol, and sodium for you! The site then posts selected recipes online in categories such as breakfasts, breads, and entrees. Each recipe offers the original as well as the modified version which lets you know how many calories and fat grams you'll save by eating healthy.

One of the best weight loss spots on the Internet is CyberDiet. Complete an online form and receive a personalized, nutritional profile showing how many calories and nutrients you should be consuming each day. At the Daily Food Planner, plug in your daily calories and receive help in planning your meals, complete with a shopping list and recipes. Learn exercise tips and diet preservers as well.

Now here's a helpful site. The Diet Analysis Home Page lets you enter the foods you've eaten for one day (no cheating), and it will report a complete nutritional review of your diet based on the recommended daily allowances for your demographic area.

For no-nonsense information about the consequences of obesity, various diet therapies, behavior modification, and medications for the treatment of obesity, visit Understanding Obesity and Weight Loss published by the UCSF Division of Internal Medicine.

Get help in starting a weight loss journal at Good Housekeeping's Fitness Connection. Check out their delicious three-week weight loss plan, Winning@Losing. The Kitchen Counter helps you keep track of the day's nutritional intake or find out how many calories are in a particular food. The site also features a Burn Thermometer, which will tell you how many calories you'll burn by doing certain activities.

We all know that in order to have a successful weight loss program, we should incorporate exercise into our regime. At The Internet's Fitness Resource, you'll find a listing of fitness-related links as well as weekly editorials on nutrition, fitness plans, and much more. The Fitness Plan offers an Abs FAQ for abdominal training, a Stretching FAQ, and information on aerobic exercise.

At Cooking Light Online, you'll find fabulous recipes for one of our favorite foods, chocolate. How about a Double-Chocolate Cream Tart? Their recipe index features every recipe published in Cooking Light Magazine from 1995-1997. See what exercise videos their experts recommend, and read helpful articles in the Well-Body Almanac.

Robin Nobles is a freelance writer who can be reached at robinnobles@robinsnest.com.

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