Tosca Reno's story is an inspirational one. At age 40, she weighed over 200 pounds, by age 46, she became a fitness model. How did she do it? And how can the rest of us do it too?

There were many things going wrong in Reno's life that finally made her decide to take control. One of the things she decided she needed to do was start "eating clean," and getting her weight under control. She also started exercising at least five days a week, and built up her body with weight training.

While I believe exercise is important for our health, I'm not interested in exercising to the point of having a "hard body" full of strong muscles; it's enough for me that I have a healthy, toned body. I study nutrition, and as such, I'm more interested in the aspect of health, specifically in nutrition. I was interested in Reno's The Eat-Clean Diet precisely because of the title, the concept of "eating clean" intriguing me.

After reading The Eat-Clean Diet, I feel that it may not be the best book for people whose primary focus is on their health and who are seriously looking for health or nutritional information. However, it is a great book for people whose primary focus is to lose weight and at the same time regain some of their health, and the recipes contained in both The Eat-Clean Diet and The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook are delicious and healthy.

The Eat-Clean Diet Cookbook in particular has over 150 recipes. The book is full of pictures, tips, and delicious and easy-to-make recipes. It is divided into smaller sections for different categories: breakfast, soup, grains, proteins, sauces, one-dish-meals, vegetables, pasta, and dessert. I'm glad that Reno has included a category just for grains -- I'm not accustomed to eating grains, but the recipes look so good that I feel I'm going to enjoy trying them out. I'm especially eager to try out the various quinoa dishes, as I've never had quinoa before. I just hope our local supermarket carries these high-protein dried fruits and seeds.

The one-dish-meals are great and easy to prepare. They are meant for cooks who don't have time to prepare elaborate meals and are great stand-alone dishes. The stews, "In A Canadian Stew" and "Slow Cooker Chestnut Stew," look particularly appetizing. I am also quite partial to the vegetables section, as I love vegetables, and Reno's recipes allow me to try different cooking styles with my favorite vegetables. The sauces, spreads and salsa section contains many great recipes that can add wonderful flavor to otherwise dry or bland food. Try the "Grapefruit Salsa" with grilled fish, or the "Lentil Tomato Sauce" with spaghetti. You can even make a healthy "Do-It-Yourself Olive Butter Spread."