This is our a collection of resources for fit, balanced, joyful and conscious living. No manifesto, no one right way to live. Just a space to share the wisdom of what’s working for us — physically, mentally, spiritually.

We’re posting healthy living tips and strategies, recipes, meal plans, food diary forms, sources of inspiration and laughter, helpful links and stories from our own lives. We hope you’ll find our work helpful.

Use the links below to explore the site, or scroll down to enjoy the bodyofwisdom weblog.

Turmeric is useful for all inflammatory disorders and for autoimmune conditions. It also may have a role in the prevention and treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. (Elderly villagers in India appear to have the lowest rate of Alzheimer’s in the world, perhaps due to the fact that Indians eat turmeric with almost every meal. Some animal studies have shown that curcumin [a turmeric active ingredient] blocked the formation and accumulation of the plaque that characterizes Alzheimer’s.) Overall, turmeric appears to have significant anti-inflammatory and cancer-protective effects. These seem most evident at doses well below pharmaceutical strength, which suggests that it would be wise to consume more foods spiced with turmeric. [Read more — including info on who should avoid turmeric — here.]

• Small changes have a major impact on weight loss because they’re compounded over time. It’s just like saving for retirement. The sooner you start doing just a little bit every day, the better off you’ll be.

• Anyone can do this. Anyone.

• The process is self-reinforcing once you start to see real results. That means you need to commit to a month — a very difficult month. After that first month, though, it’s easy. And the more weight you have to lose, the easier it is.

• During that first month, you’ll be developing three new habits. Only one of them is likely to conflict with an existing habit. The other two will consume maybe 5 minutes of your daily routine.

If you’re seriously thinking about trying to lose weight, give it a shot. This is one of the easiest non-fad and non-gimmick plans you’ll run across, mostly because the “plan” is very simple and tangible. It’s not quite “the simplest thing that could possibly work” but it sure comes close.

The Hacker’s Diet, notwithstanding its silly subtitle, is a serious book about how to lose weight and permanently maintain whatever weight you desire. It treats dieting and weight control from an engineering and management standpoint, and provides the tools and an understanding of why they work and how to use them that permit the reader to gain control of their own weight. The book is intended primarily for busy, successful engineers, programmers, and managers who have struggled unsuccessfully in the past to lose weight and avoid re-gaining it.

From Dr. Weil: Five Tips for Successful Weight Loss.

From The Boston Herald: Successful dieters serve up their weight-loss secrets.

From Homemakers Magazine: A dietitian’s weight-loss secrets.