Visit "Mondays with Marlo" for Nutritionist Joy Bauer Book Giveaway

Actor, comedienne, and activist Marlo Thomas's online series "Mondays with Marlo", right here on Aol, brings special guests (such as Dr. Dale Atkins and Dr. Oz) together with viewers every week for a fantastic half-hour of frank, fun, and informative talk on subjects from sexual health to advice on nutrition, diet, and cooking meals you (and your family) will love. The best part of this live show is, viewers get to ask the experts their own questions, which makes it personal, provocative... and spontaneous!

On Monday, January 17th, at 12:30 p.m. ET, Marlo chats with star nutrition and health expert Joy Bauer, M.S., R.D, who not only hosts the Today show's biweekly "Joy Fit Club," but is a best-selling author of Your Inner Skinny and Joy Bauer's Food Cures.

Got a diet or nutrition question you'd like answered by these pros? Visit Joy and Marlo during the show on Monday to ask it LIVE! Mention that you're a Slashfood reader and you'll be entered to win a copy of Joy Bauer's newest book, Slim & Scrumptious (75 recipes for healthy and delcious home-cooked meals), as well as Marlo Thomas's winning, and very personal memoir Growing Up Laughing. You can submit your question in advance, and Joy will answer as many of your questions as she can during the webcast. Or visit MarloThomas.com starting later that day to watch the full-length video of the 30-minute chat.

Our question for Joy and Marlo? Well, for starters, how do you two stay so fit? We're listening.
Joy Bauer gives us a head start here with some advice.

See Joy Bauer's Five Top Tips for Staying Healthy, after the jump.
1. Nix sugary beverages-drink water instead. Sugary drinks such as soda, fancy coffee drinks, fruit drinks, sweetened waters, and sweet tea are literally liquid candy. They're loaded with refined sugar and calories -- and they're wasted calories, because liquids don't fill you up the same way solid food does. Cut them out of your diet and quench your thirst with water, naturally flavored (zero calorie) seltzers, and unsweetened coffee and tea instead. (If you must sweeten your coffee/tea, use only 1-2 packets or teaspoons sugar).

2. Include at least one produce item at every meal. Have a piece of fruit with breakfast, or make a veggie-stuffed egg-white omelet. For lunch, have a voluminous tossed salad. If you're a sandwich eater, pile your sammie high with lots of veggie toppings (lettuce, tomato, onion, roasted red peppers, cucumber slices etc.), or just enjoy some crunchy baby carrots on the side. At dinner, compliment your entrée with a pile of roasted, steamed, microwaved, or sautéed veggies-broccoli, cauliflower, green beans, zucchini, spinach or whatever you like best.

3. Cook dinner at home at least 5 nights per week. Give fast food the boot! When you prepare meals at home, you're in control of portion size and the quality of ingredients. You can trim down the calories and boost nutrition in recipes by using less butter or oil, swapping full-fat dairy products and condiments for low-fat versions, adding extra produce, and cutting back on salt. Plus, cooking and eating dinner at home is one of the best ways to spend quality time with family and friends. You can share conversation, catch up on the day's events, and connect with your kids while sharing a healthy, home-cooked meal.

4. Eliminate extras. When you pick at food between meals, the calories can really add up fast. Think about all the extras you potentially consume during a typical day -- a few chocolates from the office candy bowl, a bite of your kids' leftovers at lunch, extra tastes while you're cooking dinner, the list goes on and on. If you cut out the extracurricular nibbles and follow a structured meal and snack schedule, you can save major calories and drop a few pounds without a whole lot of effort.

5. Make exercise a priority. Make a commitment to doing at least 30 minutes of physical activity, 5 days a week. Anything that gets your heart pumping is fine -- just find something you enjoy and can stick with. Walking (outdoors or on a treadmill) is a terrific form of exercise because it's easy on your joints, you don't need any fancy equipment (just a decent pair of sneakers), and you can do it almost anywhere. Or, try dancing, swimming, biking, doing an aerobics DVD, taking a fitness class, or playing a sport. Mix it up!