Celebrities and diets: Who lost weight in '08?

McClatchy Newspapers (MCT) - Admit it. You sneak a peek at the latest rags in the checkout lane. That's OK _ there's very little else to do unless you want to memorize the ingredients of Orbit gum.

Though the flashy tabs often dispense frustratingly inaccurate information _ how many times have they pegged Jennifer Aniston as pregnant? _ sometimes they're dead-on correct. Hello? They all knew Madge and Guy Ritchie were on the rocks before the divorce lawyers got their first paycheck.

For the New Year, apparently the majority of tabloid eds have resolved to cover very little else but celebrities' bodies.

At least these days, a handful actually have some useful information on how to get thin in the New Year, with A-list examples.

Though the famous have personal trainers and access to every "It" nutrition plan, some are human, with hunger pangs, hankerings for all things caloric and aversions to exercise like the rest of us.

Here's a few examples of women who lost weight in 2008 and how.

_GWYNETH PALTROW: The normally pin-thin star admitted she packed on some holiday pounds (too many canapes at the Fontainebleau, perhaps?).

How she did it: The 36-year-old mother of two has dabbled in the Master Cleanse program, when you can consume nothing but water, lemon juice, maple syrup and cayenne pepper for a minimum of 10 days. "Uck." Sounds better than past extreme diets designed by her health guru Dr. Nish Joshi, which excluded wheat, dairy products, sugar, gluten, booze and red meat.

_NAOMI WATTS: Baby weight? What baby weight? Just a month after giving birth to her second child with Liev Schreiber, the 40-year-old Aussie is looking like a track runner.

How she did it: Breast feeding son Sam. "He's sucking it all out of me, it seems," she told People.

_ELISABETH HASSELBECK: Try to not feel TOO hostile _ the flat-as-a-board "View" cohost posed in a bikini on the cover of Fitness six months after giving birth to her second child.

How she did it: The 31-year-old credits fierce workouts at New York gym La Palestra, where they staff a team of nutritionists and psychologists along with trainers.

Hasselbeck has stayed the course on a wheat-free diet (she has celiac disease), and noshes on lean protein, vegetables, nutrition bars and nuts. "View"-induced stress probably helps, too.

_BRITNEY SPEARS: The pop tart with a penchant for Cool Ranch Doritos packed on the pounds during an emotional rough patch in fall 2007. No one would have been wiser had Spears, 27, not donned a bikini while stumbling about the VMAs stage.

How she did it: No stranger to dance routines, Brit lost the 20 thanks to intense cardio three times a week (think lunges, jump squats and general boogieing). As for the nacho chips, they were replaced by a 1,200-calorie-a-day delivery plan, Sunfare.

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_HALLE BERRY: Never one to follow the anorexia crowd, Berry is looking fine in '09. The poundage the 42-year-old actress gained with her daughter Nahla is history.

How she did it: Berry supposedly used the 5-Factor Fitness plan, which includes an exercise program of 25 minutes five times a week and eating five meals per day. Doesn't sound bad: No carb counting, just proteins and lots of fiber and healthy fats.

_FERGIE: The baby bump rumors started right around the time the normally toned rocker (nee Stacey Ferguson) started plumping up for her role as a prostitute in the movie musical "Nine."

How she did it: The Black Eyed Peas singer, 33, had motivation to lose the curves to fit into her wedding dress (she married Josh Duhamel earlier this month).

Her plan: two-hour morning jogs and Diet Designs food delivery service created by Hollywood nutritionist Carrie Wiatt.

"I have to give the bad food up now!" she said before her nuptials. "So, yeah. I'm in that phase."

Welcome to the club.

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© 2009, The Miami Herald.