By Kay Quinn, KSDK-TV, April 27, 2007

Move more. Eat good food and less of it.

It''s advice you hear all the time. But could it really be the weight loss answer you''ve been looking for?

Two local women say yes.

They''ve tried all of the diets. But what''s working for Mary Ellen Kohnen and Karen Frye has nothing to do with a cutting carbohydrates or cabbage soup.

"Unfortunately, I could be the poster child for all the illnesses that they warn you could happen with increased weight," said Frye.

They include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, esophageal reflux, and arthritic knees. Frye is bothered by all of them. She''s also tried just about every way to lose weight.

"I was successful with a number of the programs but I couldn''t keep the weight off and this time I was looking for something that could change my life," said Frye.

In December, she decided to try again. This time she started taking the stairs more and making better food choices. She also joined a program called Weigh to Life that''s not a diet, but teaches healthier ways of living.

"Many of the folks who come to us have had a whole lifetime of dieting experience so we really wanted to offer something that would help them make some permanent changes," said Dotti Durbin, a dietitian with the Weigh to Life program at the Heart Care Institute at Barnes-Jewish West County Hospital.

Frye meets with dietitians, exercise and behavior specialists. She wears a pedometer with the goal of 10,000 steps a day and keeps a daily food journal.

Mary Ellen Kohnen first started in 2004.

"I still keep my food diary and that was really hard for me. I really didn''t want to write everything down but I have learned that that has made a big difference for me," said Kohnen.

She''s lost 34 pounds total. But she really sees the different in her cholesterol numbers, which are now in healthy ranges and in how she feels.

"I''ve lost weight but it hasn''t been dramatic. It''s been about two pounds a month," said Kohnen.

It''s success Frye hopes to achieve. She''s lost 31 pounds since December and would like to come off her medications and avoid Type 2 diabetes.

"I wanted to learn skills which would allow me to eat at work, to bring my lunch to work, to cook at home, to eat out at restaurants, to go on vacation," said Frye.