Valerie Bertinelli has struggled with her weight.  The 'Hot In Cleveland' star joined celebrity Kirstie Alley in 2009 as a Jenny Craig spokesperson, which lead to her book, "Losing It: And Gaining My Life Back One Pound At A Time". She tells OK! magazine:

“I’ve always been an emotional eater.”

“My Kathy [her personal consultant at Jenny Craig] is so terrific. The thing that is so great about Jenny is this concept of a personal consultant. I swear, it’s cheap therapy. She helped me come up with practical ways to deal with stressful moments.”

She continues, “Kathy and I worked together to strategize ways to cope when I’m stressed out, such as, pausing in that moment when I want to dive into a big bag of chips, think about what I was about to do and asking myself, ‘is it worth trading this moment for what is most important to me … my well being?’ It is that awareness factor. It’s saved my life.”

However, Valerie wants to live too, and enjoy life - so of course she has to splurge every now and then.

“My favorite splurge is champagne, and I’ve had lots of reasons to celebrate this year. New TV show, great friends, my engagement to Tom. The key to not going overboard is simply being aware. I think twice when I see a buffet of desserts. If there is something I want, I’ll have a taste, but not the whole enchilada.”

What’s the one splurge Valerie has stayed away from?

“I haven’t had a jalapeno popper in years!”

And what's some of her favorite health foods?

“I love, love, love my Jenny Tuscan soup,” she shares. “It’s a great recipe that you can find online, only 65 calories and so-o filling. It’s really yummy. I also still eat Jenny Cuisine from time to time. My faves are their new beef chow mein, turkey burgers … seriously, the food is delicious and it’s a perfect model for portion control. It keeps me on track.”

On a side note, my cousin makes a mean turkey burger with organic meat...delish!

Pick up the OK! on newsstands this week to get Valerie Bertinelli’s What I Ate Today diet feature.