Dieting Books

I love the book! Other reviewers have very elequently summarized the contents of the book so I won't do that here. About a month ago, I discovered the author's blog. Her writing style and openness are so heartwarming that I gobbled up all her on-line archives in a very short time. I ordered the British version of the book from Amazon and was surprised by how quickly it arrived. The book has a wonderful narrative and puts many things into context that you don't necessarily get from the blog. The book definitely can stand on its own, but it also makes a nice companion to the blog. Shauna Reid has inspired me to make small and gradual changes to my daily life that hopefully will lead to a healthier lifestyle.

I've been following Shauna's blog for quite some time now. As another reviewer put it, I also gobbled up the archives in short order. Shauna's writing style is honest and humble. It will make you laugh out loud and often nod your head in total agreement.

I have to confess when I first heard about her book, I thought it would be a regurgitation of the blog. I was pleasantly surprised to discover it went way beyond that. I got a deeper understanding of who Shauna really is, and would recommend the book to anyone looking for a damn good story about finding oneself - and oh by the way, an entertaining saga about losing weight. I, too, am hoping for more from Shauna. And soon!

I started following the Dietgirl blog a few months ago, and I've read through a number of the archives. "Dang!" I thought to myself. "This girl is *funny*!" I preordered the US book awhile back, happily received it on New Year's Eve, and spent the evening (and a few days after...only because of family/job demands, otherwise it would have been devoured in one sitting) reading this book. Totally missed tuning in for the 9 p.m. (PST) dropping of the ball in Times Square, which usually marks the high point of our personal festivities. (We're such the party animals.)

This book is brilliant! (And not, I'm not just gushing about it because I was desperate for a read at all, let alone a good one.)

Remarkably insightful observations of things I loved about the book:
- Numerous laugh-out-loud funny parts
- Parts that made me feel sympathetic, that I could relate to, and that made me ponder my own quest for fitness
- It's *true*!
- The themes: Fitness is not *only* about the scale or a pant size. Don't wait until you're at the "ideal" weight to do the things you really want to do. Don't let fear stop you. It's a message that a lot of people need to hear. (Like Oprah, for example. Girlfriend, pull your head out of Hollywood and plunk it into this book!)

The drawbacks?
- Being irritated at what or whom ever pulled me away during reading
- Potential financial ruin from buying copies for family (especially the nieces) and friends
- Having to *wait* until Shauna Reid (hope! hope! hope!) publishes another book! (Don't wait as long as that OTHER Edinburgh author, please!)

I found this book entertaining and engrossing from beginning to end. It's a cliche to say that it made me laugh and cry - but the truth is that it really did make me do both.

The book covers over 4 years of real-life 'diary entries' from Shauna Reid, an Australian in her early 20s who, in 2001, weighed 25 stone. The book follows her gradual weight loss over the next 4 years until she loses half her body weight and finally makes peace with herself. Needless to say, it is an inspirational story for anybody trying to lose weight. But what really makes the book stand out is Shauna's writing style. She is clearly a fine writer, and I whizzed through the pages thoroughly caught up in her feelings and emotions. As well as being a weight loss memoir, the book also covers topics such as bereavement, falling in love, travel and career progression. It was amazing to read how Shauna's confidence rose and fell at different stages and how she learnt to deal with insecure thoughts.

Overall, the book has a very positive message in terms of weight loss and health. I loved the attitude that Shauna developed towards her body and fitness. We all need to show more appreciation for how wonderful our bodies are and stop being so critical of them! This book is compassionate and wise and funny - I highly recommend it.

The plot of Shauna Reid's book sounds almost like a chick lit book...girl goes on weight loss plan looking for self-worth and conveniently finds a tender and caring Scottish man to sweep her off her feet who loves her just as she is. There are definitely aspects of Dietgirl that are Bridget Jones-esque, but knowing that it is a true story makes the book so much more meaningful. The book is laid out like a diary, with most entries including the date of the author's weight loss journey and her current weight that week. But what starts out as a book about weight loss becomes much more a story of how our past influences who we are, and ultimately, how we have to break free of the scars we bear from our childhood and take responsibility for our own happiness. A great thing about this book is that it is an honest account of weight loss...the author doesn't just start losing weight and keep going until she's a supermodel. She suffers setbacks along the way and is at times crippled by depression and self-doubt. But like the super heroine alter-ego that she assumes to write her popular blog, the author takes her kryptonite (in this case, chocolate) in stride and fights back, saving herself in the process.

So far this book is very informative and hits right at home for anyone trying to overcome emotional eating or eating for other reasons but hunger.

At first I was skeptical that this book would be like all the other diet books. But after doing some research on the author I found that he is an award winning Psychologist who is an expert in weight loss. I have been a yoyo dieter for many years I went from 250lbs to 165lbs at age 16 and gained it all back after I lost my girlfriend at age 19 by eating 8 whoppers a day(2before class, 2 after class, 2 during work, and 2 after work).

After reading this book I found something that I really agree with. I found that one of the main reasons that I have a problem in losing weight is that it isn't the foods that I am eating it is the amount. At the office I spend all day in front of a computer and when I get bored or frustrated I go to the kitchen to look for a snack. My company is one of those tech companies that order $2000 dollars worth of junk food from Costco to keep developers full of energy. I ended up binging on all that junk food. Today I watch my self when I go to the kitchen and I ask my self am I really hungry or is it that I am bored, frustrated, depressed, etc. Once I find the cause of my hunger I am able to work on the real problem, my emotions. Thanks Dr. Abramson for writing this book, I don't know how else to thank you but to write this review.

Thanks,
Sam

How many of us have read and tried to follow the advice of countless diet books, and walked away more frustrated then when we began? Inside the covers we read, do this, do that, eat this, don't eat that; and the list goes on. Not so in this outstanding work by author Edward Abram. Yes,there is hope for you and for me.
Our author goes to the root of the problem of not being able to maintain a healthy weight by diving into our thought patterns and showing us how they affect the way we eat, see ourselves and live. Believe me he will write about things you have long ago filed in your mind but you really have not forgotten. You will be shocked to see how these memories affect your weight and life.
I enjoyed this book; learned a lot and I truly believe it is a real eye opener.
If you have tried every diet you can find and feel as if nothing will ever work for you; I strongly suggest you give this book a try. I believe by understanding the information given in this book you will finally breath a sigh of relief and get on the right track to a healthier you.
Highly recommended.

Great book. You become aware of why you eat when you dont need to. Alot of us eat well at meals but then all the snacks here and there are the problem. If you want to stop over eatting and really get to know your body then read this.

The body has its own wisdom, and by listening to it, we can find our optimal weight. That is clearly the message of this book, and, as such, the book is a good resource. But hardly ground breaking and eye opening as other reviews have suggested. Similar ideas have been presented in many books over the past thirty years. Susie Orbach wrote about listening to the body's signals of hunger and fullness in her best-seller of the mid-seventies, Fat is a Feminist Issue. My own book, Weight Loss From the Inside Out: Help for the Compulsive Eater, published in the mid-eighties was also based on the concept that the body has its own wisdom and intelligence. Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch's Intuitive Eating, published in the mid-nineties had a similar message.

I thought this book was helpful to me by listing all the stressors that many people wouldn't think of. I hadn't thought of chocolate as a stressor and tylenol. These were to i didn;t think of. But all this info in this book helped tremendously. It helps you loose wieght along with de-stressing yourself. I also learned that drinking tea does not help you but hurt you.

What more could we want?? This superbly written book is well organized, referenced and easy to read and understand. And...the authors are transformed into our personal "coaches" who are cheerleading for our success along the weight continuum. They readily share detailed, thought provoking life-altering information and are with us all the way.

Drs Clark and Rosch have proved that quality gems can come in small packages. De-stress, Weigh Less is an excellent, compact reference book for anyone trying to lose weight, minimize the adverse effects of stress, prevent a stroke or heart attack, reduce the ravages of diabetes, improve over all health or just add zest, energy and years to life. It has sufficient research evidence for medical practitioners following a scientific based practice with their clients. At the same time it is written in user-friendly terms anyone can understand. The thought provoking questions, examples, menus and suggestions for substitutions provide life style changes that ensure success in life enhancement activities. I am using De-stress, Weigh Less as a reference book for myself and will enthusiastically recommend it to my clients. Judith O'Neill, RN, MN, COHN-S

De-stress, weigh less is a well organized compacted book with all the data one needs to know for staying fit and noting which foods cause stress and weight gain.

I liked having the checklists handy, which foods reduce the stress of boredom, weekly goals, the recipes and the tomato sauce for a week and the exercise data showing the symptoms of too much exercise.

For me the best aspect of De-stress, Weigh less is having the exact listing for which foods are vitamin rich along with the deficiency symptoms.

Usually when reading a book that states you need more protein or Vitamin B, for example, you will not get examples of what this is. I liked having this data listed so I could make adjustments in my diet.

The book covers MSG, eggs, sweeteners, binge eating, time management, allergies, food sensitivities and much more in six steps to follow.

I already eliminated Aspartame from my diet and liked seeing the list of what types of items this can be found in. The book also touched on the confusion between assertive and aggressive - an issue I have faced many times in deciphering the two meanings.

There is a food seduction test in step two. The index is extensive and covers every aspect for this no-diet plan to permanent weight loss.

Drs. Clark and Rosch have proved that high quality gems can come in small packages. De-stress, Weigh Less is an excellent, compact reference book for anyone trying to loose weight, minimize the adverse effects of stress, prevent a heart attack or stroke, reduce the ravages of diabetes, improve overall health or just add zest, energy and years to life. It has sufficient research evidence for medical practitioners following a scientific based practice with their clients. At the same time it is written in user friendly terms that anyone can understand. The thought provoking questions, examples, menus, and suggestions for substitions provide life style changes that ensuer success in life enhancement activities. I am using De-stress, Weigh Less as a reference book for myself and will enthusiastically recommend it to my clients.

This is an excellent book for getting conscious about why, when & how one is eating. The exercises are helpful and revealing.

From the inviting cover to the meaningful ending, Eating the Moment is an engaging and very useful book. Somov's style is informative, respectful, and often playful- very enjoyable to read. His suggestions for awareness-building and habit-modifying exercises are diverse enough to provide useful tools for readers of all mindfulness skill-levels. This book is quite valuable, and you can learn a great deal from it, even before experimenting with the exercises. I enthusiastically recommend this book for anyone seeking to develop a more balanced, self-nurturing experience of eating.

As a long-term (30 + years) on-again, off-again dieter, I have read more than a few self-help books on the subject of eating. "Eating The Moment" not only provides practical exercises, it is also fun to read! The feeling that you are having a conversation with the author makes it easy to take the suggested mindfulness exercises and apply them to your own situation, whether it be addictive behavior with food or simply that, like me, you really, REALLY like food! Thank you, Dr. Somov, for new insights into so many aspects of our relationships with the foods we eat. Now I am thinking more about the 'Why?' of my eating.

In his well-thought out and well-articulated book, "Eating the Moment: 141 mindful practices to overcome overeating one meal at a time," Pavel G. Somov elucidates on the phenomenology of eating from an inside out perspective. His invitation to practice mindful eating is written in a succinct and irresistibly persuasive style. The practices he suggests to overcome overeating are practical and experiential. More importantly, they are empowering: they are designed to turn on self-awareness rather than raise self-consciousness. The pedagogical value of his mindful eating practices appeal to all consumers of food. Somov's expertise in this realm stems from a healthy blend of his own practice as a clinical psychologist in helping clients deal with addictions and his acumen of contemporary culture's challenges vis-à-vis eating and food.
- Aloysius Joseph PhD

This book is for individuals who understand there are no "miracle diets." Rather, it is a sophisticated read, in straightforward language, that proposes that the solutions many individuals use to deal with overeating can become problems of their own. Dr. Somov points out that diets typically are short-term efforts to lose weight, when what is needed is a long-term change in how one lives. Thus, as a part of an effort to increase one's mindfulness, Dr. Somov presents a set of 141 practices to increase our awareness around food and eating. These including noticing what triggers our eating, what foods we crave, even what thoughts and feelings are associated with different types of eating.

Full disclosure here: I'm a holistic doctor, so I'm biased towards natural interventions for mood disorders, and this is stuff that I talk to patients about on an almost daily basis. But I've seldom seen natural therapies for psychological conditions presented in such a balanced, clear, scientific fashion.

I sometimes blanch at the outlandish claims made by some health books that deal with mental conditions. I think they cruelly mislead patients to believe that there's a vitamin or a supplement for every psychiatric complaint. Reinforcing denial is not good for patients at risk to themselves and others. But Jack Challem is versed in the latest science, and never strays far from the evidence in making his case for natural approaches.

There's clearly a place for drugs in the treatment of mental disorders, but I wish books like this got wider circulation because we could relieve untold suffering with a few basic suggestions herein. Studies have actually shown that good self-help books cure sufferers of mild to moderate depression at a rate comparable to that of Zoloft, Paxil and other commonly used drugs. They've even coined a term for it: "Bibliotherapy"!

So take this book and call your shrink in the morning--it may really not be so far-fetched! I think I'll start stocking it in my dispensary to give to my patients.

Ronald L. Hoffman, MD, New York City

Jack Challem seems to have written this book just for me. I was so tired of seeing doctors who merely prescribed multi-bad-effects medications and who each told me a different cause of my problems. I had to became very proactive to save my own health.

I was always exhausted, in body and spirit. I felt like I was in a constant brain fog, getting early Alzheimer's! I awakened more tired than when I went to bed, longing to take naps, no needing them. I have had fibromyalgia for 15 years and am taking medications for this, taking two medications which help tremendously but cause side effects. I have hypertension, am an adult with ADD. Like most people I am stressed, anxious, impatient, lack focus, taking care of an elderly parent......sound familiar? But I am an early retired teacher who loved her job and should be more relaxed and healthy. I want and need my active life-style back. I'm not "that old"!!

Well, I was literally sick from taking meds, so I picked up Mr. Challem's book just by chance and found I COULD help myself, was doing so many wrong nutritional things, made some of his easy, suggested changes and, to my disbelief, found great relief within two weeks! I have always taken supplements and watched my health - so I thought - but still felt bad most of the time. And only the suggestions made in this book have helped me feel so much better. This author makes sense.

In the easiest reading and well organized presentation, Mr. Challem specifically presents HOW food affects mood and four steps to change. He discusses real, every day problems: how to realistically reduce our levels of stress and anxiety, how to handle our irritability, how to have more energy. And his suggestions, fully explained so even I would understand them, worked!

He goes on to take us step by step through a "recovery" process in which we can "fix" ourselves - armed with nutritional understanding and easy to do changes in our diet and life style. And best of all Mr. Challem clearly points out the specific connections between foods and moods and gives the reader things to DO and things to avoid....along with some of the best recipes I have ever tried.

While all his information is data based, I could easily understand the author and put his connections and suggestions to use immediately. And they have made a wonderfully positive change in my health, my entire life.
And he sells no supplements!

This book is a perfect gift for any friend or family member (underlining and notes will have you hold on to your own copy!) who has hypertension, fibromyalgia, ADD, exhaustion, depression, who is overweight or those irritating characteristics of impatience, irritsbility, stress, obsessive-compulsive tendencies, forgetfulness ---- characteristics we certainly notice in THEM but seldom admit about ourselves!

Buy this book for your own health and sanity --- and some to give as gifts to those you care about. These ideas make sense and work.

I had difficulty understanding why I acted certain ways when my stomach was empty or full for that matter but now I know why I act the way I do after reading The Food-Mood Solution. My friends use to kindly remind me to eat something when I got too cranky for them to tolerate. Food really does effect your mood. If you don't think so, you really do need to read this book! Enjoy......

A concise, insightful, easy to understand read that can liberate the average person from the downside of the average American diet. Look around and see how right Mr Challem is, then test his theories in your own life. It's a relief to see what great, quick results you can get when you try his solutions.

Controlling moods with food is nothing new for me. The trouble was I went to the wrong foods for a quick fix that had a negative effect on my health, weight and moods. Jack Challem's book is full of stories I can relate to and it is worth the price for his recipes alone. They are terrific!

This book is great for anyone who is tired of trying to figuire out how to lose weight and get healthy. The cleanses are easy and workable for the very busiest person. I haven't finished the book yet but I went read forward to the weightloss fast and have started my husband on the cholestoral fast. I would recommend it to anyone wanting help at getting a healthier life.

This book is the most comprehensive yet easy to follow program on the subject of inner cleansing. I like that he's not preaching or self serving, but very clear and to the point about cleaning out the "toxic sludge," that we all have, as result of eating bad food. And, it doesn't require any fancy or obscure potions or pills -- just good, wholesome foods like fresh fruit/vegetable juices. Its in this book that I learn about the healing power of fresh (raw) garlic and the importance of including it into your daily cleasing. A must have for all.

If you follow the instructions in this booklet you have a very excellent chance of cleansing your body and becoming pain free. It worked for me. But you have to be willing to follow through. It leads you to a healthy way of eating and juicing and better health....plus weight loss. It is fabulous. I have bought 5 to give away as Christmas gifts.

This book is written in a very user-friendly style. What's best is that health tips are easy to put into practice.

Don't miss this appealing yet practical book.

Carlson Wade is a medical nutrition reporter who has completed 26 books on natural healing. In his book, Inner Cleansing, you will learn about the why and how of cleaning out the "sludge" that accumulates in our bodies. How does it get there? We live in a toxic world. Between air pollution, additives to our water supply, additives to our foods, dyes, colorings, preparation methods, stress, etc. the modern person has no choice but to ingest, breathe or come into contact with various toxins and other problematic items. These in turn cause premature aging, aches and pains, fatigue, heart problems, high blood pressure and a variety of other symptoms.
The book offers techniques to cleanse yourself of these toxins. The techniques are simple and the things you need are readily available. Unlike other programs for detoxification, this one does not require months to complete. After only a couple of days you should feel the difference. If you are having a nagging problem or just not feeling like yourself these days, this book may have the answers for you. If it doesn't work for you then you have lost nothing, if it does work then you have regained a better life. I will say that I often feel better after a regular cleansing program and am much more active than most of my friends my age.

awesome!!! easy recipes!!! all you need is a vita-mix blender. sound principles on food and nutrition. highly recommend!!!!

This book, along with the Rainbow Green Live-Food Cuisine book by Cousens, have become my bibles for raw food preparation. The best thing in the book is the smoothie. If you don't use any other recipe in the book, I would recommend you use this one. It has stopped me from craving unnatural foods, which is something I thought could never happen. This alone is worth the price of the book. In my opinion, the Rainbow Green book is better researched and more scientific, but still the Jubbs have done a great job in presenting a picture of why we need to eat raw and how to go about preparing the foods. I have doubts about the constant low temperatures they recommend for drying foods, and some of the recipes are very involved. Rainbow Green and the manufacturer for Excalibur both recommend at least starting with a higher temperature and then finishing with a lower one, and they say enzyme activity in the foods are not lost. I have tried both ways and am better satisfied with the higher temps first, both in texture of the foods and the reduced amount of time needed to prepare it. Still, I wouldn't be without this book. It's a treasure. The Judds are certainly to be commended for all their research and hard work in preparing this book.

I had tried raw/living food 2 different times and was up for a 3rd time trying it. I was getting a little discouraged until someone suggested this book. It gives great common sense information along with a variety of recipes. What I was missing was variety. If you're looking into raw food for the first time, this is a great book. Really it's a great book for anyone.

i borrowed this book last week. i love it and am purchasing a copy for the house.
not only is LIFE FOOD written in an easily understood language but also does not assume one is unfamiliar with natural living either- i.e.:"dumbed down." regardless whether or not you are a rawist already, vegetarian, or just searching for a healthy change in your dietary practices, this book can provide a fresh {living} viewpoint for any current diet outlook.
a couple of ways LIFE FOOD does this is by combining wholistic information re: vitamins and enzymes we ingest daily in our foods, with simple to make [and yummy] recipes. this book stands aside from many others following on the "fad-diet" train. it is not a high-gloss advert for sexy celeb-style raw-foodists and subsequent promises of said resulting life, but a living testament to one's health and vitality. [no insult to those authors of that type of book... but many do fall short on info and overwhelm with photos.]

kudos to annie and david jubb!

LifeFood Recipe Book gave a very well rounded and educational breakdown of raw food and its merits, and also of what is wrong with mass-produced food in the US today. Included are many great recipes for meals and snacks that follow this diet.

Along with Michael Colgans Nutrition books this book is great for creating a healthy diet. I am an endurance athelete and have used this book numerous times to modify my diet.

Dr. Schmidt did a great job writing this book and I highly recommend it to people who have mood/behavior problems, or parents whose kids are on Ritalin, have ADD, ADHD, or petit mal siezures. Excellent info for nutritionists too who are interesting in learning the details.

I would recommend looking into more of Dr. Schmidt's books; they are all good!

Smart Fats is a valuable book. It has detailed information about the fat content of many different foods. Plus, there are good diagrams that will help you understand the structure and function of fatty acids.

You'll think better if you eat the right foods and fatty acids. Michael Scmidt tells you which ones to choose to make your brain work better.

There are extensive chapter notes and a good index.

I was very happy to find Dr. Schmidts book, "SMART FATS". Having spent several years researching EFA Balance, I found the information in his book to be very accurate and a wonderful information source. This country is in dire need for Omega Balance and for the knowledge to know why. Hurray for "SMART FATS"!

Stanley R. Mann, VP. Research and Education Integrity Direct Inc.

This book was an absolute pleasure to read. Although no book can guarentee omega-3s or 6s as being the be all and end all, this book gives an incredibly intellegent lesson on smart fats. There are also details concerning which foods provide what fats and vitamins. I highly recommend this book to anyone with a need to know more about smart fats.

Many of the recipes have ingredients that are not normally found in the average pantry or fridge. It has more of a gourmet flavor than not.

I have really enjoyed this book.As a person with celiac disease this book was very helpful to me and was truly great to read.I am so glad I got it.The information I saw about it was very helpful and it made me very interested in what was in the book and made me decide to purchase the book.I would definately recommend this book to others.The recipes are very interesting and easy to read and have given me great ideas to help with my gluten free diet.Also all the other facts and information were very helpful to me.
Sincerely,
Eric Shultz
Alexandria, Va

All I can say is thank you to Jacqueline Mallorca for her wonderful book.
I'm allergic to wheat and cow's milk products and I called Williams-Sonoma
to ask her some questions and they reached her and she called me back with
some great advice.Sustitute goat's milk yogurt and goats milk for regular cows milk products. I have missed rye bread so much but if you make her rustic seed bread on page 140. You won't have to miss it.This week I'll
be making pizza. Kudos to the author.

The Wheat Free Cook is a fabulous resource for the Gluten Free Community. It is thorough in describing the flours and ingredients available. The recipes are quite easy to make, the end product is absolutely delicious and the best thing about the book is that finally there are nutritious recipes to be made, something that is not seen in many gluten free cookbooks.

I have had the book for more than 6 months and I would be truly lost without it.

Thank you Ms. Mallorca for simplifying cooking and baking in a gluten free world where now everyone in my family is eating gluten free (they do not have to) but they are choosing to because they LOVE the meals I am preparing. Thank you for the humor. GREAT BOOK

This book opened up my cooking to a whole world of delicious and creative meals. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to know how to use Quinoa, Amaranth and Buckwheat in interesting ways.

The recipes are well written and not complex to prepare. The introductory comments at the beginning of each recipe are amusing and informative.

Amazingly, I also found that I felt better and had more energy after eating more wheat-free meals. This book has been greatly appreciated by my celiac friends.

We've had this book for several months now and everything we have tried has been successful. The flour mix works and there are many unusual and really delicious cookie recipes. Cakes are pretty standard but the recipes are excellent. Overall, one of our most used gluten free cookbooks.

I admit it... I have a cookbook addiction! And since our family has been gluten free, I have added quite the collection of gluten free cookbooks to my shelves. And I use them ALL! Well, I now have a new favorite for gluten free desserts... CONNIE SARROS' DESSERT COOKBOOK! EVERY recipe I've tried is fantastic! And if you can crave it, Connie has a recipe for it! I can't say enough about it! I highly recommend it to ANYONE who wants to venture into gluten free baking, or just add new options to the dessert menu. But warning: everyone will start asking you to bring the dessert... everytime!

This book has recipes that are very good and pretty easy to make. One thing that I really appreciated was that they all use the same flour mixture, and the flour actually has nutritional value, as opposed to having 5 different flours throughout the book that you have to make, or just using a mixture of corn starch and potato starch. If you need to cook gluten-free desserts, I would highly recommend this book!

I really enjoyed the "Glazed Chocolate Fantasy" Cake. The answer to any Chocolate Lovers sweet tooth.

My sister, her daughter and I have used this cookbook to make some wonder desserts. No one knows or cares that they are gluten free because they taste so GREAT! Recipes are easy to follow. I double recipes and have had no problems. Great buy!