Suzanne Somers' Get Skinny on Fabulous Food

Rating:
Summary: Fat is leaving and pain is leaving
Review: I started Suzanne's plan Thanksgiving 1999. The first week or two was a little bumpy because I had to keep going back and reviewing food combos because my thinking was so low-fat program oriented. Once I got how the combining worked, the weight started coming off quickly. Before getting on the program, my weight heading toward the 380 pound mark and getting to the point of needing a cane to get around. The pain from arthritis and a ripped knee was excruciating. 83 pounds have come off and still going. No more arthritis pains. I am able to walk up and down stairs now. In the beginning, I could only go up one step at a time with both feet. I plan to lose 140 more pounds and with this program, can do it. But just to be pain-free was worth following the plan. There was a 4 week point in February when only 3 pounds came off, but stuck with it and the weight started coming off again after the plateau. Don't give up! You can do it! I am 50 years old, and have been on countless diets. A few years ago, I lost 92 pounds,on a low fat program, but it took a year and a half to lose it, and was hungry all the time. With Suzanne's program, I am not hungry. (I call it a food program, not a diet because I don't feel like I am on a diet). After a while you won't miss breads and sweets. Now I look at those foods and realize all the chemical junk made me so miserably obese. Now I see sugar and white flour as being something I am allergic to like an alcoholic would be to alcohol. Try the program, if you really follow the combinations this program will absolutely work. 83 pounds in 7 months has made me have a positive outlook again.

Rating:
Summary: Great recipes, not so great weight loss
Review: This book contains many great recipes, but after following the plan to the letter I only lost 6 pounds after 6 weeks. I find it hard to believe that so much cheese and high-fat dairy product will not turn out to be bad for your arteries in the long run. I've recently lost weight by eating less and exercising more. I've incorporated more vegetables and whole grains with low glycemic index ratings into my diet. I highly recommend this book for a cookbook but as a weight loss plan it truly failed for me. (Like other reviewers, I also got tired of hearing about the author's "perfect life" and many trips.)

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Summary: Great book but would like more detail on combining
Review: I have worked as a healthcare professional, but I found the descriptions of insulin related to fat storage,food combining logic, etc. not to be clear enough in this book. Perhaps this is better reviewed in the first book. Although I had to read the combining sections a few times, I think that this is a healthful way to eat the right foods. And like the eat right for your type books, it really helps if you have problems with bloating, GI upset resulting from your current way of eating. Would like to have seen more pasta options. Also, I think that it would have been helpful to suggest similar substitution dishes to those favorite dishes that cannot be eaten due to combinations. The recipes are simple and easy to prepare, and quite tasty. I did enjoy the book, but I think that it needs to be augmented by the first one or Dr. Schwartzbein's.

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Summary: It worked for me
Review: I started eating this way last July, by the end of October I had lost 20 pounds that I thought were never going to come off. If you follow the principles of her way of eating (it's not really a "diet") the weight comes off and more importantly stays off, even if you never make any of the recipes in the book. However, I highly recommend the roasted chicken recipe on page 195, it's the best I've ever eaten.

Rating:
Summary: Hooked on Somersizing
Review: I saw Suzanne on Home Shopping one wintery day and decided to try it. I was nursing a back injury and found myself unable to do yoga or work out at the gym. I thought I would start gaining weight and wanted another option for dieting or eating a new way. I only wanted to drop one dress size. After reading the book, and understanding all the rules about food combining, I did it faithfully and it worked. I've lost 15 pounds in four months and now have to eat a little more carbs because it's coming off too fast and too much. The recipes are absolutely divine, but some are much too time consuming. You can use most of your own recipes by just adding another vegetable. I wish she'd come out with the 30 minute quick cook. I also read Diana Schwarzbein's book and this is also helpful if you want to know the whys and physiology more in depth. However, she is not big. on the food combining like eating fruit alone, etc. I have found the Dr. Atkins quick cook book to be helpful too. It's a little hard to eat though when taking your kid to McDonald's or when on a trip and fast food is the easiest. I find that I can cheat occasionally and enjoy a dessert once in a while also.

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Summary: This started working AFTER I quit smoking
Review: I followed this plan pretty faithfully for almost a year without losing more than 3 or 4 pounds. I knew, from reading the intro, that smoking keeps insulin levels elevated, but just could not quit at the time. After a year, I was able to quit, and now I'm finding that Somersizing actually does work the way she says it does. It has only been 2 weeks and I've already dropped one dress size (I don't have a scale). Also, total cholesterol has been lowered about 80 points. This has been a great help for quitting smoking and the tangible results of weight loss provide ongoing motivation not to smoke.

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Summary: Delicious food and weight loss too!
Review: If you're the type of person who needs a a step by step meal plan and pre-packaged shakes and bars then don't bother reading this book. The food you can eat is delicious and NO MEASURING! The recipes are not hard, despite what others say. When you buy a cookbook in the store do you make EVERYTHING in the cookbook? No, you pick which recipes appeal to you and you make them. Not all of the recipes in this book appeal to me but many do. Besides, you don't have to make ANY of the recipes to do this diet, just follow the food combining guidelines. It is so easy! My food bill has gone down because I'm not buying overpriced pre-packaged foods. I buy fresh fruits, vegetables, and meat and dairy. I really don't understand how people can say you have to have a personal chef or be rich to do this. All you have to do is quit buying Hamburger Helper and Taco Kits and just start cooking real food! Easy to follow and enjoyable to read, too.

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Summary: Helpful info you should know about this diet...
Review: Okay, bear with me, because I do not know how long this is going to take. I started somersizing about 8 months ago, and for the first three months it was fantastic. I could eat as much as I wanted as long as I combined well and steered away from those 'funky' foods, and I lost 15 lbs. I was addicted, literally to this diet for months...then Christmas rolled around and from December to May, I started having a lot of trouble with, well, food to say the least. Once I discovered what I could not have, I craved it everyday...I couldn't go without sugar long enough for the cravings to subside, so when there was a 'special occasion' I would find myself eating WAY to much, stuffing myself, saying, 'it doesn't matter, I'm going back on my diet tomorrow' which I would. Okay, to make a long story short, I gained back all the 15 pounds I lost and more, because I felt so deprived. When I finally decided it was too much, I 'quit' and started eating anything I wanted but in more moderate amounts, and guess what? Two weeks after I stopped this low-carb stuff, I lost 7 lbs. I eat healthy now and exercise, I am still losing weight, and I do not feel deprived in the least, there is no need to binge on unneccessary calories. Nevertheless, I still learned some important tips from this diet, 1) the only thing you really need to drink is water, tea is good as well, and I still drink milk, but no more sugary fruit juice and soft drinks for me, they are out of my life for good...2) I now eat far more fruits and veggies then I did before I tried the diet...3) fat is NOT all bad, mono-unsaturated fats from nuts, avocados, and olive oil, are good for your body and should be eaten moderately every day...however whatever these low-carb people tell you, saturated fat is NOT good for you, it never has and it never will, just face the facts and limit your saturated fat intake, in the long run, you will be thankful you did...5) I heavily limit my intake of white flour, and instead eat lots of whole grain bread and pasta (semolina is not as processed as white flour and therefore does not raise blood sugar as much), however though I am careful about sugar, I do not deny myself of its pleasures, in moderation of course...and finally, though somersizing certainly didn't give me this insight, I have learned to nourish my body with food as oppose to stuffing my self, or rewarding my self with eating a good meal. My self confidence has improved greatly, and I no longer count calories, or monitor everything I eat, and I think this was key to helping me lose a few pounds after I finished this diet....and besides, and I know I denied it all at first, if I saw this review six months ago, I would have ignored it and said 'I lost weight, I don't care',..however most of the weight is water weight, because carbohydrates naturally have a lot of water in them (hence the 'hydrate') and although you lose a lot of weight at first, most of it is not fat but water, which makes up 60% of your body mass anyways...as soon as you eat more carbs it will come right back...bottom line, don't be fooled, maybe you will ignore me now, but come back six months from now and you may be a little more open to my story...maybe some of you can completely adapt to this lifestyle, but I couldn't, and I am sure there are more people like me than not...this is a great crash diet...but if you want to lose weight in the long term, you must take care of your body AND your mind...I hope I have been some help to some of you who are confused as to how to deal with this issue. Thank you for listening (I know I am a very long-winded person, so if you are still reading I commend you for your patience)

Rating:
Summary: too long and not to the point
Review: lots of info but I would rather have a shortened version...too much to comprehend..i was disappointed with recipes..lots of items that most people wouldnt have or be able to find...what is there for just an average person..without a chef...(would like weekly planner added)

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Summary: NO ONES IN THE KITCHEN WITH SUZANNE
Review: I purchased this book after countless presentations by Suzanne about her weight loss program. I think the principles identified were informative but most people know to loose weight you have to eliminate or cut down on starches and sugar. It did provide good information regarding the basis for her success. My main disappointment was the recipe section. I was hoping for alternatives that were useful in incorporating this program to my diet. My big surprise was the actual recipe for Allens bacon which included cut a pound of bacon in half, put it in the pan, stir with a wooden spoon, drain on a paper towel. I couldn't believe it. I was surprised it didn't tell you to take the bacon out of the plastic wrap first. As for the book's content, it was informative, as for the recipe section. I think they need to go back to the drawing board - or cutting board!