Customer Reviews

Eat Your Way To Happiness

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I'm a guy in my 60s. And while I've always exercised regularly, it's become harder and harder to keep from gaining weight as the years go by. A few months ago a friend gave me a copy of the author's Food and Mood. I've always been put off by "diets", but I read it and it made a ton of sense. So I began adopting some of Somer's suggestions, not religiously but pretty much as the mood struck. Over time, I changed some (but not all) my bad eating habits, but got rid of the really terrible ones. Since reading it and without really "dieting" at all, I've lost 15 pounds and have a whole lot more energy to boot. I just finished Eat Your Way to Happiness. It's like Elizabeth Somer has emptied her lifetime collection of nutritional tidbits into a big box. She's selected the gems, organized them, and has written about them in a way that's fun to read and gives you good reasons to try them all. She even has recipes you don't have to be a gourmet cook to pull off. Great book.

When I read "Eat Your Way to Happiness", I wanted something new. Some new piece of information that I haven't found elsewhere. After having read the entire book, I can't say that I found a single nugget of knowledge that hasn't already been discussed by one of the many other nutritional guides out there. This book pulls from many of the classics on nutrition, most notably the "Superfoods" guides that have been put out over the years, and focuses on eating fresh, rather than prepackaged foods, and eliminating as many "bad eating days" as possible. Overall, it's a solid informational guide, but if you're someone like me who has read a lot of these books, then you won't find anything new here. If you want a good nutrition guide that covers a lot of bases, then this book might be for you.

Elizabeth Somer's Eat Your Way To Happiness is a fairly conventional diet book with a twist. Somer looks at diet and thinness as a lifestyle makeover, rather than a lose-weight-quick scheme or fad diet. Her goal is to reveal the 'secrets of happy fit people' in an effort to illustrate how you can lose weight in a healthful way and keep those pounds off. The revolutionary aspect of this book is not its premise: that a healthful diet and exercise will yield weight loss. The best aspect of the book is how Somer helps her reader understand how weight loss works, helps redefine our relationship with food, and gives us tools to lose weight that really can work.

She combines sound and practical advice with everyday tips on how to reach your desired goals. She then outlines both scientific research and anecdotal evidence to back up her claims. The twist here is that Somer feels that by eating specific kinds of food at specific times of day you can 'tweak' your body chemistry to work with you rather than against you when you try to lose weight. Somer also feels that this approach will actually boost your mood while you lose the pounds.


THE LONG REVIEW

Somer gives her pitch in the introduction. This is a no-nonsense approach to weight loss and she clearly puts the onus of responsibility on the reader to make palpable changes in their diet. No excuses. The diet advice in this book is similar to what a medically trained dietician would tell you. This is no surprise because that is exactly what Somer is. There are no phases with high fat/low carbs, high protein/low fat. No banning white foods or eating tablespoons of peanut butter. There isn't really any calorie counting per se, but she is definitely big on portion control and improving food choices. Somer is not interested in giving you a 'quick fix' but rather serves as the conduit for pracitcal advice on how to change your eating patterns in order to lose the weight you want to lose. Somer has not written a 'nurturing' book to coax you into weight loss. Nor does she view herself as your diet coach. So if you are interested in coddling or 'diet boot camp,' you won't find that here.

She divides the book into easy-to-read chapters which contain the 'secrets of happy fit people.'

The secrets are the chapter headings:
1. Eat Real 75% of the Time: Eating fewer refined foods and avoiding preprocessed ones.
2. Follow the 1-2-3 Rule: 1 carb + 2 veggies + 1 protein serving=a complete breakfast
3. Choose Quality Carbs: Good carbs (unrefined) vs. bad carbs (refined).
4. Adopt the 6% Solution: She ferrets out where sugar is hiding and how to avoid it.
5. Sprinkle It with Super Mood Foods: Lists of foods that may boost your mood and mood-busting foods to avoid
6. Embrace the Good Fat: Understanding Omega fatty acids/DHA
7. Get Smart with Supplements: Suggestions regarding helpful and unhelpful supplements.
8. Choose the Right Thirst Quenchers: A primer on nutritional beverages and which beverages to avoid.
9. Indulge in the Right Vices: Suggestions for beating your cravings.
10. Eat Right at Night: Avoid stimulant beverages and carb heavy suggestions for evening eating.
11. The One Habit You Must Embrace to Be Happy: Exercise. Nuff said.

Somer keeps things simple by offering a single theme for each chapter. Each chapter outlines the basic problem and Somer's suggested solution. The narrative then gives both anectodal and scientific evidence as to how and why her suggestions work. Most chapters are rounded out with practical advice that tells you how to incorporate each 'secret' into your life. She also goes over common misconceptions and pitfalls that might occur. Her suggestions are almost always practical and specific. She is clearly an experienced dietitian who knows her audience and knows what we need to be successful.

If there were an overriding theme to this book, it would be Somer's recommendation to eat 'real foods.' These are foods that are not prepackaged and preprocessed and are made from--you guessed it--whole grains, pure proteins, fruits, and vegetables. Somer (I believe quite correctly) argues that most processed foods are bereft of wholesome fiber and vitamins and deliberately infused with sugar, fat, and salt. Even so, the clinical dietitian within her knows that given our busy day, not all of our choices can be made from scratch, so she often gives the healthiest alternatives in this department if you just happen to end up in a fast food restaurant or need to catch a lunch on the fly.

There are no revelations here in terms of the overall premise: a healthy diet + exercise should help you achieve a more happy, fit, and healthy you. If there is a revolutionary aspect, it is the way Somer guides you through the process and puts this information together in digestible chunks that are easy to read and simply make sense.

This book, however, will not appeal to anyone who really wants a 'quick fix' or likes to ride the latest diet wave. This is not a quick way to lose 25 pounds in the few weeks before your high school reunion. The book also takes a great deal of commitment and doesn't promise something for nothing. Somer repeats many times that diet (and exercise) take high levels of commitment over time to pay off.

One of the most helpful parts of the book is the last appendix, where Somer outlines 100+ products that are available in most grocery stores that meet most of the 'real food' guidelines. This is incredibly helpful for busy people who simply don't have the time to cook each and every meal.

There are some weakenesses to the book that should be pointed out. I am no food scientist, but I am always suspicious when the biological basis of hunger is placed on the shoulders of a few chemicals. Somer talks about galanin mediated hunger, neuropeptide Y causing the morning carb craving, serotonin causing fatigue after eating carbs, and sweet addiction caused by sugar-induced increases in endorphin levels. My guess is that she simplified this information greatly so that it could be understood by people like me, but I also don't believe that it is all that you can isolate all this down to a few chemicals. Even so, her advice seems to work to relieve cravings. In the same vein, I'm willing to try Somer's Superfood suggestions. These are great foods, but I haven't seen any radical changes, but then again I'm a pretty positive person, overall.

Somer also estimates the number of pounds you could lose in a year if you follow her suggestions. For example, following 'secret 1' will net you a pound or two a week, 25 pounds in one year, allow you to feel 5 to 10 years younger, and lower your risk for age-related disease. I hope this is all true, but I'm always the skeptic.

There is a helpful appendix that gives you a 14-day 'kick-start' diet that follows Somer's principles. Overall, it shows how you can develop a meal based on Somer's principles.

The first problem, however, is that this diet is based on an 1,800 calorie diet. Calories per day should be calculated based on weight loss goals, overall size, activity levels, etc. and Somer does not provide this. That being said, the diet is probably good for the average person. The second problem is that Somer provides calorie information for the overall diet, but not for each component. You know the overall calories per day, but no the caloric content of each meal or each component of the meal. This information would help if you wanted to mix and match lunch from different days or swap components of a meal based on preferences. Finally, each day has a 200 calorie snack assigned. This is okay, but Somer believes we should refuel every 4 hours while awake. If this is the case, most of us need a couple of snacks per day.

Apart from some small issues, however, this book is an incredibly useful source for someone who wants to lose weight though lifestyle changes. Somer has written a book that really has the potential to help people lose those extra pounds in a measured and healthful way.

Eat Your Way to Happiness by Elizabeth Somer.

Ask yourself these questions.

Do you consider yourself a happy person?
Do you have enough energy?
Are you satisfied with your weight?

All of these things are related, and your energy, mental clarity, mood and waistline are directly connected to what you eat.

The author presents 10 diet secrets designed to help improve one's mood, curb cravings, and keep the pounds off for good. She includes tips like "10 days of mood Boosting- waist shrinking Lunch Ideas" and "The Truth About Super Foods". I learned so much reading this book, and I thought I knew a lot about nutrition. I was wrong.

I am in my mid fifties and have always had a weight problem. I have been following this book for a few weeks now, and have lost 9 pounds so far and feel much more energy. This is a great book with great tips for shedding and keeping off the pounds and giving you more energy

When I got this book I was worried that it would cover the same thing that other diet and health books cover. One thing I did differently though is I implemented many of the suggestions the last 3 weeks in my diet, and I have felt great the last few weeks! The book promises that if you follow the secrets in the book it will stack the deck in favor of being blissfully fit and even though I am not "fit" as far as my weight goes, I have lost 5 pounds and really mentally feel good.

I eat a lot of fast food, and I made myself a promise for three weeks to follow the books suggestions. Only eating really foods, and staying away from fast food made a huge difference. The book also talks about how important breakfast is and by adding a meal outside of the traditional three meals a day, this helps me not binge and continue to feel full and happy. The mood food chapter was a great chapter as well, as I bring tart dried cherries with me everywhere I go, and they help me keep my diet on track.

The first week I felt like I was dieting, but the following two weeks I felt full and satisfied and happier. This book is all about making suggestions in healthy choices, and I can honestly feel like I am eating my way though happiness, and on a healthy track of eating right and living life healthy.

I've read and believed that something I put into my mouth can make my life perfect only to be disappointed, too many. Reading reading further, however, the author states clearly, "No diet, book or teacher can guarantee bliss or a perfect figure for the rest of your life, just as no one can guarantee you will live disease-free until you die peacefully in your sleep at age 110. But I can promise that if you follow the secrets laid out in this book, you will stack the deck in favor of being blissfully fit." And that is what author Elizabeth Somer, M.A., R.D. delivers; a common sense, information-filled volume of good advice.

Somer thoroughly describes the nutrients, what they do, the best and most cost efficient way to get them into your system and why you need them. She dispenses her advice in a warm, easy to read way.

Her common-sense advice may be old news for those of us who have made dieting a life-style, but even for us refreshing our memories and receiving the information through a forum that does not require us to eat a diet that is radically different from our "regular" routine makes the information palatable. After spending my life dieting I think my failures have been that diets require a departure from normal eating. Somer's suggested eating changes in order to feel better and, perhaps lose weight, require us to only make good healthy and informed choices.

Whether a newcomer to healthy eating or dieting, or someone who has tried to stay informed, my opinion is that Eat Your Way to Happiness is a worthwhile read and worth the modest cover price.

"Eating your way to happiness" is a pretty big promise to make, and I'm not sure that this book delivers on the expectations most people have when they buy it. As for myself, I expected (or wished) that this book would give me "secrets" (i.e. previously unknown information) and direction needed to achieve permanent weight loss. Whereas the author does discuss what, when, and how to eat to lose weight, increase health, and improve mood, I didn't seem to find any tools to get to this goal. I also noted that she seems to be equating being thin (simply not an achievable goal for most people) with happiness. Even the opening lines of the introduction read "Blissfully thin. Take a moment to imagine what that would be like--to be joyously fit, trim, and sexy." The act of equating "thin" (which most of us think of as closing in on underweight) with "bliss" is unrealistic at best, and putting forth a goal that most of us will not, or cannot, achieve--she uses the word "thin" and not "healthy weight," which are two different things. The author goes on to say that the "catch" is all the hard work that "blissfully happy and fit" people do to achieve that state--organizing, "thinking thin," self affirmations, etc. As stated before, there are actually few tangible tools provided that those blissful and thin people have used to get there, such as ideas for a food diary, actual affirmations, or other organizational tools--support and techniques to do that hard work that's needed when starting a weight loss program.

I found some discrepancies in the book that I found confusing. She talks about how bad sugar is for the body and our weight loss efforts, but many of her recipes included sugar. She also has a section entitled "Anti-Superfoods: Avoid at all Costs!" including salad dressings, potatoes, cheese, and cream, but then goes on to say "eat less" of these items, and she includes these foods in her recipes.

I also found things that I didn't agree with in the book, such as basing her 14-day Kick Start recipes on 1800 calories, when this number might not be right for everyone. After the 14 days of recipes, there is little discussion on how to proceed (continue to count calories?), and no discussion about maintaining any weight loss--the hardest part, and you must have some direction here. I also didn't agree with the author's statement that we can indulge more in "vices" if we exercise more often -- a slippery slope.

I'm not saying this book is not useful to someone who wants to eat better foods and lose weight, and she does emphasize the importance of exercise, eating breakfast, etc. But most all these things are well-known in the challenge to lose excess weight, and I can't say that much of what was presented could be classified as "secret," as most people who are trying to lose weight have read numerous books, websites, & magazines which give the same basic information. I have to say that I did gain some useful information and insight, such as the discussion on how our nation is now one where eating out frequently is commonplace, so we just can't "indulge" like we did with the once-a-week dinner-night-outs from the past. I thought the recipes and snack ideas were really excellent.

In summary, I think the author provides the reader with plenty basic information useful for healthy weight loss all in one volume, but little in the way of direction and support to actually achieve lasting changes. This is a good book for furthering your knowledge of how foods interact with our bodies, and about healthy eating, but a more structured approach is what most people are looking for, which could be used in conjuction with this book for effective weight loss.

I enjoy this book immensely. Most "food and weight loss" books are similar in the fact they say pretty much the same thing.."eat less, move more, eat less fat, sugar, processed, foods, etc.." and they have tons of nice little self help phrases designed to give you positive motivation. All of which is helpful and motivational, but is really the same stuff regurgitated from book to book. This book, however does have a few suprising differences that set this book apart from the others. This book is more like a reference book. It contains some great tips on reducing sugar intake, choosing quality carbs and good fats as well as a full chapter on "Super Mood Foods" designed to increase your mood and reduce your belly. What this book also has and what I use as a reference is a FULL chapter on Supplements. Which supplements work and how much you may need or be missing as well as a full description about each supplement. This is important to me as I am constantly preaching to my clients the importance of good nutrition coupled with high quality supplements like Vitamin D. There is also a great appendix with over 100 products that meet most of the Real-Food guidelines that you can find in your local grocery store. It is a very well researched and written book. At times it is a bit long, but that is typical with these books, but if used as a reference book, then this is one of the best.

I have never been what I would call "fat" but over the last decade I have gradually been swelling up from the size and weight I was through college and the first 5 years of my working life. After going through 2 pants sizes, losing my hair, losing my enthusiasm and energy, I thought this book seemed like a worthy choice when it showed up on the Vine list. I'm not concerned so much with losing weight as I am with being healthy and feeling good - and that is exactly the focus of this book. I'm also worried about Alzheimer's disease and diabetes, since many of my family have recently been stricken by one or the other of those conditions. You can make dietary changes and take steps early to potentially prevent these illnesses. I think lots of people will appreciate this approach.

Most of the advice is basic common sense stuff that you've known all your life: Eat more vegetables. Fish is brain food. Cut back on sugar. Avoid processed carbs and eat whole grains instead. Avoid fried food. Enjoy decadent treats in moderation. Drink water instead of soda or booze. Exercise. I used to know all of this, but when I started working full-time I developed bad habits, eating what was convenient instead of what's healthy. This book serves as a wake-up call, reminding me of what I should be doing, and it backs up my great-grandmother's dietary wisdom with modern scientific evidence. Now we know exactly HOW these foods are good for you, and how they affect the body's internal processes. Reading this book will make you want to put down the Twinkie and eat a fresh peach instead. I have already started implementing some of the changes which Elizabeth Somer recommends.

The back of the book contains a sample two-week itinerary of mood and wellness-boosting meals. There is a section with about a dozen recipes, and an index of more than 100 products that meet the "Real Food" guidelines. I wonder how many of these brands will still be around in five years' time, but it makes a good shopping list _right now_.

I strongly recommend this book for any junk-food-junkie (i.e. any typical American) who wants to feel better & be more energetic and more alert right now, and for the rest of his or her life.

The name of the book is a misnomer. No one can eat their way to happiness, just as one can not sit on the couch and get thin. What's more, many people are emotional eaters, and devour food to find comfort. Because of our physiological reward system, eating foods does often cause a rush of "happiness" (followed by a crash). What the author is actually presenting is a more balanced diet and approach to overall wellness via a better diet.

Pros:
This book has a good structure for eating healthy. Elizabeth Somers delivers her message without being preachy. She definitely presents a doable, achievable plan for eating better and getting adequate, healthy nutrition. The book is not overly scientific - her perspective and summaries are easily understood. She includes a few recipes per chapter so readers can get the hang of her nutritional advice.

Cons:
Somers frequently refers to "happy, fit people" and what they do. This starts to grate on the nerves after a while. Not all happy people are necessarily fit. All fit people are not necessarily happy. And not all thin people are either fit or happy. And I'm pretty sure that none of the "happy fit people" do EVERYTHING she ascribes to them in her book. I don't know if she used the best available science for her conclusions, because it is designed for a lay audience and doesn't even cite the studies or articles on which she bases her conclusions. There are times I also wondered if she was paid for product placement - she specifically calls out brand names. That's pretty unusual for someone to do without compensation. However, no financial disclosure was made (whether or not she accepted money from the companies), which makes me a little suspicious of the brand advocacy.

Overall, this book can be used to help people make different food choices - or at least understand the impacts of the food they currently eat. It's not a bad book - and would be a good option for people who want to take small steps, day by day, or for readers who don't like a strong scientific background/explanation. It's a gentle introduction to the topic. However, there are better plans out there.