34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
The Everything Flat Belly Cookbook Needs a Tummy Tuck!, December 17, 2009
This review is from: The Everything Flat Belly Cookbook: 300 Quick and Easy Recipes to help drop the belly fat and tone your abs (Everything (Cooking)) (Paperback)
Driven by the excellent reviews and by my enjoyment of Prevention's "Flat Belly Diet" book I decided to purchase this book.
Whether it was planned to sound like the popular diet or merely a coincidence, it is important to note that this book is NOT a companion to Prevention's "Flat Belly Diet". With the title I had expected the book to tie in to Prevention's popular plan but it does not. This book makes use of artificial sugar (splenda), does not include MUFAs etc. The two books are totally unrelated. So if you are looking for a cook book for the Prevention book "Flat Belly Diet" you will want to look elsewhere.
The cookbook "The Everything Flat Belly Diet" boasts many good points. The authors open with a discussion on belly fat and share how what you eat is 80 percent responsible for your weight. They include tips on getting the most for your calorie buck and they include step by step directions for abdominal exercises - what to do and when to do them. Another nice factor in the book is the tidbits the authors add to the end of each recipe. Little tips like when to eat your largest meal, using lettuce instead of bread etc.
The authors include 300 recipes they claim will help you shed belly fat. Each recipe includes calories, fat, carbs, protein, sodium and fiber. Recipes are laid out in an easy to read fashion in the 292 page soft cover book. Chapters include; Flat Belly Philosophy, Rise and Shine, It's Breakfast Time!, Lunch Break, Snack Time and more.
The main disappointment in this book is some of the recipes. I was stunned as I read through a few of them. I like simple but these were to simple. For example;
Carrot Dippers (Carrot Sticks, Peanut Butter)
Dip carrots in peanut butter and enjoy.
Pickles in Blankets (Pickles, Fat Free Cheese)
Wrap each pickle in a cheese slice and enjoy.
Peanut Butter Apple Slices - (Apple, Peanut Butter)
Can you guess how to make this one?
If they had just been listed as snack suggestions it would have been fine but each of the above recipes and more like them were given there own separate page in the book. Some of the recipes were just plain disappointing. The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookie recipe for example involves mixing a prepared cookie mix with egg beaters and syrup. Cheesy fries has you baking prepared frozen french fries and sprinkling on cheese.
In fairness to the author there are some great dishes with simple preparation. If you are not fond of cooking but want to eat low fat this book may be a good choice for you. Sample recipes include; Steak and Caesar Salad, Cannellini Minestrone and Coq au Vin. If you like to cook, this book is most likely to simplistic for you.
The second disappointment is the book lacks photographs. Mouth watering photos do a lot to help me want to prepare a dish. And this book has none.
Personally I find that including healthy fats in my diet is a good thing and I am following a higher fat program which works much better for me. However,
if you want very simple to make low fat recipes with some tips for a flat belly included this may be the right cookbook for you. If you are looking for a companion to Prevention's "Flat Belly Diet", enjoy cooking and/or don't want to use Splenda select a different book.
Bon Apetit!
~ Lee Mellott
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24 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Everything Flat Belly is for Everyone!, June 15, 2009
This review is from: The Everything Flat Belly Cookbook: 300 Quick and Easy Recipes to help drop the belly fat and tone your abs (Everything (Cooking)) (Paperback)
Who doesn't want a flatter belly? Probably 99% of people would give anything to have a flatter abdomen. It is somewhat ironic that Fitz Koehler, a fitness expert who has helped many celebrities including the wonderful Dr. Oz, reveals in the introductory chapter that "crunches are not the most important factor affecting your waistline." She goes on to tell us that our eating habits are about 80% responsible for our weight. Do you know how many miles a 150 pound person would have to run to reduce his/her weight by 10 pounds . . . provided there were no changes in diet? Are you ready? Three hundred and sixty miles . . . Yes you read that right 360 miles! Yipes . . . it would take me a long, long time to run that many miles. You too?
The authors tell us that it is much easier to eat a little less every day than to run off the extra calories taken in through our culinary excesses. Makes sense, huh?
I think I said something like this is my book, too, but the authors compare calories to money, telling us we need to spend our calories wisely. Most Americans simply don't. They'll complain about the cost of organic Romaine, yet when you run into them in snack aisle at the grocery store you'll see them purchasing a $4.00 bag of potato chips. What are they getting for their money? Fat, calories, and very little nutritional value.
This book is great for people who enjoy meat, although a vegetarian chapter is included for those who don't. You'll find 300 flat belly recipes including beef, pork, poultry, seafood, and even desserts.
While I generally don't do meat, there are a couple people living with me who do . . . and who could definitely benefit from a healthier diet. Looking for a flatter belly . . . then buy this book!
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