Customer Reviews

Skinny Chicks Don't Eat Salads: Stop Starving, Start Eating and Losing

5 star:		(27)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The nutritional advice in this book is very sound. Maintaining blood sugar throughout the day is key to curbing cravings and mood swings. Being able to "indulge" in good carbs is a blessing in itself! However, beware that those 4-5 recommeded "meals" per day can be no more than 400 calories each, and always a near exact PC combo. While the eating plan in this book claims not to be a "diet," but a way of life instead, I find eating fat-free dairy products, egg whites, and plain yogurt pretty much "diet" fare. Also be prepared to exercise 45-60 minutes per day, too, on Christine's plan. I do appreciate the PC combo ideas and recipes in this book though - so far they've been tasty and satiating. Still, after a week of sticking with this plan, I've not lost an ounce of weight.

What attracted me to this book was that when I read the back cover, it sounded like it wasn't going to tout a gimmicky diet plan, but was going to give me what I wanted: the truth about nutrition and common sense guidance that would help me overcome the bad eating habits I have--the main one being my sugar addiction. I'm happy to report that it delivered all of that and more!

One of the great things about the book is that it's full of up-to-date, well-researched information that completely clears up all of my confusion about carbs, fat, protein, sugar, etc. Finally, after reading it, I feel like I know what's fact and what's fiction. Plus, the advice in the book that I was the most hopeful about--what I needed to do to kick my sugar addiction--totally works! After putting the advice into practice, for the first time in years, I am not jonesing for sugar--I am a sugaraholic, so this is a huge deal. For me, overcoming my sugar cravings is half the battle!

For a variety of reasons, I am now more serious than ever about making changes to achieve the weight, fitness and health levels that are right for me. This book has made me feel like I have all of the information, not to mention the motivation, to be successful. On top of giving me confidence that I can finally kick my sugar addiction, the book has waylaid another fear of mine--that I was going to have to go hungry and deprive myself in order to achieve my goals. The book showed me that I can eat AND lose weight and get fit! Again, I don't want to give too much away, but it's true what the title says, losing weight and becoming healthy isn't about starving, it's about eating. Any fitness/nutrition plan begins with getting into the right frame of mind--so many things about this book--the sugar addiction help, the info about how eating can be a strategy to weight loss, the myth-busing info, etc.--have gotten me into a really great frame of mind--I feel empowered.

I also want to mention that I really enjoyed reading thid book. I didn't feel like I was being preached to or like I was reading a nutrition text book, it was like talking to a trusted friend who has been there, done that, knows what she's talking about and honestly wants me to succeed. Also, I love the meal plans and recipes. I can't wait to hear more from Christine--would love to see her get her own cooking/fitness show!!!

Avanti offers sound nutritional advice and commonsense ideas for changing the way you eat. This is the only "diet" book you need. She explains the insulin/blood sugar connection in easy to understand terms. She uses a "PC combo" meal plan (complex carbs and protein at every meal) and insists that we eat 4 to 5 times a day. Advice on supplements and recipes are also included. A nice section on basic strength and cardio training exercises is also clearly written and easy to understand with a section on beginner muscle toning at home.

Christinve Avanti's "Skinny Girls Don't Eat Salads" book is FANTASTIC!! I picked up her book last May. I was really interested in the nutritional aspect of it. I wasn't actively looking to lose weight, but I wanted to change the way I ate, and I wanted to make it a lifestyle change. I was a fairly healthy eater before, but as I quickly found out through her book, my meals weren't properly balanced and I wasn't eating as frequently as I should have been. My blood sugar would take a nose dive and I would become really crabby and indecisive. When I finished her book, I wanted to make a change. I also wanted my husband to make the change with me. He had tried various weight loss programs, but they never worked. He would lose some weight but he would eventually fall off the program and gain any weight he had lost back. The programs weren't sustainable for him because he was either deprived of calories or the food was nasty. I told him about Christine and her book. He was open to give it a try. In June, we started the her "Simply Slimmer" program. It took us a bit to figure it out, but once we got the hang of it, we were both pleasantly surprised at what foods we could eat and we never were starving. We both completed a body assessment in June and just completed another assessment this last weekend. The results were impressive, especially for my husband!! For me, I lost 10 pounds and dropped my body fat percentage from 24.7% to 20.0%. For my husband, he lost 43 pounds and dropped his body fat percentage from 32.1% to 18.8%. We both feel great, and my husband looks amazing!! We couldn't have done it without Christine and her book. She helped us achieve a healthier, more energetic lifestyle as well as helped my husband lose the weight he wasn't able to lose before.

If you want to lose weight and eat healthier, this is the book for you. You'll get results without having to starve yourself or sacrifice good food. And the receipes in this book are delicious!

The information in this book has literally changed my life... After trying unsuccessfully to lose any weight for three years, and not understanding why, Christine has unlocked the mystery. Christine explains how our body reacts to the food that we eat, unlocking the puzzle for me, once and for all. I have lost eleven lbs in three weeks. My glucose and liver enzyme levels have come down significantly. I have energy like I did when I was many years younger (my age is 66). For the first time in four years, I greet the morning with energy, rather than dragging myself out of bed. Energy, weight loss, and NEVER hungry, not ever, what more could one want. With the knowledge that Christine shares in Skinny Chicks Don`t Eat Salad, you have an easy to follow nutritional plan for a lifetime. I will never have to fight the scale, ever again. Thank you Christine for writing this book!

I'm giving this book 3 stars because it is really well written and convincing, and it sounds like excellent and sensible advice for everyone. It really seems to make sense and I could not wait to try the plan. Well, I followed the nutritional plan to a "T", and I was absolutely starving all day long. I even tried upping the portion sizes (proportional amounts of proteins, carbs and healthy fats of course), but it just did not work for me. I'd have breakfast, and be ravenous 1 hour later. It did not hold me over 3-4 hours like it was supposed to. Neither did lunch, dinner, or the snack. Obviously though, this plan works Christine's clients, so I'd say it is worth a try.

I cannot recommend this book enough! If you want to feel great, have lots of energy, clarity and focus, lose body fat, lose excess weight and finally make eating a life-style instead of another dreaded "diet" - this is the book for you!!! I had the amazing opportunity to work one-on-one with Ms. Avanti as one of her nutrition clients and it literally changed the way I looked at food and the way I was eating.

I was a long-time sufferer of very frequent headaches and although in pretty good shape, I wanted to drop some body fat. My very first meeting with Christine was so eye-opening that I still remember it to this day. She explained to me that my headaches were caused by my erratic blood sugar levels throughout the day - spiking when I ate only carbs at a sitting (with no protein or fat) and plunging after waiting too long to eat again.

I followed the program (which very quickly becomes a very easy way of life) and in no time, my headaches ceased, I lost excess weight and body fat and felt amazing!

It's so simple - if you want to loose excess weight, feel great and have tons more energy - just buy this book. You will not be disappointed!!!

I like the book and I find Christine very likeable as well. I appreciate the fact that she is a nutritonist who had a weight problem and not some always skinny celebrity promoting a self help book. I have not tried her recipes yet but her approach to nutrtion is right on! However, if you have read or follow the Body For Life way of eating, this is the same program (only given by a nutrionist/woman's point of view). I completely agree that eating this way keeps bingeing at bay because you are satisfied. It is the way we should all be eating (most of time). However, calories do count (which Christine states). You will feel at your best following her (or Bill Phillip's Body For Life) advice. Your body will thank you and you Undoubtedly, will look better and feel better.

I saw Christine on The Morning Show with Mike and Juliet and then picked up her book while I was at Barnes and Noble looking for something else. I was riveted right away. Christine's style is so familiar and engaging. I put it down but when I got home I kept thinking about some of the ideas I skimmed in the book and realized I would have to order it. I have always said that a life without bread, rice and pasta isn't worth living, and here is a nutritionist finally affirming my hunch that there is a balanced path that involves being healthy AND happy. I was a little offput by the idea of "skinny chicks" as though that ought to be the ultimate end goal of all women, but the push in the book is really about being a happy and healthy person that understands how to combine protein and carbohydrates in every meal to stabilize blood sugar. Her insights are so consistent with my experience, especially in terms of spiking (and plummeting) blood sugar resulting in headaches, mood swings, and generally feeling like I'm not at my best. I can't wait to try her approach. It makes so much sense.

This book is different from the typical diet book because Christine educates you on how your body works given the food you are putting in. The PC combo is well explained and the recipes are wonderful! This isn't a fad diet book but a way of life that is easy to follow. Christine shares enough of her story to connect with the reader but not overpower them with "her" life. She explains the cravings and the crazy ups and downs of conventional diets. Not only has this book helped me with my eating habits and weight loss it has put me on track for a better, healthier lifestyle. I suffer from Chronic Lyme Disease and have found that since I have started to follow Christine's advice and recipes my symptoms are very minimal and the weight that I have not been able to get off in years is melting away. This is not a gimmick miracle diet book that promises you will be skinny next week. It is a well thought out easy to read and understand book with real human food that tastes greats that also educates you and makes you think about what you are putting into your body. If you are looking for a book to help you get on a better track to loosing weight and feeling better this is the one to get!