18 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Aussie Low-Carb Diet Is 'Total' Package, May 2, 2006
This review is from: The Total Wellbeing Diet (Mass Market Paperback)
When a senior dietician and nutrition research scientist working for the government in Australia set out to discover an eating plan that would not only satisfy the need for weight loss, but do it in the most effective manner possible, little did she know her ideas would become a bestselling book that would light a fire under the overweight and obese in that country and around the world.
But that's exactly what happened to Dr. Manny Noakes from the CSIRO Human Nutrition in Australia when she put in literally hours upon hours of study on the effects of foods, diets, supplements and prescription drugs on both metabolism and health. The results of that research would later become a runaway bestselling book entitled The Total Wellbeing Diet (it even beat out Harry Potter in sales, which is no small task!).
Co-written by Dr. Peter Clifton, another nutrition scientist from CSIRO and a practicing endocrinologist, this book curiously avoids using the term "low-carb" to describe itself in favor of the much more chic "low-calorie, high-protein, low-fat" diet. But once you look closely at the plan, you immediately notice that the principles of livin' la vida low-carb are definitely still there.
The central focus of The Total Wellbeing Diet is on something called satiety, that all-important feeling of fullness that keeps your hunger and diet-busting cravings at bay. The high amounts of protein included in this plan safeguard you from ever being dissatisfied with the diet because of hunger. The program is designed specifically to combat this major problem that too often causes people to fail when they are trying to lose weight.
Additionally, when you are on The Total Wellbeing Diet, you have surprising flexibility to eat out and still stay on the diet. Dr. Noakes provides specific tools in the book to help you keep track of your progress while watching your weight melt away like butter in a frying pan!
Oh yeah, don't think you're getting out of exercising with The Total Wellbeing Diet either! Ha! But Dr. Noakes understands that it takes an incremental approach for any workout routine to become a habit that you will WANT to do. Before long, you'll be an exercising machine and nobody will be able to stop you. You big stud!
The Total Wellbeing Diet includes a 12-week menu plan to help people who need specific direction about what, how much, and when they need to eat. It would be next to impossible for you to follow this plan for three months and NOT see a difference if you stick with it as prescribed by Dr. Noakes. Go ahead, give it a try and don't be surprised when it WORKS!
Also, for all you cooking wonks out there, you will be pleased to know that half of the book is, in essence, a cookbook with over 100 simple low-carb recipes utilizing mostly Mediterranean and Asian foods that will satisfy your tastebuds with great-tasting food while helping you become that slim and trim person you desire to be.
My favorite part of the book is all of the vibrant and colorful pictures of happy and healthy people as well as delicious-looking foods. This is a book you could cozy up to while sitting in the hot tub refreshing yourself from that exhausting walk on the treadmill. Allow the very clear message of The Total Wellbeing Diet soak into the very fiber of your being and radically change your life in a positive way that will make heads turn. It can happen if you devote yourself 100% to this!
I do have a few points of contention about this book, though. Dr. Noakes recommends people drink about 2 glasses of wine each week, although I would never do that because I do not drink alcohol even in moderation. She also focuses heavily on the message of eating low-fat along with the low-carb, high-protein diet and that can lead to some problems if fat is reduced too much from the diet. Also, I find it curious that "low-carb" was nixed from any mention on the book cover and in the marketing pieces about the book, but "low-fat" was used instead to make it allegedly "nutritionally balanced."
Well, if it's truly low-fat, or 15-20 percent of calories from fat, then how can it be "balanced?" The Total Wellbeing Diet sounds a lot like a mix between The South Beach and The Zone diets, both of which are well-known to low-carb consumers as effective ways to lose weight and keep it off. They may avoid using the "low-carb" label with this book, but it is DEFINITELY low-carb!
At any rate, Dr. Noakes and Dr. Clifton must be doing something right if the so-called health "experts" are heavily criticizing them and their diet plan for being "unbalanced." Oh, that's just too funny because that is one area that the authors went out of their way to insure. The Total Wellbeing Diet is not only balanced, but is also a healthy, effective way to lose weight and put a dent in this current obesity epidemic we are facing.
For that reason I cannot help but praise this book which yet again proves the low-carb lifestyle is still very much alive and well in 2006! Those of us who cherish this way of eating because it has already helped us overcome our weight problem (I lost 180 pounds on it and have kept it off for two years so far!) rejoice that millions more will be exposed to the solid principles of livin' la vida low-carb and take back control of their weight, too! A special THANKS to Dr. Noakes and Dr. Clifton for sharing The Total Wellbeing Diet with us and bringing it to America. I look forward to hearing about all the incredible weight loss success stories that come out of this miraculous plan of yours.
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7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
If you like meat protein this is for you!, August 15, 2006
This review is from: The Total Wellbeing Diet (Mass Market Paperback)
This is the only diet that has ever worked for me. I love vegetarian food, but would never feel satisfied. I have finally accepted the fact that I need protein, and meat protein to feel full and satisfied. This diet is perfect for me, and I think a lot of people. I followed it for 3 months (not totally strict either) and lost 20lbs.
I am a mother of 2 young children and hated spending all my time thinking about meals, what I was going to cook for the girls, my Partner and myself.
I was thrilled to see 12 weeks of menus set out for me so I didn't have to worry about what to cook again. It takes all the stress out of whether you are eating right and also portion sizes.
I have adjusted a few recipes to suit my budget as I can't afford the expensive cuts of meat or fish. I know food in Australia is a lot cheaper especially the seafood. But with cheaper fish and maybe a steak rather than fillet steak, you can still have wonderful meals.
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