Eat Carbs, Lose Weight: Drop All the Pounds You Want Without Giving Up the Foods You Love

I borrowed this book from the library as I wasn't sure if I would like it. I like Denise Austin and use her tapes but I wasn't sure about her diet, plus I was considering the glycemic diet as well. I liked the fact that this diet is very simliar to the principles followed in the glycemic diet, except it uses the glycemic load of the food (a more updated version based on newer studies), which allows more foods I personally like and are extremely health beneficial to be eaten like watermelon, pineapple, etc. This diet doesn't leave me feeling hunger or having cravings like other diets I have been on. I have read the entire book and have been following the diet plan for 11 days and have lost 7 lbs in the first week! I like it so much I am going to buy the book something I never do, because this diet suits me so well. I tried south beach and did lose 30 lbs while on it (which over the course of the holidays was regained), but now finding myself being a single mother of 2 children, I wanted less time consuming recipes with afforable foods that my children would like eatting too, this plan has that. If you don't want to or can't cook all your meals Denise gives you guidelines for substitutions, eatting out, how to maintain once you reach your goal weight. She does suggest you follow her plan as written for the first 28 days but she is reasonable and even advises if there is something you don't like, have a food allergy, or is simply not to your taste substitute it with another meal from the plan you do like or with a food from the substitution list. Denise also gives guidelines for exercising which is stressed as key for life long health, steady weight loss, and maintenance. The only thing that would of made this book better is a shopping list for each week of the plan since she would like you to follow the plan exactly during that time. I understand way she didn't after the first 28 days you can mix and substitute rendering the lists useless, but it still would of been nice. That said I would highly recommend this diet to anyone who loves carbs and enjoys cooking healthy tasty meals.

I really like Denise Austin and I really like what she has to say in this book, it seems to me to be more truth and less sensational than the other popular diet books. The trouble I have found is that I am a finicky eater and there are a lot of foods I do not care for, most of which are in the recipes. If you like a lot of variety in your foods, you probably will like the recipes but for me there are very few recipes I will be likely to try. The bad thing is that she encourages you to follow her plan with the recipes because they are each balanced to follow her plan and if you make the recipes the way she tells you to in the other you are supposed to, then that is part of the plan. But it appears to me that the plan is basically out the window if I were to change each of the recipes to suit my tastes. So, I would not say the book is useless because I like what she has to say and I like the fact that she encourages exercise along with it but for me, the recipes are no good.

Denise has thought outside the box and what is "popular" and instead focused on nutrition and health. The meals supplied within are easy to follow and very good. The exercise plan is very simple and not time consuming - thus working folks are able to comply. It is definitely a must buy!