The "French Women Don't Get Fat" DietStart me on this diet

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Food tastes great
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Easy to follow for the long haul
Level of exercise was right for me
I feel Healthier

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Complicated to Understand
Results took longer
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Caffeine and/or alcohol restricted

Description:

French women know something that we Americans don't: how to enjoy food without gaining weight (that's in addition to knowing how to look impossibly, effortlessly chic). The "French Women Don't Get Fat" Diet sets out the idea that all you need to do to look like a slender French woman is to think like a French woman, and by extension eat like a French woman.

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exclusive on dietTV:Food at home and on the go! we show you what you can eat anywhere you are.

Diet TV Eating Out Guide:

Dunkin' Donuts (162):

bagel sandwich, bacon, egg, cheese; bagel sandwich, egg, cheese; bagel sandwich, ham, ...full list

McDonalds (159):

bacon egg & cheese biscuit; bacon egg & cheese mcgriddle; big breakfast; deluxe break ...full list

Subway (129):

breakfast sandwich, bacon & egg; breakfast sandwich, cheese & egg; breakfast sandwich ...full list

Starbucks (94):

banana loaf cake; brownie, espresso; crumble coffee cake; oatmeal raisin cookie; lemo ...full list

Arby's (87):

bacon & egg croissant; bacon biscuit; ham biscuit; ham & cheese croissant; sausage & ...full list

Diet TV Frozen Food Guide:

Green Giant (28):

carrot, honey glazed, frozen; corn, cream style, frozen; spinach, frozen; asparagus c ...full list

Flav-R-Pac (24):

asparagus cuts, frozen; baby carrots, whole, frozen; broccoli cuts, frozen; carrot, s ...full list

Cascadian Farm (10):

corn, sweet, frozen; spinach, chopped, frozen; squash puree, winter, frozen; asparagu ...full list

Start me on this diet

What can I eat:

AlcoholWine
BeansBeans, peas and lentils
BreadFresh bread
DairyRich cheeses, butter and milk
Eggs
Fats
Fish
Fruit
Juice
Meat
Nuts
Oils

What can I snack on:

CrackersWhole grain
Dips
Dried FruitAll varieties on occasion
Fruit
Ice Cream & SorbetsFat free
Nuts & SeedsNuts such as hazelnuts, almonds and walnuts on occasion
Pita Chips
Popcorn
Pretzels
Shakes & Smoothies
Vegetables
YogurtAll natural plain yogurt on occasion

Start me on this diet

Nutritionist review:

This program may work well for those who cook and would like to try new recipes and flavors. Unfortunately, this is not a simple plan to follow. It is not a diet that provides you with an exact plan. You will probably have to go through a lot of trial and error in order to determine how much your inner Frenchwoman should eat.

Description (cont'd from above)

The "French Women Don't Get Fat" Diet

You'll have to abandon the-oh-so-American habit of eating mindlessly while multi-tasking. Pay attention to what you eat and savor every bite with all your senses. You'll be able to control how much you eat, increase the variety of what you eat, and truly enjoy small amounts of indulgent foods. There are no foods that you absolutely may not eat, but you should emphasize vegetables and fruits in this French diet.

The underlying notion is that you can fool yourself into satisfying your appetite without having to sacrifice all the pleasures of food. There are a handful of guidelines and rules to help you realize this lofty goal. For instance, you'll need to eat seasonally and regulate your meal times. There's no specific road map to follow. You personalize the principles of the diet to suit your temperament, lifestyle, likes, and dislikes.

What makes The "French Women Don't Get Fat" Diet a different weight loss plan?

This French diet philosophy is that you can have it all - as long as you only have a little of it. By enjoying every bite (and keeping to small portions), you will happily lose weight and stay slender. In other words, this is an individually-oriented portion control plan that encourages you to reduce or temporarily cut out foods and change behaviors that you find problematic. There is no general checklist of foods that you must not eat.

What is The "French Women Don't Get Fat" Diet?

The "French Women Don't Get Fat" Diet looks at weight loss as a slow and steady process that you can incorporate into your daily life. It claims to reject the notion of dieting per se, but you may find some of the rules in the program make you feel just like you're on a diet. You can savor thoroughly what you eat and stimulate your senses by mindfully eating a variety of foods.

This French diet uses perceived differences between French and American eating and lifestyles to urge you (the American) to change your evil ways. Americans eat larger portions of a limited selection of foods, while French women eat smaller portions of a great variety of high-quality and tasty foods. French women eat more fruits and vegetables than Americans. And French women eat with all of their senses to allow less food to feel like more.

If you stop being so American - enough already with the processed foods and oversized, repetitive meals - you'll be on your way to weight loss. There are four main phases to this secret French diet program:

Phase 1: For three weeks, keep a diary of everything you eat.
Phase 2: For about three months, try "recasting" by discovering and then temporarily reducing "food offenders" that you overeat. You can reward yourself on one weekend day each week by enjoying some of your favorite foods.
Phase 3: Begin this stabilization phase when you are at least halfway to your goal weight. You can slightly increase what you eat, but still must make sure you are losing or maintaining weight. You can reward yourself a bit more frequently than in Phase 2.
Phase 4: Once you have reached your weight loss goal, keep following the plan's eating principles.

Between the first two phases, the author recommends a 48-hour diet of "Magical Leek Soup." You should consume this simple leek and water blend one cup at a time, every two to three hours. You can eat an alternative "Mimosa Soup" (including lettuce, carrots, cauliflower, leeks, parsley and celeriac) if the magic of the leek soup doesn't work on you. You can drink as much water as you want. You can also eat leeks with a few drops of extra virgin olive oil, lemon juice, and sparingly used herbs or spices. Good thing this interval lasts only two days.

There are many recipes in the "French Women Don't Get Fat" Diet book and on the Web site, but you won't find many meal plans. You also must figure out portioning for yourself, since there are few particulars about correct portion sizes. If you're cooking one of the diet's recipes, you can calculate a serving by dividing a recipe into single servings. You can also use a food scale and eat 1- to 5-ounce portions of food items like fish, meats, and desserts.

Here are some other important principles on this French diet plan:

Prepare your own meals often and plan meals in advance
Have two servings of homemade or all-natural plain yogurt daily
Do not eat processed and packaged foods
Have a true breakfast
Eat slowly
Eat new flavors
Have foods that can work as substitutes when you are craving "food offenders"
Add some physical activity by walking to school/work or climbing stairs

What are the weight loss expectations?

You set your own goals since the plan provides no specifics about how much weight you can expect to lose. At three months, you should have lost at least half of the weight you wanted to lose.

Is exercise promoted?

Physical activity should be part of your daily routine (if approved by a physician) on this French diet program. You don't need special clothes, since the program promotes exercise for which you can wear street clothes, like walking, biking or climbing the stairs. Make movement part of your daily life rather than making a special time to work out.