Not a Smoothie book for weight loss secrets, quite the opposite!
355755
I was shocked to see how many Smoothie Recipes in this book contain SUGAR and Alcohol as ingredients! Canned Beans? Can you tell me how SUGAR and ALCOHOL or anything from a CAN will help you lose weight, have more energy and gain better health? This author seems to be making a living by writing books on POPULAR trends. That said, he's good at this. Good for him! But If you're looking for HEALTHY SMOOTHIE recipes that will help you lose weight and break your habit of dependency on sugar and alcohol then this isn't the book for you. Look elsewhere.
2260857
The relationship between the glycemic index values of food and insulin resistance are quite clear to me from research I've done and my personal struggles trying for more than a year to lose what I call "the last 10 pounds."  I was excited to find this book and ordered it for my Kindle after reading the sample offered by Amazon. But I found many contradictions to good health and to the GI that Gallop recommends and even lists specifically, such as dried apricots as something to have in one's "kitchen cupboard essentials," when in fact any dried fruit has a very high GI. He touts and greenlights low fat mayonnaise (highly processed and not healthy), many other highly processed and non-food foods, artificial sugar (including Aspartame) which though controversial are definitely not healthy. Kashi Go Lean, which he recommends has 13 grams of processed sugar.  Most whole wheat breads have a high sugar content. None of this makes any sense, and I wish I could return this book, which clearly was not well-researched or edited by anyone who knows anything about healthy foods that contribute to weight loss, the GI or the effects of non-food foods on the body. You may lose weight following this diet, by cutting down on calories and increasing exercise, but you can do that with any number of different diets. Health and longevity are about a healthy weight, but also about the foods that one puts in the body for the long-term.  Big disappointment.
4335962
Considering that this book is titled "The Super Antioxidant Diet", I was surprised to find how little information there was on antioxidants. My wife likes its low calorie recipes. However, if you want to learn more on antioxidant foods, this is not the book. Part III, chapters 15 to 23, is not even about food. The rest of the book's title, "Nutrition Guide. A Health Plan for the body, mind and spirit" is what the book is about. To me it seems this book was written as a low calorie food health guide and then wrapped with the term "antioxidant" to increase sales.

Most of the book is recipes. The word ORAC appears once and there is no comparative rating of any foods so as to define what is a "super antioxidant food". There is not even a list of super-antioxidant foods. None of the recipes has an antioxidant score, while you can find a table with the score for 5 recipes for a range of elements, vitamins, cholesterol, calories etc.

In conclusion, this author should refund me, as this cover title is false advertising. I am disappointed in the content. This is lazy mass marketing at its worst!
467867
In spite of the big promotion the book was not available at my bookstore and I had to drive 20 minutes to another shop to get it.

On the first page of the book Karen Diega Sutton claims to have lost 13 pounds within 7 days (!!???).  I didn't know who Karen is but her claim made me very uneasy if not suspicious. Is that even physically possible?  Is that yet another lose-13-pounds-within-7-days book?  Did I make a fool of myself driving 20 minutes to pay for another unrealistic hype?

I relaxed when further in the book the author explained that for each 4 to 9 pounds of weight lost in a week only 2 to 3 pounds is from the belly fat.  The remaining loss results from losing the build up waste in the intestines, or "false belly fat" as the author calls it.  "The fiber in good carbs is critical for removing this kind of waste from your body." --  OK, that sounds not only probable but also encouraging as it means cleansing up your intestines which obviously results in a better health.  I've read a lot about that in the book titled "Live 150 Years".  The author of that book devotes a few chapters to internal hygiene, "autotoxication", and body cleansing.  In fact he claims that what is going on in our large intestine has a major impact on our health and is often the main cause of obesity...  Jorge Cruise does not mention this book but to support his point he uses the authority of Dr. Oz , the author of well know series of YOU books...

The book release at the end of the year makes a lot of sense as it will reach the readers just on time for New Year's resolutions. Especially that the author points out that losing belly fat is the most important step to feeling good and looking attractive. He is not the first one to discover that setting goals is the best way to achieving anything but I find his insisting on setting long term goals very useful for achieving healthy waste circumference.

As I was reading this book I was finding it more any more realistic and my initial disappointment faded away.  For now I can say that The Belly Fat Cure has its merit and I think that it was worth driving 20 minutes to get it. Jorge Cruise provided a lot of useful information with a lot of recipes for healthy meals and beverages.  What I don't like about this book is the fact that Jorge provided in his recipes a plethora of brand name products not easily available at the market. One has to make extra effort to find them in specially health food stores or mail-order them which is rather impractical in case of groceries.

The other limitation is the author's focus on carbohydrates. He almost neglected such things like proper food combination, body cleansing, and some other factors crucial to fighting obesity that are so well explained in the book Live 150 Years that I have already mentioned (i.e. Bad Habits that Lead People to Obesity). The other good reading that I suggest is Flat Belly Diet.  Consequently The Belly Fat Cure is a good source of information but ONLY as addition to the other books mentioned above. Happy New Year's Resolutions!
870155
Have done the nutrition facts on just a few recipes & so far some that are labeled "healthy fats" are actually crossovers (THM term for "healthy" cheats). Albeit light crossovers, but none the less they are what THM would title it as. One example is the Cinnamon Roll Single Muffin- came in at 12g net carbs. And that's WITHOUT the cream cheese frosting- that would put it at a total of 20g net carbs! I also found the Parmesan Herb Biscuit for one is missing yogurt in it's writeup (compared to the recipe for a batch of 6 on the next page).

So far I have tried a few recipes and they definetly aren't bad. Just bummed I've got to go through the book & do all the nutrition facts to be safe.

The picture on EACH recipe is lovely. As is the large spiral binding. I very much enjoyed Briana's "forward" where she titled it "This is not a foreword". That's actually what got me to read it ha!
3568060
I will start off by saying I did NOT try the diet; the review is on the book and the info it contains.  I had high hopes for this, and believe  that people probably do lose weight on it (I have no way of checking that).  I would like to compare it 'slightly' to Atkins; yes, there are similarities.  It is high-protein & ketogenic.  There is a sort of 'induction' phase.  That can last 1-10(?) days.  He was VERY vague on that point, and several others, IMO.  Is it one day or a week?  Big difference.  Also, there are no height/weight charts, no real idea of what your "true" weight is supposed to be (he infers your body will just 'know.').  How will it know?  I am supposed to go along in step 2 until I reach my ideal weight, but I have NO CLUE what that is supposed to be!

Other things jumped out at me like red flags, which made me doubt his science or legitimacy.  For example, there are NO veges allowed in the first (of four) phases, and very few in the second phase.  That can be months of your life with very little vitamins.  He just adds in some weird oat cake daily.  No substitutions on this--eat the oats!  Why would you think greens and low-sugar vegetables are taboo, but add in grains???  I get the need for fiber (he does talk about the expected constipation [oh, joy], but says to drink more water and take medications for that.  And eat the oat cake.

Another MAJOR issue is his restriction of fats to the point of craziness.  This is dangerous, and you can google lots of info on something called 'rabbit sickness.'  I guess if one consumes vast quantities of protein w/ no real carb and no fat, it can cause such havoc in your body that many people have died from it.  You can apparently live on nothing but fat (as the Inuits do--yuk!) and be fine, but all protein & no fat is horribly dangerous.  For a doctor to recommend this seems unethical.  Again, there is research out there, esp. from the Colonial times where it WAS killing people.  And all fat is bad to him except salmon, but avocado & nuts are off limits.  ?????

Dr. Dukan also not only permits diet soft drinks, he encourages them, even in the case of pregnant women!  (Is there anyone who thinks aspartame is good for an unborn child?!  Seriously.)  Finally, the diet makes it SEEM like once you get the weight off, you can eat whatever you want in life except for 1 day per week.  Reading in depth, however, he infers you can't do that & maintain low weight; you will need to stick to level 3 most of the time & have treats now & then.  It just felt, for me, like a big lie from what he espouses, but in the fine print, so you might miss that point.

I'm pretty sure that regardless of high carb/no fat to high protein/low carb, just about everyone from Dean Ornish to Dr. Atkins himself regard vegetables as 'the more, the better.'  They are filled with vitamins and phytochemicals, as well as fiber & water.  I think most weight loss experts would also recommend staying far, far away from aspartame & other yucky chemicals, in the name of health.

My opinion:  I won't be trying this b/c it is important to me to 1) make choices based on nutrition, not just weight loss.  I want to be full of vibrant health, not full of weird chemicals;  and 2) I want to teach my child about healthy eating and steer her away from bad things.  I think this diet WOULD work for a short term event (wedding, reunion) where you need to be diligent, but the weight probably will drop off.  I do not see how someone could maintain this forever, and question some of his suggestions.  I would rather go back to Atkins or Zone, where the emphasis is on health.
1463004
Here's a summary of the entire book: Eat better. Lose weight. Now you're pregnant!

There's a chapter or two or useful information, but most of it you probably know if you've ever read a TTC forum or another PCOS book. This one completely ignores all of the women who are NOT struggling with weight as a part of their PCOS.

My reproductive endocrinologist told me that there are two strands of PCOS--insulin resistive, commonly causing obesity and non-insulin resistive, where the woman is at a normal weight. Don't buy this book if you fall into the second category.
4264408
I purchased Dana Carpender's book 500 Low-Carb Recipes and was disappointed in the recipes and the ingredients.  This book was no different.  After reading the carb counts on her smoothies recipes as well as the ingredients she call for, they are not what I would consider low-carb.
1954086
One of my doctors suggested that I try carb-cycling to lose weight so I did some research on line and bought this book.  Not what I was expecting.  As an engineer and a newbie to carb-cycling, I was hoping to get some actual numbers to use as guidelines.  For example, charts that would tell me, okay I weigh X, this is how many carbs I should eat on a low-carb, medium-carb and high-carb day.  This book contained nothing that I could use to get started.  The recipes looked good, but no nutritional information was provided, so you have no idea what the fat, sodium or sugar content is for a given dish.  For someone trying to control all of those things, that information is critical.  Also, it assumed that the reader was into 'training' days and 'regular' days.  Not a good book for someone new to trying to use carb-cycling, or lowering their carbs to loose weight.
809618
I didn't like this book for several reasons. One, it comes across as a marketing tool for the author's business. When I saw the author is big on supplements, I knew then he was going to try to sell me some. Two, I didn't really see much difference between what was covered in this book and what is covered in any of the Atkins Diet books. Both are low carb diets. Three, the subject of how to tackle the condition of insulin resistance isn't really covered. Maybe he thinks he covers it in his presentation on supplements, but I didn't see it. He certainly never covers intermittent fasting which is the only tested way to break insulin resistance. Four, the subject is made much more complex than it really is. The solution when you cut through it all is really simple: eat the right foods, the right mix of macronutrients, at the right time without snacking in between, and get a good night's sleep.

The author outlines his book around Seven Steps of which I only really thought three were important: Peak Nutrition, Optimized Digestion, and Calm Mind.

Peak Nutrition (PN)  Eat healthy by cutting out sugar, refined carbs, and processed foods. Stick to protein, fat, and lots of veggies.

Optimized Digestion (OD)  Avoid gluten and lactose if you are intolerant.

Calm Mind (CM)  Avoid unnecessary stress and get a good amount of sleep.

The other four topics I viewed as filler: Regulated Hormones, Reduced Inflammation, Better Energy Metabolism, & Maximum Detoxification.

Regulated Hormones (RH)  Fluff. Nothing here really. You need to heal insulin resistance, but this program doesn't really tell you how to do that. In fact, the program doesn't heal insulin resistance. The author advocates counting calories and eating snacks. And he makes no mention of intermittent fasting.

Reduced Inflammation (RI)  Fluff. Overlap with other advice or bad advice. The overlap exists with the Optimized Digestion topic. If you eat gluten or lactose, and you are allergic to them, then you will cause harmful inflammation. The bad advice was the author's words on exercise. He didn't sound too knowledgeable about anaerobic exercise and aerobic exercise. Claimed anaerobic exercise (HIIT & resistance training) trained mitochondria. In reality, anaerobic exercise trains fast twitch muscles which don't have many mitochondria. It's the slow twitch muscles that have mitochondria, and you train them using aerobic exercise which typically involves moderate and low intensity activity. And anaerobic exercise doesn't work too well when you are cutting out sugar and refined carbs from your diet.

Better Energy Metabolism (BEM)  Fluff. Nothing here really. Exercise is important for a healthy lifestyle, but there is a time and place for everything. The author would have you believe you should be doing anaerobic exercise (HIIT & resistance training) while trying to battle with an insulin imbalance and lose stored body fat. Such exercise will make these objectives pretty darn hard to achieve because you need to consume carbs to perform anaerobic exercise. All you should be doing is low intensity AEROBIC activity (easy walks, bike rides, or whatever) for 30 to 45 minutes a day, which is not taxing and does not require carbs for energy. Exercise helps reduce stress which helps you in a way like sleep to calm your mind (CM).

Maximum Detoxification (MD)  Marketing thingy. You don't need this. If you follow the guidelines for Peak Nutrition, Optimized Digestion, and Calm Mind, then your body will dotox on its own.

A person doesn't need to read a book to learn that they need to eat better and avoid food to which they are allergic while getting the proper amount of sleep. And to get this basic message in this book you have to wade through the other stuff: RH, RI, BEM, and MD. Save your money. 2 stars!
3583397
If you are looking for healthy smoothies, this book is not for you. The recipes look delicious, though I have not tried any yet. However, many of the recipes have added sugar, sometimes up to a one third of a cup or use liquid that has added sugar in it. Some of the recipes are also higher calorie, as they have either heavy cream or ice cream as part of the ingredients. There are some healthier recipes included as well. For an occasional treat, there are some good possibilities in the book.
3685647
I watched a video where she gives a seminar about how she lost her weight, and I saw this book placed in the video. They shouldnt put this book there to be honest as that is what is misleading us. I feel misled too. The book is a good vegan book but I was expecting it to be soy free, SOS, GF, nut free, oil free and following the startch solution, as the diet she states she follows, so this book is really not good for me and what I was looking for.
3051543
Not impressed.  The title is "Diabetes Reversal", and yet, the author states "diabetes reversal takes a lifetime of work".  If it takes a lifetime, is that really reversal?  To me, that makes the title rather deceptive.  A very short read.  Overall, no new information here.  This book promotes a low calorie, low fat diet, that includes fresh fruit, whole grains, etc., at one point suggesting going vegan.  While she suggests avoiding high GI foods (good advice), she also suggests replacing bad foods with fresh fruits or rice cakes.  Rice cakes, in particular, are high GI, and many fruits are as well.  So are many grains.  So, to me, the advice was a bit conflicting.  Overall, I thought that this was just one more author with no experience with diabetes, just putting information together that was pulled from other sources.  Thankfully, I spent NO money on this, as it was available on Kindle Unlimited.  To me, it did not present any information worth paying for.
3132374
Really disappointed in this book.  The first thing I expect is that the information is correct, and it's not!  How can she say that bananas are okay to eat when they are loaded with sugars?  She cites The Paleo Approach and Sarah Ballantyne as sources/guides and then she doesn't even provide as much information as Sarah does (in just the FODMAP section of Sarah's book which is only two pages).  Even Ballantyne says no blueberries, no bananas, and yet this book allows them -- doesn't make sense!

This is such a disappointment.  To get the wrong information when one's health depends on it!

And what about cantaloupe?

And why does avoiding FODMAPS help?  I mean, she could have discussed this more.

And the recipes -- well, when they include food that has to be avoided, like bananas, how can you trust them?
121897
I opened to the first recipe and realized that this book is really about "eating" your smoothie. Haven't thought of putting granola, cheese or peanut butter in my smoothies. I had gotten this book because I thought that I'd find a lot of healthy green smoothies. So if you are in the mood of having a to-go smoothie that is indeed packed with calories for the rest of the day, this book is great for that morning pick-me-up.

However, if you've got a preconceived notion like I did that smoothies are green with fruits and veggies, then get Charity Wilson's other book: "Anti-Inflammatory Diet Smoothies"
1756569
Like many of the other reviewers on here, I noticed that this book lacked a specific plan on how to become keto-adapted. I was, however, still intrigued by this diet and really wanted to make it work. I bought Maria's $150 30-day plan on her website and guess what... It's a 1200 calorie a day plan including a lot of salads, small portions of meat and bacon and eggs. I paid a lot of money for this information... Be ye not so stupid. Basically, here is the plan: (1) Eat no more than 1200 calories worth of low-carb foods until you become "keto-adapted". (2) Lose weight and assume it is because of ketones, but it will really be because duh, less calories.

My main peeve with this book is that it is basically click-bait to get the readers to buy her expensive plans, however, I also agree that there were many contradictions in this book.  She says not to eat dairy or artificial sweetners, but nearly all of her dessert recipes contain an artificial sweetner called Swerve as well as dairy.

I will say her recipes are excellent for someone that is doing a paleo or low-carb diet. Most of them are freely available on her site, so there's really no need to buy the books.
953701
This book looked like a normal diet book that would interest me, as I have long been on the low carb diet and believe that starch and sugar cause obesity and health problems such as diabetes and arthritis. I was intrigued by the idea that starch such as rice and potatoes could help with weight loss, and wondered how that would work. Man, was I surprised to hear this works if and only if you give up meat, fish, eggs, cheese, and milk (the staples of all low carb diets). So it's not the blueberries but the cream that causes weight gain; not the pancakes but the butter on them. The low carb diet says it is the excess of carbs that causes weight gain; this book says it is the fat and protein that cause weight gain.

I was pretty stunned when I came across such ideas as:
- all fish is toxic, including omega 3 fish oils in capsules; no one should ever eat fish again.
- man does not need any meat or dairy; and these both contribute to health problems.
- sugar does not make you gain weight and humans need some.

My son is a vegan and he is obese. The author gets into that danger in chapter 10, The Fat Vegan. He largely blames the fake meat soy products and vegetable oils, but it's pretty hard to get enough non animal protein without resorting to some tofu and soy. The author admits that there is no vitamin B12 in non animal food, and that is the one supplement he recommends. Would this be the case in nature if we were not meant to eat any animal protein?

This may indeed be a diet that is healthy, but to change over to these recommendations would be to eat the opposite of what I've been living on. I may just try it one day. It seems so drastic and I wonder if eliminating all animal products helps you lose weight simply because of the number of calories and the amount of fat. To me it does not make sense scientifically - I've experienced weight loss from a low carb diet and weight gain from adding carbs. But I've never tried a totally vegan diet.

He praises Dr. Swank's low fat diet, whereas my husband tried this when he was diagnosed with MS in 1975, and it did not help him and he was unable to continue very long on it. In the past few years I have been seeing more about the need for fat (now called "good fats") in the human diet; the low fat craze of the 60s and 70s is no longer in favour. The need for Omega 3 because we get too much Omega 6 was only discovered in the 1980s and now I thought it was universally accepted.

Anyway, to wrap this up, this is a startling book. It's worth reading, but it may be very difficult to actually follow the advice. I do want to try it though, to see if I could really lose weight eating mashed potatoes, beans and corn, as long as I don't eat meat, eggs or dairy. I just don't think I could stay on it for long, and I'd be worried about giving up all animal protein.