Comments on Cranky Fitness: Eat to Live: an apologetic book review

i just bought this book after reading an article a...

2009-11-03T16:12:47.669-05:00

i just bought this book after reading an article about it at the gym, its hard, its a hard plan to follow. i stopped eating meat when i was ten (thanks to peta...) and was vegan for thirty days once, most expensive thirty days of my life. the problem is, i love coffee and wine and vodka. so, here it is, day one of this plan for me. i ate spinch and oatmeal and grapefruit for breakfast,with one cup of black coffee, a crap ton of herbal tea, a subway veggie sandwhich minus cheese and olives for lunch, and i am feeling okayish. i really want something sweet, but i generally do. i just started the gym thing about two weeks ago and lost ten pounds already, this is without this crazy diet. i think i can stand five weeks and four days of this, but with thanksgiving looming, i think i will have a massive cheat day times three. and what about happy hour with the girls tonight? maybe i am in over my head?

I love this new way of eating. I am a cronic junk ...

2009-07-31T15:12:37.862-04:00

I love this new way of eating. I am a cronic junk food snacker and this diet helps me stay satified and I don't crave sweets and salty snacks after dinner like I used to. My energy level is great too and I am 62 years old. I have cheated a tiny bit, have wine occasionally, and meat once a week and still have lost weight, about 2lbs/week (and it's not water weight either) which is fine with me.

Merry, you are just tell another person's plan...n...

2009-06-13T17:30:14.638-04:00

Merry, you are just tell another person's plan...no flames will come from me. I find it very interesting that quite a few "diet gurus" these days are telling us no more meat and eat your heart out of veggies and fruits. I have to believe that there is something to that.
I personally don't find it difficult to not eat meat every day, but I feel like I am lacking something to give it up totally.
Great review.

I've never gone completely vegetarian, but being a...

2009-06-13T16:09:00.616-04:00

I've never gone completely vegetarian, but being a semi-veg has made a huge improvement in my health. If I could ever learn to make tofu taste appetizing, then I might go vegetarian. But I don't think hell is freezing over anytime soon.

Seriously though, if you decide to incorporate more vegetables onto your plate, try this: red bell pepper, zucchini, and cherry tomatoes sauteed with garlic in a little extra virgin olive oil, sprinkled with fresh thyme and rosemary. Yum. I could eat it for every meal.

He probably limits his intake of flax because of i...

2009-06-13T06:49:58.871-04:00

He probably limits his intake of flax because of its proinflammatory nature.

There's a good post on the subject over on the Primal Wisdom blog.

http://donmatesz.blogspot.com/2009/06/top-ten-problems-with-applying_09.html

Ruth, please don't feel sorry -- we love reading a...

2009-06-12T12:59:08.974-04:00

Ruth, please don't feel sorry -- we love reading about people's life stories! And I'm glad you've found a diet-lifestyle that works for you!

Merry, Excellent post. I would love to read this...

2009-06-12T12:54:54.262-04:00

Merry,

Excellent post.

I would love to read this book.

I was a vegetarian (and at times, nearly vegan) for years.

Now I'm following more of a Primal Blueprint type nutrition (not with perfect adherence, but moving more and more in that direction), because, as a vegetarian, I was eating WAY TOO MANY refined carbs. This was not really a problem until I:

1) Quit smoking (after 15 yrs.!)
2) Started shoveling food into my face non-stop (was "focusing" on quitting smoking--didn't want to "stress myself out too much")
3) Didn't move enough, and a couple months into my quitting, started gentle yoga only (not enough, given what I was eating, but did reduce stress)
4)All this coincided with being "thirty something".

This was the perfect storm. I got FAT, FAT, FAT!

So, I amped up my activity, moderated my food intake, and toned up a bit, but progress was glacially slow.

Finally, a friend lost weight eating low carb, and I thought I should put my bias aside and at least check it out.

So, I became a low-carb mostly vegetarian (I occasionally ate seafood).

And I dropped weight. At long last!

For me personally, though, there was NOT ENOUGH VARIETY in my diet, so I added meat back into it (mostly organic and local beef--I'm a Coloradan, so it's not too hard to come by).

Anyway, are you still reading this?

I feel like I'm still a vegetarian deep down, as I was one for primarily ethical reasons (my guilt is somewhat alleviated by eating cruelty free meat, the fact that I consume very few packaged products, and that I buy local as much as I can...but still, a little guilty).

So, I would love to read Dr. Fuhrman's research. I am nothing if not open to new ideas, although of course, my own experience with any nutritional program is the ultimate test.

Thanks, and sorry for giving you my whole life story.

given our society... the title says it all... how ...

2009-06-11T19:15:27.453-04:00

given our society... the title says it all... how we should live... eat to live rather than live to eat methinks

happy trails
gp

I'll go back and check the book; my understand was...

2009-06-11T18:50:00.456-04:00

I'll go back and check the book; my understand was during the six-week period they were not on the Things To Consume list, and afterward they were not encouraged.
I think you're going to have to find your own level of what's okay not to give up. Makes sense to try giving them up and then see if your life is unbearable without 'em.

Should've checked his website before posting: Per...

2009-06-11T18:45:40.034-04:00

Should've checked his website before posting:

Per the FAQs, Dr. Fuhrman isn't prohibiting caffeine and alcohol, he is encouraging moderation, no more than one serving per day of either, which does make a lot of sense, even though that would be cutting back on caffeine for me. I don't drink much alcohol anyway, I just don't want to completely give it up. One cup of coffee a day, though...

Sounds good, and I think I even understand the pro...

2009-06-11T18:30:23.426-04:00

Sounds good, and I think I even understand the prohibitions against caffeine and alcohol, but not well enough to actually give them up. Might be worth buying the book to see if he makes a good argument for it, though.

During the 6-week period, he wants you to eat 1 cu...

2009-06-11T17:45:09.360-04:00

During the 6-week period, he wants you to eat 1 cup of beans a day, as well as 1 tsp flax seed and limited amounts of nuts.

I was vegetarian from age 8 to about 16, but I adm...

2009-06-11T17:27:58.083-04:00

I was vegetarian from age 8 to about 16, but I admit that there were long expanses in that time period during which I subsisted primarily on Cheetos and Mountain Dew.
I could do that diet for 6 weeks if I were single- it isn't too far off from what I eat now, and if I weren't buying the meat and carbs for the boyfriend I wouldn't have much temptation- but I wouldn't do it my whole life. Do legumes count as a vegetable? I like to eat quite a bit of protein and it otherwise wouldn't be too healthy longterm imho.

Ha ha ha ha ha ha, "give up alcohol", I don't thin...

2009-06-11T16:52:25.926-04:00

Ha ha ha ha ha ha, "give up alcohol", I don't think so funny man.

I see good and bad here but I don't see how this d...

2009-06-11T15:30:29.074-04:00

I see good and bad here but I don't see how this diet is sustainable AT ALL

all he wants you to eat is veggies really and you can eat veggies all day long, none stop and you still wouldn't get enough calories to live off of long term.

I like the no processed foods but if he's saying give up meat then where's the calories coming from.

I hate processed foods but even when my vegetarian friend asked me if she should give them up I said, I wouldn't unless you're ready to start calorie counting and making sure you're getting more than 500 calories a day. a calorie restrictive diet can really mess with your thyroid. Eeek.

I do support all those veggies though! I try to eat that much each day, plus my fruits and lots of meat and ice cream... er... meat. :)

A nice advantage about living in Israel is our veg...

2009-06-11T14:25:52.913-04:00

A nice advantage about living in Israel is our vegetables are delicious. There's no problem about getting used to eating them here. ;)

P.S. Interesting blog Merry!

Hurray for no processed foods! I think I just fell...

2009-06-11T14:13:44.900-04:00

Hurray for no processed foods! I think I just fell in love with this guy. I gotta find a copy of this book. I agree with Dr. J; it only SEEMS super strict because we all eat so poorly!

I've become very nearly a vegetarian- I've only eaten meat on 2 occasions in the last few weeks, and both times it was salmon. It's kinda nice to save meat for special occasions.

I don't think I could folow such a strict diet, ho...

2009-06-11T13:34:01.854-04:00

I don't think I could folow such a strict diet, honestly. It sounds healthy and all, but I need my indulgences, infrequent as they are. Caffeine is one of those indulgences...and i do enjoy a glass of wine every now and then.

HAHAHAhahahahaha! Wait, wait, I'm fine . . . AAAH...

2009-06-11T13:18:32.886-04:00

HAHAHAhahahahaha! Wait, wait, I'm fine . . . AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAaaaaaa!

Ahem. OK. *wipes tears of laughter from eyes* I'm better now.

Let's get this up out front: I'm notnotnot ENTIRELY giving up processed food, caffeine or alcohol. Never gonna happen. That said, I could live with it if it was a once-a-month or even a bi-monthly thing.

But this:
Yeah, changing your mindset and getting your body used to a more healthy diet is no fun, but once you've made the adjustment it seems to me you'll be having a whole lot more fun in life.
Words of wisdom right there. I swear I'm gonna print this out and hang it on my wall/fridge/mirror/anywhere else I can think of.

It sounds like a starvation diet. Still, if you c...

2009-06-11T12:49:35.275-04:00

It sounds like a starvation diet.

Still, if you could do it for 6 weeks it would definitely make you lose weight. And that is tempting, as a quick fix.

I think I'm going to try and steer clear of "diets", but this is the first one that's ever really tempted me to buy the book. So, I guess, Great review Merry!

Still reading through the comments (my we are verb...

2009-06-11T12:19:21.777-04:00

Still reading through the comments (my we are verbose today, cranky readers).

I could/would not do this diet. NOT because of the veggies, but because of the no things that make eating special: meat, coffee, alcohol.

I spent about 6 months eating flexitarian: mostly ovo-vegetarian with fish or chicken when I weight trained. Lost weight, but was in such a protein deficit that I lost lean muscle. Learned something important: it's very hard to do if you can't do dairy.

I don't eat things with barcodes. I love this!

2009-06-11T12:12:32.479-04:00

I don't eat things with barcodes. I love this!

Ok, I feel like the crazy veg lady now. :) I eat...

2009-06-11T12:09:00.096-04:00

Ok, I feel like the crazy veg lady now. :) I eat pretty much like the ETL summary...only more so.

Only an apple, a cuke, and a cup of leaves per day??? Try 6+ cups of greens, 2 bananas, a pear, a kiwi, and some grapes. And a pile of raw carrots, broccoli, and cauliflower with hummus.

As for the cooked veggies, how about dinner of balsamic roasted asparagus, mushrooms, carrots, brussels sprouts, and sweet potato. And maybe some pineapple for dessert.

Limit the grains? Check. About 1 serving per day, usually something other than rice or wheat, and always in the least processed form.

Animal products? I'm what I call "flegan." Flexible vegan. No ethical issues with animal products, but I very rarely eat any kind of meat, poultry, or fish. Dairy? Once or twice a week. Eggs more frequently now that I'm doing power and interval training.

Alcohol? Rarely. Sugar? Nuh-uh. Processed foods? Barf. I don't eat things with bar codes. Caffiene? Here's where Dr. F and I part ways -- I do have a couple cups a day.

Lots of nuts, seeds, plant oils, and beans. Total around 2600 cal/day, 80 grams protein. I'm 5'3", 110 lbs, lean and fit.

This isn't hard, folks, and it's TASTY if you like to cook, which I do.

:) Cheers, Crank -- glad to have found your blog.

I've been a vegetarian for a long time and recentl...

2009-06-11T11:59:06.264-04:00

I've been a vegetarian for a long time and recently became vegan and honestly it's not that hard. Of course, if you had talked to me a year ago there is no way I could have or would have been vegan because I didn't know nearly enough about nutrition. I think that books like this are a good starting point to learn about nutrition but it would be nice if someone were able to write a book about nutrition that was readable but that wasn't promoting a certain type of diet.

had a personal masseuse... snicker.

2009-06-11T11:55:52.308-04:00

had a personal masseuse... snicker.