Bethenny Frankel is known to many as one of The Real Housewives of New York City. A few may even know her as a high profile chef who cooks for Hollywood A-listers and provides nutritious yet delicious meals in ‘Health’. But, not many may know of her as an author!
Bethenny Frankel joined hands with Eve Adamson to write, Naturally Thin, a diet book that promises to help you shed weight naturally and easily.
The book seeks to drive home one powerful message: that we are all naturally thin, and all we need to do to regain the thin form is to think like a thin person.
Based on the author’s personal struggle with weight loss, the book reveals ten rules (each in one chapter) to can guide you to mindful, healthy eating and subsequent weight loss.
Naturally Thin overview
As a chef, Frankel loves food. The difference is she loves healthy food and is very conscious of the calories she is taking in. In her battle against the bulge, she found ways of identifying foods that are high in volume but low in calories. She also learnt how to differentiate between real and perceived hunger, and how to handle food cravings effectively. She offers these insights to her readers through the Naturally Thin book.
In addition to these, the book also includes many health tips from experts like Kathy Hilton and Charles Barclay. The chapter dealing with stress busting techniques is particularly useful.
The book also contains a number of recipes and meal plans that will act as a guide to help you eat and be skinny!
Exercise is included but it seems to be more of an afterthought and perhaps does not receive the kind of attention it deserves. The author recommends Yoga, not just for its health component but also because it helps control the mind and gain mastery over feeding frenzy.
Naturally thin review
The book revolves around 10 principles including portion control, eating with awareness, knowing food triggers and eating foods that give you energy. Smart food choices include lots of low cal veggies, moderate amounts of fruit and required amounts of protein. In addition to this, you also learn to snack intelligently.
The good thing about the diet is that it does not rule out any food. It only stipulates that small portions be taken in. This ensures effective management of cravings.
Although the diet advocates eating what you want, the author also stresses the importance of portion control. While she gives followers the freedom to eat what they want, she also adds a caveat: eat in small portions. In this aspect, this book is no different from hundreds of diet books out there.
Pros:
- Very hands-on and doable
- Portion control is important
- Encourages the intake of healthy food
- Plenty of satisfying recipes
- Manages cravings effectively
- Lots of fun tips for hunger management
- Emphasizes the importance of exercises
- An interesting read
Cons:
- Portion control may be a little too rigorous
- Nothing new about the information
In conclusion
This book is an interesting recapitulation of the author’s own struggle with her weight problems. Therefore, although no path breaking revelation takes place, you do get your hands on plenty of neat tricks and tips to handle hunger and manage cravings.
By allowing followers the freedom to stray 10% of the time, the author ensures that they are able to keep to the straight and narrow path 90% of the time. This is where the diet plan really pays dividends!
