Yesterday I was in the grocery store check-out line and was perusing all the magazines. At the last minute I pulled one out and added it to my purchases…what was it that caught my eye? “Flat-Belly Soup! Lose 30 lbs in 60 days!”
Now, I’m no dummy (and I even have some degrees to back it up!). And I generally know when something is too good to be true. But this is most certainly too good to be true – I honestly can’t believe I bought the damn magazine. But when I got it home, I decided I should still read it, give it a chance. It’s actually quite interesting.
While it is clearly (in my opinion) 60% advertising and 20% snakeoil, the remaining 20% seems sound and credible. It is basically saying that if you replace processed foods, fatty meats and cheese with plant material and lean protein you will lose weight. That’s a duh, right? There was also a bunch of prebiotic/probiotic talk in there. I’m not sure of the science behind it all, but it seems they’re saying if you give the bacteria in your gut something they have to work harder at (plant fiber) that increases the “good” bacteria and you’ll begin to lose weight. Apparently the lazy bacteria love all things delicious and processed; when you take it away, they pack up their recliners and move on out.
There was a profile of Shannon who lost 55 lbs on this diet (fave quote, “I was too fat for Spanx!”) – and she does look incredible. The article claims she lost 30 in 60 – if so, she probably combined that with some hardcore exercise and a personal chef and trainer (and obviously nothing else to do with her time). But still, she lost some weight and seems to feel good enough about herself to be in a magazine. Pretty positive stuff. I hope she keeps it off.
Last goodness out of this article, almost 10 recipes for healthy meal options. That alone was worth the price of admission. Next time, I’ll use the article for my shopping list!
– Libby Bingham
About Libby
Libby has recently found herself at maximum density but with a positive outlook on future-fitting Spanx. You can reach her here.
