How the Rich Get Thin

Let's not forget personal chefs ala Oprah.

I agree whole heartedly with your comment regarding the fresh vegetables and white bread.

Normally USDA Prime is more marbled then USDA Select, when talking about beef. Select is the cheaper.

I saw that book yesterday at the bookstore and almost laughed out loud. Of course it was after scanning an entire table stacked high with about 40 different diet books. I wish I had my camera.

The bit about vegetables not being that expensive is totally untrue. It's so much cheaper to buy bread, pasta, rice, and fast food than to stock the pantry and fridge with fresh whole foods.

I'm pretty sure that the thin rich people are like that because of several reasons: 1)unlimited plastic surgery options 2)Personal trainers/home gyms that would put health clubs to shame 3)chefs that tell them exactly what to eat and when 4)certain designer drugs that are expensive to obtain 5)having more time than most people to devote to themselves thanks to lots of maids, nannies, etc.

Let's not forget that eating healthy and eating cheaply are not mutually exclusive. I buy in-season produce, fat free dairy products, and lean meats without ringing up a huge grocery bill. I don't buy a lot of name brand, processed, or junk foods.

I agree with the statement about white bread and vegatables, If good foods were lesser priced more people would be healthy. It is due to having to get rid of certain excess drugs and big businesses that things are priced as they are, I don't think it has to do with availabilities.

Think about it, I have I millions of dollars, I no longer have to work nine to five. I can afford to live in a mansion on a multi-acre estate. I have access to my own personal swimming pool, weight room, gym, tennis court or outdoor recreation. I spend my time meeting and dealing with other wealthy people, traveling, shopping or laying about my giant home. Five o'clock rolls around, hmm, supper..I ring a bell or pick up a phone state four ingredients that sound appealling. I put down the phone and in lets say half an hour dinner is served. What lays on my plate? Kraft dinner? Don't be foolish. Spagetti? No I don't think so. I have a sous-chef, there is nothing but the latest in healthy, tasty and exotic food. I don't have a monthly food budget in which I have to feed four people. In fact I have no budget like that at all. I look for quality not quanity to fill my shelves. When I choose a restraunt I have not graced the door to a Macdonalds because with my wealth comes the more important factor of time. I have the time to sit and enjoy a meal without the worry of what more I have to get done in a twenty-four hour period after working all day. And goodness gracious if I do get a bit of pudge forming around my mid section I can either call in my private renowed instructor or a doctor. See follow these simple, easy steps and you to can lose the unwanted weight around your mid-section! Me I have to catch a nine thirty flight to Greece the beaches are calling!

I'm thinking Liposuction, too, has more to do with their thinness than their diet.

I am supporting a family of six on 30 grand a year, with no other income. Caviar? I think not!

I personally don't think that the rich have an advantage over middle income people when it comes to choosing the food you eat. It is your choice whether or not to eat McDonalds or something you prepare. I think that the Dr. has a very good point of staying away from processed foods. Think about it. If you eat natural foods like seafood,rice naturally grown vegtables and wild meat(deer,moose ect) your going to have a much healthier diet.

i agree with Spectra. i'm poor, genuinely poor in fact. Things are getting better, but there have been times in the past where i had to choose between buying toothpaste and soap, because i wouldn't have enough cash for both for a few days. Canned fish, like tuna, salmon, sardines and herring are inexpensive and excellect diet choices. Low fat dairy is inexpensive, bags of frozen veggies are inexpensive, in season fruit is inexpensive, chicken is inexpensive, having lean red meat several times a week is not terribly expensive. Even though i can buy cheap white bread, i never would, even though it is inexpensive, because it lacks enough nutritional quality to justify its purchase. And nutritional/diet concerns aside, i don't even enjoy it over other foods, so why bother?

i eat alot of dried fruit, which is inexpensive and healthy. i buy a 1 lbs bag of cooking dates for $1 from the "baking needs" section of the supermarket, and have them with extra light cream cheese. Not only is that a cheap snack, but it is relatively low in calories compared to other options, and has nutritional benifits in the form of potassium, iron, B vitamins and calcium. You CAN find inexpensive, healthy food options, no matter how poor you are.

And if you "have" to go to a fast food place, since i keep hearing about how poor people can't afford not to at times, you can choose to get a 99cent, 200 calorie chili from Wendy's instead of an 800 calorie burger. Even fast food places now have healthy choices. And if you know that that McDonalds salad with the high calorie dressing has more calories then a burger, then leave the dressing off....

I totally agree with Lana. Fruits and vegetables are not expensive. For the cost of a quarter pound hamburger at McDonalds you can buy a lb. of ground beef and make 4 healther hambugers. For the price of one TV dinner, you can buy the same ingredients, which may cost more, but you can make 3 or 4 dinners with it. White bread does cost less, but there are cheap wheat breads also. And there are always coupons. You can also puchase apples, red peppers and potatoes by the bags instead of indiviually, which cost less per pound. I don't have much time to cook a dinner everynight. So when I get a free moment I prepare meals ahead and store them in the fridge for the week or the freezer for the month. I also involve my kids to help and my husband.
For snacks we have cheese and crackers, salsa and chips, pretzels, carrots, celery. All of which cost less than a bag of oreos, even the generic kind. I do buy the ocassional cookies, but the are allowed only once in awhile, which makes them last longer.

It is all about SMART shopping & SMART living. Not excuses.

Also, i often hear the macaroni & cheese excuse....that macaroni & cheese is inexpensive compared to other, healtheir alternatives...Yet i noticed a 10 serving bag of brown rice costs the same as a 4 serving sachet of macaroni & cheese....Even pasta like spagetti can be very healthy as long as a reasonable seriving size is used, and it isnt drenched in butter, or too much fatty minced beef...

What I find helps is neither expensive nor difficult, walking! I find that just walking 5 kilometres, 3 times a week, helps tremendously provided you do not overeat.

Drinking less coffee and more pepermint tea also helps.

eating healthier alternative can be much mor expensive over the much more inexpensive processed foods. question if a chicken has 2 legs, 2 thighs, and two breast, why are chicken breast much more expensive just because it has less fat? the price should be the same because it's coming from the same chicken. whenever there is new information stating any health benefit watch the price go up. Natural foods are in there natural state, processed food go from natural to processed, why are they more expensive? the majority of this countrys weight problems has nothing to do with being rich or poor everything in country is based on fast and convienence. Look at any advertisment for these fast food there is always slim attractive people eating these products. Just the opposite of whom usually indulges these foods. If the goverment made a real effort to promote healthier eating habits, by reducing the price of healthier foods, and increasing the price of fast food that would be a major step in helping people maintain a healthier lifestyle, and weight

I read this book 'How the rich get thin' and decided to give it a try. I'm about 15-20 lbs from where I want to be.
I started this diet on about 2 weeks ago and I lost 5 lbs already. I don't really follow the plan 100% but I try.
What is very interesting about this diet that you don't get hungry, and you don't have craving for food. I need to lose more weight, so I'll see how it goes.
I'm not rich but I can buy the things she recommends.

Buy you fresh vegetables from the FLEA MARKET, where they are about 1/3 of the cost that they are in grocery stores. Buy dried beans, soak them overnight, and eat them with brown rice. For vegetarians like me, that provides a complete protein. Cumin is great as a seasoning and relatively inexpensive considering how much you use and how much you save on your veggies. Cheap, Cheap, Cheap. Healthy. I was never overweight, but I have lost 5 lbs in 2 weeks by doing this alone and no other changes. It got rid of that extra little layer of fat all over me. All the extra fiber I've been getting stops food build up in my system. The lack of processed foods in my diet has helped decrease the toxins in my system. Nothing is impossible with the right know-how.