Book Review: My Diva Diet

I don't know if I'm the best person to review a book that is "for Women only" although in reality, the fairer sex is the prime target for marketing of diet books/products.

Henceforth, I have toted this rather large pink-coloured book around with a certain degree of inconspicuousness - determined to unravel the secrets of "a women's last diet book".

Author Christine Lakatos takes the reader through a comprehensive plan to help us women achieve the health and body they want. And, when I say "comprehensive", I'm not spouting hyperbole. This book is enormous and chock full of guides, charts, worksheets, quizzes, recipes, and the like.

My Diva Diet is presented in a cartoon-type fashion, with Lakatos taking on a heroine persona - creating a mascot and other cartoons to illustrate her points. I imagine the reader's response to this strategy would range from mildly entertaining to excessively irritating (I'm somewhere in the middle here).

The Diva Diet essentially has 2 phases:

Diva Reduction: Which is a lower calorie (1200-1300) plan that breaks down to 35% protein, 45% carbs and 20% fat. It has all the run-of-the-mill suggestions such as: 4-5 meals per day, eat clean, natural, fresh, organic, etc, etc. You stay in this phase for 10 weeks.

Diva Maintenance: A far more flexible plan in terms of both calories (1400-1600), and carb consumption (up to 65%).

Quick take: Reduction - the average person may call it "too low in fat", although I really don't have a problem with it, provided the dieter is getting sufficient essential fatty acids. Protein intake is sufficient, and combined with the rest of the recommendations, I have no problem with this ratio.

The maintenance phase, however in its more extreme ranges, is both too low in protein (20%), and too high in carbs (65%), unless said dieter is an endurance athlete.

Overall Impression

There is a TON of information in this book - most of which is sound information. It follows the same tenets of most of the other books out there, and covers a very wide range of topics - again mostly accurate and practical.

There may be a little information overload, and admittedly this may be my own ADD-like disposition. I think the terms "pure" and "clean" foods are a little overused, and Lakatos' definition of this expands to include organic and Kosher - which is not necessarily better from a health and/or fat loss perspective.

Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go file my nails and watch Grey's Anatomy!