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Monthly Archives: September 2013
The Sweet Poison Quit Plan: How To Kick The Sugar Habit And Lose Weight by David Gillespie
Blurb
David Gillespie lost 40 kg when he cut sugar from his diet. In his best-selling book, Sweet Poison, Gillespie explained WHY sugar makes us fat. Now, in The Sweet Poison Quit Plan, he tells us HOW to overcome the sugar addiction and lose weight permanently.
David’s approach is not about counting calories, measuring ingredients or following complex exercise plans. He keeps it plain and simple: eat what you like, when you like, but don’t eat sugar. You’ll learn how to:
- withdraw from a substance that is as addictive as nicotine or caffeine
- eliminate long-term lifestyle habits associated with sugar
- shop for sugar-free products
- interpret confusing food labelling (there are at least twelve different names for sugar)
- make a delicious range of sugar-free treats that taste as good as their sugary equivalents, from muesli and sauces to ice-cream and brownies
Based on the latest scientific research, and packed with clear, easy-to-follow advice, The Sweet Poison Quit Plan is one of the most sensible, accessible and sustainable guides to losing weight and improving wellbeing you’re ever likely to read.
My Perspective
A customer of mine lent me this book to read however i only skim read it as i didn’t want to borrow it for too long as there are recipes in the back that she was using. I don’t think that was the best idea as i got the overall picture but there were some things i missed, now having bought it and read it again properly.
The book is basically the follow on from Sweet Poison: Why Sugar Makes Us Fat (which i have not read but am planning to) in that it briefly tells us what sugar is doing to our bodies however it is more detailed on how we can quit sugar for ourselves. You’re probably meant to read the first book first so you get a more detailed idea on what sugar is actually doing to our bodies and then read the second book for a step by step plan on how to quit sugar. Obviously i didn’t do that so my opinions may change slightly on the actual content when i read the first book.
The book was laid out in an easy to read and follow format, written in the conversational style that i love. It was very factual, backed up with studies/research that he has included links to at the end (which i think is very important).
When i first read the book i was already cutting out sugar from my diet because i knew it wasn’t good for me however it was interesting to read what it was actually doing to my body. Basically sugar (sucrose) is made up of one part glucose and one part fructose. Our bodies obviously run on glucose as that is what it converts food into so as long as you’re only eating as much glucose as your body needs, that is fine. However our bodies were not meant to be digesting large amounts of fructose, therefore causing all sorts of problems. I became an instant convert to the anti-fructose movement and either cut out anything containing sugar at all (like BBQ sauce) or making baked goods containing glucose only. As i had already been cutting out sugar (and I’m more of a savoury person than sweet – give me hot chips over cake any day) it wasn’t a huge step for me as it might be for some. Did i lose heaps of weight? No. Did i have lots of weight to lose in the first place? Not really. Was i strict and cut out sugar completely forever? No. My results are therefore void as i didn’t follow “the plan” completely. I also think that from what he said from the amount of sugar he was consuming, cutting out sugar would have definitely made him lose the amount of weight that he did.
Reading the book properly the second time around, other points have come up. I started seeing my naturopath again, who is also an Iridologist, and she raised the point that the glucose i was buying was still processed and how was that affecting my body? That certainly stopped me in my tracks and like anyone who has been devoutly following some kind of regime and spouting its wisdom, when someone questions you and it makes you doubt, you tell yourself that they just don’t know what they’re talking about. I have since accepted that maybe she has a point, and so my husband and i have done some research. I think i am more confused than ever as i know i shouldn’t be consuming fructose but then the glucose available to me, well how do they extract it? You’d probably throw the towel in at this point and say “Well, we’re all doomed so we may as well eat sugar” or never eat fructose or any processed form of glucose again (which pretty much rules out any kind of sweetener).
There were also some things that didn’t sit quite right with me. From what i gathered (and if I’m wrong then that’s fantastic) he doesn’t really believe in exercise (unless you enjoy it). Exercising is not just about losing weight and you need to do it. Why? There are so many reasons. Here’s a good one. The more a man works out, the more testosterone he releases, the more desire he has for sex. Obviously if you’re in a relationship where you’re the woman who pretends she has a headache all the time because you don’t want to have sex you wouldn’t want that (that’s a WHOLE other kettle of fish that makes me angry) however if you’re in a healthy, loving, honouring relationship then that’s a great bonus! However in terms of health wise, you need to exercise to increase your metabolism, give you energy and make you happy. Like in Legally Blonde – “I just don’t think that Brooke could’ve done this. Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people just don’t shoot their husbands, they just don’t.”
I think the book brings up some great points however (and as he states) there is so much more research that needs to be done. I want to be healthy and i know that sugar (fructose) in anything other than tiny amounts is doing my body damage. I also know that the form of glucose available to me is not the answer either. In the mean time, the best thing i will be doing for my body is cutting out sugar as completely as i can, eating as little processed foods as i can and choosing carefully what foods that do contain fructose, that i want to consume.
Overall i would definitely recommend this book as it makes you think about what sugar is doing to your body and brings up some valid points. I do however believe that you shouldn’t take it on like it’s the bible on sugar. Definitely look up the links he draws his conclusions from, definitely do your own research, however definitely reduce your sugar!
NOTE: Unlike my other reviews, this was not very neutral and very personal.
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Pastured Poultry Profit$ by Joel Salatin
Blurb
A couple working six months per year for 50 hours per week on 20 acres can net $25,000-$30,000 per year with an investment equivalent to the price of one new medium-sized tractor. Seldom has agriculture held out such a plum. In a day when main-line farm experts predict the continued demise of the family farm, the pastured poultry opportunity shines like a beacon in the night, guiding the way to a brighter future.
My Perspective
After reading You Can Farm: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Start and Succeed in a Farming Enterprise by Joel Salatin, reading this book was a must in our endeavour to raise our own chickens for meat.
The book is basically a manual on how to raise your own meat chickens in a free range environment. It starts with raising chicks right through to processing them. It also includes guides on egg production. Again, it is packed full of information on almost everything you need to know.
It is an interesting and easy read, written in the same conversational style as You Can Farm. Again, some parts were a little bit tedious because it was so detailed on everything you need to do, for example he practically includes blueprints to his free range chicken pens.
It was originally published in 1993, which was ten years ago and a lot has changed since then. There has been three reprints since then, the last in 2010. I really liked how at the end of the book, there were ‘Addendums’ to update the book with each reprint. Instead of rewriting parts of it to make it up to date, he just added lessons they had learned and different ways of going about certain things they had come across. It showed the growth and also gave a lot of history – rewriting would have taken this away.
There were some parts that frustrated me as for us living in Australia, some of the things he suggested were simply not possible as it is either not available here or against the law. I know that he would obviously tell me that’s okay, that i can find another route but the way he came across was really “This is the only way and you can’t do it any other way and if you do it any other way then it won’t work and you will fail”. That’s probably a little bit over the top but that’s how it made me feel. I understand that he can’t cater for all the different countries in the world and he was probably so blunt and one way because people like to try and shortcut and then blame him for their failures.
Anyway overall it was a great read with lots of information to help us in our venture. I would definitely recommend this book however it’s a bit limited in its audience compared to You Can Farm as it’s aimed specifically for people interested in raising chickens.
Family Baggage by Monica McInerney
Blurb
Harriet Turner knows all about journeys. After all, she’s arranged hundreds of them for the travel agency her family runs in the Australian coastal town of Merryn Bay. But when her colleague and foster sister Lara disappears on the eve of a big overseas trip, Harriet finds herself in uncharted territory.
Left alone in England with a coachload of eccentric tourists, Harriet has her hands full. But as the bus trundles through the picturesque Cornwall countryside, the tour becomes another kind of journey for her. She finds herself facing big questions about her family and her childhood, about her feelings for Patrick Shawcross – and the biggest puzzle of all: what has happened to Lara?
My Perspective
It was my birthday on September 4. My husband spoiled me rotten. I had my own private high tea in our garden whilst reading a book in the sun. It was wonderful.
Family Baggage is about the Turners, a family who own and run a travel agency in a small Australian town. A small accident leaves Harriet, the youngest daughter, having to take over a tour to England from her brother James. However when Harriet and her tour group arrive, Lara, Harriet’s foster sister is not there to meet them as planned. Harriet must face up to her demons and guide the group by herself all the while trying to find out where Lara has gone.
I really enjoyed reading this book. It had comedy, romance, mystery and some drama. It was lighthearted without being shallow.
The characters were likable and realistic, although not without their flaws! I struggled a little bit with Molly, however i made silly decisions as a teenager so as a said even though it was at times frustrating, the characters were realistic. The relationships were also really well developed.
The story certainly was a page-turner and even though some parts were probably a tad predictable, the twists kept some of the mystery.
I would definitely recommend this book, especially if you like lighthearted chick lit. I would probably read it again.
You Can Farm: The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Start and Succeed in a Farming Enterprise by Joel Salatin
Blurb
Have you ever desired, deep within your soul, to make a comfortable full-time living from a farming enterprise? Too often people dare not even vocalize this desire because it seems absurd. It’s like thinking the unthinkable.
After all, the farm population is dwindling. It takes too much capital to start. The pay is too low. The working conditions are dusty, smelly and noisy: not the place to raise a family. This is all true, and more, for most farmers.
But for farm entrepreneurs, the opportunities for a farm family business have never been greater. The aging farm population is creating cavernous niches begging to be filled by creative visionaries who will go in dynamic new directions. As the industrial agriculture complex crumbles and our culture clambers for clean food, the countryside beckons anew with profitable farming opportunities.
While this book can be helpful to all farmers, it targets the wannabes, the folks who actually entertain notions of living, loving and learning on a piece of land. Anyone willing to dance with such a dream should be able to assess its assets and liabilities; its fantasies and realities. “Is it really possible for me?” is the burning question this book addresses.
My Perspective
Wow. This book.
Kel (my husband) and i bought this book to help us with our farming venture – check out www.thechefandthewaitress.wordpress.com for more on that – Kel started reading it first however i picked it up after he had read about a third of it as there was just so much helpful information in it that it was better for me to read it as well, rather than him just relaying what he’d learned. I’ve just finished, however i accidentally removed his bookmark while i was reading it so he may not finish for a while yet because he has to try and find where he was up to. Whoops.
This book has so much information in it that to explain what it is about, well where do i start? In a nutshell it is an encouragement, a guide, an education about ethical, sustainable, profitable farming. Joel explains how if your dream is to be working on the land, that you can do it and make a living off of it, and even eventually a profit. That the old farming models are no longer viable, not just in the sense that they are destroying the environment, pumping the population with chemicals and treating animals inhumanely but that so many farmers are going bankrupt because they can’t even break even let alone earn a profit. He gives practical advice on everything from improving the soil to filing your documents. The book is so packed full of information that you are left feeling like you’ve just eaten at a massive banquet.
It was written in a conversational style (which i love) so it was easy to read and follow. There were some parts which i just did not understand because i live in Australia and the U.S.A can be very different – like their medical system, how that works is the mystery of the universe to me – however there was only a minimal amount and i was able to get through it without ending up too confused.
As the book covered so many bases, there were some chapters that were a little bit tedious to read however to his credit not all of it is meant to be read word for word unless you’re actually up to putting that section into practice – like the filing part.
He is quite blunt and honest throughout and shines a lot of light onto the farming and food industry in the U.S.A – it is very eyeopening and he is not afraid of offending anyone in case it gets in the way of the truth. Australia is not as bad as the U.S.A however we are definitely headed that way unless something drastic happens.
He really gave a lot of insight on how to start and run a successful farming enterprise and it has given Kel and i so many tips. I would definitely recommend this book even if you don’t want to run a farm, there is just so much useful information on starting your own backyard enterprise no matter what it is. It’s also great to read just for the information on the food industry and what you are putting into your body.
This is a book for everyone and i guarantee that you will get at least one useful tidbit out of it – even if it’s to convince you that your dream of owning a farm is just that – a unrealistic dream.
Why you should buy my books through All On The Same Page
This is a great!
Many of you have been asking for a print edition of Cannibal Hearts, and so here it is. I have copies on the shelf at All On The Same Page Bookstore, 11052 Olive Blvd., Creve Coeur, Missouri 63141.
All On The Same Page is locally owned and operated by Robin Tidwell, who is a self-published author and also operates a small press, Rocking Horse Publishing.
She is a wonderful contact for local self-published authors, she hosts launch parties, book signings, local author’s fairs–a tireless promoter. (Okay, so she does get tired, but she keeps going anyway.) I really can’t say enough about the bookstore–the local and self-published section of the store is huge–seriously, most of the front half of the store.
Sure, you’re thinking, that’s fine for folks who are lucky enough to reside in the Saint Louis Metropolitan Area, but what about the legions of…
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Reading For The Masses 