Forget fads / ‘Sonoma Diet’ promises quick weight loss — the healthy way
By Mary Beth Schweigert
Updated Feb 04, 2008 06:00
But even he couldn’t resist the latest high-protein or low-fat fad diet.
“He would drink these protein shakes,” his daughter Connie Guttersen remembers. “For years, I thought this wasn’t right.”
Peraglie lost weight but gained back even more, mostly around his waist.
Losing and regaining those pounds, Guttersen says, ultimately damaged his heart.
Her late father’s battle motivated Guttersen to write her best-selling book, “The Sonoma Diet.”
“For me it was this personal thing,” she says. “I didn’t want anybody to have to go through this.”
Guttersen, a Sonoma, Calif., registered dietitian, says her diet offers what others don’t: an easy-to-follow plan for weight loss and better health, all while eating delicious foods.
Resolution-hungry dieters are eating up “The Sonoma Diet.” Published just this month, it’s currently No. 6 on the New York Times Best Sellers List.
“There are so many diets out there,” Gutter
sen says. “They make it way too complicated.
“People sense this is not a fad diet.”
A diet you can live with?
Guttersen, who holds a doctorate in nutrition, has worked as a weight-loss counselor and nutrition researcher. She now teaches nutrition at the Culinary Institute of America, Greystone.
Now 40, she has researched the Sonoma Diet since she was a teenager working at her father’s clinic.
She only reluctantly put the word “diet” in her book’s title. (She prefers “plan.”)
“It’s a lot more than just a diet,” she says. “The Sonoma Diet is a lifestyle. It’s a way of eating where you don’t want to go back to the way you were eating before.”
Sonoma is similar to the so-called “Mediterranean diet,” which, with its promise of good health, has lured a legion of devotees in recent years.
The big difference: The Sonoma Diet is designed to help you lose weight.
Guttersen favors savoring flavorful food — often with a glass of wine — and an active lifestyle. Her diet is rich in whole grains, fruits, vegetables and “good” fats, like olive oil and nuts.
Ten nutrient-rich “power foods” — almonds, bell peppers, blueberries, broccoli, grapes, olive oil, spinach, strawberries, tomatoes and whole grains — make up Sonoma’s core.
An August 2005 trial study showed an average weight loss of 6.5 pounds in 10 days and 21.9 pounds in 14 weeks.
Sonoma’s restrictive first 10 days are designed to eliminate cravings for unhealthy foods, like refined carbs. Dieters eat whole grains, lean meat, fish and vegetables.
“The first 10 days target those extra pounds around the waist,” Guttersen says. “They’re the most important pounds to lose first.”
Restricting refined carbs, Guttersen says, “retrains” dieters’ taste buds to crave healthy foods instead of sweets.
“When you break that habit, it’s really hard to go back to it,” she says.
After the first 10 days, more foods, including fruit and wine, join the mix.
Exercise isn’t required, but it improves health and accelerates weight loss, Guttersen says.
Sonoma’s secrets
Mediterranean-style diets reduce risk of heart disease, diabetes and certain cancers and lower blood pressure and cholesterol, Guttersen says. They’re also linked to longevity.
The book includes lists of Sonoma-friendly foods, daily meal plans, 300 recipes and take-along “cheat sheets.” A cookbook will be released in September.
Many recipes — including “Sonoma Express” salads and wraps — take just 15 to 20 minutes, Guttersen says.
“I have two kids,” she says. “Trust me, I know what it’s like to come home at 6 and have everybody say, ‘What’s for dinner?’ “
Instead of weighing or measuring, the book helps dieters arrange foods on 7- or 9-inch plates and 2-cup bowls.
The right balance of protein, carbs and fats, Guttersen explains, maximizes weight loss and fights hunger, making it easier to stick with the diet.
Sugar and white flour are rare treats, but no one food category is completely off-limits.
“What makes the plan successful,” Guttersen says, “is you can live with it for life.”
Experts weigh in
Nutrition professionals give the Sonoma Diet mostly high marks.
“(It’s) actually a very healthy diet,” says Andrea Giancoli, a spokeswoman for the American Dietetic Association. “Overall, I think it’s one of the best diets out there.”
Ephrata Community Hospital registered dietitian Lise Karpel says any diet that pushes fruit, vegetables and whole grains is good news.
“My hunch is that everybody’s sick of doing the high-protein, low-carb deal,” she says.
Giancoli, a Los Angeles registered dietitian, wishes Guttersen stressed exercise as a key to both weight loss and good health.
“People want to believe they don’t have to exercise,” she says. “I really believe exercise and diet are a marriage. The two need to go together.”
Giancoli and Karpel doubt cravings can be completely eliminated, especially in just 10 days.
“Of course you’re going to crave a Dorito every now and then,” Karpel says. “To say ‘never’ is just unrealistic.”
Drastic change can be a recipe for failure, Karpel says. Dieters should make small changes slowly.
The most successful dieters, Giancoli says, find a plan they can stick with for the long haul.
“If you cannot find a diet that you can live with for the rest of your life, it’s probably not a diet that’s going to work for you.”
FOR YOUR INFORMATION
“The Sonoma Diet” by Connie Guttersen (Meredith Books, 2005, hardcover, $24.95) is available at bookstores or online.
People should check with their doctors before trying any new diet.
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