After reading a magazine article about this, I decided to chase down the book and give it a try. Has anyone else tried this? It's slow but seems to be working for me and a metabolism slower than snails. It's been 8 weeks, and so far I'm down 16 lbs. I just wondered if anyone else had experiences to share.... There isn't much on the internet about it.
Alot of people reading...no one responding so I guess I need to explain more about it.
The book was "The Bread for Life Diet" by Olga Raz, who is head nutricianist at one of the major hospitals in Tel Aviv. I found it at Barnes and Noble.
The diet came out of nutrician research. They found patients having to much difficulty sustaining eating plans...so they did clinical trials meassuring brain chemistry in conjunction with types of food. What they found was that although protein gave peole an initial increase of seratonin (The chemical in the brain that signals satisfaction and contentment), it then plummeted. Whole grain bread was the food that released the most and longest seratonin reaction....ergo...bread satisfies us the best. She has built an eating plan around whole grain "LIGHT" bread and has been using it successfully in Isreal for years. The book was publiched in the US last Sept.
It's no longer breakfast, lunch and dinner....it's a meal every three to four hours. Women can have up to 12 slices of whole grain light bread a day, men up to 16.... (That's no more than 45 calories a slice). Add to that 1 oz of protein or filling.... a slice of turkey, low fat cheese, hummus ... whatever... but spread thin. Then pile on the veggies. Have your sandwich with a salad, or cooked vegetables, or a cup of vegetable soup.
3 to 4 meals a week- have a 3-4 oz serving of meat with vegetables (That's staying away from corn or potatoes,etc...the starchy vegs). No more than 1 small piece of fruit a day, and be smart about fats.... the book says no more than 2T olive or canola oil a day...but Your choice of in salad dressing or cooking with... I use mine in homemade mayo cause I hate the low fat stuff...and I can make it tangier, or more mustardy....more flavor for my tiny spread.
Eat within an hour of getting up....then every 3 hours or so until you go to bed.
I've never stayed on a diet this long. I liked South Beach but work 2 jobs and go to night school 4 nights a week. If I didn't get a chance to cook any weekend...my whole week was ruined. Now, as long as I get my frozen veggies bagged, a bunch of celery sticks and carrots, etc. bagged in the crisper...I'm ready in the time it takes to make coffee in the morning. and...I've cheated a few times..but am right back on track come Monday.
It's working for me... and when you look at the numbers..say 10 slices of that kind of bread..that's only 450 calories. With only an oz of filling and veggies rounding out the rest of each meal....You're eating all the time but only taking in about 1300-1500 calories. Anyway, let me know if you try it and how it works for you??
Cheri
Well...I don't know anything about the diet but glad it's working for you. I can't stick to anything that strict because really it's just coming back to calorie counting and I find that a lot more flexible. I also think low-carb diets are death so at least it's letting you eat bread and sounds like a pretty good bal. between protein and veggies as well. I would also be careful to make sure you're getting enough "good" fats.
I'm doing Bread for Life!! I LOVE it! I've been on it since the beginning of February and I'm down 22 lbs. It's amazing. I cheat sometimes too, but I never feel bad about it. I follow an important rule I learned from the book - "One square of chocolate tastes just as good as the whole bar." So instead of ordering a whole slice of pie at a restaraunt, I steal a bite from a friend. It tastes just as sweet so I don't feel deprived but I know I can't eat the whole thing because it's my friend's pie, not mine!
I don't have time now but I'll post more later It's nice to meet another Bread for Life fan!! <3
I am so glad someone else is having success with this. Wow...22 pounds? that's fabulous... and I know what you mean about being able to forgive yourself a small cheat here or there... This is the first eating plan I've tried that allowed me to forgive myself if I had a bad day.... then just get back OP. I'll look forward to hearing about your experiences.
I'm hovering at the 16 pound lost mark... but have had some trouble on the weekends... I get busy and don't eat the meals... amazing how much skipping a few slows you down. But...this plateau will go down.. I just have to have the confidence in the program to stick it out and be there when it does..LOL..
Now if I could just fit in some strenous exercising.....
Cheri
I've never really had a problem fitting in all of my meals. If I'm going to be busy all day, I bring with sandwiches, fruits, whole wheat crackers, and things like that. There are these South Beach 100 calorie packs of whole wheat crackers and whole grain peanut butter cookies that are excellent. They're pretty low in sugar and I absolutely love them!! When I was on vacation in New York I managed to stay on track by bringing a box of each with and also some bread and bagels with a jar of peanut butter.
This diet has been a miracle for me. I LOVE bread so much and all of the food on this diet is great. I sometimes have a hard time fitting in veggies because I really don't like them, but I manage.
This has been a good week for me.... Right on plan... so far not a single need to cheat. >3...your success is really inspiring me to keep on target. Wow..24 pounds. I'm still hovering at the 16 lb mark..I've been here three weeks now. I feel good though..and my clothes fit so much better. I think my body just needed to stablize here for a while. The South Beach cookies sound good...I'm going to check for them this weekend. Every once in a while I get that craving for something sweet... They sound like the perfect ticket for that small indulgence. Thanks.
That's the great thing about this diet. I hardly ever crave junk food, and if/when I do there are plenty of things to eat that cure the cravings. Popcorn, sugar free pudding cups, South Beach cookies, or even toast with some sugar free jam. I'm hardly ever hungry, too. Whole grains keep you full longer Wow, 16 lbs in 3 weeks? That's awesome! I wish I could lose 16 lbs in the next three weeks, lol :P I lost really fast the first few weeks, too, and then I leveled off after awhile. I'm at about -2 lbs per week these days.
I just finished a sandwich with natural peanut butter and sugar free raspberry jam. Mmm, that's the best way to have a PB and J. God I love this diet XD
No...I haven't lost 16 pounds in three weeks...I've been on a plateau at the 16 pound lost and holding...for 3 weeks. I really have to get motivated into squeezing in some exercise. I wear a pedometer and usually clock 2-3 miles in the course of each day...but I think it's not concentrated enough effort. This week I am going to really try to do at least 10-15 minutes of Pilates Mon & Wed (Since I get home from school at 11pm- It will be late night Pilates LOL...and then infrared sauna Tues & Thurs. I'll see if that will help.
Have a productive week.... check with you later.
are you girls still on bread for life?
i bought the book in march, started with the diet, lost some kilos, but then went back to israel where i cannot find a suitable bread (strange if one keeps in mind that it was developed here...). i would really like to start again as it was so easy to follow and tasty.
I hadn't realized I had been gone so long from checking in. I have been weak...only living the diet part time so I've slipped up to 175 but am back on track. I was off school during the summer. Too many chances to snack in front of the TV....lol...We seem to be a minority out here, but on any other eating plan I've ever followed, I've always rebounded to my starting point so I'm still ahead even with a summer off. I'm taking pleasure in that. It's so much easier to stick to a regiment when your life has more of one too. Cor Ka: I'm surprised at the difficulty to find lite breads there too. How about emailing Ms. Raz....Her book's website has an email link. I've been looking for a bread recipe and whatever specialized ingredients it takes to make "lite" bread possible but have had no success yet. If I ever find it, I'll post it here. Good luck. Hey, Lessthan3: How are you doing this fall?
Cheri
i know im so late, but can you tell me more about it. i dont have any money to buy the book, so what do you have to do to lose weight on bread for life? Is there calorie counting, please let me know. i need to lose 20 pounds, let me know. bye and thanks.
Anyone else trying Bread for Life?
More info...
It's nice to meet another Bread for Life fan!! <3
I hope you can get back on track soon. Maybe try gonig back to phase one for a week? Good luck <3
