How it All Began

Suzanne Somers' Eat Great, Lose Weight
by Suzanne Somers

With no dieting, sacrifice, or self-denial, Suzanne Somers' Eat Great, Lose Weight encourages you to eat all the foods you love while staying thin forever, to enhance body image and self-image. The program is based on ten years of research and interviews with nutritionists. It teaches you how to eat foods in special combinations in order to restructure your metabolism. Divided into two parts, Level 1 is for people who want to lose weight and Level 2 is for maintaining the reduced weight.

Suzanne Somers' Eat Great, Lose Weight is a complete written explanation of what Somersizing is and how the program works. With more than 100 Somersizing recipes, from soups to main courses to desserts, it offers Suzanne's invaluable advice regarding Somersizing, including how to order dinner at a restaurant, how the program can work on a vegetarian diet, which ethnic foods can be Somersize friendly, and why dark chocolate and wine can be acceptable to eat on the program. "Food is only one component of a happy, healthier life. I firmly believe that you must master not only your physical health but also your emotional wellness," says Suzanne. "In this book, I'll show you what works for me. You'll learn how to be fit, not fanatic; how to make movement and fitness a pleasurable part of daily life; and how to make the most of every moment of every day, including your meals."

Suzanne Somers' Eat Great, Lose Weight will appeal to people who want to enjoy life, to lose weight without dieting and undue sacrifice. It's a real program from a real person who has done it herself and continues to do it every day. "With Somersizing I can eat all the wonderful foods I love and still lose weight. I don't have to give up flavor. I don't settle for boring meals with no sauce. I don't count calories or fat," says Suzanne. "Somersizing is an easy and effective way to look and feel your best while enjoying life to the fullest. You'll have more energy than ever before, you'll say good-bye to the bloating and gas that used to rountinely follow mealtimes; and you'll lose weight." Respectful and mindful of what people really want, "Somersizing is not about being physically perfect or unrealistically thin. It's about being the best you can be."

Many years ago, when I was just starting out in television, I landed a guest-starring role on a hit series called Starsky and Hutch. Three days before I was supposed to start, I got a call from the producer. My ears perked up when I heard his voice. He told me that he and the director had been sitting around talking, and they decided I was just 'a little too chunky' for the part. They recast the role and I cried myself to sleep. I was twenty-nine years old and twenty pounds overweight.

That's when my diet roller-coaster began. Determined to lose those pounds, I tried every diet in the world. The shakes, the calorie counting, the packaged foods, the fasting, the grapefruit, the cottage cheese, the celery . . . and guess what? They all worked. That's right. Every time I went on a diet, I lost weight. But, within a short time of going back to eating like a normal person, I would gain back all the weight and often a little extra. Then I'd scour the fashion magazines for the next dieting trend, and off I'd go on my path toward deprivation - all in the name of being thin.

What I really wanted was to find a way to eat healthy, nutritious, yet flavorful foods in substantial portions and still lose weight. And I'm happy to tell you I have found it. After working with many nutritionists, reading books, and practicing trial and error on my own body, I have finally found a way to control my weight without deprivation. I call my program 'Somersizing,' and Somersizing is not a diet. Diet is a nasty four-letter word that conjures up negative thoughts of sacrifice and obsession and guilt. Based on eating everyday foods in specific combinations, Somersizing is a lifestyle that will change your way of thinking about how to lose weight and how to increase your energy. Eating the Somersize way is a pleasure. It is a program for life, a program I will happily live on for the rest of my life.

There are a few basic rules you will learn, and then you're free to eat whatever you want, in a restaurant, at home, or on the road. On the Somersize program, you first eliminate a small group of what I call Funky Foods, foods that wreak havoc on our systems. Then you separate normal, everyday foods into four Somersize Food groups: proteins and fats, vegetables, carbohydrates, and fruits. Finally, you follow these seven easy steps:

1) Eliminate all Funky Foods.

2) Eat Fruits alone, on an empty stomach.

3) Eat Proteins/Fats with Veggies.

4) Eat Carbos with Veggies and no fat.

5) Keep Proteins/Fats separate from Carbos.

6) Wait three hours between meals if switching from a Protein/Fats meal to a Carbos meal, or vice versa.

7) Do not skip meals. Eat three meals a day and eat until you feel satisfied and comfortably full.

Since I started properly combining my foods, I have trimmed down from 130 to 116 pounds - the amount I weighed as a teenager. And since I reached my goal weight, I have fluctuated no more than 3 pounds. I eat delicious foods - I eat cheese, I drink wine occasionally, and you would be shocked to know how much chocolate I eat and still maintain my weight.

Some experts will argue that food combining is a myth - a calorie is a calorie and it doesn't matter how you combine them, it only matters how many you eat and how many you burn off. The debate has gone on for many years, and I'm sure it will continue for many more. All I can tell you is that it works for me. I can eat all the wonderful foods I love and still lose weight. I don't have to give up flavor. I don't settle for boring meals with no sauce. I enjoy rich and flavorful foods. I don't count calories or fat grams.

Throw everything you think you know about diets out the window. Somersizing is an easy and effective way to look and feel your best while enjoying life to the fullest. I put this book together to show you how I eat and to share how I cook for my family. I've compiled more than a hundred of my favorite Somersize recipes for you to try for yourself - everything from Thanksgiving Turkey with Mushroom Sausage Stuffing to Decadent Chocolate Cake - and I'm sure you will agree that this is a sinfully delightful way to Eat Great, Lose Weight. Enjoy!

Excerpted from Suzanne Somers' Eat Great, Lose Weight by Suzanne Somers Foreword by Barbara M. Dixon, L.D.N., R.D. Copyright © 1996 by Suzanne Somers. Excerpted by permission of Crown, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.

About the Author

Suzanne Somers is the author of eleven books, including the New York Times bestsellers Keeping Secrets; Suzanne Somers' Eat Great, Lose Weight; Suzanne Somers' Get Skinny on Fabulous Food; Suzanne Somers' Eat, Cheat, and Melt the Fat Away; and Suzanne Somers' Fast and Easy. The former star of the hit television programs Three's Company and Step by Step, Suzanne is one of the most respected and trusted brand names in the world, representing cosmetics and skin care products, apparel, jewelry, a computerized facial fitness system, fitness products, and an extensive food line. She received an honorary doctorate of humane letters from National University and is a highly sought-after commencement speaker.