It is based on a true to life story; the story of the author herself, Mireille Giuliano, who gained twenty pounds when she came to the United States from France to study.
It may sound obnoxious, but really, have you seen an obese French woman? And yet you see them eat all those calories from cheese and carbohydrates from the baguettes.
The Phases It is not a crash diet; it is not even a diet in the strictest sense.
It is a guide on how to eat well and healthy with the aim of staying slim and fit.
The first phase involves several weeks of food diaries.
Here you learn what your weight demons are and you start facing them.
The second phase is the most and only restrictive part of the program where the guilty-pleasure foods are kept on hold, and you learn and train yourself the art and science of controlling food portions.
You must remember that moderation is the key to success.
Phase three is when you have "re-set" your body.
You gain a new metabolic rate and you reintroduce into your diet your favorite foods.
The last phase stretches the longest but will be the easiest.
This will last your whole lifetime.
There's no fretting, though; you would have been so used to eating healthy by now that it will come almost naturally to you.
Mind Over Matter It is not a geographic thing or maybe it is.
How the French women eat is the result of their culture.
They savor the food, they eat a little more often, and they eat healthier.
Losing weight does not have to involve grueling exercise regimens or a lifetime of deprivation.
Staying slim involves two things: eating smaller portions and savoring every bite.
Enjoy what you are eating rather than eating per se.
The French women can definitely teach not only the Americans a tip or two on staying slim without depriving the body, but every nationality as well.