The 17 Day Diet (25 page)

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Don’t deep fry. Use a non-stick pan and spray with vegetable spray as needed. You’ll end up getting the same effect with a fraction of the oil.

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Avoid making thick sauces laced with “artery-popping” amounts of fat and sodium.

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Substitute tofu in recipes that call for eggs.

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Substitute turkey for beef whenever possible. Turkey has a lot less saturated fat compared to red meat. Eat more fish than meat.

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Enjoy green tea, recommended on the 17 Day Diet. It contains potent antioxidants that can lower cholesterol levels, fight heart disease, boost immune function and perhaps even destroy cancer and fat cells.

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For condiments, experiment with exotic fat-free flavors: lite soy sauce, fish sauce, oyster sauce, black bean sauce, miso (fermented Japanese bean paste that is a probiotic), seaweed, chilies, wasabi (Japanese horseradish paste), kimchi (a Korean condiment made from pickled cabbage that is a probiotic), curries (favored in Thailand), garlic, scallions, ginger, lemon grass, basil and cilantro.

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What about fortune cookies? Strictly an American invention.

Indian Cuisine

Generally, Indian meals are healthy and well-balanced. They’re based on a variety of antioxidant-rich vegetables; meat, fish and poultry, when included, typically come in lean cuts and small portions. Vegetarian dishes are often the centerpiece of meals, too. Generally, the unique spices used in Indian dishes add flavor without fat. Here’s how to adapt the 17 Day Diet to Indian dietary standards.

Cycle 1: Accelerate

Cleansing Vegetables

Sea vegetables such as arame, dulce and nori

Cycle 2: Activate

Natural Starches

Basmati rice

Red lentils

Cycle 3: Achieve

Natural Starches

Chapattis (unleavened flatbread made from whole wheat meal)

Any type of flatbreads made from white whole grain, whole wheat and multigrain

General Tips:

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Vegetable curries, salads with raita (shredded vegetables) and lentils make great high-fiber additions to your meals.

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Try tandoori chicken or fish for a low-fat meal with a flavorful twist.

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Use yogurt in marinades as a tenderizer, along with ginger root, garlic and curry spices, for vegetables before grilling.

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Use yogurt, too, as a low-fat substitute for cream and a thickener for curries.

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Replace ghee, a clarified butter, with olive oil or flaxseed oil. There is also a cholesterol-free ghee.

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Spices are an integral part of Indian cooking and alleviate the need to cook with a lot of fat. Some of the most common digestion-enhancing spices include ginger, cumin, coriander, fennel, black pepper and cinnamon. Turmeric is ubiquitous in Indian cooking and is valued for its ability to stimulate digestion, improve liver function, enhance detoxification and bolster immunity.

Persian Cuisine

Although Persian cooking may seem exotic to Westerners, its presence is felt today in our own kitchens. When we cook with oranges, pistachios, spinach or saffron, for example, we use foods that originated in the region around Persia, now called Iran. When we use basil, cilantro, cumin, and caraway, we are drawing on an age-old tradition of meatless cooking adopted by Persians from the empires of Sumeria, Babylon, Mesopotamia and Assyria.

Persian cuisine has undergone thousands of years of refinement but has never lost touch with its roots. The home of many common herbs, Persia was also the source of sweet and sour sauces, stuffed grape leaves, pastries and noodles. Some historians believe that pasta originated in Persia, not in Italy. Worth emphasizing too is that yogurt is used widely in Persian cooking.

Here’s how to adapt the 17 Day Diet to Persian dietary standards.

Cycle 1: Accelerate

Stick to the list of approved foods, but add in these cultural selections:

Cleansing vegetables

Asian eggplant

Courgette (zucchini)

Grape leaves

Fruits

Persian lemon

Sour grapes

Cycle 2: Activate

Stick to the list of approved foods, but add in these cultural selections:

Fruits

Barberries, used in Persian cooking for their sour flavor

Pomegranate

Cleansing Vegetables

Yellow peas

Probiotics

Labne, a thickened yogurt made by straining yogurt in cheese cloth or a coffee filter overnight

Cycle 3: Achieve

Stick to the list of approved foods, but add in these cultural selections:

Natural Starches

Thin flat bread (lavash)

Non flatbread

General tips

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Focus on traditional dishes like torshie hazeri (blends of vinegar or lime juice and vegetables), which lend themselves well to the 17 Day Diet. Another is sabzi khordan, a plate of raw greens—scallions and watercress, mint and basil—which are eaten with the fingers, or tucked inside lavash with a slice of feta cheese.

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Sauté vegetable mixtures such as borani with a minimum of oil, or use vegetable cooking spray and a non-stick pan.

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Make frittatas (kuku) with egg substitutes rather than eggs to cut calories and fat.

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Use brown rice instead of white rice in entrees.

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For probiotics, enjoy classic tzatziki, a yogurt cucumber dip made with yogurt, grated cucumbers and garlic.

Now You’re Cooking … and Losing Weight

The 17 Day Diet works for everyone, no matter what your culture or country of origin. The main reason is that it encompasses mostly natural foods, and these are found in all cuisines. I think you have to use some food common-sense too: eating too many greasy tacos, deep-fried egg rolls or fat-laden pasta sauces can lead to more pounds, increased levels of cholesterol, clogged arteries and, ultimately, heart disease.

Fortunately, taking care of your body, health, heart doesn’t have to mean giving up all your old traditional favorites. Just use low-fat cooking techniques, concentrate on fruits and vegetables in their most natural state and rely on probiotics like yogurt (which seems to be a staple in many cultures). Be innovative, use some ingenuity, and apply some creativity, and you will lose weight.

Review

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The 17 Day Diet is adaptable to any cuisine. One reason is that that it emphasizes vegetables, fruits, lean protein and whole grains—food groups that are a part of all cultures.

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Food preparation is key. Using less cooking fat and fewer starchy foods, you can make-over many ethnic dishes to suit your diet.

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Be sensible: eat smaller portions and avoid frying or otherwise cooking foods in too much fat.

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The 17 Day Diet is for everyone, no matter what your cultural heritage or country of origin.

8
The PMS Exception Diet

T
here’s always an
exception to every rule, but most of the time I want you to follow them anyway. But premenstrual syndrome (PMS) calls for bending the rules a bit.

Women, I’m sure you’re happy and well-adjusted … until a few days before your period, when you turn into Attila the Hun and snap at everyone for no apparent reason. Your family and friends avoid you, and who would blame them?

Next comes the physical stuff, like your body being so bloated that it should be listed on MapQuest. Then, as your period arrives, so do the cramps. For the next week, the love-hate relationship you have with your period (you love that it comes regularly; you hate everything else about it) turns hostile.

On top of all this, it’s hard to stay on your diet. When you’re not doubled over with cramps, you’re sticking your finger in a bottle of hot fudge sauce multiple times a day or eating more in one meal than Paris Hilton weighs.

We doctors still aren’t positive why you might get testy as your period rolls in, but the prevailing theory is that fluctuating levels of estrogen and progesterone affect the mood-enhancing brain chemical serotonin. Serotonin is a chemical in your brain that, in proper levels, makes you feel happy. It’s like a natural upper. When levels dip—which is what happens in PMS—you feel moody and crappy.

But here’s the thing: You don’t have to be a slave to your menstrual cycle. You can stick to a reasonable diet that one miserable week every month—and still lose weight. This is important, because being overweight or even obese makes PMS symptoms worse. You can accomplish this by following what I call the PMS Exception Diet. It’s a combination of anti-PMS foods and supplements.

There are many lucky women who don’t suffer from PMS and won’t need this diet. The first step, before you consider this diet, is to determine: Do you suffer from PMS?

You might think that’s a dumb question, and maybe it is. Most women know if they have PMS. Please humor me. We doctors went to school for eight years, and we like to put our medical training to use. We love asking questions to arrive at a diagnosis. Sometimes we even throw in a few unrelated questions, like “What kind of shampoo do you use?” or “Who played Carrie’s California boyfriend on
Sex in the City
?”

Please take the following test. It will take just a second.

CHECK-UP: Do You Suffer from PMS?

D
o you have any of these symptoms right before and/or during your period? Check off any of the symptoms that apply.

Depression

Headache