The Rice Diet Solution: The World-Famous Low-Sodium, Good-Carb, Detox Diet for Quick and Lasting Weight Loss

I lost 70 lbs on the McDougall diet, kept it off for several years. A new job and some habit changes meant 30 lbs gained in about 3 years. Now I've got a wedding coming up in 2 months, and in true form, waiting til the last minute, I decided to try The Rice Diet for the following reasons:Dr. McDougall reccommended it. Why didn't I do the McDougall diet instead? Because the rice diet said lose up to 20 lbs the first month, and McDougall's said 15. With my wedding around the corner, I figured I'd need that extra 5.I do not do fad diets. I prefer medically based diets that are proven to reduce heart disease, etc. I learned this the hard way, after doing a couple low-carb diets and the terrifying side effects I experienced.I prefer diets that are not diets, rather, lifestyles that I can adopt for the rest of my life. This and McDougall fit the bill, however, like I said, this one had that extra 5lbs promise...so I gave it a try.This diet is also environmentally friendly...as in, you can go compeletely without meat if you choose to.One problem I have with diets is that I'M ALWAYS HUNGRY. They said in the Rice Diet book, that you won't be hungry. I did not believe it.Prior to the diet, I'd surpassed 600 calories for breakfast and I was still FAMISHED. So hearing, "you won't be hungry..." I thought, "well, this is a crock."To my complete shock, it was true! They say that salt is a trigger, an appetite stimulant. Cutting out salt for breakfast especially helped me not binge eat the rest of the day.So now I'm eating yogurt with cereal and fruit for breakfast because I like that more than oatmeal, and I'm not gobbling everything around me.In the first week, I lost 10 lbs, gained 2 as I started my menstrual cycle--this was interesting as well...I did not have as much of the physical/emotional pms as usual. Usually, I GAIN 3-6 lbs during pms. So to lose 10 lbs during this time and only gain 2 was very surprising.I am not a big believer in "detoxing," but I do know that we ingest a lot of chemicals in our food, which is why I try to avoid them.Well, the first week on this diet,the detox part, I felt "clean." Like the cells in my body were clean or clear. This may not make sense. But it was a good feeling. I was not weighed down. In the past, sometimes I just wouldn't feel well. Especially after certain meals. I can't recall having such a 'clean' or 'clear' feeling in my body.The book does reccommend excercise, but they say walking is fine. Or yoga, or tai chi. Because their reccommendations weren't extreme, and I wasn't intimidated and have actually started doing a little. Less than the reccommended hour a day, but a little, which, for me, is a lot.The pluses are you lose weight,you feel good, it's a healthy way to diet, and there are health benefits.The downside is that the book should have the portion sizes and the plan and the recipes together. I had to keep flipping back from the recipes to where it said the portion sizes were. "Okay, if I make this, how much of it can I eat...where was that page again..."Also, in the beginning,which is where I"m at now, unless you follow their meal plans, it does take some time to map out your own meal plans.Eating at restaurants is not easy. I went to a mexican place, got a side of black beans, a side of lettuce and tomatoes, and a side of corn tortillas and ate that without too much consequence. Everything in restaurants is loaded with salt.But my favorite part is that I am not physically hungry. This was the worst part for me when dieting, was fighting that insatiable hunger. On this, I am not physically hungry. Yes, I get "mouth hungry," when I just want to eat for fun, becauase something tastes good. But it's a joy to be not body hungry.I had to make mental adjustments, too. I think we're addicted to stuff like excess salt and artificial flavors. If we don't get that mouth jolt, we feel like we're going without. I've had to learn to taste more, and let go the artificially stimulating foods that I think we've been programmed to get addicted to. Like the jolt of flavor in the first bite of a dorito, or blast of artificial flavor and sugar in sodas. I was addicted to that. But now, having to taste what food tastes like for real, it's been good, in a good way.

Between June 3 and Oct 13 of 2011, eating specifically as indicated in this book I easily lost 25 pounds. I haven't done any additional exercise or anything to boost metabolism. I do, and have always walked 3.5 miles a day - and continued with that practice during this time. Three things I'd share from my experience. First, I read reviews that said the recipes were way too complex. The recipes are provided to give you help at getting diversity with this way of eating. But truthfully, I just ate beans, rice, vegetables, fruit and yogurt in the no-fat, no-salt, no-sugar, no-alchohol, no-caffeine, 1000-calorie a day way they describe. I spice my food with hot pepper and various herbs - but it is just a simple way to eat. Second, I've spoken to people who think of this as too strict or too bland. As to bland - your tastebuds adapt and blossom quickly and the things that you once found bland become delicious. As to strict, I allowed myself to have nights or events when I ate anything I wanted or whatever was served at an event or dinner. Then the next day I just went back to this way of eating. Maybe I could have lost weight faster, but by doing this I have never felt deprived. Third, prior to going on the diet I became very conscious of how food addictions and cravings were ruling my life. I actually experimented, one by one, with removing these from my diet. By doing this, I learned what each craving felt like - what the thoughts felt like that each craving produced. So when I started this way of eating I was very prepared to understand what I was experiencing in the first week or so when all of my cravings (which weren't being fed) were "talking" to me. This allowed me to not act on them, or to gradually stop giving into them. Now, I am craving free - and very happy eating this way. Occassionally, when I get busy and forget to eat I will get an intense craving that feels like a sugar craving - but I have learned that this is just my body's way of saying, "I am hungry, feed me good food." So I will eat a real meal and not eat a candy bar or whatever.This book is full of great learnings presented both in clear language, in case studies and stories, and in recipe form. It is a wonderful resource - and best it is a tested and proven way of losing weight given from the longest runing proven weight-loss clinic in the US. I am delighted to give my highest recommendation to this book. It is more than a weight-loss book, it is a well-documented weight-loss book that will restore your sanity and give you control in an area of your life that you currently have none. Don't hesitate to buy it and try it.

Not easy to plough through - takes lots of time.The knowledge is all there. But you have to dig to retrieve it.

The biggest question a potential reader may be asking is, "Does it work?" Yes. I lost 6 pounds the first week, but that was about all I could do. So I can't answer the second question a potential reader may have which is, "Do you really keep it off?" The advice and the nutritional information is sound. It is based on research over time. However, I found the diet a little boring, and unless your family is ready to jump into a partially vegetarian, whole-grain lifestyle, this may not be the book for you. It is never convenient to fix two different meals. I also found the recipes a little tasteless, and I agree with another reader who said that if you follow the menu suggestions for the first week using all the suggested recipes, there will be a lot of waste.The organization of the book is cumbersome. I found myself flipping back and forth through pages to find one piece of information I would need for a meal. Also, the recipe pages are not listed on the menu suggestion. Another editing mistake was in the recipe section where the serving sizes are only listed on some of the recipes. This turns out to be a large error since serving size is a very important part of this diet.Overall, this book has been helpful for me in that I eat more whole grains (some I had never tried before, I watch my portion sizes, I eat less animal protiens, and I watch my sodium intake. If you can do this, you won't need to buy the book.