Book Challenge: Week 4

Have you ever read books that make you say "I cannot believe what remarkable timing this was!"  This past week I experienced not one title that made me say this, but two!

First up was Cinch! by Cynthia Sass.  I decided I wanted to read this book after the author cleverly wrote an article in a magazine and gave a few of her recipes from the book.  Get this, Cinch! is about a healthy eating plan that PROMOTES EATING CHOCOLATE EVERY DAY!!!!  Any food plan that tells you to eat chocolate every day has got to be worth at least looking at, right?

Well I believe it was definitely worth reading.  Basically the plan is a Mediterranean diet which I absolutely love but had a hard time figuring out on my own.  The book is very detailed as to what foods to eat and when.  There are many tasty-looking recipes included, but the author also gives you the tools to build your own recipes as well.  I'm actually trying the 5 Day Fast Forward plan and have already survived the first day.  I'll report back my results at the end.  I've never really been a huge fan of fad diets, but this is an eating plan that sounds doable not just for me, but one I can get my family on board with. (DH actually told me my dinner last night smelled really good!)  It is sensible, it promotes eating real food (as opposed to manufactured food products),no food groups are eliminated,  it is based on lots of scientific research, and has already been proven to be successful at helping people lose weight.

The other amazing book I read this week was recommended by my buddy Monika.  Somehow I missed it in all the Flylady chatter, but it is Switch by the Heath Brothers.  I love reading about the psychology of motivation and change, and this is about dealing with change.  There are so many ways I can apply the techniques from this book, but I'm most excited to see how I can affect change in my classroom and personally at home.  After reading this I think I can make my ACTION plans actually work (I have an elephant problem).  And now I truly belive that Cinch! will work for me because it gives me all the tools I need to deal with the change in lifestyle.  What an inspirational week for reading!