“Lose weight” and/or “eat better” will appear on many a New Year’s resolution list — just as they did last year, and will again next year. Such plans often gang agley for a number of reasons.
We aren’t really invested in them. We miss our old comfort foods. We don’t know how to adjust the rest of our lives to support a new way of being in the world.
That’s why I’m giving away a Kindle copy of Victoria Hay’s “30 Pounds, 4 Months: How to Eat Well and Lose Weight – Painlessly.”
Her approach is fairly simple: Dieting isn’t something you do. It’s something you are.
“You change your way of looking at food, work light exercise – nothing extreme! – into your daily habits, and learn to eat better food, not necessarily less food,” says Hay, a former journalist and professor and current owner of The Copyeditor’s Desk writing and publishing service.
Rather than concentrate on portion size, she focuses on fresh ingredients (lots of vegetables, salads and fruits), cuts way back on carb-heavy items (including potatoes, bread* and pasta), uses healthy fats like olive oil and butter, doesn’t add extra salt or sugar, and eats less meat “but better meat.”
Hay shops once a week at the supermarket and one a month at Costco. Her recipes are fairly simple. In as little as 20 minutes she can put together a great meal of Greek-Style Hawaiian Fish Filet, Yuppified Black-Eyed Peas, Sole With Grapes, or Peach and Avocado Salad.
On more leisurely occasions she’ll opt for Beef Burgundy, Bandit-Style Lamb, Grilled Pork Tenderloins, Asparagus Cheese Torte or Eggplant Cacciatori. Serbian Pork Roast.
A decent portion of the book is given over to how-to; for example, how you should not give up everything you love right away. An occasional bowl of ice cream won’t kill you.
And about that exercise: Hay, who is 70, hates gyms. Instead, she takes a brisk daily walk (one to three miles) and when possible swims in her backyard pool. The end.
Cookery books aren’t Hay’s only claim to fame. She recently started an e-book imprint called Camptown Races Press (“racy books for racy readers”), which publishes fun, frisky erotica for women. With prices as low as $2.99, these could be a spicy substitute for doughnuts and chocolate bars. Just sayin’.
To win an e-book copy of “30 Pounds, 4 Months,” do one or more of the following:
To enter:
- Leave a comment below
- Subscribe via e-mail or Feedburner
- Sign up to follow me on Twitter or Facebook
- Sign up for my weekly newsletter (go to WriteABlogPeopleWillRead.com/blog and look on the right-hand side of the page)
If you do any (or all!) of these things, please leave separate, additional comments to get credit for each entry.
The deadline to enter is 7 p.m. PDT Tuesday, Jan. 5 If I don’t hear back from the winner by 7 p.m. PDT Wednesday, Jan. 6, I’ll have the random number generator pull a new name.
*But not entirely. The cookbook has a section called “Baked Things.”
Edited to add: If you don’t win the giveaway and decide to buy your own copy, I hope you’ll do so through the link I provided. Those small affiliate fees help me keep the site up and running. Also: If you read the book and enjoy it, do leave a review on Amazon — this will help other potential customers learn more.
Well, I just won something from your site, so not sure I deserve anything else right now, but what the heck. Need to get in on the standard New Year resolution!
There’s no limit on wins, ma’am. It’s up to the random number generator, which has chosen some readers multiple times.
and if you don’t win? Maybe it’ll go on sale. Amazon does that sometimes.
I arrived here via your Facebook page — love seeing you in my news feed!
I am always looking for good recipes that are healthy – this sounds great!
I follow on facebook
I also subscribe via feedburner
I once lost 46 lbs. in 3.5 months. I did not suffer at all. I am a grazer, but I gave up grazing on cookies, chips, and crackers and grazed on raw vegetables and fruits.
I would be very happy if this book worked for me.
Finally sounds like something that works for “older women”! Would love to have this.
Sounds like an interesting read. Makes me think I need to ‘re-name’ some of my standard recipes to gussie them up and make them sound fancy.
Love to win this! Need all the help I can get!
I also subscribe by e-mail.
Help! I need this. Always makes me happy to see you in my email!
I could put this to good use.
I also subscribe by e-mail.
I definitely need to lose weight, but do not eat meat
Subscribe via email
Follow on Twitter
Follow on Facebook
I’m already signed up for your blog.
I’ve done 25 in 5 months and have about 10 to go. Maybe this will be the motivation I need!
I follow by email 🙂
This book and the attitude it advocates sounds like a great read. I definitely need food attitude adjustment.
This looks really interesting, Donna; please add my name to the hat.
I also subscribe via email! Thank you!
I subscribe via email.
What an interesting book. I could afford to lose more than a few pounds.
I would love to win this book!
I enjoy Hay’s blog, and am sure I would enjoy the book.
This would be so helpful!
I’m always up for a new cookbook. If it helps with my weight, so much the better! 🙂
This sounds like a good book! New book for a new year. Thanks!
Could always use ideas on a better way.
<3 Thanks so much for telling the world about 30 Pounds/4 Months, Donna!
I hope the winner — and others who choose to buy it — will leave reviews at Amazon. Reader comments are very helpful. This edition is much revised from an earlier version, thanks to a reviewer's honest commentary.
A Happy and Healthy New Year to Everyone!
–Vicky Hay
I follow by email.
I signed up for the weekly newsletter. The comment about how much I lost was my comment, not a rejection of the idea of learning something new.
This sounds great Donna,hope I can enter from Barbados.
Yep: Since it’s an e-book, anyone anywhere can enter.
Sign me up! I need to lose that much weight!
I did buy the earlier edition, but that was a while back and I’d love to read the newer edition. I like the common sense in this approach to healthy eating and losing weight.
Would love to win this and start a healthy new year.
I subscribe to your emails.
I would love to try it and maybe lose some weight.
Sounds like a great book!
I subscribe to your blog by email. I’ve enjoyed your writing for many years. Thank you!
This book sounds a lot like the way I already live . . . but why not check it out in person (if I win, LOL)?
This looks interesting.
email!
Would love to win this! Happy New Year Donna!