Sexy Forever: Suzanne Somers

Background

Suzanne Somers is an entertainer, actress, and author of 20 books, ten of which are New York Times bestsellers. Her latest addition, Sexy Forever: How to Fight Fat After Forty, offers readers “a new approach to staying slim and looking great later in life”.

Sexy Forever is designed especially for women over forty who want to lose weight as well as addressing the role of menopause and hormonal balance. It includes an eating plan and lifestyle guide that will allow you to achieve permanent weight loss by resolving the obstacles that may be blocking your capacity to experience health and vitality.

Sexy Forever Diet Basics

Suzanne Somers says, “If you want to stay Sexy Forever, first and most important, you must eat real food — in other words, foods that come from nature, not man-made foods, not fake foods, not any foods with chemicals.” She believes that TV dinners played a large part in our transition from eating real food to toxic, chemical-filled food and the associated rise in obesity, heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

Somers provides information regarding good and bad fats and explains how the wrong fats can seriously interfere with your health and capacity to lose weight. Foods high in omega-3 fats are emphasized including perilla oil, flaxseed oil, and fish oil. Animal fats from grass-fed cattle are also acceptable in moderation.

High quality protein from sources that have not been contaminated by chemicals, pesticides, growth hormones, or antibiotics should be included at almost every meal. Carbohydrates with a low glycemic index are acceptable. Foods to be avoided include all sugars, starchy vegetables, bananas, refined grains, beer, wine, caffeine, trans fats, food additives and preservatives.

The Sexy Forever eating plan involves three phases, commencing with a 30-day detox. This is followed by the weight loss phase, which is adhere to until you reach your ideal weight. The program concludes with the lifestyle phase, designed to help you maintain your weight loss forever.

Sexy Forever outlines five major steps to help you stay sexy forever:

Step 1 – Clean Up Your Act

• Suzanne Somers says that the first step to successful weight loss is to detox. If you lose weight without eliminating the toxins you will gain the weight back and more.
• This step focuses on avoiding chemicals in your food, cosmetics and household products. Includes tips for cleansing the liver. Organic food is recommended.

Step 2 – Balance Your Hormones

• Hormones help the body feel good and have energy and “without enough hormones you can’t feel sexy”. Somers identifies the relationship between stress and hormonal balance. Also included in Sexy Forever is a guide to bioidentical hormone replacement therapy.

Step 3 – Use Your Gut To Lose Your Gut

• This step involves identifying food allergies and intolerances that may be interfering with your ability to lose weight.

Step 4 – All The Right Moves

• Exercise is an important component of Sexy Forever and a healthy lifestyle especially as we age because it helps to maintain our metabolism and keep us feeling youthful.

Step 5 – Supplement to Speed Weight Loss

• Suzanne Somers outlines a variety of nutritional supplements that may potentially enhance fat loss.

Recommended Foods

Fruit, vegetables, salmon, shrimp, organic chicken and turkey, grass-fed beef, beans, whole grains, cheese, butter, olive oil, flaxseed oil, mayonnaise, avocado, nuts, olives, coconut, green tea, dark chocolate, red wine.

Sample Sexy Forever Meal Plan

Breakfast Peach raspberry fruit smoothie

Morning Snack Hard-boiled egg

Lunch Chicken Caesar salad – no croutons

Afternoon Snack Two brown rice cakes with tomato salsa

Dinner Seared salmon with basil parsley pesto Steamed asparagus 1 glass red wine

Dessert Dark chocolate with at least 60% cocoa

Exercise Recommendations

Suzanne Somers says, “from middle age on there is nothing more vital to your health and weight control than to build lean muscle mass and the only way that happens is with weight training and exercise”.

A combination of weight training, cardiovascular exercise, sit ups and yoga is recommended in Sexy Forever

Costs and Expenses

Sexy Forever: How to Fight Fat after Forty retails at $25.99.

Pros

• Provides advice and recommendations specific to women over forty.
• Includes unique information about bioidentical hormone replacement therapy and natural skin care products.
• Sexy Forever includes a meal plan and recipes.
• Encourages a balanced fitness program.

Cons

• Sexy Forever will probably not appeal to male readers and younger women.
• Encourages the use of hormone replacement therapy, which may be associated with health risks.
• The effectiveness of nutritional supplements for weight loss is questionable.
• Suzanne Somers does not adequately address the psychological factors involved in weight loss.

Conclusions

Sexy Forever is a weight loss program that is designed to meet the needs of women over forty. It includes unique information regarding hormones and skin care as well as fitness recommendations and a comprehensive Sexy Forever eating plan.