Mike Moreno

I had dinner with a friend from graduate school at my conference. She looked great! She is a professor, runs a leadership center, homeschools her son, and just came back from several weeks in Europe. I thought perhaps she just doesn't have time to eat, but she said that she and her husband had been following the 17-day diet. I've never followed one of these pre-planned diets. At various times in my life, I've vowed to eat better, without really considering what better would be. But my husband and I have been talking about trying to lose weight, and since we both teach, August is kind of like our New Year, so we decided that we are going to try this (after we get back from one last weekend getaway this coming weekend).

The diet includes 4 17-day cycles. The strictest cycle (the first one) includes mostly lean proteins and veggies. You can have two fruits and two probiotics per day. No carbs. (Oh my goodness, that is not going to be easy for me.) In the second cycle, you start adding whole grains, starchy veggies, etc. The fourth cycle is the maintenance cycle, so there are fewer restrictions and a couple of cheat days. There are lots of recipes in the book, and many more on line. So I've made some meal plans, and we're going to try to start on August 18. (The kids go back to school on August 19, so at least if we are grouchy, they'll be able to escape for a bit!) I'll let you know how it goes.… (altro)