The Good Mood Diet
by Susan Kleiner, with Bob Condor
Published by Springboard Press
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Reviewed by Lisa Frisbie
Subtitled: Feel Great As You Lose Weight
Here's the claim: "The Good Mood Diet is one you can live with for a lifetime."
Susan Kleiner has 25 years of experience as a nutritionist, working with business executives, busy moms, and professional sports teams. Drawing upon these diverse ways of helping adults adjust their eating habits, Kleiner proposes a method for increasing your energy and improving your mood--while losing weight. The emotional component of her advice is what differentiates this diet book from the dozens on the market.
Her approach to nutrition education is positive rather than negative. "This is about the food you need to eat, not the food you can't eat," says the author. She goes on to specify recommended daily meals and snacks including entrees such as fish, turkey, cereal and eggs and preferred beverages such as coffee, milk and even hot cocoa.
Chapter 3 provides two weeks (14 full days) of sample menus, including three meals and three snacks daily. Chapter 8 recommends "Good Mood" recipes that fit easily into a busy lifestyle and even accommodate entertaining and hosting. The author provides easy-to-follow instructions and specific examples of healthy meals and between-meal dining. Most of the recipes contain easily purchased, every-day grocery items.
A helpful appendix contains extra information and tools such as a daily log, a look at levels of sugar in processed foods, and instructions about serving sizes. The author writes with a real-world awareness of adult eating habits and preferences.
Hundreds of clients have written to advise Kleiner of their success following her methods and recommendations. They report positive results: consistent weight loss, increased levels of energy, and better moods.
Perhaps based on this feedback from previous clients, the author's claims sound a bit extravagant: "The Good Mood Diet is the beginning of the rest of your nutritional and emotional life...fact is, you'll probably feel better than you ever have and you'll happily stick to the plan." Whether accurate or not, this prediction is exactly what most of us would love to believe--and experience.
Armchair Interviews says: Focus on mood in diet is unique.