What do you think?
Rate this book
The Food Therapist: Break Bad Habits, Eat with Intention, and Indulge Without Worry
If you asked people to post a status update on their relationship with food, most would say "It's Complicated." We aspire to eat healthfully but find ourselves making hasty food choices driven by stress and convenience. Or we treat ourselves to a decadent dessert but feel so guilty we don't even enjoy it. The truth is we can't make good food decisions if we don't deeply examine our relationship with food. In The Food Therapist, Shira Lenchewski offers readers an ongoing one-on-one food therapy session, revealing the root causes of our emotional hang-ups around food and providing the necessary tools to overcome them. This practical and judgment-free guide helps readers hone the skills needed to put their get-healthy intentions into daily action, such as planning ahead wisely, tuning into their fullness cues, and harnessing willpower (even when life gets messy). Lenchewski also offers easy-to-follow, tasty recipes aimed at rebalancing our hormones and conquering our cravings without deprivation. The Food Therapist is a refreshingly modern resource that helps us finally un-complicate our relationship with food and our bodies. We can then focus our efforts on making thoughtful, healthy choices, day in and day out, which serve our ultimate goals, whatever they may be.
205 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 13, 2018
212 people are currently reading
1468 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews
December 30, 2018
I wanted to hate this book, because it’s just so... pink... and because I realized after I started reading it that the author is affiliated with Goop, which, Jesus Christ. But I actually thought it was great and am excited to try implementing the approach to eating it recommends.
There weren’t really any new-to-me concepts in this book (pay attention to hunger and satiety cues, count carbs not calories, the kind of carb matters, etc.) but there was something about the way they’re presented here that made them seem very accessible and doable. It was like getting nutrition advice from a smart, sassy friend who reads all the same websites I do and has a similar affinity for Sweetgreen.
In sum, this wasn’t groundbreaking, but I’m glad I read it.
There weren’t really any new-to-me concepts in this book (pay attention to hunger and satiety cues, count carbs not calories, the kind of carb matters, etc.) but there was something about the way they’re presented here that made them seem very accessible and doable. It was like getting nutrition advice from a smart, sassy friend who reads all the same websites I do and has a similar affinity for Sweetgreen.
In sum, this wasn’t groundbreaking, but I’m glad I read it.
February 26, 2018
I really do not like giving books bad reviews but I’ve got to tell anyone looking to get this book to save your money!
It’s another book with unrealistic food advice, advising “phases” where you cut out certain food groups, specifically dairy and grain. Come on! Let’s be real! I am not for any type of plan that advises cutting out any food group, especially one that cuts healthy food options that dairy can offer! I think Greek yogurt is one of the best foods out there.
I very much lost interest when the author states that people’s carbohydrate intake should be between 60-90g per day. Again, totally unrealistic! Hello, brain fog!
My advice: calories in, calories out, create a healthy balance, focus on fruits, veggies, healthy protein, and most grains in the earlier part of the day.
Not what I thought this book would be. I’m definitely disappointed. Plus, the recipes at the end did not sound the least bit good.
It’s another book with unrealistic food advice, advising “phases” where you cut out certain food groups, specifically dairy and grain. Come on! Let’s be real! I am not for any type of plan that advises cutting out any food group, especially one that cuts healthy food options that dairy can offer! I think Greek yogurt is one of the best foods out there.
I very much lost interest when the author states that people’s carbohydrate intake should be between 60-90g per day. Again, totally unrealistic! Hello, brain fog!
My advice: calories in, calories out, create a healthy balance, focus on fruits, veggies, healthy protein, and most grains in the earlier part of the day.
Not what I thought this book would be. I’m definitely disappointed. Plus, the recipes at the end did not sound the least bit good.
May 4, 2018
The first half of this book is a bunch of vague, fluffy advice on being kind to yourself and not succumbing to shame spirals. Which is good advice, but certainly not new or unique.
The second half of this book espouses a boring, fussy eating plan that combines meal prepping with keto/Atkins/every other low carb diet on the planet. Most of it is filled with bland-sounding recipes that fail to even approach interesting (poached chicken with garlic powder? Does that even count as a recipe?) There is essentially nothing new to be learned from this book. I don't know what I expected from something published by Gwyneth Paltrow, but there you have it.
The second half of this book espouses a boring, fussy eating plan that combines meal prepping with keto/Atkins/every other low carb diet on the planet. Most of it is filled with bland-sounding recipes that fail to even approach interesting (poached chicken with garlic powder? Does that even count as a recipe?) There is essentially nothing new to be learned from this book. I don't know what I expected from something published by Gwyneth Paltrow, but there you have it.
June 6, 2019
This book is really a 2.5, but I gave it a 3.
While the book does have some great information in the beginning about not being so hard on yourself, the overall content seems to lack a great alternative to eating poorly. Her suggestions are mainly to cut carbs and dairy to lose weight. Which is no different from advice you hear from most health based web blogs. It's nothing special about the advice she's giving, other than to take it easy on yourself after wanting to indulge in a delicious meal or snack.
This is a book that I could've done without. It has a very naive Elizabeth Gilbert/ pseudo zen vibe to it that could be very annoying for a person that's struggled with obesity for a long time. Key takeaways are to eat in moderation and avoid simple sugars like juices, box cereal, ice cream, and candy. Focus on eating more vegetables and complex carbohydrates whenever dining out. Purchase healthier foods and oils when you shop and stock your pantry. Know that you will go off the rails and fu** up your healthy eating routine, but don't use that as an excuse to hit the 'fu*k it' button and go on a binge eating fest. Do your best.
While the book does have some great information in the beginning about not being so hard on yourself, the overall content seems to lack a great alternative to eating poorly. Her suggestions are mainly to cut carbs and dairy to lose weight. Which is no different from advice you hear from most health based web blogs. It's nothing special about the advice she's giving, other than to take it easy on yourself after wanting to indulge in a delicious meal or snack.
This is a book that I could've done without. It has a very naive Elizabeth Gilbert/ pseudo zen vibe to it that could be very annoying for a person that's struggled with obesity for a long time. Key takeaways are to eat in moderation and avoid simple sugars like juices, box cereal, ice cream, and candy. Focus on eating more vegetables and complex carbohydrates whenever dining out. Purchase healthier foods and oils when you shop and stock your pantry. Know that you will go off the rails and fu** up your healthy eating routine, but don't use that as an excuse to hit the 'fu*k it' button and go on a binge eating fest. Do your best.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 10, 2018
The first part of the book was insightful and educational. She lost me at the fact that the diet she proposes can work for everyone except vegans. It is essentially a Paleo diet.
May 30, 2023
This was pretty good. It had some good points and good tips. My main problem with it is that it entirely dismissed the fasting diets and there is a lot of science to support both their efficacy and their long-term health benefits, so just dismissing them without any explanation seemed very unscientific to me. That said, most of what she recommends here works well with fasting diets, and makes the fasting diets more likely to stick. On the flip side, fasting diets make Lenchewski's suggestions easier to implement. Lenchewski's suggestions also fall in line with what commercial diets like Weight Watchers aim to make clients do (though they mostly hide it behind their point system so you keep paying them).
June 21, 2018
As someone who has a complicated relationship with food, this is a life-changing read. My food habits noticed an immediate effect even after reading the first few chapters. I've done Whole30 dozens of times, eat pretty clean, but the way we view food and talk down to ourselves can be just as unhealthy as eating ice cream for every meal. I strongly recommend this book and plan to revisit it each year.
March 26, 2021
The first few chapters were very insightful and had helpful information. After that, it turns into a diet plan and turned me off. It was a bit too "eating healthy food to look good and meet my body goals" rather than what I was looking for: "eating food for me and not worrying about body goals". Not the authors fault, just not what I thought it would be.
August 22, 2021
Some of the insights are really interesting and it's one of those books to come back to from time to time to keep up both motivation and implementation of the plan.
Alcuni spunti sono veramente interessanti ed é uno di quei libri su cui tornare a leggere di tanto in tanto per mantenere alta sia la motivazione sia l'attuazione del piano.
Alcuni spunti sono veramente interessanti ed é uno di quei libri su cui tornare a leggere di tanto in tanto per mantenere alta sia la motivazione sia l'attuazione del piano.
February 8, 2021
I really liked the chapter with the quiz at the beginning of the book. I've been thinking about my eating habits and this helped organize those thoughts. It also brought up issues/reasoning behind my habits that I hadn't really considered. I read a thing once that was basically "Don't drink when you're sad, only when you're happy". This book helped me to put a system in place to get to that way with food. Like, instead of going to Dairy Queen and being like 'GIVE ME ALL THE HOT FUDGE YOU HAVE' whenever I'm feeling down about something, I've been thinking more about "Am I actually hungry/craving this OR am I trying to use it as an emotional hot fudge band aid that will result in a stomach ache and make me feel even worse about myself?" Love that journey for me!
The problems come in with the "eat whatever you want! you want cake? give yourself a sliver!" kind of talk. Like, I appreciate the sentiment of not feeling bad about what I eat because it's a destructive circle. But the way the author phrased pleasurable eating still came out as judgmental. What if I want more than a sliver of cake? So I disregarded those comments and went with the overall messaging of eating more mindfully/with intention.
And there's a large portion of the book devoted to a quasi-paleo diet. There was a lot of juxtaposition of "feel good about your food choices" with "but eat these specific foods". A lot of typical diet talk mixed in with the food therapy and I was not about it. That knocked off multiple stars.
Also, the constant comparison of our relationship with food to romantic relationships was weird. At first I was like "sure, yeah, ok" and by the end I was like "I DON'T THINK THIS MAKES SENSE LIKE YOU THINK IT DOES".
Really I'd say: read the quiz chapter and skim the others because it was interesting to reflect on my relationship with food but the author clearly has a stereotypical view of what constitutes a "healthy-sized" body/lifestyle and I wasn't into it.
The problems come in with the "eat whatever you want! you want cake? give yourself a sliver!" kind of talk. Like, I appreciate the sentiment of not feeling bad about what I eat because it's a destructive circle. But the way the author phrased pleasurable eating still came out as judgmental. What if I want more than a sliver of cake? So I disregarded those comments and went with the overall messaging of eating more mindfully/with intention.
And there's a large portion of the book devoted to a quasi-paleo diet. There was a lot of juxtaposition of "feel good about your food choices" with "but eat these specific foods". A lot of typical diet talk mixed in with the food therapy and I was not about it. That knocked off multiple stars.
Also, the constant comparison of our relationship with food to romantic relationships was weird. At first I was like "sure, yeah, ok" and by the end I was like "I DON'T THINK THIS MAKES SENSE LIKE YOU THINK IT DOES".
Really I'd say: read the quiz chapter and skim the others because it was interesting to reflect on my relationship with food but the author clearly has a stereotypical view of what constitutes a "healthy-sized" body/lifestyle and I wasn't into it.
June 23, 2021
I think this is a really good eye opener. It puts the thaughts into you eating routine, teaching you how to make better food choices as well as making you understand why you don’t. For anybody struggling with dietary restrictions, weight loss plateaus and frustration, this is a good book to start with. You will learn how to stucture your meals, how to combine foods, what is good and what is not so good. There are also some cool recipes you cold try out and a “getiing on track” diet plan.
I certainly do not regret buying and reading this book.
I certainly do not regret buying and reading this book.
June 6, 2021
I enjoyed this book ... even though the author used both the words “nosh” and “S.O.” (which I admit to having to Google what it stood for because ... well, I’m over 40 and had no clue what she was talking about) in almost every other sentence. I’m Vegan, so the whole middle section of this book about how to live on a Paleo diet was useless to me, but the beginning and ending sections made up for it.
April 15, 2025
I appreciated that the information in this book was based on scientific fact and not just personal opinion. I didn't enjoy the irrelevant comparisons between our relationships with food and our physically intimate relationships with people...weird. Overall, it was an easy read, and I came away feeling more informed and armed with simple ideas for implementation.
December 31, 2019
Good talk track around intentional eating and the acknowledgement that you will have meals or nights that you slip up and that's okay. Don't dwell or self hate about them, just enjoy them and get back on it.
August 28, 2023
meh. the title kind of made me think this would be different than it was. Not terrible, but also probably not something I would recommend to people out there looking for a beautiful, intuitive eating, open relationship with food/their bodies
January 31, 2021
Loved the first half. Great insight and advice. Didn’t realize a diet plan was in the middle of the book. Some good advice but not a diet plan I would follow. Good advice at the end:
July 16, 2020
So ... the first half of this book was very promising. Some sound advice about the ‘why’ of our food choices and the internal structure of our complex relationship with food. If the rest of the book had gone deeper into this, it would have really worked. However, the second half was a Paleo diet book. Fussy yet overly-simple recipes with some things I had to look up and some things that wouldn’t readily be available at the shops.
For a UK audience especially, she uses Americanisms like ‘noshing’ while using them far too much — and her use of ‘oftentimes’ instead of ‘often’ irritated me more than I expected.
Like so many self-help books, the author tries too hard to be funny, and in doing so, mostly fails. Some lines I found quite amusing, while others made me cringe. I legitimately don’t buy a self-help book for comic effect. Although the odd amusement is nice, I don’t need to be prompted to throw my head back laughing every second sentence. Plus, it’s distracting.
Another thing I found irritating was that the author continually compares human dating situations to food situations (they’re both relationships, right?), but fell out of touch with THIS reader because most of the ‘bff one-liners’ seem geared towards those below the age of 30, or 25 ...
It’s clear the author genuinely knows her stuff, but to put it to good use, she needs to leave out the recipes and carb-weighing and focus on what the book is supposed to be. More therapy, less cauliflower rice, please.
P.s. Love the pink and yellow cover
For a UK audience especially, she uses Americanisms like ‘noshing’ while using them far too much — and her use of ‘oftentimes’ instead of ‘often’ irritated me more than I expected.
Like so many self-help books, the author tries too hard to be funny, and in doing so, mostly fails. Some lines I found quite amusing, while others made me cringe. I legitimately don’t buy a self-help book for comic effect. Although the odd amusement is nice, I don’t need to be prompted to throw my head back laughing every second sentence. Plus, it’s distracting.
Another thing I found irritating was that the author continually compares human dating situations to food situations (they’re both relationships, right?), but fell out of touch with THIS reader because most of the ‘bff one-liners’ seem geared towards those below the age of 30, or 25 ...
It’s clear the author genuinely knows her stuff, but to put it to good use, she needs to leave out the recipes and carb-weighing and focus on what the book is supposed to be. More therapy, less cauliflower rice, please.
P.s. Love the pink and yellow cover
February 4, 2020
This book covers the similar concepts discussed in Plant Paradox and Willpower but in a BFF kind of way.
June 12, 2018
This book delves into why people overeat and how they can overcome it.
The book doesn't claim to be a diet book, but that is what I found it to be. The first part she goes into what kinds of eaters people are (I fell into a few categories). She gives some advice on how not to fall into overeating traps, but I was hoping that there would be more information on that. I especially thought that this book would be more therapy based than what it actually was. She promotes a paleo like eating style. There is a section with recipes and guidelines on how to follow what she thinks you should eat. I felt like her writing was easy to read and it flowed well. The book was also really short. The other part that I didn't care for in the book was that she kept making relationship/dating analogies to food. By doing this she really seemed to narrow in her audience to a younger crowd that is dating. I get that, but it felt alienating (& annoying) to someone who is not in that part of their relationship.
The book doesn't claim to be a diet book, but that is what I found it to be. The first part she goes into what kinds of eaters people are (I fell into a few categories). She gives some advice on how not to fall into overeating traps, but I was hoping that there would be more information on that. I especially thought that this book would be more therapy based than what it actually was. She promotes a paleo like eating style. There is a section with recipes and guidelines on how to follow what she thinks you should eat. I felt like her writing was easy to read and it flowed well. The book was also really short. The other part that I didn't care for in the book was that she kept making relationship/dating analogies to food. By doing this she really seemed to narrow in her audience to a younger crowd that is dating. I get that, but it felt alienating (& annoying) to someone who is not in that part of their relationship.
December 13, 2021
I am surprised at the number of neutral to negative reviews for this book, I suppose people get out of it what they are ready to get out of it, or based off of the "knowledge" that they've gained about dieting previously. But, seriously, if you're reading this book, you likely already know quite a bit about food and are hoping to gain some new factoid that will be the final thing that makes you into the healthy, glowing person you desire to be.
What I felt so connected to in this book is how the author takes time to talk about the various reasons why people have unhealthy relationships with food, and we may identify with one or more of the explanations she provides. I certainly did. So, already I was drawn in by the theory of food relationships as a starting point before diving into specific eat this not thats.
The next thing I was connected to was more philosophical, but the idea that we tend to see our future selves as separate beings, or we don't believe in them enough, so that disconnection is often what leads us to make poor choices in the now, and those who are more connected to the idea of their future selves have easier times making healthy choices now. I can totally relate to this because there's a slim chance that eating this pizza tonight will cause me to literally die in the future whereas I would have otherwise lived, but there's a 100% chance that I'll enjoy the taste of this pizza if I eat it now. The book could have ended right there and been well worth the price and time investment, because it showed me some real areas of work that I can improve upon instead of just throwing out all of the bread in the house only to buy more a few days later.
Overall I found the book to be insightful and practical, and a different approach compared to the scores of material already out there in the healthy eating space.
What I felt so connected to in this book is how the author takes time to talk about the various reasons why people have unhealthy relationships with food, and we may identify with one or more of the explanations she provides. I certainly did. So, already I was drawn in by the theory of food relationships as a starting point before diving into specific eat this not thats.
The next thing I was connected to was more philosophical, but the idea that we tend to see our future selves as separate beings, or we don't believe in them enough, so that disconnection is often what leads us to make poor choices in the now, and those who are more connected to the idea of their future selves have easier times making healthy choices now. I can totally relate to this because there's a slim chance that eating this pizza tonight will cause me to literally die in the future whereas I would have otherwise lived, but there's a 100% chance that I'll enjoy the taste of this pizza if I eat it now. The book could have ended right there and been well worth the price and time investment, because it showed me some real areas of work that I can improve upon instead of just throwing out all of the bread in the house only to buy more a few days later.
Overall I found the book to be insightful and practical, and a different approach compared to the scores of material already out there in the healthy eating space.
April 19, 2020
This book is a great companion for anyone taking a look at their relationship they have with food.
The author, Shira, writes in a way that makes you feel connected to the story/info she is presenting and she carries impressive credentials having completed her masters in clinical nutrition at NYU.
She presents insightful information stemming from psychological findings regarding the way we tend to treat our future selves (which studies show is like total strangers), and how our Pre-Frontal Cortex and decision fatigue are involved in our food decisions and ways to combat these using easy to implement strategies and straightforward planning.
She also gives a fantastic, simple terms explanation of how different hormones in our body (insulin, leptin, ghrelin, cortisol etc.) act when presented with different foods, which for me, is very helpful in my understanding on how the things I am eating will affect me behind the scenes.
Overall, the book is a body-positive, non-shaming way to start changing the relationship you have with food- with the goal of not being a perfectionist, but to improve each meal/each day. Even if you do not want to complete the partial food-eliminating Phases or make the recipes she suggests (which is only for a few weeks so you can see how they affect you) the book still has tons of valuable knowledge and insights that make it well worth it.
The author, Shira, writes in a way that makes you feel connected to the story/info she is presenting and she carries impressive credentials having completed her masters in clinical nutrition at NYU.
She presents insightful information stemming from psychological findings regarding the way we tend to treat our future selves (which studies show is like total strangers), and how our Pre-Frontal Cortex and decision fatigue are involved in our food decisions and ways to combat these using easy to implement strategies and straightforward planning.
She also gives a fantastic, simple terms explanation of how different hormones in our body (insulin, leptin, ghrelin, cortisol etc.) act when presented with different foods, which for me, is very helpful in my understanding on how the things I am eating will affect me behind the scenes.
Overall, the book is a body-positive, non-shaming way to start changing the relationship you have with food- with the goal of not being a perfectionist, but to improve each meal/each day. Even if you do not want to complete the partial food-eliminating Phases or make the recipes she suggests (which is only for a few weeks so you can see how they affect you) the book still has tons of valuable knowledge and insights that make it well worth it.
April 5, 2018
As far as books about intentional eating go, this one is pretty good. What I appreciated most is that it's to the point and doesn't get bogged down with too many stories or repetition. It has some quizzes to help you figure out where your eating habits come from, and then some tips on how to address those habits and create better ones. There is also advice on how to set realistic goals and then achieve them. The author stresses that slip ups WILL happen occasionally, and that you don't need to beat yourself up over it.
There is a diet plan and recipes (involving lots of cauliflower rice & sweet potatoes) that the author recommends to help you reset your hormone levels. The diet is similar to the Whole30 and Paleo Diet, which isn't really vegetarian or vegan friendly. She recommends that women eat just 60-90 grams of carbs a day, which seems impossible to me but then I love my pasta and chocolate (and lets be real, if I only ate 90g of carbs a day I would probably be at my goal weight & wouldn't have bothered with this book).
Like with all self help books, you take what works for you and leave the rest. Overall I think this is worth a read. I don't see myself following her diet plan, but I think her advice on how to develop better eating habits will be helpful.
There is a diet plan and recipes (involving lots of cauliflower rice & sweet potatoes) that the author recommends to help you reset your hormone levels. The diet is similar to the Whole30 and Paleo Diet, which isn't really vegetarian or vegan friendly. She recommends that women eat just 60-90 grams of carbs a day, which seems impossible to me but then I love my pasta and chocolate (and lets be real, if I only ate 90g of carbs a day I would probably be at my goal weight & wouldn't have bothered with this book).
Like with all self help books, you take what works for you and leave the rest. Overall I think this is worth a read. I don't see myself following her diet plan, but I think her advice on how to develop better eating habits will be helpful.
December 18, 2019
I was disappointed in my own research skills before snagging this at the library. I didn’t realize its connection to goop, a company I am very much not about. I was simply looking for some tools that might help me with my thoughts around food.
The book managed to provide some helpful info in the first half. I was surprised how much it had me reflecting, to be honest. The second half wasn’t of much use to me. It essentially outlines a whole meal plan which I knew I’d never participate in, so I just turned the pages looking at what might sound yummy and stored it in the back of my mind if I maybe remembered it the next time I was in the kitchen.
Overall, I’d say it’s definitely worth exploring the first half and noting some points about how people relate to the food they eat and how these foods can conjure emotional responses in us. There are some helpful tools for how to combat various “bad” food related habits that I found interesting, but I could have probably read what I needed from Lenchewski in an article rather than a book.
The book managed to provide some helpful info in the first half. I was surprised how much it had me reflecting, to be honest. The second half wasn’t of much use to me. It essentially outlines a whole meal plan which I knew I’d never participate in, so I just turned the pages looking at what might sound yummy and stored it in the back of my mind if I maybe remembered it the next time I was in the kitchen.
Overall, I’d say it’s definitely worth exploring the first half and noting some points about how people relate to the food they eat and how these foods can conjure emotional responses in us. There are some helpful tools for how to combat various “bad” food related habits that I found interesting, but I could have probably read what I needed from Lenchewski in an article rather than a book.
February 24, 2021
Its another diet book comflauged as a self help book. I thought it was promising at the beginning, discussing different relationships people have with food. But then she got to the section on pantry essentials and listed a variety of ingredients the average person wouldn't have in their panty (goji berries? really? and essential item?) and continued to discuss her not-a-diet diet complete with no gluten, low carbs, and no dairy. A modified paleo diet. Its great if that's what you are into and have lots of money to spend on the arguably expensive "essentials" but for an average person, this book is seriously out of touch.
Also, she misses and glosses over one of the easiest ways to help people eat healthier and avoid weekday decision fatigue driving your meal choices, meal planning. Decide what you are going to eat for the next week on Saturday or Sunday, go to the grocery store to make sure you have all the supplies, then you never have to think about what your eating when you get home from work/school. All you have to do is cook.
Also, she misses and glosses over one of the easiest ways to help people eat healthier and avoid weekday decision fatigue driving your meal choices, meal planning. Decide what you are going to eat for the next week on Saturday or Sunday, go to the grocery store to make sure you have all the supplies, then you never have to think about what your eating when you get home from work/school. All you have to do is cook.
May 12, 2021
I really liked the 1st part of this book, where she deals with the psychology of eating, and why we make the food choices that we do. I thought that her advice, while a little fluffy, was interesting and could work for some people, myself included. The choices that we make do involve our head space, and I thought that she had some good insight into that.
The 2nd part of the book, dedicated to the diet, isn't very good. It's a modified paleo approach that's pretty limiting. Also, while she talks about the delicious recipes in the 1st half, most of them involve zoodles or cauliflower rice, or some variation of the two. There are only so many zoodles a person can eat - the diet isn't sustainable, and it might have been more appealing had she included other recipes for meat, fish, and other things on the plan.
Worth checking out if you're trying to change the way you eat, or are interested in finding out why you eat the way you do. But take it with a grain of salt - she's in tight with GP and Goop, which always makes the science subjective.
The 2nd part of the book, dedicated to the diet, isn't very good. It's a modified paleo approach that's pretty limiting. Also, while she talks about the delicious recipes in the 1st half, most of them involve zoodles or cauliflower rice, or some variation of the two. There are only so many zoodles a person can eat - the diet isn't sustainable, and it might have been more appealing had she included other recipes for meat, fish, and other things on the plan.
Worth checking out if you're trying to change the way you eat, or are interested in finding out why you eat the way you do. But take it with a grain of salt - she's in tight with GP and Goop, which always makes the science subjective.
March 8, 2018
On the surface this book is a paleo diet plan wrapped in phrases like "ride or die" and some pretty conversational language. It doesn't look like it's going to be very helpful. BUT once you get past that, there is some pretty good advice and insight for those of us who have a difficult relationship with food. I particularly found the future self exercise helpful.
That being said, unfortunately, as a vegetarian who also has a gluten allergy, the second half of the book is a meal plan. The plan is very paleo-based, kind of a "Whole 30" vibe, and is laid out well complete with recipes, but I was looking more for the background, the psychology, the "why" of eating. So this part wasn't helpful to me.
Bottom line: If you're struggling with food issues and you enjoy eating meat, this book would be a great one for you!
That being said, unfortunately, as a vegetarian who also has a gluten allergy, the second half of the book is a meal plan. The plan is very paleo-based, kind of a "Whole 30" vibe, and is laid out well complete with recipes, but I was looking more for the background, the psychology, the "why" of eating. So this part wasn't helpful to me.
Bottom line: If you're struggling with food issues and you enjoy eating meat, this book would be a great one for you!
January 29, 2021
I did not realize that this was a Goop Corporation book. I considered returning it as soon as I saw that it was really just a large corporation farmed book. I ended up reading the whole thing but was generally underwhelmed. There's no new advice here and based on the title and description I expected the book to be more about mental habits surrounding poor eating and lifestyle choices and ways to break them. Certainly there was some of that in this book. But most of this book seemed to be more of a cleanse style diet with recipes and long lists of things to cut out completely at various times. Which isn't generally my healthful approach. There were certainly a few good tips to take away. But overall this was certainly not a life-changing text.
February 25, 2023
It’s like the author (affiliated with Goop LOL) has no concept of intersectionality and the reality of grocery shopping/eating (also life in general) if you’re not upper middle class with a certain amount of privilege. I guess this book has the potential to be helpful if you’re middle class and/or with access to financial resources, quality grocery stores, cooking classes etc.
It offers no insight as to how combat food insecurity, the scarcity mindset that leads to overeating, and/or (over)eating the wrong foods. There’s also no recognition that some people simply do not have the resources to access the kinds of foods and lifestyle suggested by this book.
It does have some advice (which is certainly nothing new) if you have enough resources to put the recommendations into action.
It offers no insight as to how combat food insecurity, the scarcity mindset that leads to overeating, and/or (over)eating the wrong foods. There’s also no recognition that some people simply do not have the resources to access the kinds of foods and lifestyle suggested by this book.
It does have some advice (which is certainly nothing new) if you have enough resources to put the recommendations into action.
March 20, 2023
the first half of the book was actually quite nice and is what i expected from a book called “the food therapist”: advice about forgiveness and self-love.
the second half of the book kind of demonizes food groups even though the author said earlier not to do that (no carbs!!) and then provided a list of recipes that sounded just horrible to me but i’m not sure if i’m a great judge since i’m a picky eater. she also suggested a good phase plan which i found to be unrealistic for most. i wish she would’ve just wrote a food relationship book and didn’t try to tell readers how to eat.
also i wish i knew gwenyth paltrow was not a great woman to listen to for eating advice before i read this book
the second half of the book kind of demonizes food groups even though the author said earlier not to do that (no carbs!!) and then provided a list of recipes that sounded just horrible to me but i’m not sure if i’m a great judge since i’m a picky eater. she also suggested a good phase plan which i found to be unrealistic for most. i wish she would’ve just wrote a food relationship book and didn’t try to tell readers how to eat.
also i wish i knew gwenyth paltrow was not a great woman to listen to for eating advice before i read this book
February 18, 2021
TLDR - This book advocates for a modified paleo diet or a more "sustainable" paleo approach as the Author puts it.
I liked the quiz and different profiles the author gave for common types of food relationships and dieting habits. This was in one of the first chapters, in the ones that followed in PT 1 the different archetypes were broken down and discussed further.
We were almost at the halfway point when the ~what to eat + avoid food advice~ was delivered. I liked that she didn't rush into it. Depending on your eating style you might find her suggestions very restrictive or freeing. I think my personal reaction was a bit of both.
I liked the quiz and different profiles the author gave for common types of food relationships and dieting habits. This was in one of the first chapters, in the ones that followed in PT 1 the different archetypes were broken down and discussed further.
We were almost at the halfway point when the ~what to eat + avoid food advice~ was delivered. I liked that she didn't rush into it. Depending on your eating style you might find her suggestions very restrictive or freeing. I think my personal reaction was a bit of both.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 84 reviews