Before & After, Revised Edition: Living and Eating Well After Weight-Loss Surgery

Before & After, Revised Edition: Living and Eating Well After Weight-Loss Surgery
by Susan Maria Leach

Before & After, Revised Edition: Living and Eating Well After Weight-Loss Surgery
List Price: $15.99
Category: Book
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Book Summary Information

Author: Susan Maria Leach
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Original Language); English (Unknown); English (Published)
Published: 2007-07-01
ISBN: 0061242853
Number of pages: 336
Publisher: William Morrow Cookbooks
Product features:

Book Reviews of Before & After, Revised Edition: Living and Eating Well After Weight-Loss Surgery

Book Review: Interesting, but not for everyone
Summary: 3 Stars

At first, I was very excited to find "Before and After" because it seemed to be a personal account of someone's weight loss surgery journey, rather than a dry, nuts-and-bolts information book. Her journal is very interesting to read, but I felt like much of her advice and recipes is a little unrealistic for the average person.

Most of her journal entries talk about extragavant trips she took (Vegas, London, etc.) and her struggles dining at fancy restaurants. While eating out IS a big temptation after weight loss surgery, it's not the only one. What about how to prepare dinner for family? Or how to make it through a co-worker's birthday party? The journal seemed somewhat idealized, with emphasis on choosing the right foods whle eating out rather than the emotional struggles that go on after the surgery.

The recipes were equally unrealistic. While many of them sound delicious, they are obviously for people who do not work, have kids, etc. They are also not for people who live in a "normal" city where you can't buy international food at every corner.

I also got a little tired of hearing about her website, which I felt like she shamelessly advertised at every opportunity. I did go to the website, and unfortunately found that the products were VERY expensive. Although they may be good quality, and it would certainly be convenient to order everything from one place, the products aren't really accessible to someone on even the loosest of budgets.

If you want some light reading on the subject, or you can afford (time-and money-wise) to follow the recipes she gives, then this book is for you. Otherwise, you may want to look elsewhere.

Summary of Before & After, Revised Edition: Living and Eating Well After Weight-Loss Surgery

At 278 pounds, Susan Maria Leach couldn't lie in bed without gasping for air, wasn't able to fit into a restaurant booth, and could barely buckle the belt in an airplane seat. It would have been easier to allow life to pass her by than to continue fighting her weight problem, but she made the difficult decision to take back control. In 2001, Susan underwent gastric bypass surgery and started on a journey that would not only cut her body weight in half but would change her life.

Before & After is both a memoir and a cookbook-an intimate account of Leach's own transformation as well as a guide for those who have undergone or are considering the procedure. As Leach has learned in the six years since her operation, weight-loss surgery is not an event with a finish line or a goal weight-it is the beginning of a new way of life.

This edition of Before & After has been updated with all that Leach has learned on her post-op journey. It includes a foreword by Leach's surgeon, advice from a nutritionist, answers to more frequently asked questions about weight-loss surgery, a whole chapter on meal plans for different post-operative stages, suggested menus for early food stages, additional questions and answers affecting longer-term post-ops, and new information about products that have entered the marketplace.

Most notably, this edition showcases a wealth of new recipes that utilize the latest in light and healthy ingredients for smart and savory results, including everything from Asian Meatballs with Peanut Sauce and Turkey Tenderloin with Apple Chipotle Chutney to sugar-free Pistachio Gelato and Lemon Almond Sponge Cake. Each recipe makes about four servings, but includes a measured serving for WLS people along with a calorie/carb/fat/protein count. Leach has recipes for every step of the way, from tastes-like-the-real-thing milk shakes for those first post-op days to an entire Thanksgiving menu.

Before & After is a journal of Leach's own inspirational story, where she shares her ups and downs, her tips and techniques, but mostly it's a book of hope for anyone who has a serious weight problem.

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