Foreword
Commentary by Lisa Cosman, Practical Nutritionist
This is a Diet Book for guys single and married, and the wives of overweight men written by a New Yorker, Roger Cotta, who spent much of his life eating like a baseball fan (in his younger days he was captain of his baseball team), a onetime lapsed exerciser (before this successful diet), a former U.S. Marine; generally just a regular American guy.
Roger, however, has an immense curiosity as well as a sense of pragmatism, and when extreme dieting (Atkins style) backfired on him (at it has for lots of other men), Roger researched nutrition and designed his own diet. As he tells us, he realized that he wouldnt be happy without beer so he designed beer right into his diet (like millions of American guys, Roger seriously enjoys beer. Choosing efficiency as well as pleasure, Roger added to his weight loss dietary explorations, regular exercise that he enjoys doing, and finally weight-loss dieting worked for him. At last, he took off the excess weight, then kept it off, and his cholesterol and blood pressure came down (Ive verified his before and after medical records). His doctors could tell you that he has also lowered his risk for heart disease, stroke, and diabetes. Recent nutritional knowledge tells us that regular exercise and sustained good nutrition lowers the risk of Alzheimers disease and cancer, as well.
This diet is right for beer drinking guys because it pays attention to a guys lifestyle and taste buds. Its a diet that a man can live with and on. Roger makes no claim, nor do I (no one can in any book diet), but if you follow The Beer Drinkers Diet because it fits your body and your lifestyle, this way of dieting can make a difference for you, too.
As a New York nutritionist with decades of experience working with individuals who want to improve their health and achieve the bodies they desire, Ive long realized that the diet that works for a man (or a woman) is the one they can really live with every day, a diet which contains something that feels just wicked enough that the individual can say no to excess calories and inappropriate temptations long enough to get results and to establish lasting sensible personalized eating habits; and then to maintain those new habits. The whole idea of a Beer Drinkers Diet horrifies extremists, but living realistically is not living with the denial pressure of extremism. Rogers diet eliminates meal skipping and teaches portion control and managing carbohydrates. You can take this diet home, you can eat out.
Since taking off weight, not only has Roger maintained his weight loss and improved medical profile, when he introduced himself to me (and first brought me the manuscript for this book) he told me that he knows now that he will never be dangerously overweight again. He no longer fears that.
Ive gotten to know Roger, hes happy, he feels no deprivation, and his medical records speak for themselves. For you, Roger has written this book.
My question (and likely yours), Is this a safe diet?
Basically, yes (although it is definitely not the right diet for an alcoholic). Occasionally Roger still drinks rather more beer than is truly sensible (for a man, two beers a day is the medical maximum, for a woman one), but no guy starts out a paragon, they need to be trained into better habits. Roger trained himself enough to get a workable, livable diet for himself and he is a beer drinker.
I am, as well as an experience Nutritionist and a Practical Nutritionist, a committed Wholefoodist Nutritionist. What does that mean? you ask: I am firm about avoiding artificial foods, chemicalized foods, over processed and refined foods, and always have been; lots of vegetables (for dieters, salads with lettuces and low or medium carbohydrate raw vegetables and low-salt/no msg soups and cooked vegetables, that sort of thing; oils instead of trans fats, healthy lean protein, etc.)
This diet works because it is a Controlled Carbohydrate diet plan. Low-low carb diets manipulate the biochemistry and have a ruthless boomerang weight gain kick with even a small indulgence. The Beer Drinkers Diet depends on Controlled Carbohydrates (factoring in the beer), plus portion control, consistency, regular meals, adequate sleep, and exercise. Roger had enough sense (and his mothers voice in his ear) to take some vitamin supplements while he dieted and to get enough fiber and water throughout the day. We need fluids, we need fiber. We also do need carbohydrates. Carbohydrates fuel our muscles, our hearts, and our brains. One 1960s low-carbohydrate diet observer (he was a therapist) also noticed that excessive low-low carbohydrate eating changed peoples moods negatively. We need enough carbohydrate to form serotonin, which mellows our moods (its not just the alcohol in our beer or wine that calms us, its their biochemical effect on our neurotransmitters). That researcher was Dr. George Watson, and his book entitled Nutrition and The Mind, is now out of print.
Roger rides his bicycle at least four days a week for ninety minutes each day. He also plays tennis, walks frequently and stays active. He works full time, has raised a family, and is happy. He is also healthier and slimmer than during his pre Beer Drinkers Diet days. Remember, he was a U.S. Marine, a regular guy and he writes like one. Youll enjoy reading this book, and the diet is just the ticket for someone who wants to take off excess weight, but knows that he is not going to give up drinking beer.
This book is a good read (Roger has a very personal sense of humor) and offers a very creative diet. The authors experience will help you to discover some foods you never even dreamed youd like; and youve still got that satisfying bit of beer.
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