I’ve been a long-time fan of Alton Brown’s Good Eats show on Food Network. He’s kitschy for some (Brown notes that Good Eats “was inspired by the idea of combining Julia Child, Mr. Wizard, and Monty Python”), but I have always appreciated the science in each episode.
[Note: if you haven't seen the show, by all means check out the early years on YouTube!]
Now into season 13, it’s clear that Alton Brown, like many of us, had been putting on some pounds over the years. But also like many of us, this kind of slow weight creep really can turn into a hefty number of pounds. For Brown, it was some Good Eats footage that convinced had him he had to do something about the sizable spare tire he was sporting. This led him to change his diet with a resulting weight loss of 50 lbs over 9 months.
So naturally, I was eager to hear how he’d done it. He explains the details on a recent episode of Good Eats: Live and Let Diet.
First off, I think the description for the episode is misleading:
AB explains how eating from 4 basic food groups helped him lose 50 lbs without going on a diet.
Actually, Brown makes a distinction between energy-dense and nutrient-dense foods. His plan involves increasing his nutrient to energy ratio via four lists, which is very different from what most people consider as “basic food groups.”
The Plan of Four Lists
First, here are Brown’s lists.
| daily | 3x/week | 1x/week | 0x/week |
|---|---|---|---|
| fruits whole grains leafy greens nuts carrots green tea |
oily fish yogurt broccoli sweet potato avocado |
red meat pasta dessert alcohol |
fast food soda processed meals canned soups “diet” anything |
The columns are pretty self-explanatory. Brown eats those foods in the daily column each day. Foods in the 3x/week column are eaten at least three times per week. Foods in the 1x/week column are those he allows himself once each week, and foods in the last column he no longer eats.
The rest of the episode features recipes for some of the foods he includes regularly in his diet. I thought the sardine toast and almonds were fine (though primal folks would probably forgo the toast). I had a few issues with the smoothie though.
Brown’s Buff Smoothie
Aside from the four lists, Brown has one additional rule: eat breakfast every day. His breakfast of choice is a “buff smoothie” featuring fruits for their antioxidants.
Now I’m a big fan of berries for their nutritional punch. But I’d have to quibble with Brown on his smoothie, especially if it’s the only thing he has for breakfast.
First quibble is the soy milk. While folks I respect like Dr. Weil think soy is fine, I do find what Weil calls “internet paranoia” to be of some cause for concern. The Weston Price folks summarize these soy issues here.
BTW, the question of dairy is a completely different matter. As a newbie primal fan, I’ve not yet made my mind up whether to go dairy-free as Cordain suggests, or go with the PaNu approach and keep it. For now, I’m going with a quality over quantity approach. Better to have no dairy than industrial dairy IMO. But for me for now, cheese and butter from pastured cows is a good thing!
That’s an aside. Brown’s reason for going with the soy milk is that cow’s milk is a gateway drug for him:
When I was really looking at the whole issue of diet and the philosophy of diet, I made this list of all the kind of bad things that I used to eat and there was always a companion food. And a companion food, nine times out of ten, was milk. It was, you know, cookies and milk, ice cream, milk, cake, milk, you know.
And so I thought, jeepers, it’s milk’s fault. Milk’s the evil friend telling me it’s okay to do whatever, you know, blah, blah, blah was. So, I noticed that I found that, you know, when you get rid of the milk you don’t want the whole tube of Girl Scout cookies anymore. So, that made it a whole lot easier to do what needed to be done.
Hmm. Well, I guess everyone has their triggers!
My second quibble with the smoothie is the balance of macro-nutrients. I plugged the ingredients into NutritionData.com’s recipe tool and got the following:
- calories: 353
- protein: 5g
- carbs: 87g, 13g fiber, 48g sugar (22g of fructose)
- fat: 2g
Yowza, that’s a lot of sugar first thing in the AM! I’m not a VLC purist (yet), as I’ve found that going with low-to-moderate carb has been working great for me.
But whether or not 90g of carbs for breakfast is an issue, the lack of protein and fat surely is. Again, it wasn’t clear from the show whether this is all Brown eats for breakfast, but the whole idea of a smoothie as an easy breakfast implies it. Of course, it’d be easy enough to tweak the recipe to reduce the carbs and add protein and fat depending on what you include in your diet.
Other comments
As far as the foods in Brown’s four lists, I have to say I agree with most of them, except for limiting red meat. I am finding the arguments about saturated fat not being the villain compelling. So, as with dairy, I’ve been following the quality over quantity concept: if all you can get is industrial beef, then I’d keep it to a minimum. But if you can get grass-fed beef or similar, I think that’s worth including in your diet more frequently.
Of course, if you are hard-core paleo or a very-low-carb fan, other items on his lists wouldn’t be on yours, but overall, his four lists are a pretty good approach to a real food diet.
If you’d missed it and would like to watch, it’s scheduled to air again on March 1 and 2 not scheduled thru the end of January. Check Food Network or TV Guide for dates and times.
Update, 1/15: Here’s a link to the Mayo Clinic’s 10 great health foods for eating well that Alton refers to in the show. I also like WHFoods as a resource for exploring healthy foods.
Update, 3/2: Here's Consumer Report's recent take on soy.
Update, 10/21: Good news, this episode is now available on YouTube in two parts below.
Weight Maven is written by Beth Mazur. Beth believes that obesity is more symptom than cause and that the real problem is our Western diet -- especially sugar, refined grains, and industrial oils. Beth writes about nutrition, ancestral health & food policy. And cats! 
Alton Brown inspired me with his “Buff Like Me” program that aired last night. I had the smoothie for breakfast (3 hours ago), and I am not hungry YET :)
Yes, he is a little nutty, but whatever. So is everybody else!
As long as one is not too lactose intolerant, there’s no evidence that judicious amounts of cheese and butter are unhealthy for the average person. Compared with a lot of things we eat, they’re positively good for you.
[Butter is probably not an issue even in lactose intolerance.]
I’m sorry but I don’t agree. Just from the logical point of view humans have no place consuming the milk of another species. It just doesn’t make sense in the natural world. We are the only species who does this. The only humans who should be drinking milk at all are infants and then it should be their mother’s milk.
Suz, there are a lot of things that humans do that other species don’t. That said, I’m sympathetic to those who choose not to consume dairy for moral or ethical reasons and I’m also aware that there are those feel that there are health reasons to avoid dairy. Like with religion, I think we’re best off with a big tent approach to diet.
lots of animals will nurse other species.
I’m sorry but I don’t agree. Just from the logical point of view humans have no place comparing their diets to another species. It just doesn’t make sense in the natural world. We are the only species who does this.
That’s simply not true Suz; Take for example my cat, it certainly has no problem consuming cow’s milk. You also often find mothers of one species nursing another (I’m sure you can search this). If we followed your logic, humans are the only species to cultivate vegetables, are you saying we shouldn’t consume cultivated vegetation?
@Rick:
I agree with you though I’d like to mention there there several examples of non-human agriculture: leaf cutter ants, ambrosia beetles, marsh snails, damselfish, slime molds, and there are even sea slugs that use sunlight and chlorophyll to eat have to eat again. So the use of animals and animal by-products by other animals or humans IS completely natural.
humans are the only species of mammal that drink milk AFTER weaning. NO other mammal does this. Sure a momma cat will allow a piglet to suckle, but once the piglet is weaned there is not more belling up to the milk bar. ALL OTHER SPECIES WEAN off of milk at roughly 4-6 months depending (larger mammals suckle longer ie elephants)
You dont see wild horses suckling mares, or dairy cows suckling out in the field; and you certainly do not see adult cross species suckling.
Drinking milk is un-natural for humans.
Suz and onawho
I like your reasoning and agree with you. I think we should rip the meat off of our prey with our bare teeth as it kicks like the coyotes, or I guess we could pick it off a rotting carcass like the buzzards. After all. It is completely unnatural to cook and season your food or to make sure it is sanitary for that matter. Humans are the only ones that do this.
Ok, seriously, we are human. We do and consume lots of things other animals do not. To say we should not because other animals do not or typically do not is nuts.
Why don’t animals drink milk after weaning? Because it is not available in a way that is easy to get. I wouldn’t drink milk either if I had to assault some poor pregnant woman to get it. My dogs love milk and I haven’t met a cat yet that will not go for milk or cream at every opportunity.
I believe you are taking her comments too literally. We are the only animals who perform a myriad of activities and habits far beyond any other, so to say that cooking food is not “natural” is ridiculous… they’re not comparable! It is natural to eat, we just have the resources, capability, intelligence, and physiology that requires it.
When it comes down to it, dogs/cats/and many other animals may not turn down lipid-rich protein-filled milk, but there’s a big difference between eating something and being able to digest it. To take it a step further, if you are able to digest it, what is the bio-availability of the nutrients? What cell functions to they support? What vitamins/minerals do they have? Do they degrade your body or support it?
Animals wean for several reasons, not because it gets logistically difficult to suckle. After a time, the mother doesn’t produce milk anymore. It is time for the baby to learn to eat the food that can and will sustain it for the rest of its life. Breastmilk is made up of mostly fats, proteins, and immune boosters (antibodies). These things allow the baby to survive till its body can mature enough to take in, digest, and utilize its normal food. Breastmilk of any species cannot support a child forever because it doesn’t contain enough of a spectrum of nutrients their body needs through adulthood.
It is not logical for humans to consume milk from other species, no matter how “natural” a product it is. But that’s just semantics, people aren’t really arguing about whether it’s natural or not, they’re really just trying to justify and defend their consumption of it in the face of opposition. Basically, we do it because WE LIKE IT and because WE CAN, we have the ability to acquire and consume it and it is pleasurable to us. It doesn’t help that we have had decades of assault from pro-dairy propaganda encouraging us.
However, one cannot make an informed decision based on personal feelings about this topic and solely quote everyday information as evidence. You need real scientific fact and a desire to seek it out. At least checkout the documentary “Forks over Knives”, it’s a great place to start and talks a lot about cows milk and its relationship to humans among other nutritional points. There’s good info about the link between cancer and casein (the main protein found in milk and milk products), consumption effect in the body, and scientific studies with some interesting results.
Dr. Parker, butter is a LARGE problem for me, lactose intolerant. Higher Quality butters are cultured and therefore have a good amount of lactose in them and cause instant adverse reactions in me.
I agree with you Beth, that red meat and dairy if it is of the right sort (i.e. grass fed, pastured, organic/natural) is ok. I liked Alton’s smoothie breakfast though. I rarely do anything but coffee on the go. However, I am soy milk intolerant so I’ll work it up with skim or 2% cows milk. Alton’s recommendation for IQF fruit I’ll dodge as well. Those products are often dipped in a syrup prior to freezing. I think buying them fresh from the local farmers market and doing my own freeze will work fine. The alcohol once a week will be the real test of my will.
Instead of cow’s milk or soy milk, try almond milk. You can make it very easily at home.
Soy isn’t all that good for people, especially if you have thyroid problems.
Steve, Cordain’s issue seems to be with casein as a promoter of increased IGF-1 serum levels and thus as a possible link to cancer. And since butter has milk proteins (as does cheese), this might be of concern.
I haven’t researched it enough to know how strong the link and if it exists, where it fits in the range of things to be concerned about. Where I am personally is that I think the benefits of good dairy (e.g., from pastured cows) probably outweighs the risks for those who can tolerate lactose. But that’s just my very lay opinion!
I am lactose intollerant and cant have butter, milk, and yogurt. That is why I drink soy. I feel conflicted with the bad press of soy. I feel its most important to get non GMO And Organic soy if you are going to drink it.
Lactose free milk! I love it. A bit sweeter tasting than regular milk but all of the creamy goodness is there. Either get the store brand — cheaper, or go organic. it’s up to you. It has changed my life.
I, too, am lactose intolerant and cannot stomache (AB pun intended) the lactose-free milk in stores. Soy milk has been a life saver for me because I love milk.
Try almond milk or coconut milk. Much better for you than soy. And you can actually make them at home, too!
Coconut Milk (not in the can) has much less sugar than soy or rice milk. And it’s a little thicker so it would be perfect for a smoothie.
My kids love it!
Scott, I don’t dislike Alton’s smoothie!! In fact, sometimes what I’ll have as a dessert is a half-cup or so of frozen wild blueberries, a little purple juice (I get a blend at Whole Foods), and then whirl that up with a stick blender. It’s like an antioxidant slushy :).
If it were me though, I’d probably ratchet down the carbs (the bananas would probably go, as would some/all of the peaches) and I’d increase the protein and fat — especially if this was all I was eating for breakfast!
KC, I feel for you. It’s really a pain that there is so much conflicting info out there. I spend a lot of time reading paleo and primal blogs who think grain is poison:
http://www.paleonu.com/panu-weblog/2009/12/28/avoid-poison-or-neutralize-it.html
Talk about feeling conflicted!
Great post! I’ll Tweet it for the Alton Brown fans @altonbrownnews
he does mention that sometimes he will eat the sardine toast for breakfast so i don’t think he only does smoothie. i imagine it is just an example of a quick and relatively easy breakfast for people like me who can not get themselves to put forth a breakfast effort.
Talia, thanks for the comment. You’re right, he mentioned eating the sardine toast for breakfast too.
My concern was really that the smoothie — by itself — was IMO pretty low on both fat and protein to be the only breakfast you’d eat on any given day.
If you weren’t going to adapt the recipe (e.g., add some protein power or a little light olive oil), I’d encourage folks to eat it with a little protein and fat (e.g., a hard-boiled egg or a piece of cheese).
I’ve made up the lists on excel and printed them out so I could check off the foods I ate for the week - daily, 3x and 1x/wk. I’ve noticed I’ve been much more regular - all the nuts, blackberry hulls and such roughage I suppose. Have not tried the sardines but used tuna instead and put on just a touch of olive oil. My concern was what “whole grains” he is consuming. I purchased some serious artisan bread to use as a sandwich for that “oily fish” or chicken. Also substituted brussel sprouts for the broccoli since I had some on hand and wondered if other serious greens could replace a steady diet of broccoli. By the time you get in all of your daily and 3x/wk foods, there is not much room left for the addition of much other than some meat and you’ve had plenty for the day! I do love that he left the 1x/wk foods in there so you don’t feel like you can NEVER have these things, but have them as a treat on occasion, which gives you something to savor and look forward to.
AB does not mention any addition of cheese or types of a salad dressing other than “nothing diet!” and that his weight loss consisted of “Good Eats”. I personally love the smoothies and could see just having half that amount with something else for breakfast and saving the rest as an allowed dessert. Anyone have any idea where or when we can get more information about AB’s Way of Life Diata?
Thank you so much for the lists. I caught the show when it aired on Jan 4, but didn’t have time to grab pencil and paper to write them down.
I’ve been trying the Buff Smootie, thought I’ve tweaked it a bit myself, only using two fruits and adding wheat germ and flax seed, which I’ve been adding to my yogurt smoothies for the last year. I also don’t have it only for breakfast but bring it to work and have it as a mid morning snack.
Thanks all for your comments, they are greatly appreciated.
Sharon, great idea about the flax! And thanks for the thanks :).
I’ve been doing the AB Lists for a week now and have already noticed a significant increase in energy and lost a few lbs. I’ve made everything on the show.
I love ginger so the almonds are great. My roommates do not so I’m going to use smoked paprika or bacon salt next to try making bacon flavored almonds.
The avocado/sardine sandwich is good but make sure you get the good king Oscar sardines at the store. they are less fishy and smaller. The seasoned ones are good too.
I’ve made a smoothie almost every day and by mixing up the amount of different fruit or adding yogurt it hasn’t got boring. I eat breakfast around 6:30-7 and it usually keeps me going till lunch with some almonds or similar around 10.
I think its important to remember that the lists he created were for him. An almost 6 foot tall man in his late 40s, so they may not be ideal for your lifestyle.
If you’re interested in changing your diet you should create your own lists and stick to those and keep the portions relative to your size.
Chris, glad to hear the lists are working with you! I think the lists are *great* myself. And as you say, they are easy to tweak to make them suit one’s own lifestyle.
I was working from home today and caught Rachael Ray’s show. She had on a woman who had lost 100 lbs cooking from Rachael’s books/show. Rachael had a pretty astute comment tho … she guesses that part of the woman’s success was just from replacing processed food. That may be part of what makes Alton’s lists work. It’s not so much what you eat, but what you *don’t* eat that makes a big difference!
Re the smoothie, I’ll just say that I’d recommend for the average person to get just a tad more protein and fat for breakfast than is in the “buff smoothie” as described. But that’s just me :).
I read somewhere that AB had also added in running four miles a day, which of course would make a huge difference in how and why he lost that extra weight. I’ve been just eating the almonds plain and do not have a problem with them being unflavored or unsalted. Still haven’t tried the sardines but I have been feeling very full but have not seen any weight loss so I agree with Chris that these portions may need to be adjusted for who you are, which is where I would love to see AB’s formula for how he figured this out, because knowing him, he probably said, “I am a six foot tall man weighing XX pounds and in order to maintain that weight I would need to consume XX calories a day, but I want to make sure I get in an appropriate amount of protein, good carbs, etc, etc. And then he would have formulated in that he was exercising and how much he would need to reduce from his daily food consumption to calculate out his four list theory. Anyone have any idea when we are going to hear more or when his Buff Like Me video/book will be available?
Buff Like Me was a complete joke. AB’s humor can be dry sometimes.
Ramona, you’re right. He is running four miles per day.* Re when we’re going to hear more, that’s a good question. I don’t think you’re alone in wanting more details!
* http://blogs.ajc.com/radio-tv-talk/2009/08/20/slimmed-down-good-eats-alton-brown-celebrating-10th-anniversary-with-live-show-at-cobb-energy-centre-august-29/
I’ve been following Alton’s food plan, and I’ve slowly started losing all the extra weight I gained during the holidays. Plus, I’m way more energetic than I used to be! This is probably the easiest eating plan I’ve ever tried to follow.
The smoothie seemed to be aimed at people who normally don’t eat breakfast so it probably isn’t the best way to go for large breakfast eaters. My husband and I are good to go with just the smoothie since he normally doesn’t eat breakfast and I just have a cup of yogurt with some fiber cereal mixed in. I’m going to experiment with replacing some or all of the soy milk with yogurt so I still get the benefits of the yeast cultures. Great idea to mix in flax and wheat germ to bump up the nutrition even more!
As for the smoothie, here’s my higher protein, lower glycemic version:
yogurt from organic, whole milk
1 scoop of whey protein
frozen blueberries, blackberries or strawberries
enough milk, orange juice or water for consistency
Optional: Stevia - if needed as a sweetener
Optional: psyllium - for added fiber
Bananas are very high glycemic for fruit while the berries are very low. Yogurt adds calcium and protein, and the whey bumps the protein up a bit more.
I use the orange juice, yogurt and strawberries when I’m in the mood for a treat as the result comes out tasting like an Orange Julius.
Re: sardine sandwich - I’ll be trying that. The marinade sounded good! I adore avocados and I’ll be using a sprouted bread.
I didn’t make it through all the posts, but kept seeing posts about alterations to the breakfast smoothie. I got a raw “cook” book just to get ideas, as I have no intention of going raw. but they included almond or other nut butter in many of their smoothie recipes. I LOVE IT. Give it a little more “umph” and really helps keep you going til lunch. I also add a little omega 3/6/9 oil.
I just saw the rebroadcast of this episode last night and was intrigued. The only problem is, I despise three of the things on his list - avocados, broccoli and sardines - and don’t know how to replace them. I don’t eat tuna either. Has he ever given any substitutes for those who simply can’t stomach those items?
I know this was posted a while ago, but why should Alton tell anyone how to adjust this to suit their preferences? How would he know your taste preferences? Figure out why he eats them, nutrition wise, and substitute, or supplement to suit yourself.
I think the main thing about this diet is that AB didn’t assume anyone else’s system was going to work for him. He did the math to figure out his calorie and exercise needs (there are websites and apps that will do the actual math for you.) He did the research to find the most nutrient dense foods (those lists are widely available) and made up his first two lists based on what was on there that suited his tastes and nutritional needs. The last two lists are based on foods most of us should avoid, and foods that he knows HE should avoid.
And that’s why it worked. He wasn’t trying to follow someone else’s dictation, he created what worked for him. That’s the takeaway. The magic diet for you isn’t going to be found in a book, on a website or a TV show. It’s got to be developed BY you doing the research, making the decisions, taking charge.
One other thought…
Buying naturally pastured, grass-fed, organic beef removes all objections to it for me. It’s much leaner, high in omega 3s - no reason not to eat it.
Where I live, we can even get it from a local organic rancher so we get to buy local, too.
If you haven’t yet tried it, you really should try bison (buffalo.) I use it for everything I would normally use beef for such as meat loaf, tacos, hamburgers, etc and it’s awesome — Here’s the big kicker… compared to beef, even naturally pastured, grass-fed, organic beef, there’s no comparison. Even the “much leaner” organic beef is still close to commercial beef from a nutritional standpoint.
For a 100 gram serving of beef you’re looking at approx 12 grams of fat, 28 grams of protein and around 250 calories. The same 100 gram serving of bison is approx 2.4 grams of fat, 29 grams of protein and only around 145 calories.
Like you, I purchase my meat locally, in my case, thru my local food coop.
Joan, you might want to check out NutritionData.com’s nutrient search tool to find alternatives. Avocado’s are a good source of monounsaturated fats, vitamin K, and folate — so olive oil could be one substitute. Cabbage, brussels sprouts or cauliflower would be a typical sub for broccoli, but if you hate the whole family, I’d just include a veggie you like from this list: http://www.whfoods.com/foodstoc.php. For sardines, the big winner would be salmon.
Diotima, just one thing, grass-fed beef has a better omega 6/3 *ratio* than industrial beef, but it’s not really “high” in omega 3s. Or at least compared to something like salmon.
This may be off and not scientific, but I’ve heard that large amounts of soy in our diet has caused some of the male impotence and/or sterility problems. This could be false info, but just thought I’d put it out there.
Furthremore, while I think eating breakfast is important, I’d rather stick with an eggwhite omelette with veggies or greek yogurt and berries. But that’s me.
I drink a smoothie that’s similar but…I use a fresh med. banana 1/2 c frozen blueberries, 1/2 c frozen strawberries, 1/2 c frozen cranberries, 4 oz 100% concord grape juice, 8 oz water, 1 oz olive/grapeseed/avacado/almond oil (what ever is closest to reach) plus two scoops whey protein (46 grams). I place all of the fruit and juice/water in a blender then add the oil and protein as it’s blending. It’s enough for two servings and I never get hunger or run out of gas by mid morning. It’s enough for a pre and post workout drink or breakfast.
Alton is sharing what works for him, and it obviously does. He also runs 4 miles a day which of course is a big factor in his weight loss.
I do a similar smoothie for breakfast sometimes - although I add a little organic protein powder (non soy), some flaxseed (for fiber and nutirents) and a teaspoon of some sort of Omega 3 type oil.
If you aren’t a big fan of soy check out Oat Milk. We like it in my house. The brand we buy here (in the UK) is Oatley.
I’m trying to figure out why we have to bash something that works for someone. If a smoothie like that for breakfast helped him lose 50 pounds, which wasn’t just changing his eating exercise was in there too but he never said so on the show, then let him eat his smoothie.
Secondly we all have our opinions and if we’re following what someone else does to a T then it’s not going to be exactly the same.
Congrats to Alton for losing the weight and looking great! Congrats to all of you who are trying to eat healthy and live healthy.
Cut him some slack though. He shared what works for him and like the beginning of the show he said it’s not a diet and it’s what worked for him.
Hmm. I don’t think my post or any of the comments are *bashing* Alton. Silly me for thinking I could express an opinion re the smoothie on my own blog. How about cutting me some slack?
Hi, Beth. First, thanks for the great info. I caught the end of Alton’s show and then googled to find out more and yours is the best summary I’ve seen yet.
I don’t think you bashed Alton either, but I do think that his plan obviously worked and is working for him - and that’s what is most important.
To me, it doesn’t much matter if the low-fat or low-carb or vegan or whatever-diet folks can prove with irrefutable scientific evidence that their way of eating is best for weight loss and ongoing weight control. If I can’t manage it - if it leads to cravings and binging or feeling down, etc., then it won’t work for me.
As long as it’s not something crazy, and you’re getting basic nutrition, I say: Do what works for you.
I do limit red meat and eat more fruit and grains than strict low-carbers would. It may not work for everyone, but it works for me - whereas cravings and light-headedness were the result of trying low-carb, high protien.
I feel good, and my weight is under control. What more could I want? Different strokes for different folks, and the proof is in the pudding. Or the oatmeal. Whatever. :)
Thanks again for writing up the info and posting it.
Thanks Sarah!! I’m with you … ya gotta do what works for you :).
Excellent blog. I found it after searching for Alton’s new book… I saw the show yesterday evening and was impressed and delighted with the information. His nutrition plan seems like something I could do so I was looking to get this book. And I can’t find it anywhere. I can’t even find mention that it is going to be released soon. Even on his own site! What the heck? Any info about this book would be appreciated.
And thanks for reposting the lists and the smoothie recipe. That helps.
Any thoughts about using tofu in the smoothie? I have a recipe for a berry smoothie that includes silken tofu and I find the tofu makes the smoothie really creamy but it doesn’t separate as it does if you put any kind of dairy in it.
I think his reference to the book in the show was a bit tongue-in-cheek — I don’t think one is coming anytime soon.
However, given the huge amount of interest in his approach (my traffic spikes like you wouldn’t believe!), I wouldn’t be surprised if he and/or Food Network have started on something more for the fans.
Re tofu, that could certainly add some useful protein and fat to the smoothie depending on how much you added! More on soy from Consumer Reports here:
http://blogs.consumerreports.org/health/2010/01/health-benefits-of-soy-get-more-soy-in-your-diet-soy-isoflavones.html
Great blog! I watched AB’s rebroadcast last night, and it has given me new impetus to change my outlook. Thanks for leading the discussion!
This article is missing a lot of the points Alton Brown was trying to make. This is NOT a low carb diet. If you look at the rest of the day, it is balanced out with high good fat foods (almonds, sardines, and avocado) and proteins (yogurt and nuts) as well as GOOD carbs. Not all carbohydrates are the same, just as not all fats are the same and not all proteins are the same. The atkins diet has struck fear into the hearts of consumers that all carbohydrates are a bad thing…just like the recent scare about high fructose corn syrup, it has the same effect on the body as sugar produced of the cane variety.
His point it simple, avoid SIMPLE sugars, the “bad” form of carbohydrates, invest in good carbs, good fats, and good proteins in BALANCE as a lifestyle, not as a diet.
PS The organically certified process or the “natural amount” of a product does not make a food healthier, nor does “grass-fed” cattle, or “free range” products.
Steve, I’m not missing a lot of the points; I’m reviewing the diet in light of what I personally believe (I tilt primal/paleo).
Feel free to keep enjoying your HFCS and corn-fed beef; there are plenty of posts here and elsewhere that explain why I think both are worth avoiding.
Hi Beth!
I just say this episode yesterday and it intrigued me enough to find out more and I must say this blog post gives me everything I was looking for.
My only real question is what happened to poultry and dairy products like cheese and what ‘whole grains’ is Alton talking about? It certainly wasn’t pasta as he’s only eating that once a week. Thing is, if he’s only eating pasta once a week, where does the bread fit in? Is that the whole grains? He did have sourdough bread in his sardine recipe. (I had no clue sourdough bread was a whole grain bread?? Is it?)
I know this would be difficult to answer, but can you give me your best guess?
Thank you so much, I hope you get notifications because this is an old blog post for you!
Shannon, thanks for the nice comment!
Re poultry and dairy, Alton doesn’t explicitly say. So I’d interpret it this way: he doesn’t see them as particularly nutrient-dense, so he doesn’t try and include them frequently (daily or 3x/week). But nor does he see them as nutrient-poor or energy-dense, so they aren’t limited (1x/week) or excluded. So you can include them as you like.
That said, as I noted in the post, milk for AB seems to be a gateway to eating sweets, so it sounds like he limits that. But I suspect that’s not common!
Re whole grains, the common ones are wheat, brown rice, oats, and corn. Others are barley, quinoa (which I like), amaranth, and rye. Common wisdom is that these whole grains are good for you; if you include these (and foods they are made from like bread), a good ballpark is to make sure that a serving includes 2-3 or more g of fiber.
That said, I don’t eat many grains (whole or otherwise) because I tend to follow a primal/paleo diet. The paleo theory is that grains are a modern food that we’re not adapted to eating, mostly because they contain “anti-nutrients” like phytic acid and lectins that are problematic for us. Here’s one primal take on grains:
http://www.marksdailyapple.com/why-grains-are-unhealthy/
That said, I get that not everyone is ready to swear off grains. Not sure if I would if I didn’t think they were really problematic for me! I think this is a good sane take on the subject:
http://summertomato.com/intact-grains-vs-whole-grains/
I don’t think there’s any problem with the smoothie as long as it IS for breakfast, considering you should be, at some point, exercising as well as eating healthy every day AND you theoretically should NEED the most calories in the early morning to make up for the overnight fast and to use for energy in the beginning of the day.
IMO, there will always be two sides to every food, one expert who will tell you a food is healthy and one expert who will tell you the same food is bad. So most of it is crap. The very best thing about the diet that Alton used is that it worked for HIM. It may work for many others.
Eat natural foods that you feel good on. EX: If you don’t feel good on milk, don’t eat it. Find another source of the necessary nutrients milk provides. Don’t discount a good vitamin pack to make up for the foods you simply don’t feel good on. Exercise every day. Don’t wait for the government to regulate your diet. Use self-control. If you don’t have any, there are plenty of methods and classes to learn good habits. You know when you go to put something in your mouth whether it’s good for YOUR health goals. Keep it simple and above all, no excuses. If you fall, don’t blame anyone or punish yourself. Just pick yourself up and start again. You’re beautiful at every step of the way, first and forward.
T, thanks for the comment. I think the smoothie is packed with nutrients, which is great. And you’re right, people should do what works for them.
I just think most folks would do better with a breakfast with sufficient protein and fat … and Alton’s smoothie is short on both.
It kills me how people nit-pick everything apart. He gave us a great recipe to use….tweak it to your own liking if you find so much wrong with it. I don’t like milk but I love Greek yogurt. I also love the extra protein it provides so I substitute that for milk. I also add a tsp of almond butter for “good” fat. The bottom line is, this smoothie is a 1000x better than what most people consume, if they even eat breakfast.
Thanks for the comment … not sure if you’re including me in the “nit-picking” category. As I said to someone else, I kinda figure that being allowed to comment on stuff comes with the territory … as it’s MY OWN BLOG.
I think it’s a lovely smoothie recipe. My quibble with it is that I don’t think the smoothie alone makes for a good, balanced breakfast. Your suggestions of incorporating Greek yogurt and almond butter are definitely improvements.
Any advice on how I can tolerate the sardines if I really don’t like fish?
Are they like anchovies?
I would love to get the nutrients, but that toast Alton made started to make me gag just looking at it…….
I welcome your comments……..
Mr. Hungry…….
Yeah, I’m with you. One of the advantages of sardines is that as smaller fish, they tend to have accumulated less toxins by the time we eat them. But for now, I’m sticking with salmon and tuna.
If you really, really don’t like fish, then your best bet is to keep omega 6 fats out of your diet.
One thing that bothers me about this diet is that he didn’t mention beans at all. I wonder where he stands on beans.
Suz, this is the answer I gave to Shannon re dairy and chicken … I think beans are in the same category. I suspect Brown:
I’m very confused, someone who claims to be a doctor wrote in the comments that butter and cheese aren’t bad for you. Where in the world does plaque in your arteries come from, then?
We’re now told that margarine is bad for you, too. Now I’ve read that olive oil used in cooking can become rancid or become chemically altered or some such nonsense, making it also bad for us to consume. And of course the coconut oil people want you to believe that’s fantastic for you too, after years of being told coconut and palm oils in foods were the bad fats.
I had a hard time believing a doctor would claim butter is good for you, until I realized people can get MD’s for things like chiropracty and even aerobics instucting. And of course, they can pay off “doctors” to endorse all kinds of nonsense in the name of health. Like the guy who lied about vaccines causing mental disabilities, because he had the chance to make a nice pile of cash out of doing so.
So, keep in mind that “MD” title might not mean much.
Stacey, the idea that plaque in your arteries comes from the saturated fat in your food is more and more looking to be questionable. I’ve two suggestions for you. One, check out Chris Masterjohn’s Cholesterol and Health site to learn about the science (or lack thereof) behind the idea that butter and cheese are “bad” for you.
Two, re what’s good or bad for you, the reality is that there is a lot of “science” out there, much of which is contradictory. Here’s my rule of thumb: the closer a food is to its natural source — and the further away it is from industrial processing, the more likely it is to be better for you.
Me, I’m happy to include butter from grass-fed cows in my diet because it supplies critical fat-soluble vitamins (such as K2). And I can’t say for sure, but I suspect that the presence of these nutrients in France compared to the lack of them here in the US might well contribute to the French paradox.
Finally, re Dr. Parker, you should check out his site. He’s a regular read of mine and I think he’s great!
One cannot get an M.D. for chiropracty or any other such non-sense as instructional aerobics. An M.D. degree is a Doctorate in Medicine and is only issued by LCME accredited institutions (http://www.lcme.org/directry.htm) and is tightly regulated. One cannot obtain a real M.D. via some online course or institution.
Anyone with a doctorate degree can claim to be a doctor, but only those with an M.D. can make the claim as a Medical Doctor.
OMG! Of course too much of anything can be bad for you and who wants to consume something that has become rancid? I just rewatched Julie and Julia last night and was reminded that she used butter lavishly and both her and her husband managed to live into their 90′s. So did Jack LaLanne, the fitness king. I believe it is our sedentary lifestyle and the food choices people make out of the sake of convenience that has led to America’s obesity troubles. Even in the movie, Julia was hand whipping away at whatever she was making while Julie just pushed a button on a food processor.
It reminds me of this old poem:
Methuselah’s Diet
Anonymous
Methuselah ate what he found on his plate,
And never, as people do now,
Did he note the amount of the calorie count?
He ate it because it was chow.
He wasn’t disturbed as at dinner he sat,
Devouring a roast or a pie,
To think it was lacking in granular fat
Or a couple of vitamins shy.
He cheerfully chewed each species of food,
Unmindful of troubles or fears
Lest his health might be hurt by some fancy dessert,
And he lived over 900 years.
Ramona, I’m completely with you! I haven’t decided whether our industrial diet is more problematic because of what added in (too much sugar, refined starch, omega 6s from veggie oils, salt etc) or because of what removed (essential nutrients like vitamin A or magnesium). It’s probably both.
And this problematic diet isn’t just responsible for obesity, it’s probably the biggest culprit as far as the “lifestyle” diseases go as well (diabetes, cancer, heart disease).
Anyways, I don’t know if I agree with Michael Pollan on the “mostly plants” part, but “eat food” makes total sense to me!
Beth,
Again I agree with you and Europe with their old farming methods probably do grow more nutrient rich foods. That is why home grown tomatoes taste so much better than the ones you can buy at the store where they are quickly grown in nutrient deficient soil. Quality not quantity. And remember - French Women are not Fat! - which is another good read about living life in moderation and enjoying cake as a celebration rather than a guilt trip.
actually for the past 2 months or so i have been trying to get in better shape, and just be alot healthier. I started off with running 2 miles a day, 6 days a week, and would do push ups and sits ups every other day. i was def. noticing that i was more healthy, but i wasnt getting rid of excess weight. i finally saw that good eats episode and decided i should start being more aware of what i eat. i eat a smoothie every morning, i generally eat some hummus and fresh veggies on a tortilla for lunch. and then a well balanced dinner. its been two weeks since i have started eating better, and ive already lost around 8 pounds. i feel great, i love the food that i eat. and i no longer feel like crap if i drink a couple beers or have bowl a chips or something, because it doesnt happen often.
I have a fish allergy. Any recommendations on a substitute?
Aaron, the oily fish recommendation is to help ensure that you get enough omega-3 fatty acids. You can get ALA from non-fish sources (flax oil is one that’s commonly recommended), but we tend to not be good converters of ALA to EPA or DHA.
In this case, experimenting with other sources of omega 3 may be worth considering. There’s a omega 3 from algae that technically vegetarian, so perhaps that might work for you, especially if you do what you can to minimize omega 6 intake (i.e., cut way back on vegetable oils like corn, soy, canola etc).
Beth. Get a life
LOL
I would like to know what portions that AB eats of each of these daily things. Also, I am a diabetic and carbs are killers for me.
Any help with this eating plan?
Nora, Alton doesn’t share that information. Sorry.
Why no canned soup? Is it the sodium?
I was trying to fin AB’s episodes to watch online and stumbled onto your site, great stuff!!! I made a small and simple 4 week check-off grid in excel using AB’s information. If anyone wants a copy of it, email me and I’ll be happy to send it right over!
please email your 4 week check off grid to me : [email protected]
I’d like a copy of your grid.Thanks!
[email protected]
Working through Primal Blueprint , Alton B keeps us entertained, Combining w 17 Day principles.
I’d like a copy please.
Ahh another year. Everyone please remember that AB also added in running 4+ miles a day to his weight loss regime. I would think that would be pretty significant in addition to the food changes. Best of good health to everyone!
Thank you for doing this! I’ve wanted to sit down and do this same thing for over 2 weeks now, with no success! I’m glad to have a resource to go to for this!
My husband and I enjoy Alton Brown’s quirky take on diet. On his show he showed a book named “Buff like Me”. My husband did a search and nothing came up. Was it a just a joke or something he is intending to write or is it out there somewhere??
Alas, it was a joke. But based on the traffic to this post, I can guarantee there’s an audience for a book if Alton ever decides to write one!
I like the check-off the food list approach, because if I eat everything on the list, I’m less likely to be hungry for less healthy fare.
I frequently make smoothies for breakfast. I use a little less than 1 cup each of Fage (Greek) 0% yogurt, some mix of frozen berries/cherries, water, and a little stevia. Sometimes I throw in 1/2 to 1 T flax oil for satiety, mouthfeel, and Omega 3s. Fast, keeps me going all morning, and includes probiotics, protein, antioxidents, yadda yadda. 200-300 calories.