I revised the original post slightly. I wanted to add some things, but my new Netscape 6.2 browser doesn't like to do that, sometimes, on this site.

I first got the book when it first came out, read it hurriedly and said, basically, "No way." (It limits bacon to 1 oz a day. I can give up chocolate, Coke and bread, but I cling to bacon.)

Now that I'm a little older, grayer and fatter, I'm looking at this book with different eyes. This guy has been there. He's counseled hundreds of people, he's seen them work the loopholes, he's seen what works -- you can feel this. His plan is basically Atkins without loopholes. None of this eat all the fat you want, no Revolution Rolls, no shakes.

And 1 ounce of water per kilogram of body weight a day. (For me, that's 4 quarts.)

Doreen, why I found the calculations complicated is that he will allow, say, up to 4 oz of protein for lunch, but only 3 oz of red meat; division isn't easy. Once you get the plan down on paper and structure a menu, it is easy.

For inactive, perimenopausal women with a family history of weight gain, this is what you can eat for Weeks 1-4:
Protein: up to 2 oz at breakfast, 4 oz at lunch, 8 oz for dinner. You don't have to eat that much; eat to satisfy hunger.

Protein choices PER DAY: 1 oz bacon, up to 3 eggs, 3 oz processed lunch meats, up to 3 oz beef, pork, shellfish, dark meat poultry without skin; up to 6 ounces veal, lamb, rabbit, white meat poultry.

3 cups salad greens, 1/2 cup low carb vegetables.

1/2 cup whole grain once a week
1/2 cup legumes per week

1 tbl cream PER DAY
1/4 cup berries or melon PER WEEK

Fats and condiments:
up to 3 tbl butter PER DAY
up to 3 tbl mayo PER DAY
unlimited olive oil
up to 4 tbl vinegar PER DAY

(this should be under protein choices, but I can't get my cursor to go there) hard cheese, up to 2 oz per day
soft cheese (cream, cottage, ricotta) 1 oz PER DAY

No alcohol
No commercially available desserts; eat diet jello
one 12-ounce diet soda a day
(As Doreen pointed out, the whole grains, legumes, diet soda, etc. are optional. These are all maximums.) You may eat the desserts in the recipe section, but only if you stay within the guidelines.

After 4 weeks of this, you go through an 8-week transition to "your lifelong diet." a few things are added back in -- mostly cheese and vegetables.

He also lists the 5 conditions that cause problems: yeast, hormones, thyroid problems, food allergies, prescription drugs.

With all this, he still urges people (especially women) to be happy with a 5 pound per month loss.

The 8 weeks transition can last up to a year or more.

For the first 30 days there are mind/body connection "thoughts for the day" to read and assimilate.

When I was reading the book, so many posts came to mind -- am I eating too much cheese? cream cheese? artificial sweeteners? sour cream and cream?

This may be a good book for those who want to rethink their program. I have some low carb stuff to finish up, and then I think I'll try this.