French women don't get fat

Categories: books

Date: 11 August 2009 13:19:52

"French women don't get fat - the secret of eating for pleasure" is by Mireille Guiliano.  Written in English by a Frenchwoman who happens to be CEO of the champagne company, Clicquot, married to an American and a long-time resident of that country, Guiliano makes many comparisons between the eating habits of the two countries.

I'm not so sure I can say I have never seen a fat Frenchwoman but it is true to say that the general image, certainly of Parisiennes, is that they are all very slim. Guiliano lets you in on some of the secrets as to how this is.

The tips I can remember from her 272 pages are nothing particularly new to anyone who has ever been concerned about their weight.  Eat slowly, exercise (she swears by using the stairs rather than going to the gym) and plan your meals.  It's not all austerity and preaching. You are, she says, allowed to indulge in a little chocolate and other traditional forbiddens - but always and only ever in moderation.

Guiliano shares some of her favourite recipes - but not an eating plan - and occasionally sounds somewhat smug as she has a dig at her American sisters (and brothers) but on the whole this is a light read (it doesn't pig out on nutritional values and metabolic rates and generally blind you with science) and her advice may well be worth taking, for, as a woman who has a job which involves a lot of networking and entertaining over lavish meals, she has an enviably trim figure.