Dawna Stone - The Healthy You Diet: The 14-Day Plan for Weight Loss with 100 Delicious Recipes for Clean Eating

This book is intended as a reference volume only, not as a medical manual. The information given here is designed to help you make informed decisions about your health. It is not intended as a substitute for any treatment that may have been prescribed by your doctor. If you suspect that you have a medical problem, we urge you to seek competent medical help.

Mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities in this book does not imply endorsement by the author or publisher, nor does mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities imply that they endorse this book, its author, or the publisher.
Internet addresses and telephone numbers given in this book were accurate at the time it went to press. Portions of this book appeared in Dawna Stones previously self-published edition titled Healthy You! 2013.

2014 by Dawna Stone
Photographs 2014 by Rodale Inc.

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Photographs by Mitch Mandel/Rodale Images
Book design by Amy C. King

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the publisher.

ISBN 9781623365493 hardcover

eISBN 9781623365509

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To my children, Kaelie and Luke,
for inspiring me to lead a healthy and passionate life;
and to my husband, Matt,
for encouraging me to always follow my dreams

Over the past decade, Ive shared my message of healthy eating and weight loss with millions. People often assume that Ive always been slender and healthy, but trust me, that wasnt always the case. Just like so many others, for many years I struggled with my weight and, as a result, my health.

When I graduated from college and moved to New York City to work as a financial analyst for a Wall Street investment bank, I started to pack on the pounds. It was bad enough that I had gained (and never lost) the ubiquitous freshman 15 during my first year at school, but then, once I was out in the working world, it wasnt long before I added another 25 pounds to my framefor a total of 40 extra pounds!

For so long, I felt that I was the only person in the world who couldnt control her obsession with food. My life was consumed by itwhat to eat and when to eat. Before one meal was finished, I was thinking about the next. Because my 14-hour days were so long, I rewarded myself by grabbing unhealthy foods and snacks at the company cafeteria. After a hard day at the office, it was reassuring to know that a box of cookies waited for me at home. Some people might have been happy with a couple of cookies, but I polished off the entire package in one sitting. If there were no goodies to look forward to at home, I stopped at the corner market for some frozen yogurt and a candy bar.

I knew my eating was out of control, but none of the diets I tried helped. And believe me, I tried them all, from well-known commercial weight-loss programs to assistance at a special weight-loss clinic. At best Id lose a few pounds, but Id always regain themalong with a few extra.

Then one day it dawned on me that the reason I couldnt lose weight and keep it off was because the diets and programs I was using just werent right for me! I hated getting publicly weighed in front of a roomful of strangers. I despised the tiny, tasteless, pre-packaged meals. I didnt have time to make the complicated recipes I saw in magazines and books. I loathed the eating plan designed for me by a bodybuilderit consisted of only chicken, tuna, and vegetables. I was miserable. And I was always craving more food, because nothing satisfied me. All of those diets were useless for someone who loves food as much as I do.

In order to find a weight-loss program that worked and had everything I wantedsimple yet delicious recipes, an occasional indulgence, and options for dining outI had to create my own. Through trial and error, I finally discovered an eating plan that worked. The weight came off quickly and easily and, most important, stayed off. I no longer craved junk food between meals or desperately shoved unhealthy foods into my mouth.

Before long, colleagues, friends, and family noticed my weight loss and asked how I did it. It seemed that everyone was just as fed up and frustrated with traditional weight-loss programs as I was. Although I never thought of what I was eating as my plan, I was soon sharing my recipes and tips with anyone who asked, including local womens groups and clubs.

I spent the next 6 years working in the world of finance and strategy, with the exception of a 2-year stint at graduate school. It became clear that my career in the financial world limited my ability to share with others what I had discovered about eating well and losing weight. I decided to leave my job as a strategy consultant and accepted an offer to be president and general manager of a $20 million sports nutrition company. That job was my initial foray into a world that focused on health, wellness, and fitness rather than investments, banking, and management consulting. In 2001, my husband and I moved to St. Petersburg, Florida, and I became the chief marketing officer of a $700 million publicly traded company. Although it was a great company, I had become accustomed to working in an environment that inspired people to get healthy and live well. I missed helping others more than I thought I would. In 2003, I raised the money to launch a womens sports-and-fitness magazine, initially called Her Sports and renamed Womens Running, which allowed me to share what I had learned about weight loss, nutrition, and fitness with other busy women who were as desperate as I had been. As a result, I was asked to do a regular TV segment on Fox called Healthy Living with Dawna Stone, which reached an even larger audience.

In 2006, I applied and was selected to be one of 16 contestants on The Apprentice: Martha Stewart. When I won the TV competition, hundreds of doors opened for me: I had my own weekly radio show. I wrote regular columns for Body+Soul magazine. I appeared on Martha, Stewarts TV show, as well as the major networks, and inspired viewers with the same healthy recipes that I had used to lose weight. I spent the next 5 years growing my magazine, launching another business, appearing on local and national TV and radio, and flying across the country to speak to large companies and organizations. In 2012, I sold both of my companies (Womens Running