Joy Manning explains why she stopped being a vegetarian:

“Basing my meals around a lot of vegetables and a little non-factory farmed, grass-fed chicken, pork, and beef made losing weight much easier than it had ever been before. In fact, it inspired my cookbook, Almost Meatless. But more important than feeling in control of my weight, I simply felt better—stronger and more energetic—almost with my first bite of rib-eye. Though I was a vegetarian for more than half my life, I never considered going back in the 10-plus years I’ve been eating meat.”

Joy Manning explains why eating “real food” doesn’t necessarily help you lose weight:

“If you are anything like me, you might be nursing a little grudge about all this. In some ways, it was actually easier to manage my weight and keep it at a healthy level when I was willing to eat calorie-controlled Easy-Mac, highly processed frozen dinners, and fat free sour cream. Today, I would never eat a neon orange mac and cheese but I would definitely eat a plate of handmade gnocchi topped with a gorgonzola cream sauce at your house or in a restaurant. What food could be more ‘clean’ or ‘real’ than dumplings made from locally harvested potatoes served with artisan blue cheese and flavorful grass-fed cream?

“That’s an extreme example, but the fact remains that whether or not your food passes Pollan’s test for ‘real food’ (Would your grandmother recognize it?) it can and will make you gain weight just like junk food can.”