January 6, 2008
The Ulitimate Tea Diet
I wouldn’t feel that the series on new habits in the new year was an accurate representation of the changes that people are trying to make if it didn’t include a diet book. That said, over the last several years I have focused on health over weight loss. Fortunately, when I am making healthy food choices, my weight stays down.
I have been a lifelong tea drinker. Freshly brewed unsweetened iced tea is my beverage of choice. At times I’ve felt like I should cut back on the tea, mostly out of concern for the caffeine, about which there have been several negative reports. So I gladly read The Ultimate Tea Diet , and was happy to see that the author focuses on the benefits of a healthy diet, a lifestyle that includes exercise, and the consumption of tea–lots of tea: hot, iced, loose-leaf or in a bag. The book begins by outlining the benefits of tea. Mark “Dr. Tea” Ukra claims that tea will “help us lose weight, reduce our cravings for sweets, suppress our appetite, increase our insulin’s effectiveness, lower our cholesterol, and stimulate thermogenesis, which helps the body burn fat for energy.” These claims are not backed up with evidence, but most of us are aware of the high level of antioxidants in tea, which are touted by many as a key to good health.
Also, the use of stimulants to lose weight is also a pretty universal claim. Caffeine is a stimulant. However, what I found most interesting was the evidence another key ingredient contained in tea, L-theanine, actually counteracts the harmful effects of the caffeine in tea (which is already much lower than coffee and soda). This information is backed up by
evidence from clinical studies.
The diet itself is a basic lower fat, high fiber, lower carb type diet. The 14-day meal plan is helpful for people who like to be given specific recipes and menus to follow, but they are provided only as a guideline. If you need a pep talk about losing weight and changing other lifestyle choices as a way to take better control of your health, this book provides that for you. Throughout the book are the personal stories of people who were in the test group of the Ultimate Tea Diet.
If you are a tea-drinker, you will enjoy this book. Author Mark Ukra is the owner of the Tea Garden in California, and his family has been in the tea business for years. He explains the simple art of making a good cup of tea, and shares his knowledge of the different types of tea available. The book is also sprinkled with quotes about tea, including my very favorite by C.S. Lewis: “You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
We have one copy of this book to give away that can ship to the U.S. or Canada. If you’d like to win, please leave a comment on this post after checking out the New Habits in the New Year guidelines at this main post.
Come back on January 9 to see if you have won. Please be sure that the email address that you provide is one that you check regularly, and also check your spam folder when the winners are announced if you see your name.
Filed under Contests, Daily Life, Recipes by Jennifer
Comments on The Ulitimate Tea Diet »
WOOOO! I love tea….this would be so delightful to read…
~Elina~
To me, tea is can be a wonder drug. My friend has survived insurmountable breast cancer and she drinks only a specific type of tea. Please enter me in your contest. All is appreciated…..Cindi
This would be great for my dh who LOVES iced tea!
I couldn’t survive winter without a warm cup of tea.
I love tea so this looks like a book for me!
This looks like an interesting book. All the women in my family are tea drinkers & we would all enjoy reading it!
Mmmm, I love tea and I’m always about losing some weight (now baby weight) so this would be awesome!
I love tea, it does wonders for me! Would love to learn more about it!
I am big fan of tea. I would love to have this book.
I love tea and would love to have this book!
This looks wonderful–please put my name in the drawing!
:)Kat
i would love to read this!! thanks
My midwife had me on a tea diet when I was pregnant with my second son to try and reduce my high risk for hemoraging. I would love to read this book to continue working on my lifestyle changes which include adding more tea to my diet.
Thank you!
Sounds great!
Oh, I love tea and would love to read this book~ I’ve heard alot about it.
Oo! I’m a tea-drinking girl!!
Thanks for entering me!
Morgan
Love to win!
I would love this book!
MMMMMM…I love a good cuppa tea. I could use a good pep talk in the weight loss area too.
Le Anne
yardsaleprincess1@yahoo.com
ooh, I love tea. count me in!
I’m a big tea drinker.
Hot tea in the morning, iced tea in the afternoon.
Sweet of course.
I’d love to win!
Sounds very interesting! Count me in!
looks interesting
I love tea!
I’ll try anything.
I could really use this! I love tea and am trying to drop weight!
need to win this
I really love tea
Enter Me Please !
please pick me
I love both green and black tea. I would love to have a copy of the book.
Tea and weight loss my kind of book!
I’m a tea fan(atic) and would love to have this book!
I drink 4 cups of tea a day. This books looks excellent.
Count me in!
in really need this
I would reallly use this.
Sounds like a good book!
I am a huge tea drinker and I always have at least ten kinds on hand. I am also trying to be more health-conscious than I have been, so I would love this book.
I am a tea lover too. I drink hot tea daily and often order it at restaurants. Yummy.
I love tea. I drink it anytime of day or night throughout the entire year. White, Green, Red, Black, and Orange. Straight, fruit flavored, herb enhanced and everything I may have missed.
I could use this.
sounds like what I need
I need to win this for me. I have problems with diabetes and I’m constantly fighting to lose weight.
pick me
i need this
Cool
I want to win!
INTERESTING….. I WILL LOOK INTO IT!
NICE!
Yo Mama.
My husband and I enjoy drinking tea. Please count me in. Thanks!
Oh I am such a tea granny!!I’d love to read this book…:)
Please enter me
I love to drink Tea…………
tea is great for ya
I’m in
Hope I win!
Please, Pick me…
What an interesting idea. I drink tea but probably not enough. I’d love to read this and see how to incorporate it into a healthy lifestyle.
Drink Tea (my fav) and lose weight. I am on board.
I LOVE tea, would love to read this!
I seen this book on a morning television show. It sounded great.
Dp you know that Morrocan Tea can also make you high.
I was just talking with some friends who really believe in the ‘power of tea’. I would LOVE to have this book so I can read more about it.
Nice.
I love a good cup of tea.
Please pick me!
This tea diet book looks GREAT!!! I love tea and I would love to give this a try!!
Sounds interesting!
I prefer black tea
This book sounds great, count me in.
I just got a kettle for Christmas, therby making my (herbal, non-caffinated) tea-drinking more efficient (and enjoyable!). Would love to check out this book. Thanks!
This looks like a very interesting read! Plus tea is a great way to warm up in the winter.
Great Contest! Thanks!!!
I gain five pounds just looking at food, I hate exercising, and my job has me sitting in a soft chair for 8 hours making me soft. I love tea. I could drink it at work or at home. please please count me in.
Me,please
How nice, I love tea!
This sounds like it would be good.
Well I love tea and I realy need to lose some weight this would be perfect for me
Great prize!
Tea is my favorite beverage and everything you mentioned rings true. Many times when I’m craving a sugary snack, a cup of hot tea makes a satisfying substitute! By the way, Macaroni Grill makes a fresh brew blackberry mint tea that I am still trying to duplicate….it is fabulous!
I want this book As a tea drinker for many years This book sounds great
I love tea! It would be awesome if it helped me lose weight too!
I just seen something about this book in a magazine. I would love to win it.
I’ve moved the tree back out and put the weight bench back in. I’ve jumped right back in to working out. I went down 4 sizes before the holidays, but still have 3 to go. I don’t like dieting, I just cut back. This tea just might help.
thank you
I have about 10 pounds to lose but can’t seem to get it off. Maybe this would help.
I drink tea every day. How come I keep getting fatter?
Tea and weight loss sound like a great combo.
I’ve been wanting to implement tea into my weight loss routine. Please enter me. Thanks!
wow… who couldn’t use this after the Holidays???
Tea has helped me keep away cravings,so I am looking forward to reading this.
Please give me tea!!!! I want this!!! Thanks.
Tea is calming for me and I can think of nothing better than tea in a diet.
i like tea
Oh, an excuse to drink all the tea I’ve collected!
sounds interesting as i am a tea drinker iced sweet or hot
After all those Christmas cookies, I need this!
Enter me please!
thanks for the tip never knew u could lose weight drinking tea but would like to give it a try
I just heard about this on TV and I’d love to win it.
Love tea! Would love to read.
I really need this!
Oh, me, me, me — I never win anything..LOL and I LOVE tea!!!
This would be delightful! Thank you!!
this is what i need
Just had a baby. I need a bit of a boost.
If i could lose weight by drinking tea count me in as i am a tea drinker
I’m brewing a cup of hot tea right now - hope I win!
Count me in!
I need this
I love tea so this would be great!
Sounds interesting; I’d love to read the book. Count me in!
Stephanie
williamspublic at comcast dot net
Yum! Tea is good for the soul!
My Japanese friends gave their baby green tea in a bottle.
I love me some tea
Sounds interesting!
I’ve lost weight drinking green tea before. Hmmm. Maybe that will help me melt off the first 5 of the 15 I’d like to ditch.
At 5′2″ and 205 pounds, I need a kickstart on my metabolism. My doctor is going to start me on Thyroid medication on the 25th, after I get over bronchitis and sinusitis, but I think the tea information would really be helpful too.
I drink tea all the time. I must be doing something wrong. I would love to see what this book says.
I agree with C.S. Lewis: “You can’t get a cup of tea big enough or a book long enough to suit me.”
Tea I have; a book to go with it, I can always use.
We would love to win a copy!
I blogged you too
http://www.prizeatron.com
Yummy!
please enter. Sounds like a great book.
I would really like to win this book, sounds like a diet I could do.
oh! I LOVE tea AND I need to lose all this baby weight… perfect combination!
I have no metabolism so anything to get it moving would be great
I love all types of tea.
Tea is a reminder to me of all the things I hold most dear: family, friends, and home.
My whole family drinks tea constantly, most especially my own mother. Every cup is either a relaxing moment alone, taking a well-deserved break from the day, or a moment spent with family after a meal shared together. The warmth of the tea just does something to settle and relax us, just like the warmth of a family’s love. In addition, I’m in my first year of college, and I live away from home. Tea continues to cement the bonds I have with my friends at school, as we just hang out watching movies and talking, mugs of tea in hand.
And to me, there’s nothing a cup of tea can’t cure! This would be a great thing for me to share with family and friends.
this would be a great read since it also helps with weight loss!
I LOVE tea and everything that goes with it:) Would love this book!
I love tea, and would love to read this book.
I take green tea capsules every single day and drink tea when I really need to unwind. I truly believe that tea is one of the two wonder foods around today.
this book is right up my alley!!
I love tea!
I always like a nice cup of tea or even ice tea with lots of lemon.
MMMM…I love tea!
I’m drinking tea right now.
Sounds great!
thanks for the contest!
I like tea and would like to loose some weight.
Wow, I hadn’t heard about this book. I’d love to win it as I really need to get a jump start losing weight.
My mother in law would love this she is a tea aholic.
great news tell me more
I drink tea for the sheer enjoyment of it, so it would be great to read about the health benefits too.
I tried to add the graphic to my site, but it didn’t work. I did provide a like in my post though:
http://carascoffeebreak.blogspot.com/2008/01/this-weeks-focus-jan-7-13-2008.html
Amazing to hear how many of “our sisters” have hypothyroidism (metabolism completely shut down)!
I too am on medicationnn for it, but this book would be wonderful! I love all kinds of tea, and would like to learn more about the “art” of it!
Since I love tea and would also like to lose some weight, I’d love to win this prize.
good luck everyone
Sounds like a great new diet to try!
would love to read it!
You know…when I used to drink a lot of tea, I was thin.
i would love to try the diet, I have tried many over the years.
i love tea!!
I’ll give anything a shot!
Enter me please.