I’m so proud of Pearl and Serene; in 5 short years, they have published 4 books that have changed and are changing thousands of lives worldwide. The original whopper: Trim Healthy Mama; the revised plan: Trim Healthy Mama Plan; the first professionally published, color-photo cookbook, Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook; and the brand new Trim Healthy Table – I have them all in my collection and love each one for different reasons.
If you’re just starting out on Trim Healthy Mama and can’t afford them all right away, I hope this break down of each book will help you better decide which one (or two, three, four!) is the best choice for you.
Let’s go from youngest to oldest.
Trim Healthy Table
What’s in it?
- 3 full chapters concisely summarizing the Trim Healthy Mama Plan
- NSI (No special ingredient) substitutions for almost every recipe
- Less calorie-dense S meals than in the original Trim Healthy Mama book
- Gorgeous color-photos with almost every recipe
- A Fuel Pull white bread. (Yes, really!)
Who should have it?
- Brand new THMs. Everything you need to know to get started with Trim Healthy Mama is right here in this book. If you want to delve more deeply into the science behind Trim Health Mama, you can always read the Trim Healthy Mama Plan later.
- Seasoned THMs. If you’ve worn out the first Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook, Trim Healthy Table offers you a whole new set of recipes that are at least as wonderful.
- Your skeptical friend
- People with diabetes
- People with gluten in tolerances (most recipes are gluten-free)
- Busy moms (loads of fast and easy recipes)
- Inexperienced bakers (no complicated stuff in here; a lot of dump-it-all-in-the-blender style recipes that turn out looking like you bought them at a high-end bakery!)
- Everyone
Trim Healthy Mama Plan
What’s in it?
- Thorough, concise explanation of how and why Trim Healthy Mama works
- Menu plans
- Time-saving tips
- Pantry-stocking help
- No recipes or pictures
Who should have it?
- People who understand the basics of Trim Healthy Mama as outlined in Trim Healthy Table and want to delve deeper into the science behind it
- The well-rounded Trim Healthy Mama (mentally, I mean)
- People who love to read
- People who want a complete understanding of Trim Healthy Mama
- Science fanatics
- The skeptic
Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook
What’s in it?
- Over 350 family-pleasing recipes
- Stunning color photos for almost every recipe
- Most ingredients can be found locally
- A completely different set of recipes from Trim Healthy Table
- Plenty of both single-serve and family-serve recipes
- No explanation of how the plan works
Who should have it?
- Trim Healthy Mamas. This cookbook will add a huge selection of favorites to your recipe repertoire.
- People with diabetes
- People with a gluten sensitivity or allergy (most recipes are gluten-free)
- People who like to cook with real food
The Original Trim Healthy Mama Book
What’s in it?
- 600+ pages of both recipes and the science behind the Trim Healthy Mama plan
- Fun, sisterly banter
- Recipes without pictures, precise measurements, or directions
- A lot of rabbit trails
- A more wordy explanation of Trim Healthy Mama
Who should have it?
- Experienced Trim Healthy Mamas
- People who like to read novels
- People who enjoy the Trim Healthy Mama podcasts (this book is like a transcript of The Poddy)
- Experienced cooks; people who can follow “a little bit of this, and a little bit of that” recipes
- Trim Healthy Mama fans who want the complete collection
In summary, if you’re brand new to Trim Healthy Mama, The Trim Healthy Table is the best book to start with.
If you’re well on your way and want to understand the depth of the science behind the plan, you’ll enjoy the Trim Healthy Mama Plan.
If you want to expand your recipe collection, both the Trim Healthy Table and the Trim Healthy Cookbook will not disappoint!
If you’re an experienced THM, love to read, and love the informality of The Poddy, you’ll love the original, self-published, Trim Healthy Mama whopper!
this was very helpful! I could care less about the science and just want to know when to eat what and try the recipes 🙂
Ha ha! I’m all about good food, too. Bonus if it makes sense. 😉
What I love about the original Trim Healthy Mama book is that the recipes have no special ingredients in them because the special ingredients just didn’t exist back then !
I love that, too!
Great over veiw! I like them all too!
Very good breakdown of the books. I have all of them. I bought the original book first and was so confused and overwhelmed I made mistakes because I didn’t quite “get it.” Then I bought the Plan and Cookbook. It helped some, but was still complicated and I felt like it was aimed at getting me to buy the special ingredients. When I purchased the Trim Healthy Table book I got to read the first part of the book right away. BINGO! That put all of it into perspective and I have been able to plan menus and stay on plan better since then. It’s still challenging, but the overall experience has been simplified in my mind. I also can see the way the sisters have learned and grown over the years and the improvements. There’s a lot to learn just from their experience and it takes a lot of love to just share what you know and give so openly.
I would like to start receiving THM information.
Just purchased this book I can’t put it down I made 9 THM meals in 3 days 2 dinners hubby is happy, I am happy! I started with 2 of the NSI Chicken recipes.
Thank you that was really helpful.
Excellent info. I agree wholeheartedly I bought the Trim Healthy Table 1st then after awhile, moved to the Plan book, then the cookbook, then the monster book. Love the recipes, love the plan.