Paula Deen Diet Advice Does Not Involve Butter, But She’s Cool With Mayo

Paula Deen giving diet advice may sound a bit contradictory, but the butter-loving TV chef who once embraced the worst of American cuisine in a big way is now preaching moderation to her fans instead of bacon-wrapped, butter-drenched and deep-fried.

Paula Deen’s diet wasn’t really a diet so much as what is the only thing scarier to many people who keep putting off a day of reckoning for less-than-ideal eaters — lifestyle changes.

But as those who have come out on the other side like Paula Deen can attest, the dreaded little tweaks one needs to make to one’s daily eating habits can be manageable and even enjoyable once you get over the initial sting of modifications.

Or at least, that’s what Paula Deen says. On diet, the Southern chef recently sat down and dished to Woman’s Day not a plate full of donut cheeseburgers, but some tips on trimming the bad stuff for people who, like her, enjoy rich foods.

One of Paula Deen’s dieting tips is to skip diet foods and just use the regular stuff sparingly — she says:

“In my refrigerator, there’s no light mayonnaise. I’d rather eat less of the real thing and have it taste really good than have diet stuff that tastes awful.”

But what you eat is not the only factor, and Deen says her diet also made her reconsider how she eats:

“Putting my fork down and having a conversation has been a huge help … Because it takes 20 minutes for your stomach to tell your brain that you’re full.”

Although Paula Deen says she didn’t technically diet, the incremental changes she’s made have allowed her to lose nearly 40 pounds.