The Karl Lagerfeld Diet

Famed couturier Lagerfeld was determined to lose weight, not because he was obese or suffered from health problems, but because he wanted to wear clothes designed for younger, slimmer men. His vanity paid off: he lost 80 pounds in a year on the "Spoonlight program." The three phases of the Paris general practitioner Houdret's regime are not exactly groundbreaking—they involve limited calorie intake; no refined, fatty or fried foods; and an emphasis on lean proteins and fresh vegetables. The bulk of the book provides no-nonsense yet elegant (read: French) recipes for approved dishes, rated according to the diet's different phases. So far so good, yet some later sections seem incongruous, especially the ones where Lagerfeld and Houdret discuss face-lifts, and the chapter on exercise is rather strange ("If you really want to change the look of your breasts, you will need cosmetic surgery. To tone them, sprinkle them with cold water every morning and perform the following exercises"). The book is really a hybrid art book/diet manual, and its best chance for success stateside (it has sold nearly 200,000 copies worldwide) may lie in the former. For it appears certain aspects of this diet have been lost in translation. Photos. (May)