Gotta do it.

I NEED to set time aside to do this.
It is pretty deep but it will get you there. You've got to want to get there. It's a great program.

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The Only Book That Explained My Situation

After a month of working out HARD and eating right, I had lost a total of two pounds and was beyond despondent. In desperation I re-read all those diet/exercise books I had purchased over the years, including this one. Greene explained that my situation was not only not that unusual, it was actually a good thing! He also explained that for some people (me) there is cycle of gaining a few pounds back before each cycle of losing. That knowledge alone has kept me from running to the ice cream when the scale goes up after I've done everything right.

Greene doesn't cite any references, but my personal trainer says these concepts are in the professional literature. It just doesn't sell a lot of books (or get many training clients) to tell people they may not lose any meaningful weight right away.

This info, which I have seen nowhere else, helped me stick with it. Six weeks in the weight started coming off, just as his predicted. And now when I gain an unexpected pound or two I know that soon I'll be dropping three or four.


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Basic Diet Stuff

If you have never read a diet book before than this one is as good as any. The author addresses all aspects of dieting and exercise. My disappointment was that you have heard it all before. I have had success on Weight Watchers, Body For Life and the South Beach Diet. My problem is that after the initial excitement wears off, I don't maintain the program. I was interested in this book because the other reviews indicated that it addressed emotional aspects of over-eating. Specifically, boredom, stress, etc. But I was really disappointed when he discussed these issues because he wrote a little blurb on each aspect and then gave some personal story. To me it was childish psychological advice.

For example, he discusses binge eating. Now I am only about 10-15 pounds overweight and I can eat properly all day and then right before I go to bed ruin my diet and eat 3 doughnuts or some other high caloric food. His belief is that it is often related to some childhood trauma and that seeking professional help may be the answer. I dont know about you but I am not going to seek professional help to lose 15 pounds.

Then he suggests to eat wisely. He has a chart that actually says if you want to eat fudge, then choose fruit. If you want cake, choose skinless grilled chicken breast. Duh? I did not make that up. Here's another one. If you want to eat pie, then choose soup. Is he kidding? I guarantee that I will never eat chicken breast instead of accepting a piece of birthday cake.

Okay I don't want to just bash the book. Everything he writes is probably dietetically correct. It's just that I have read them all and done most of them and I have yet to experience one that worked long-term. The one that I had the most success is Body For Life of which I lost 40 pounds and as I mentioned I have put back 10 to 15.

Good luck. Nothing new to report.

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