YOU on a Diet and the RealAge Test

I'm with you. Some of it sounds really good, but some of it sounds bizarre - same thing for breakfast and lunch? While I understand it would lead to eating protein at breakfast, I'm not sure I want to eat a gigantic chicken salad for breakfast, or spinach with fish and sweet potato. Nor do I want to eat oatmeal for lunch.

Not really sure, but I think they mean to eat the same thing for breakfast as you did yesterday, and the same thing for lunch as you did yesterday. Not eat the thing for both meals. I browsed through the book at a store, and it mentioned the importance of planning meals... eating the same thing as you did before makes it easier.

Ah so that makes sense. Yeah, I find it easier to pretty much eat the same stuff over and over during the week (for dinner and snacks too) and just try to get creative on weekends.

A lot of people have been telling me about that book lately. Maybe I should read it.

Val: Don't bother. Read BFFM. I wouldn't be caught dead with this book.

The book does not recommend eating the same thing for breakfast and lunch. Not literally anyway, the authors talk about breakfast and lunch being the same nutritionally, which probably makes sense.

It's ironic that the book is recommended by someone who has never successfully maintained weight loss, either before or after meeting these two show men. Don't get me wrong I enjoyed Oz's little presentation of the organs and the damage done by smoking and overeating, but the book doesn't appear to be particularly original. Nor does it address the most critical issue facing people - desire for instant gratification, a rise in mental health problems and emotional eating.

Talia Mana, Centre for Emotional Well-Being said:
It's ironic that the book is recommended by someone who has never successfully maintained weight loss, either before or after meeting these two show men. ...]

I am not a fan of Oprah (I never watch the show or read her mag), but I don't agree.

What is your definition of successful? Oprah is currently at a healthy weight. Yeah, her weight has yo-yo'd throughout the years. But, who's hasn't? If you talk to anyone who has managed to maintain a weight loss, I'm sure many will tell you that they have yo-yo'd, too. The key here is that Oprah, and all of us who are maintaining losses, PERSERVERE! She keeps at it. Because, we all know it's something you have to do for the rest of your life.

Honestly, when it comes to recommending diet books, I have more respect for the opinion of someone who has had real-life struggles with weight, someone who knows how hard it is to get if off and to keep it off, rather than some tiny physical trainer with the perfect body who has never known what it's like to find that none of your clothes fit you anymore.

Now that you've heard the opinions of this diet and exercise plan, you should check out the NEXT big diet plan that's about to sweep the country!
It's called The Logic Diet, and I truly believe it makes much more sense than the plan you're all commenting on!
This is a plan designed to help people who need to lose 50 to 100 pounds or more and keep it off forever, but it can be used by anyone!
And NO exercise is required to see the results. That doesn't mean exercise is not recommended! It just means you can follow the diet plan, lose weight, maintain it forever, and not have to incorporate an exercise plan into it if you don't want to.
How stressful is losing weight? It gets double stressful when you have to exercise regularly as well, especially if you are time constrained, have physical liabilities or limitations, etc.
Check out www.thelogicdiet.com now for more information!
www.thelogicdiet.com

I suggest looking at the book :Younger Next Year: It's a very good lifestyle plan. I don't like the title, but the information is valid. Also, I AM NOT VESTED IN PROMOTING A PLAN WITH PERSONAL FINANCIAL BENIFITS!

I have read the book cover to cover, and I can say it gives good sound advice and solid information. Are the diet and exercise programs anything new? Of course not. We all know that we should eat more fruits, veggies, whole grains and lean meat (primarily from fish or fowl) and less saturated fats and refined flour and sugar products. And we all know we should exercise regularly.

What is different, is the authors give good science, in a form that is easy for the lay person to understand, on how our body works.

It also gives some emotional eating suggestions and provides mechanisms for the dieter to recognize and understand certain destructive patterns they may have that prevents them from successful weight loss.

If the book is weak on anything... it does not provide solid means for fighting those destructive patterns. I am not sure anyone can provide a single method for the variety of people out there. There just is not one solution for all of us. We will each have to do our own soul searching.

Either way, it is a great book to understand how the body works and processes food. The effects of saturated fat on your liver is extremely motiving.

As for the confusion about eating the same meals for breakfast and lunch... the authors recommend that you pick one meal for breakfast (i.e. steel cut oatmeal or egg white omelet) and one for lunch (i.e. chopped salad with grilled chicken) and eat it throughout the week. People who had success with weight loss seemed to follow this practice as it is easier for a person to become more satisfied with less food if they eat the same thing over and over again. Changing up the food and flavors seems to take longer for the brain to register that it is satisfied.

Good luck to everybody in their endeavors!

Jen said:
What is your definition of successful? Oprah is currently at a healthy weight. Yeah, her weight has yo-yo'd throughout the years. But, who's hasn't? If you talk to anyone who has managed to maintain a weight loss, I'm sure many will tell you that they have yo-yo'd, too. [...]

I wouldn't describe that as successful weight loss. Successful weight loss is about making permanent lifestyle changes that are integrated into your life, and allow you to maintain your weight without radical gain or loss.

My biggest concern with this diet is the recommendation that everyone takes an aspirin daily. If you're not at risk of clogged arteries due to lifestyle or genetic factors why add aspirin into the mix?

Well, I've been doing this for about 2 months. I saw the good Dr. on Discovery Health, and it made sense. I've lost 13 pounds so far. I'm working out 4 days a week and lifting weights 3 of those 4 days. I started out doing 15 minutes of cardio because that's all I could manage. Now, I do 53 minutes of interval training and 30-40 minutes with weights. I joined a gym because I didn't know how to work out and needed help. I'm loving it! Anybody can read a book and say they don't agree with this or that. Why not try it and see??

JoJo!
Because most people would rather 'critisize' the darkness than light a candle! Keep on shining!

When I was on a low-carb diet I ate lettuce with a can of tuna, oil and balsamic vinegar every day for lunch and I loved it. The best part was that I didn't have to be creative... and I also learned that the only way to lose weight and keep it off is to incorporate exercise with watching what you eat. Anyone who says you can effectively lose weight without exercise is dreaming. Eventually your metabolism slows down and you plateau. Damn starving cavemen!

Got this book as a gift and found its attempts at humor and cartoonish illustrations to be nothing short of annoying ! The repetitive comment "YOU-REKA" drove me nuts along with the other corny catch phrases. I found it to be unreadable.

I just read this book cover to cover. I had struggled for most of my adult life with high stress lifestyle and had an overabundance of cortizol in my bloodstream. I now at 39 have fat in my midsection I never accumulated when I was younger and couldn't understand the redistribution to this area. This is the first book that explains how your body works and processes foods that will either contribute to the problem or be part of the solution. I have purchased a treadmill and banished the unhelpful foods and am looking forward to trying this.
It explained it in terms a non medical professional could understand. Knowledge is power.. wish me luck!

I think that some of you need to act like adults...
Making comments about the illustrations and the catch phrases? It's a diet book! Who care's? It's not like that is the only thing in the book. Also, some people actually need to read a book before they can comment on it. This is stupid.

All immature adult comments aside, I think this is a good book because it's just a doctor telling you how your body works. The way it's written is basically... your body does this, if you treat it this way it will react this way, so treat it this way and it will act this way. Plain knowledge used to explain how to be healthy. It is written by a real doctor, who was acclaimed by his knowledge of the body LONG before his knowledge of diets, not like this "doctor's" who probably are sick of small town, low pay offices so they think of a get rich by writing something "different" scheme.

yes, this is a good book, it works.

I think many people are missing the point. At age 47 and 100 pounds overweight I had a massive heart attack, age 50 irregular heart beat and 3 week coma, age 51 still 80 pounds overweight. Biochemically, these doctors know what they are talking about. Dr. Oz is the number one heart valve doctor in Columbia Prebyterian Hospital in New York City. After a week I lost 4 pounds and 1 inch. More importantly, I know that I am repairing some of the damage to my arteries so that I might prevent a second heart attack. No other diet book addresses problems with the cardiovascular system like this one. Dr. Oz deals with the effects of bad habits every day trying to save peoples lives after they have already damaged their bodies. I applaud him for trying to save some people the problems that I went through and am still going through. Yes, if you follow this book faithfully you will lose weight, you will lose inches but even better, you will be alive to enjoy the change.

Hello Ladies!
I'm new here and I just wanted to put my 2 cents in and that is that I have lost 12 lbs this January thanks to this "diet". I'm not following it to the letter, but I'm following the basics as best I can (except for #9 as I'm single, sadly!):
1. Walking for 30 minutes every day.
2. Performing 30 minutes of weight training each week.
3. Doing 60 minutes of additional, higher intensity cardio each week.
4. Taking a stretch break for 5 minutes each day - preferably after your walk.
5. Eating more fiber and cutting out the saturated and trans fats and enriched flours and sugars (the "white stuff").
6. Eating 3 meals plus snacks daily, and eating one of the healthier desserts in the book only every other day.
7. Trying to eat basically the same thing for breakfast and lunch each day.
8. Getting 7-8 hours of sleep each night.
9. Getting "some" on a regular basis (i.e. sex).
10. Drinking lots of water.

Sometimes when you think that you're hungry, you're actually thirsty, so drink lotsa fresh water. Another thing I find interesting too is how ensuring that you have a "protein" with each meal, it really does satiate you for longer, along with fiber.

I can't say I haven't cheated at all, but I consider this weight loss challenge a "journey" to my healthier self and I'm taking it one day at a time, just as I did almost 9 years ago that I quit smoking. If I can do that, then I can lose the rest of this awful baggage weight by this time next year.

Hang in there ladies!

Well I love this book, I think it is funny and very easy to read with loads of great tips that even I can achieve! It is not new information but information worded so everyone can understand. So far I have lost 15 pounds in a month and a half. I love the eat the same thing for breakfast and lunch thats out all the guess work. It's actually been easy after the first few weeks. We all need to learn how to eat. After all when I was a kid we ate what the kids meals at McDonalds are now.

The only ones I like are number 1,4,7,9,10
Here is a one reviewers summary of the plan:

1. Walking for 30 minutes every day.
2. Performing 30 minutes of weight training each week.
3. Doing 60 minutes of additional, higher intensity cardio each week.
4. Taking a stretch break for 5 minutes each day - preferably after your walk.
5. Eating more fiber and cutting out the saturated and trans fats and enriched flours and sugars (the "white stuff").
6. Eating 3 meals plus snacks daily, and eating one of the healthier desserts in the book only every other day.
7. Trying to eat basically the same thing for breakfast and lunch each day.
8. Getting 7-8 hours of sleep each night.
9. Getting "some" on a regular basis (i.e. sex).
10. Drinking lots of water.

If you can get through the nauseating attempt at humor, there is some actual good advice there. I have been eating the nuts 20 minutes before my meals and it actually stops me from overeating. I have stopped eating the "white stuff" and only eat breads that contain 100% wheat. Also, I am sticking to the advice "don't eat anything that has more than 4 grams of sugar and more than 4 grams of saturated fat". I have lost weight, am feeling better everyday, and the great thing is I AM NOT ON A DIET! I just decided to follow the guide lines and change my way of eating. good luck!

Tonight, I watched a special on Discovery called "You: on a diet" As a preventive medicine specialist, I am all in favor of a correct diet and vigorous exercise as the key to health and longevity, however, a few things really stood out during this show which literally horrified me. I can overlook their recommendations of high fat foods such as avocados and salmon as healthy and low fat but what prompted me to write this is the persistant promotion of canola oil as a healthy food.
Evidently, these two individuals, Roizen and Oz, don't know much about this.
Until the '80's, rapeseed oil could not be imported into the US for consumption primarily due to the high erucic acid (45%) content. Erucic acid caused direct cardiac lesions and so should be considered a toxin. In the 1980's botanists in Canada breed a version of rapeseed with only 25% erucic acid (big improvement now you would only get a little more than half the heart lesions.) Without research and testing on this new oil, it was granted GRAS (generally recognised as save) status by the USDA in 1985. This new rapeseed oil was called canola (Canada-oil) which sounded more gentile and politically correct than rape-seed.
Since this time, poorly informed health pundits have been promoting it as a healthy dietary oil. On the surface it should be, it is high in omega-3 fatty acids. Unfortunately, the omega-3's tend to go rancid on the shelf and smoke at low tempuratures so the food industry puts them through a process called "deodorization." The result is an oil with a high smoking point and good shelf life. The problem is this process also converts the omega-3's into transfats. The transfat levels can be as high as 4.5%. So eating canola you get a double whammy; trans fats plus erucic acid. Lard is healthier. So whatever else these two diet gurus may say, I urge you to avoid canola oil and to spread the word.

The diet's authors, Roizen and Oz recommend eating whole grain products, fruits, vegetables, nuts, olive and vegetable oils, fish, eggs, chicken, and low-fat dairy. Alcohol and specific commercial fast foods are allowed. This is healthy, Mediterranean-style eating. The foods are readily available and easy to prepare. Forty-two recipes are provided. No beef, pork, potatoes, or peas. Other forbidden or strictly limited items are simple sugars, high fructose corn syrup, enriched/refined flour, trans fats, and saturated fats.

The authors tell you what to eat daily for one week. Week two is the same, and helps to establish new habits. Variety is limited by design. They say that too much variety leads to overeating. You choose from among four different breakfasts and four lunches. You repeat the pattern until you reach the authors’ healthy goal: waist circumferences of 32.5 inches or less for women, 35 or less for men. Although never divulged by the authors, I estimate you are allowed 1450 calories per day. Roizen and Oz don’t want you to focus on calories.

Incredibly, they don’t address what you do after you reach your goal waist size. Maintenance of weight loss is certainly problematic, but that’s no reason to ignore it.

The authors make several controversial claims without offering supportive documents such as scientific references or a bibliography. I guess we are supposed to just trust them since they are medical doctors. Examples: 1. Having sex will curb your appetite, 2. Aluminum in deodorants promotes weight gain, 3. ½ tsp of cinnamon daily will help you lose weight, 4. Red pepper helps with weight loss, 5. Willpower is not important because it always fails, 6. Eating 70 calories of nuts 20 minutes before meals will help you avoid overeating.

Roizen and Oz provide great information on the process of digestion and the importance of exercise.

The book is a quick, easy read. The cutesy style will amuse some readers, irritate others. Lots of pop celebrity references. And neologisms, such as “YOU-reka!” Sexual intercourse is mentioned more than average.

Bottom line: This is a fair program for most overweight women. After they reach their goal waist size, however, they are left without guidance. This is worrisome. For women over 210 pounds, and for nearly all overweight men, 1450 calories per day is not enough. These folks won’t be able to follow the diet for more than four days—their hunger will be too great. For men and heavier women, a similar but effective diet program is my "Advanced Mediterranean Diet: Lose Weight, Feel Better, Live Longer." The Advanced Mediterranean Diet provides four different levels of calorie intake—1100, 1500, 1900, and 2300—based on sex and weight, along with a clear strategy for keeping the lost weight off after you reach your goal.

-Steve Parker, M.D.
Mediterranean Diet Blog