I’m a sucker for diet books that aren’t like everything else that’s out there. Part of my job here at the Lab is to bring you information about useful diet books, so that means I’ve read plenty of them, and after awhile they all start to sound the same.

Many of these books seem to put weight gain down to lack of willpower and suggest that you can cure all your woes by only eating rice, food groups that don’t start with S or foods of a certain color only (OK, that last one wasn’t real, but still).

The problem is that you still need willpower to stick to those plans, and they don’t do much to explain the physiological and even psychological issues that might be behind your weight gain.

You in Biology 101

That’s what I like about You on a Diet: The Owner’s Manual for Waist Management by doctors Michael F. Roizen and Mehmet C. Oz. There is a tiny bit of a diet plan in here, but the book is much more about how your body actually deals with food and what might go wrong to cause you to gain more weight than you want.

The book talks about the hormones, chemicals and mechanisms that affect appetite, aid in digestion, cause inflammation in the body and lead to fat gain and metabolic problems. While this might sound pretty boring or even like a waste of time to people who just want to know what to do about it, understanding how your body works makes it easier to understand how a diet works to correct problems in your body.

And don’t worry, the book isn’t written like a medical textbook. It’s very conversational (if you’ve ever seen Dr. Oz on “Oprah” you know the style) and even has funny little cartoons to illustrate some of the points. For example, take this passage from the first paragraph of the book:

Most diets promise commonsense solutions to tight-pants problems: Eat less, and you’ll weigh less…But if it really worked that way, our bodies wouldn’t be large enough to be spotted by Google Earth. If it really worked that way, most diets wouldn’t fail. If it really worked that way, then we all must be a bunch of rebellious hellions with mayo-covered lips and belt-busting bellies who don’t feel like following a few simple instructions.

Instead of advocating the eat less and exercise more plan of attack, Rozien and Oz say understanding how the body works and devising a plan that works with the body makes “dieting” automatic and effortless, and that can actually work no matter if you just follow their guidelines or throw in low-carb, low-fat or whatever other kind of dietary restrictions you want.

The You diet plan

The actual diet part of this book doesn’t start until page 231, and it’s only 32 pages if you don’t count the recipes. It’s a two-week plan (actually one week done twice) that aims to make healthier eating automatic. The basic rules involve three meals along with several snacks a day so hunger is not an issue. There’s no eating within three hours of bedtime and dessert is allowed every other day.

The focus of food selection should be on whole grains, nuts, lean protein and fish, while simple carbs, added sugar (especially high fructose corn syrup), trans fat, saturated fat and enriched or non-whole wheat flours should be avoided.

It’s suggested that you also keep track of what you eat, enlist the help of others, and remember that mistakes are OK, as long as you don’t make a habit of them.

In addition the diet calls for regular exercise: a minimum of 30 minutes of walking daily as well as five minutes of stretching after the walk, and a relatively easy 20-minute strength workout that involves using body weight for resistance and is largely based on yoga moves performed three times a week.

An interesting addition to this book besides all the focus on biology is an appendix filled with information on weight loss drugs and surgery — a great guide for those who might want to try these options, since it’s actually written by doctors.

The plan is very sensible, not too difficult and should enable people to eat healthier for life rather than for the short span they’re “on a diet,” and understanding the biology behind weight gain and loss makes this perhaps the first diet where you’ll really understand what you’re doing and why.

(By Sarah E. White for CalorieLab Calorie Counter News)

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This entry was posted on Monday, October 6th, 2008 and is filed under Diet Tips, Diet books and authors, Diet programs. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed. Permalink.