20/30 Fat & Fiber Diet Plan [Hardcover]

M.D. Gabe Mirkin (Author), Ph.D. Barry Fox (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1, 1999

Building on the astounding success of The 20-Gram Diet (nearly 700,000 copies sold), two renowned experts show you how to eat right and take off pounds, with an easy-to-manage, low-fat, high-fiber diet plan.

20/30 Fat & Fiber Diet Plan takes The 20-Gram Diet one step further by not only measuring fat calories but by adding the all-important ingredient for any super-effective diet: fiber. Using a handy, double-wheeled keychain packaged with every book, readers will learn how to double-click off their fiber and fat intake daily (goal: less than 20 grams of fat, more than 30 grams of fiber). With a tangible and unique tool and an easy-to-follow approach, this book will show readers how to shed weight, prevent disease, and improve overall health in no time. Mirkin and Fox include more than 100 recipes and content listings for thousands of foods. Further, they explain the science that backs up this plan, and the attached gram counter keeps you on track so that you know what you can cat freely and what you should cut back on and avoid.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The average American eats the fat equivalent of a cup of butter each day, and it's easy to convert this dietary fat to body fat (the saying "A moment on the lips, forever on the hips" isn't so farfetched after all). This is probably why one in three adults in this country is obese. But authors Gabe Mirkin, M.D., and Barry Fox, Ph.D. (coauthor of the bestselling Arthritis Cure) say that focusing on cutting the fat out of your diet is not the right way to lose weight, as a drastically low-fat diet almost always leads to late-day bingeing.

By increasing dietary fiber to 30 grams a day (with beans, whole grains, and vegetables), and by moderately cutting fat intake to 20 grams, they say that permanent weight loss can be achieved-- without painful hunger pangs, headaches, or petulant fits of rage that threaten your long-term relationships. This is the very diet that TV talk-show host Larry King credits with saving his life.

Of course, this is the diet that everyone knows they should be following. Eating a low-fat, high-fiber diet including vegetables has been shown to help prevent colon, breast, lung, and other kinds of cancers; helps keep the heart healthy; may prevent adult-onset diabetes; and lowers blood pressure. But having a life often gets in the way of eating right. That's where the hundred easy-to-prepare recipes in The 20/30 Fat and Fiber Plan come in, including Southwestern Bean Dip, Extra Quick Chili, and Sicilian Minestrone. Few recipes require more than 10 ingredients, and most can be made in less than half an hour. More than 100 pages of fat and fiber counts for thousands of foods, including take-out and brand-name items, make it easy to follow the plan while eating on the run.

The 20/30 Fat and Fiber Plan recognizes that humans are, after all, fallible, so you're allowed to "cheat" on the diet. "The 19 Meals Rule" says that each week, if you follow the plan for 19 meals, you can eat whatever you want for 2 meals. While the authors say not to stuff yourself, this does make the 20/30 plan one you can follow even while eating out. They also avoid the a word (aerobics) and give guidelines for playing away excess weight.

Hallelujah, a sensible weight-loss plan that improves your health, rather than endangering it like so many diet fads of late! --Erica Jorgensen

Review

"Gabe Mirkin's strategies are the healthiest, safest and most effective approach to controlling weight and improving blood cholesterol levels through diet and exercise. " -- Stephen Barrett, M.D., Editor Emeritus, Nutrition Forum Newsletter

"Getting fit with Dr. Mirkin's 20/30 Plan is simple and it works. Make his straight forward advice part of your everyday life." -- Denise Austin, Host of "Fit & Life" on LIfetime T.V.

"Read Dr. Mirkin's 20/30 Plan. It could help save your life. It saved mine." -- Larry King

"The 20/30 Plan presents up-to-the minute, clear, nutrionally sound advice that you can count on for better health. If you want to lose weight the healthy and sensible way, read this book." -- Victor Herbert, M.D., J.D., Director, Nutrition Research Center, Mount Sinai School of Medicine

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Harper Collins; First Edition edition (January 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0062702327
• ISBN-13: 978-0062702326
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.4 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #596,595 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

87 of 89 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Nutritionally sound, fun, and easy to follow., January 26, 2000

By 

[e-mail] (A thinner place than before!) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The 20/30 Fat & Fiber Diet Plan: The Weight-Reducing, Health-Promoting Nutrition System for Life (Harper Resource Book) (Paperback)

Fat people know how awful it is when you want to lose weight, but feel like you don't have enough willpower to diet or excercise. I spent a long time in that condition.

When I came across this book, I decided to try just a little bit at a time. I thought I'd try just one day on the program per week, and see how it went. Well! I've never gone back. I have stuck with it every day since then, which is pretty easy, thanks to the 2 "eat whatever you want" meals per week.

The 20/30 eating plan is easy, tasty, and even fun for me. I never feel hungry, and there are lots of good foods to eat. My doctor says this is a very healthy way to eat.

It's great news that I have lost weight on this plan. But the better news is that I love the way I feel, and I actually LIKE eating this way. So much so that I plan to continue with the 20/30 plan even after I reach my goal weight. This is a plan I can happily follow for life.

I am not usually evangelistic about anything to do with diet. But this is a book I will buy for all my closest friends, because I want them to be as healthy as I feel right now.

I've even started a discussion/support group for people who are new to 20/30 - and if you knew me, you'd realize that doing this kind of stuff is completely out of character for me. But give me a soapbox, and I'll tell anybody that this plan has made a major difference in my life.

I'm just a regular person, and I have nothing to gain if you buy this book. But it is the one book I would recommend to _everybody_ The plan is sensible, the recipes are great, and this works.

Good luck!

48 of 49 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Good, Simple Plan, June 11, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The 20/30 Fat & Fiber Diet Plan: The Weight-Reducing, Health-Promoting Nutrition System for Life (Harper Resource Book) (Paperback)

If you want to lose weight and you just want to get on with it, this is the book for you. The text is brief and easy to understand, the plan is simple, and the book even comes with a handy little gadget to keep track of your daily fat and fiber intake. I'm finding, though, that I simply can't manage 20g of fat per day. I've been down that road before, and those considering this lowfat of a diet should be aware of the possible side effects: dry hair and skin, splitting nails, and constipation. I do better at around 30g/day, which is still very low. The recipes I've tried so far are simple and very tasty. I especially like the Banana "Rice" Pudding, which uses rum and lots of spices for knock-out flavor. You'll find yourself scouting out the nearest health food store to stock up on interesting and delicious grains, but aside from that, the recipes don't call for weird, hard-to-find ingredients.

I'm not trying to lose weight right now, but I know from personal experience that this kind of plan works (which is why I'm not trying to lose weight right now.) I bought the book mainly for the recipes, and for the fat/gram counter, which -- take it from one who knows -- is a lot less cumbersome than writing down every darned thing you eat. As with all "counting" methods, the main bugaboo is what we're all doing more of: eating in restaurants. Like the average American, I eat out 3 to 4 times a week. Fat count? Fiber count? Who knows? The book does include excellent suggestions for restaurant dining, most of which have become automatic for me. This is a plan that works, either for weight loss or for maintenance.

47 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I'm Not Hungry!, January 21, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: 20/30 Fat & Fiber Diet Plan (Hardcover)

I have been struggling with my weight since I had my first child. Normally I don't like diets because a) they rarely work and b) many aren't healthy (like The Zone). A personal trainer in my gym recommended this book to me because it's medically sound. Well, after three weeks on this diet, I can tell you that it really works. I have lost 5 pounds and I feel like I have so much more energy. I eat a bowl of oatmeal with dried cherries in the morning (7:00 am) and I don't feel hungry until 1:00pm! I eat all the fruits and veggies I want and the whole grains they talk about are actually really good. Plus the counter that comes with the book is a neat tool to keep you counting your fiber and fat grams each day. I plan on staying on this diet for life. Thank you 20-30!