The Fresh Start Thermogenic Diet: The Proven Program for Lasting Weight Loss through Fat-Burning Foods [Hardcover]

Cathi Graham (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 9, 2006

Cathi Graham lost over 186 pounds and kept if off for more than 20 years with a simple diet secret.

In 1982, Cathi Graham tipped the scales at 326 pounds and her doctor scribbled three words on her medical chart that would forever change her life: "patient morbidly obese." Horrified, she began intensive research and discovered the power of thermogenic foods—foods that stimulate your metabolism and help you burn fat.

The Fresh Start Thermogenic Diet explains this revolutionary way to lose weight, and helps you create an overall plan to reduce your weight for a healthier life. Thermogenic foods, such as hot peppers, apple cider vinegar, salsa, and celery, help you lose weight no matter what your body type.

Complete with inspirational stories from people who have lost weight on the diet, The Fresh Start Thermogenic Diet provides an eating plan to fit your specific needs and body type, including a special program to help end emotional eating.

A literal life-saver for people dealing with a diagnosis of morbid obesity as well as an effective diet for anyone who wants to shed pounds, The Fresh Start Thermogenic Diet is a tried and trusted way to lose weight and keep it off. 15 photos.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“I couldn’t believe how fast and easy it was…the 117 pounds literally fell off in 28 weeks.” – Dan B., lost 117 pounds

“I am a single mom and was 100 pounds overweight….Within 5 days of beginning the program, my cravings were gone!” – Ann B., lost 105 pounds

About the Author

Cathi Graham, creator of the Fresh Start Metabolism Program, has sold over 300,000 Fresh Start Metabolism Programs worldwide. Her astonishing success story and research results have been featured in numerous magazines such as First For Women, and she has appeared on The Maury Povich Show. Host of Raising Your Metabolism and many other videos, she lives in Vancouver, Canada.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 224 pages
• Publisher: Hatherleigh; 1 edition (May 9, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1578262216
• ISBN-13: 978-1578262212
• Product Dimensions: 6.3 x 0.8 x 9.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #827,909 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Not as expected, March 15, 2007

By 

Y. Brooks "Loves Books" (ohio) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Fresh Start Thermogenic Diet: The Proven Program for Lasting Weight Loss through Fat-Burning Foods (Hardcover)

I thought the book was informative. However, She often referred you to her web-site which did not provide the additional information as suggested. Overall I thought the book was a good food guide.

10 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars There are better books out there., January 15, 2007

By 

L. Boswell (New Jersey) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Fresh Start Thermogenic Diet: The Proven Program for Lasting Weight Loss through Fat-Burning Foods (Hardcover)

I tend not to trust books that are full of weird before-and-after pictures where backgrounds have been changed, and the people pictured are clearly making efforts to look like total crap in the before pictures, and are make-uped and sucking it in in the after shots.

The fact is, pictures of 20 people who claimed to lose weight based on the plan in your book doesn't convince me of anything. I could tell the general population to eat nothing but butter for three months, and I can practically guarantee you that someone out there will lose weight based on my plan. Welcome to the mind-boggling disaster that is human nutrition.

The basis of this book is that adding certain "thermogenic" foods to your diet will boost your metabolism and help you effortlessly lose weight. There is SOME truth to this, ingredients such as cayenne pepper and cinnamon have all been scientifically proven to raise metabolism--very, very slightly. It's not going to have some magical fat-burning effect if you add these items to your normal diet. If you're overweight, you're still going to have to cut your calories and exercise.

Not that this book doesn't say that--half the book is about cutting calories and dieting. It's just all tucked nicely in the chapters AFTER the ones saying that putting Tabasco in your V8 will make you lose 8 dress sizes.

Plus, this book claims that people with "apple" body shapes (although the book inexplicably refers to them as "peaches") should slash out carbs to drop the belly fat.

Fact: Carbs do not specifically create belly fat. Never did, never will.

All the food we eat, protein, carb or fat, is broken down and either used or stored by the body. If you eat too many calories from steak, you'll store fat just like if you eat too many calories from bread. And cutting out entire food groups isn't going to "melt" fat from any specific part of your body. All it's going to do is deprive your body of the nutrients you would normally gain from that food group. It may help you cut calories overall, leading to weight loss, but to what effect? Yes, I realize your body does go into a special state on a no- or extremely low-carb diet: ketosis. But even the magical *cough*harmful*cough* effects of ketosis don't SPECIFICALLY burn belly fat.

The fact is, if your genes are programmed to hold onto fat in your middle, it's going to be really tough for you to lose fat in your middle. Not impossible, just tough. Eliminating a food group isn't going to start taking fat away from one specific area. Think about it, if food were that magical, why wouldn't scientists have discovered a food that increases fat in breast tissue?

The only thing that "apples" really should be doing more so than "pears" is monitoring their stress levels. Visceral fat is specifically there to store fat for times of "famine"--i.e. stress. It's an emergency fuel tank. So if you're under constant, chronic stress, your body may be storing excess fat. Otherwise, you should be eating a healthy, reasonable diet and getting exercise to lose weight, just like everyone else. No magical fixes, sorry.

Not everything in this book is bad. It has some sound advice, and may be especially appealing to "emotional eaters." However, I don't see any of the actual good advice as "earth-shattering" and I think a lot of what it has to say is misleading to make people think losing weight is going to be some quasi-effortless salsa festival. It's simply not true, and any book that conveys that message is a joke.

4.0 out of 5 stars Love this book, June 22, 2011

By 

Kathie F. Ellis - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Fresh Start Thermogenic Diet: The Proven Program for Lasting Weight Loss through Fat-Burning Foods (Hardcover)

This book has really helped me, thank you. The book was in great condition, I really appreciate that. K.E.