Most Helpful Customer Reviews
9 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tools for life, May 30, 2008
It has been said that the way to make money quickly in the book industry is self-help or weight loss fitness books. This book does not really fall into that category. It is written with a passion for a subject and based on personal experience and transformation. There are a number of factors that make this an exceptional book, and even more so an extraordinary fitness book. First is the way it is written - each chapter is written in two parts. It begins with the meat of the matter, the teaching about, health, fitness, wellness ... the second part of each chapter is the personal narrative of Jeremy's journey from being unhealthy to healthy. Mr. Likeness gives numerous examples from his own fitness journey and some from those he has helped to move along that path. In the same way that Sylvester Stallone did in his book Sly Moves : My Proven Program to Lose Weight, Build Strength, Gain Will Power, and Live your Dream.
This book is in part written around the philosophy from the book Body for Life: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength by Bill Phillips, yet it goes into much greater depth on some of the non-physical factors of health and weight loss or weight management. It deals with issues of stress, family life and work factors that can either help or hinder the physical transformation a person desires to make. This book has a very holistic approach to health and fitness. It presents the argument that in order to make lasting changes in your life, those changes must begin from the inside; transformation starts in the heart and in the mind and then works out in the body. Jeremy states: "Physique transformation is about more than simply losing weight. You will find that your life changes in many ways, too. You adjust to new clothing, a new image in the mirror, even a new sense of energy that allows you to achieve more during the day. Spiritually and mentally, you may change as well. Although these changes are almost always positive, change itself can be something that we fear. For this reason, it is important to understand what changes to expect to better prepare yourself as the process unfolds." Once the physical changes start to become more evident, you will have both positive and negative comments from people in your life. Likeness helps to provide some tools for dealing with both types. An example he gives is that if you have been over weight for a long time, you might not be accustomed to compliments - you will have to learn how to receive them and take some of them to heart.
This book, as the techniques in it are applied, can be a great tool for helping a person achieve greater health and wellbeing. This can be a factor in a longer and happier life. If these goals are things you have been thinking about, or have started working on, pick up this book to help boost your resolve and efforts to make your lifestyle changes.
(First Published in Imprint 2008-05-30.)
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Much more than weight loss, January 7, 2006
There's no question that getting fit is not an easy subject for a lot of people to get their hands around. There are so many opinions out there of what is the best approach that it's easy for someone, even with some experience, to get lost and lose their focus of eating healthy and exercising.
This book is not really about how to lose weight fast or fit into a size 6 in a few weeks, it's about how to make changes in your daily habits that are maintainable throughout your life. The author looks at fitness in a broader sense... he explains not just how to lose weight, but how to make choices about food that affect your health in general. It also contains the right level of detail to explain why "good choices" are good choices, a topic that seems simple on the surface but isn't.
The best part of the book though is the narration. It goes back and forth between anectodtal stories and straight information. Where a lot of other authors present this material in a straightforward but dry manner, this book makes you feel like you are having a conversation with a friend. You can relate to the author and you get the feeling throughout the book that he personally wants you to succeed.
Information alone is good to have, but this book will give you that as well as a good dose of motivation. This is easily one of the best fitness buys I have made.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Losing The Fat While Keeping The Faith, September 10, 2005
Jeremy Likness' book will inspire, motivate, and change your life.
When you lose 180 pounds in one year like I did (read about my weight loss success at my "Livin' La Vida Low-Carb" blog - http://livinlavidalocarb.blogspot.com), your perspective about the subject of weight loss is radically altered because you have acheived something that very few people are able to accomplish. I just finished reading a book by a fellow "loser" who not only lost weight, but completely transformed his body from a beer bellied slob into a muscle machine like you've never seen.
You will never believe the before and after pictures on the front cover of that book are of the same guy. But indeed they are the exact same person and his name is Jeremy Likness. Here is a man who confronted his weight problem like a matador against a bull and slayed that beast once and for all with a strategy to make himself healthier through proper nutrition, intense exercise, and psychological build-up. The result is the transformational guide you will read about in Lose Fat, Not Faith.
Likness does not mince words in this book which is what makes his writings so compelling. He'll give you personal examples from his own life to help drive home the message that he wants to deliver to you the reader. I am sure he will step on your toes from time to time and convict you in areas of your life where you know you have been slacking off.
That's Jeremy's style and he is someone you should listen to. He lost 65 pounds and dropped ten inches from his waist in just a year. Even more important, he gained the energy and confidence to take that weight loss to the next level of fitness so much so that he is now a certified personal trainer. Unbelievable!
Going deeper than just cutting calories, exercising and getting enough rest, Likness provides an incredible amount of information packed into the 285 pages of his book. There is so much data to absorb, it will take you weeks to comprehend it all and then you'll be going back to it again and again to refamiliarize yourself with what you have read. That's what I did!
As a low-carb weight loss success story, though, I was a bit dismayed by what he refers to as the "low carbohydrate myth." Likness believes simply cutting carbs is not enough, you need to know which carbs you can and should eat however many carbs your body can handle for your energy needs. He encourages people to use sugar in moderation and not to gorge themselves on unnecessary carbs. Before a workout, Likness highly encourages people to carb up and then again after the workout.
While I disagree with him on this as well as the advice to portion-control your food selections, I appreciate that Likness encourages people to remain in control of their wants and desires when it comes to food. That is a lesson that everyone who struggles with their weight must come to terms with at one point or another.
Reading through Lose Fat, Not Faith you will find yourself laughing, crying and beaming with the confidence that Likness provides you in page after page. Unless you are really ready to get serious about your obesity problem, don't bother reading Lose Fat, Not Faith. It's not gonna work for you. But if you are ready to finally find a real path to weight loss success taken to a higher level, then Lose Fat, Not Faith is the book you want to read!
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you? Yes
No
|
