Customer Reviews

The Step Diet: Count Steps, Not Calories to Lose Weight and Keep It off Forever

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

This book is full of useable information, great advice and something you can "get going on" the day you get it. It's not about a radical or fad diet - it starts with first monitoring your current moving (steps) and eating patterns. Only after some beginning self monitoring (for seven days) and then to a two week phase of showing you why you are continually gaining weight does it switch to trying to actually lose weight by taking more steps each day and turn passive overeating into healthy eating.

It tells you step-by-step how to change unhealthy fully ingrained habits and gradually change to a lifestyle that allows you not just to lose weight, but to keep it off. It's a gradual but effective process. It teaches you to stop relying on "willpower" and instead makes you face tough choices, such as if it's REALLY worth it to supersize that fry or eat a Whooper instead of a regular hamburgar.

A step counter is included in the book - but the book itself is the big value. When using the stepcounter, I noticed that when I placed it over my stomach, it doubled the amount of steps I take (probably because I carry most of my weight in my stomach). So I followed the advice on page 2 and switched the counter to my hip area so that it counts the steps accurately. It has you take a "test walk" of 100 steps to check the accuracy of the step monitor.

This is a fantastic book for anyone wanting to permanently get and STAY in shape. There are no magic pills . . . or easy magic formulas . . . but this is a healthy way to obtain real results.

I have been using the principles of this book as I learned them from one of the autor's website for America On The Move. The ideas and concepts of energy balance work. I am a 37 yr old male with a wife, two kids and a busy career. I have lost 54lbs in the last 7 months. I have done it using the concepts in this book. Step counting is a great way to really evaluate a persons physical activity. The step diet book gives you realistic ideas on how to get more steps into our busy days and give you sound scientific reasoning why. The studies it uses are not some oddball never heard of study but real science based upon years of study of real programs that work. Before I read this book friends would ask me if I was using Atkins or South Beach. I would simply tell them I was using common sense, eat less move more.

I now average 15,000+ a day, it was not easy but I simply worked at it using some of the ideas to slowly increase my steps. I also cut back on my intake slowly. I am not restricted in what I eat but know it will cost me and I think if I want to pay the price.

I do not fully adhere to the mega steps concept in the book, it does get a little complicated I have a simpler approach. I do not feel weight loss is as simple as a math problem so I appreciate the idea but do not live by it.

The pedometer that came with the book I do not use I have a quality pedometer. I originally used one for less than $10 and found it to be very inaccurate so if you get serious do your homework and expect to pay $30-$35 for a good one. As far as the freebie you get with the book, it is better than nothing so use it but you do get what you pay for.

This book is all about lifestyle change which has been the biggest thing to me I am not on a diet I am changing my life.

I am a nut for healthy, weight-loss information so when I came across this book, I thought I would try it out. It was the best decision I've made.

I've always worked out for maybe 30-45 min. a day, but I would sit on my butt the rest of the day. This book had wonderful ideas on how to increase your movement throughout the day, not just in the 30 minutes I worked out.

My other problem is that I like food. I could not get used to the idea of giving up the food I like in order to lose weight. I think the best part of the book is the idea that you need to cut back on your food intake by 25% in order to acheive weight-loss. I eat what I like to eat, I just eat a little bit less at each meal. I have tried this over the past two weeks and I have lost 2 pounds and I am confident that they will stay off as long as I continue to follow the plan.

The pedometer is a great way to pace yourself throughout the day. I set goals for myself such as getting between 6000 and 7000 steps during work. It's a great way to keep moving.

It is not a quick, weight-loss gimmick or diet. I call it a "non-diet" because the authors offer ways to change your lifestyle in order to lose healthy amounts of weight in a reasonable timespan in order to acheive weight-loss for life.

"The Step Diet" is a compact 7 and 1/2 by 5 and 1/2" book that explains exactly how you can lose weight by walking and making small dietary changes. According to the authors the average American will gain a little bit of weight each year. You can prevent this gain by adding 2000 steps to your daily walking. To lose weight you add more steps and cut back on what you eat.
These simple changes can be made one at a time and add up to permanent change thats easy to incorporate into your everyday life.

The book teaches you how to determine your current average step amount and increase it week to week. There is also a chart to show how to convert other activities into steps so you can track all of your activities. Information is included on how to make minor dietary adjustments so you can reap the reward of a fitter, slimmer body.

Overall the book is excellent at helping the reader learn how to regulate weight through step activity. The authors do however confuse the issue with "megasteps". The authors help you determine your megasteps and then at the back of the book they list common foods and tell you how many megasteps each food is equal to. For example an egg will cost you approximately one megastep. praline ice cream about 6. This is just another way of calorie counting and really not needed in the book in my opinion.

Instead it would have been nice if the authors had included the number of steps you would have to walk to burn off certain foods. For example to burn up an order of small fries (210 calories) you would have to walk about 4,200 steps. This type of information in the book would have been great. But it's not included.

A pedometer comes with the book. As others have noted here I personally have and would recommend that others purchase a better quality, more accurate pedometer.

The book is linked to the americaonthemove.org website and its GREAT! A lot of information on walking for individuals or groups. You can set goals at the site. For example you can pick a trail like the Lewis and Clark trail which requires you step about 9,000 paces a day. Each day you record your steps and see visually how far you are on the map and your average steps, plus you can read about the area. What fun and its free!

Overall, the book is a "breath of fresh air" with it's focus on making small changes in eating and increasing walking activity (not killing yourself with intense exercise programs) to see big results.

I reviewed the Omron HJ-112 pedometer that I bought with this book, and together, they were very encouraging. I've tried too many diets to count and I absolutely hate counting calories. What this book teaches you and actually encourages, is a healthy self competition. The fun part was the first chapter in which it told me to wear the pedometer the next day and at the end of the day, mark in the book how many steps I took. It said to just to walk normally and do the activities I normally do so I can see where I'm at. The first day I admit I cheated a little and walked a little more at work but when I came home, I looked at my pedometer and was surprised to see little more than 2,000 steps on it! I was disappointed. I was also 247lbs and those numbers confirmed how little I was doing for myself. The book encourages it's readers to add a mere 500 steps every day and gives tips on how to squeeze in extra steps even if we think we don't have time to walk after work. I have a 9hr a day desk job and when I came home, I was used to just plopping in front of the computer with nothing to do but eat. After that disappointing first day with my pedometer, when I found out numerically how slothful I was, it didn't make me give up. It actually gave me a boost to do more. I'm not competitive, but every day I was making myself beat the number of steps taken the previous day and keeping my log in the book. Getting to 10,000 steps a day is easier than one would think. With the Omron pedometer (not the one that came with the book) I was actually walking 1.5-2hrs every day. At one point, I was doing 3 hrs a day. That was excessive, but for me, I was encouraged at how fast the weight was coming off. I gave up fast food and soda and ate pretty much nothing but breads, pastas, pretty much anything carb, veggies, & real dairy. Low-carb diets are completely ridiculous. I'm a vegetarian, that's pretty much the bulk of what I eat. Carbs are not the devils work, I assure you. It's portion sizes. At the end of 2006 I was at 144lbs. Ditching soda & fast food were easy and even after I've lost this much weight, I don't crave them. This book is highly recommended and is very encouraging when you don't know where to start. Everything they say makes perfect sense and you aren't burdened with logs to keep, unless you want to. The pedometer that comes with the book is not too accurate but will still give you a rough idea of where you're at with steps if you don't have the money to buy a decent pedometer. It's such a great idea from the authors to include it and it just goes to show how much they want to fix the obesity problem in this country. If you have the cash, invest in the Omron HJ-112 pedometer. It's reliable and isn't too expensive. I'm so blessed that this book came into my life when it did.I can't recommend it enough.

I have never been able to get myself to exercise. And when I moved from Manhattan to California, I no longer walked from place to place, but instead drove everywhere. I noticed that I was gaining a few pounds a year and became concerned. I don't believe in gimmick diets because I've seen how they take the weight off in the near-term but not in the long-term and I also think they can be damanging to your health. So I was very excited when I saw the Step Diet. The pedometer that comes with this book provides instant feedback and the program is safe, healthy and even--dare I say it--fun. Amazing what a little gizmo can do. Most importantly, as a result of wearing the step counter I am now getting a very respectable amount of exercise each day. This is an amazing book that can be used for the whole family.

This book is very easy to understand and implement at a comfortable pace. I like the fact that the changes are implemented in a manageable way. The authors examined what it takes for successful weight loss and maintenance. The charts were very informative and the suggestions excellent. I began to implement them right away. It is the simple things like walking from the farthest parking spot instead of the closest one. I'm amazed how many more steps I can add by small changes. The included pedometer is the key.

Instead of looking for the books that all have some kind of gimmic, where you can lose weight with little to no effort, this book actually makes sense. Walk at least 10k steps a day and you will maintain or lose weight. Eat 25% less of what is on your plate, and you will LOSE WEIGHT. There is no catch. The kit includes a book and a pedometer, and that is all you need for this diet. No gym membership, no crazy menus, and no pills. This works, and its fun.

This book has really opened my eyes up to one thing...why I hadn't lost weight. I've been dieting since I had my son but hit a plateu. I hadn't been exercising regularly and with a long commute to work 3 hours round trip) and then sitting at a desk all day, I wore the pedometer before trying anything in the book to see how many steps I was getting before making a conscious effort. I was shocked to learn that I had only been taking 1500-2500 steps a day, on days I worked. Days I didn't work I averaged more around 5-6,000. Still that wasn't very good since the book gives you a minimum of 10,000 a day.

I am now usually at about 12,000 a day, depending on the day. I am incredibly motivated because I am competitive with myself and how many steps I can get in a day. I go walking 2 miles with my dog which is about 4,500 steps and make sure I am active throughout the day at work or at the store etc. I have only lost a few pounds so far, but my clothes are looser and I feel thinner.

I am loving the stepometer and am going to invest in a better one. It was a great starter and I found it to be pretty accurate, just very basic.

I'm stepping the pounds off! This book has great information on energy balance both for loosing weight and for maintaining weight.

The pedomenter included in the book is very motivational! On days I have walked a lot of steps (12,000 to 18,000) it feels real good and gives me a great sense of accomplishment. On days that I have not gotten in many steps (4,000 to 5,000) it motivates me to take an evening walk around the neighborhood. I'm down six pounds in six weeks!

I thought this book was so great I sent my mother a copy too! Mom has lost five pounds in less than a month.