Take It Off, Keep It Off by Paul James is a guide to help you lose fat through diet and exercise. Paul "PJ" James was an underwear model when he decided to help people get in shape. He found he couldn't understand why heavy people had so much trouble motivating themselves to lose weight...so he intentionally gained 100 lbs to figure it out. He found himself depressed and withdrawn; not interested in sex...and obsessed with food.
James managed to lose the 100lbs within the year he set the goal to gain/lose and wrote this book to motivate heavy people to do so too.
As a formerly overweight person who is now a healthy weight and a designer/life coach, I love to check out new weight loss books to recommend ones I like to clients. This book is great on motivation; I just question a couple of his "rules" and think the diet is a bit too restrictive.
His fat loss program begins with what he calls the KO-90 plan. It is for 3 months. In a nutshell, it includes 15 minutes of cardio daily before breakfast, 3 meals a day and 2 snacks and 50 minutes of strength training 4 days a week.
The diet plan consists of "clean foods"--no processed food, no dairy (no skim milk for my coffee--no way), no added sugar, fruit, salt (there is virtually no salt in vegetables. I think a little salt on them goes a long way...) or alcohol. You eat plenty of lean meats, leafy veggies and whole grains. Mostly protein. 90/60/10; protein/carbs/fat. (What about lean non-meat choices?)
James tells us about his success and his client's success. He is empathic to the struggles of overweight people.
I recommend the book, but think it being as restrictive as it is will cause many to "fall off the wagon." A small amount of salt or skim milk ain't going to hurt...but obviously, everyone must decide what is right for them. Also, keep in mind he is a trainer...stuff like salt can cause some bloating...but with all that exercise, you'll sweat it out, anyway. I toyed with how many stars I should give it because of this--3 or 4--but ultimately decided to give it 4 because of his motivational stories and the earnestness of his voice for wanting those to lose weight.
I also recommend that when you embark on something life changing like this, you also invest in making your home as lovely as you can to make yourself feel loved and pampered...you will need it! My favorite book that does just that (and gets rid of toxins in your home and kitchen) is HARMONIOUS ENVIRONMENT: BEAUTIFY, DETOXIFY & ENERGIZE YOUR LIFE, YOUR HOME & YOUR PLANET.
Good luck!!!
