I was introduced to the Belly Fat Cure in March as a result of an article in Costco's Costco Connection magazine and applied to be his coaching class for Costco members. I had been selected to take part in the program and during the course of the 11 weeks of coaching, was able to shed 47 pounds and 10 inches off my belly. I religiously followed the program during the coaching and tracked every meal making sure that no meals exceeded the recommended 5 grams of sugar and 2 carb servings. I was also taking probiotics and psyllium husks three times a day. The pounds literally were just melting right off of me.
I also want to note that I had started a running program in December of 2008 and by the time I started the Belly Fat Cure program, I had gone from not being able to run much of one mile to running three miles the whole way and was running 5 to 6 days a week. The running didn't result in any weight loss at all for me, just increased endurance. Once I added the Belly Fat Cure program, I started seeing weight loss.
Like Corrie Hearn's review, the book as it exists now wasn't available, we just got the core information about not exceeding 15 grams of sugar and 6 carb servings per day. We were taught how to read nutrition labels (that information is in the book) and given some key suggestions. We definitely did not the recipes and for that matter initially the food list. We did get that a few weeks in as an Excel spreadsheet. So essentially we had to "figure it out." It took a little trial and error but I started losing weight right away and inches. Some weeks I lost more than others, some I plateaued but stuck with it and it started falling off again.
What struck me as most beneficial about the program is that I had no idea how much sugar I had been consuming prior to the program. Even though there I was having a lot of "low fat" items those foods were actually loaded in sugar. The first week was a little rough getting used to dramatically less sugar. I probably went through about 15-20 packets of Truvia that first week to replace some of the sugar. I swapped out Iced Tea for sodas until I tried the Caramel Vanilla tea in the line of Lipton teas Jorge has recommended. I thought that tea was so disgusting it got me right off iced teas too and I've been more of an avid water and Zevia drinker ever since.
Within the first two weeks my appetite dropped considerably and the size of meals I used to eat all of and would still be looking for more food to eat right afterwards were becoming ones I couldn't finish and I was feeling full for a few hours instead of maybe an hour. This really hit home for me when I went out for dinner with a friend, my friend had an appetizer, a full entree with side items, and a dessert. I just opted to have loaded baked potato and I couldn't even finish it. In all fairness my friend didn't eat all of his meal either, but he had considerably more than I had and I know I would have had similar amounts prior to the program.
Following the coaching, I pretty much had a routine for my first couple of meals for the day so I stopped tracking every meal and then periodically would allow myself have a meal or two per week that might have slightly more sugar than 5 grams or maybe a meal with 3 carb servings. I even cut back on the psyllium husks and probiotics to once per day then to only 3-4 times per week. I also got so burned out on the running program I had been doing and quit it entirely. I haven't been back to any of the running in nearly six months now. But I've still lost weight with the Belly Fat Cure program despite stopping the running. Albeit, the rate at which I was losing weight has slowed considerably too. Since mid July, I've only lost another twenty seven pounds. I'm fine with that. I'm sure if I step back up to the three times daily probiotics/psyllium husks, the vigilant meal tracking, and the running I'd be getting back to the faster rate of weight loss.
I want to add a couple of comments to address some of the concerns of others here that have given the book poor ratings. Those comments are:
** Food is too expensive, too hard to find items in the book **
It can be if you let it. I don't use very many of the products myself. I just read the nutrition labels in the stores, whether its my local supermarket or a natural foods store, or even a 7-Eleven. I can find something to eat just about everywhere, it just takes a little time to pay attention to the labels. Maybe this is because the recommended foods list didn't exist at the time I started the program, so I just naturally gravitate towards reading labels in the store.
What's featured in the book is to just give you ideas of what to look for. They don't have to be those specific brands as featured in the book. They're just there to illustrate that there's a variety of products out there that you can have. And sure, maybe Zevia is the only recommended soda in the book, but that's because it's the only one on the market made with all natural ingredients and doesn't have the toxic artificial sweeteners found in other sodas. I was personally amazed by how great tasting it was, their Root Beer flavor especially reminds me of how A&W Root Beer used to taste to me when I was a kid but doesn't any longer because it's now made with High Fructose Corn Syrup. And the good part is Zevia's Root Beer is not bad for you.
Another example is the Ezekiel breads that Jorge recommends. I've never tried it. I don't use enough breads at home to justify buying a loaf of any kind of because I usually have to throw out more bread than I use, so I just don't buy it. I also don't use the Whey powders because I think they're expensive. About the only expensive product I do regularly buy is 5-lb bags of Zylitol and I get those here on Amazon because the bigger bag costs less than buying 3 1-lb bags in local stores (which are the largest I can find locally) so it's like getting 2 lbs for free.
** Not a lifestyle, unrealistic to cut out fruits **
You don't have to completely eliminate fruits, you just choose ones like blackberries and blueberries which are low in sugar. The key is to drop sugar so that you can lose weight. Once you do lose the weight you want to lose, then you can add it back in if you like. Just go in moderation. You don't have to completely ban it from your life. If you're willing to have a smaller portion of a high sugar item you can have anything you want.
For example, if what you really want is a banana, assume the banana is 20 grams of sugar. Cut a banana into quarters and you can have a quarter of the banana with four separate meals, maybe add it to your sugar free cereal for breakfast or with a breast of chicken for lunch and then you do it again the next day with the other two quarters. You still get your banana and are compliant with the program. I did this with a tube of imported Smarties Chocolates from Europe (kind of like a plain M&M). In the past that tube wouldn't have lasted a day, but when I only had no more than five or six little pieces a day, that tube lasted me about 3 months. And really it satisfied me because I was happy with just a little taste of it.
** Recipes Too Difficult **
I've had a draft version of the book since July and that older draft version has about 95% of the recipes that's in the final version of the book. And I've still only ever made one recipe from the book. That recipe is the home made sugar free ice cream recipe. I'm not a cook nor will I pretend to be one.
While the recipe section of the book is the least useful to me, I still appreciate having it because it's got a wealth of ideas that I could try if I was feeling up to cooking. The bulk of my meals I've done on this program have come from restaurants and a significant number of them have been from fast food, which brings me to the next complaint...
** Not Fast Food Friendly **
On the contrary, I find this program is very complimentary to fast food as that's mostly what I've eaten. I am a single guy who doesn't cook, so drive-thrus tend to be where I get a lot of meals. I want quick, simple, and cheap and all of it is possible with this program. The trick is CUSTOMIZING. For example, if I'm getting a burger, I find out what sauces a restaurant puts on their burgers, and then ask them not to use them. The sugar free sauces you can have are mustard, and mayonnaise so I'll often ask to have that used instead of ketchup, barbeque, or "special" sauces. Then I'll ask to have my burger wrapped in lettuce. This lets me use my 6 carb servings per day on other foods. And KFC's Grilled Chicken is fantastic on this program and its delicious too.
** French Fries And Bacon Are Not Healthy **
I wouldn't necessary call these items the healthiest either, but they are low sugar options. What people seem to be forgetting here is that if you're overweight the chances are pretty good you're not eating the healthy, all natural foods that people are complaining this program is not advocating enough of.
If all you eat are highly processed packaged foods, fast foods, restaurant meals, and/or things that come in boxes with nutrition labels, then this program is going to show you that you can still do the same thing, but with some education, you'll learn to make better choices and use many of the same foods to actually lose weight instead of gain weight.
This makes the program very simple to follow and easy to incorporate into your life and make it a lifestyle. The easiest changes to make are small changes. Once you've made one small change, you can build on it by making another one.
Read more ›
