Customer Reviews

Weight Loss Confidential: How Teens Lose Weight and Keep It Off -- and What They Wish Parents Knew

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What a great book. I think it's great for anyone, but especially for parents and teens and parents of teens.
Ann Fletcher has already written a series of books before on adults who had lost weight and kept it off, and thinking how motivating it is to read about other peoples success, she wrote this in hopes of helping teens and their families to help fight the obesity crisis and help teens who struggle daily with their weight. She is a registered dietitian and she is very smart and has written this really well. Her own son has had his share of weight problems and that was some of the driving force for her to begin this book.
She interviews over 100 teens who have lost weight in healthy ways, who have shown that sensible stratagies work and so hopefully this will stop others losing weight in a dangerous fashion. She interviews some of the parents too so it's good to get perspective from all sides. The top stratagy that helped these teens was exercise; this helped them to be able to still join their friends when they go out and feel that they could still eat what their friends did, but not feel so guilty. The other top stratagies she heard about while interviewing them was cutting back on their sodas and some unhealthful snacks.
Overall, this book is full of inspiring kids who have begun to turn their life and health around. While they may not have come up with any new secrets in the battle of weight loss, they will hopefully show other kids that it can be done and that it can be done in a healthy manner and I really think this book should be read by everyone. It's fantastic and I highly recommend it.

Anne Fletcher is a terrific thinker, motivator, and writer when it comes to weight. I saw her on CBS's "The Early Show" and knew I had to read her newest book.

To write WEIGHT LOSS CONFIDENTIAL, Anne conducted in-depth surveys and interviews with more than 100+ formerly overweight young people (and many of their parents) from diverse backgrounds, across the United States. Her results explain how the teens lost the weight, their secrets for keeping it off, and their strategies for staying motivated. She also offers advice for parents on how to play a positive role in their kids' success.

This is the ONLY book to go to the real experts on how teens lose weight successfully: teens who have actually done it. She even reveals the story of her own son's weight loss in a poignant and touching way. A must-read for all parents!

What an excellent concept, find teens who were successful at losing weight and determine how they did it. This book has been helpful for my husband and me, and MOTIVATING for my daughter. What I like the most is you see a chart of what things the kids did to lose weight. The ones that top the list are the healthy ones (exercised more, ate less fat, ate less in general) and the ones at the bottom are unhealty (took pills, etc). PROVING ONCE AGAIN that the RIGHT/SUCCESSFUL way to lose weight is to diet and exercise. This has totally motivated her to move more, the KEY FACTOR for these successful teens.

BRAVO!!

Fabulous! I enjoyed the easy to follow, practical tips, and guidance on helping an overweight teenager lose and maintain their weight. I think the book is useful for teenagers, parents, and health professionals. I found "Weight Loss Confidential" an excellent much needed resource, for parents frustrated with their teenager's excess weight. I especially liked the real-life experiences of teenagers and parents, research based information, and reference to programs and other resources available. I highly recommend "Weight Loss Confidential" as a Registered Dietitian who sees the impact healthful eating and exercise plays, on all our lives.

As a psychologist, I found this book very helpful -- both for myself as a psychotherapist trying to assist clients with weight issues and as a book I can recommend to my clients. The author is able to take relatively complex issues and translate them seamlessly into very palatable and practical advice for adolescents and their parents. Adults who were overweight as children and teens may also find the book to be a helpful tool for gaining insight about their histories and motivation for altering some of the unhelpful, if not harmful messages they incorporated without previous reflection. The messages in this book will comfort and support those who have overcome weight problems and inspire those who continue to struggle.The information included at the end of the book -- about treatment and weight loss programs, internet resources, and references -- is comprehensive and invaluable. That section alone was worth the price of the book.

The advice for parents of teens with weight issues is useful, not only for this population, but for parents of teens in general. The suggestions about how to approach your teen without inciting an intense conflict or power struggle are practical, specific, and applicable to many of the common concerns parents have about their teens.

Finally, even apart from the main issue, the stories are so well written and compelling, that they make for a great read. I highly recommend this book for psychologists, psychotherapists, parents, teens, and anyone struggling with weight issues.

I work as a nutrition therapist with overweight teens and teens with eating disorders. There has been a need for a book like this for a long time. There are positive, personal, and practical insights in this book. It is rare to find a book that addresses weight issues from both a male and female perspective. I have been recommending it to all my clients.

I bought this book because my granddaughter is becoming overweight and I want to help her and my daughter to work on this problem. I am an RN and yet the information in this book was priceless because despite what I know and understand medically, the information on what works for the teens by teens could not be learned in nursing school. I have completed the book and have sent it on to Arizona from Texas so that my daughter and granddaughter can read it. I also took some of the information on keeping a daily journal and portion control and have lost 5 pounds since purchasing this book. I would recommend this book to all ages. The book also lists many other references for children and obesity problems.

I love this book. It has solid science, and the real-world stories of teens who actually made healthy changes are motivating to anyone - teen or parent. Ms. Fletcher interviewed over 100 teens for the book, and I loved the myth-busting that came out of that - even I, as a Registered Dietitian with nearly two decades of experience found some new insights and great nuggests that I'll use when counseling other young people. What a wise group Ms. Fletcher found, and she interviewed them well.
Highly Recommend.

Loved this book. Very clear and easy to read, we just started incorporating the ideas but I have high hopes for the process. It keeps things realistic which is a nice change.

A wonderful, quick, and captivating read! This book belongs on the bookshelves of teens, families, AND healthcare practitioners! "Weight Loss Confidential" is a great "how to" manual for teens who want to lose weight, and the book also serves as a source of motivation for teens who are ready to change. "Weight Loss Confidential" can also serve as a fantastic tool for medical and nutrition professionals who work with overweight youth. "Weight Loss Confidential" complies a myriad of pertinent data, quotes from teens, nutrition and exercise advice, effective weight loss programs, and up-to-date research. Finally, the book is a timely and much needed resource as pediatric overweight rates continue to climb. "Weight Loss Confidential" is simply fantastic...Buy it today!

-April Rudat, MS Ed, RD, LDN, author of the upcoming book, "OH YES YOU CAN BREASTFEED TWINS"