Thin for Life: 10 Keys to Success from People Who Have Lost Weight and Kept It Off (Paperback)

~ (Author), Jane Brody (Foreword)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

What a novel idea: if you want to know how to successfully lose weight, study the real experts--the people who have done it! Registered dietician Anne Fletcher did just that. She surveyed 160 "masters" who succeeded in losing at least 20 pounds and keeping the weight off for at least 3 years. This was the minimum; most lost far more weight--an average of 63 pounds--and more than one-third have kept the weight off for a decade or more.

How did they do it? Thin for Life presents their success stories, strategies, motivation, inspiration, and tricks. Most had tried "many times and many ways" to lose weight before discovering what worked for them and how to prevent and recover from relapses. Some techniques worked for many--such as keeping a food diary and increasing exercise. Others were highly individual and will spur you to do your own creative thinking. Fletcher compiles the "10 keys to success" that emerged most often, lets the masters speak for themselves throughout the book, and fills in additional, valuable information and resources. Whether you have 10 pounds to lose or 100, this book will help you do it--safely, effectively, and permanently. Highly recommended. --Joan Price

Review

Anyone who has tried and failed...to lose unwanted pounds and keep them off should read this book...Thin For Life can lead you down the path of sensible weight control. -- Jane Brody, Personal Health Columnist, New York Times

If you've had it up to here with goofy diets that can cause you to shed and regain weight with roller-coaster speed, check out Thin For Life by Anne M. Fletcher. This is a smart, workable approach to dropping fat for good rather than a blueprint of diet dos and don'ts. It is based on sound science... -- New Woman Magazine, February 1997

Now, we have a book from Anne Fletcher that provides the support and inspiration people need to peacefully maintain their new weight. What a helpful book for encouraging people to trust that they can lose weight and keep it off! -- Nancy Clark, M.S., R.D., Director of Nutrition Services, SportsMedicine, Brookline, MA

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Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin (March 15, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1881527603
• ISBN-13: 978-1881527602
• Product Dimensions: 9.2 x 6.1 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #724,812 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

76 of 78 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Empowering Book Based On Success Stories, December 20, 1999

By	Katrinka "figtart" (San Antonio, TX) - See all my reviews

In this highly readable and motivational book, nutritionist Anne Fletcher explains that, just as no two people are alike, there is no single right way to lose weight. Thus, this is not a diet book per se, but a list of 10 principles that successful dieters have in common, and to which I refer frequently when I find myself slipping in my resolve.

Fletcher calls these successful dieters "masters:" people who have kept off at least 20 pounds for at least 3 years. (Many of her masters have lost and kept off much more.)

The two things I like most about this book are:

1) Rather than taking a theoretical and single-minded approach to dieting, the author relies on a wide variety of actual true long-term success stories and quotes the masters themselves extensively.

2) The author takes a practical, common-sense, long-term approach rather than the usual quick-fix mentality of most diet books.

Bottom line: this book worked (and is still working) for me!

49 of 50 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The good, the bad, and the ugly, January 2, 2006

By	jaedworks - See all my reviews

This review is from: Thin for Life: 10 Keys to Success from People Who Have Lost Weight and Kept It Off (Paperback)

The good: The advice here from successful weight-losers is wide-ranging, generally useful, and presented in context so that you know something about the person's weight history and particular circumstances. Not all of it is going to be useful for any particular person, of course, but the perspective of successful people is, as another reviewer remarked, like gold.

The bad: About half the book (scattered throughout plus a section at the back) consists of the author's own weight-loss advice and diet program. This is very much oriented toward fat-as-dietary-demon. If you're using a high-protein/low carbohydrate approach, this part obviously won't be applicable for you; if you're following a conventional low-fat/limited-protein/high-carbohydrate diet, you'll find it more useful. HOWEVER...

The ugly: Be careful about the particulars of the diet advice here. The book advises use of margarine instead of butter in the meal plans, which was conventional thinking in 1994 (when the first edition was published) but is inexcusable in a book published in 2003. The author recommends using sweet snacks such as jelly beans, licorice, marshmallows, etc., and says "Sugar and low-fat sweets per se don't concern me too much as a dietician" so long as they don't contain fat. Sugar candy may have zero fat but that doesn't make it a good thing to encourage people to snack on. A dietician writing in 2003 should know better.

Summary: by all means read the book, but get it for the stories of the "masters", not the diet advice. Just about all of the "masters" had at least one thing to say that I found useful and insightful.

56 of 58 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Possibly the best book ever on the topic of weight loss., January 8, 2004

By	Sheri in Reho (Rehoboth Beach, DE) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Thin for Life: 10 Keys to Success from People Who Have Lost Weight and Kept It Off (Paperback)

I have been heavy pretty much my whole life (I'm 51) and have dieted and gained countless times. I've read MANY books about weight loss and have found some helpful, but I have never felt such a profound benefit as I have gained from Thin for Life. This may not be the perfect book for someone who needs an extremely prescriptive plan...every step written out for you, every morsel of food planned and scripted. But, if like me, you are mostly going it on your own and you are looking for tools and resources to help you, this is THE PERFECT BOOK.

What could be more motivational than a bunch of people who have not only lost weight but kept it off? I don't agree with every single person's methods of either getting it off or keeping it off; however, COLLECTIVELY, their advice is gold. SO helpful. If you are looking for that elusive key to doing this RIGHT for once and for all, READ THIS BOOK. If you just want validation that you're already on the right track, READ THIS BOOK!

Thank you to Ms. Fletcher and to all the "masters"...you have touched me, inspired me and shown me that thin for life does not have to be a fantasy. And for that, I am forever grateful.