Rating: 
Summary: This really worked for me. Easy to follow for life.
Review: I can't believe I'm saying that a diet worked for me, but this really worked for me! For about ten years I was around 20 pounds overweight even though I ate less than my peers, exercised regularly, and ate (what I thought was) a very healthy vegetarian diet. Finally a few years ago an endocrinologist diagnosed me with PCOS. He put me on 850 mg of Metformin, 3x a day. The medication helped me get back to my normal weight, but I didn't like the side effects. This past year another doctor of mine mentioned The Insulin Resistance Diet book. I was skeptical at first since I never had much luck with any type of diet, but I decided to give it a try. If you're interested in nutrition topics, you'll find this book a very easy read. I finished it in a few days. I talked to my endocrinologist about lowering my Metformin dosage at the same time I started the Insulin Resistance Diet. He agreed to lower it to 500 mg, 3x a day. Within about four months of following the Insulin Resistance Diet, I've lost 15 pounds. The concept itself is easy to grasp with a little practice, and carrying it out is easy too because I can still eat anything I want to eat as long as I follow the link-and-balance method described in the book. Diets that tell you to eliminate complete food groups never sounded right to me. You won't have to do that on the Insulin Resistance Diet. I'm actually eating more food and more often than I used to eat, and yet I'm losing weight. A friend of mine who doesn't even have insulin resistance followed this plan and lost 30 pounds. We both kept commenting on how easy it is to follow, and how surprising it is to see the weight come off since it feels so easy. The only aspects that I personally didn't find very useful were the recipe section, the suggestion to use artificial sweeteners, and the sections dedicated to fast food and frozen prepared meals. Perhaps this is appealing to the majority of readers, but if you like eating all-natural foods, you might not find those sections useful either. You can still get so much out of this book, even if you ignore the recipes and the suggestions to use artificial ingredients. (In fact, sometimes I even cheat a little on her lowfat emphasis and the weight still stays off.) Since I found this plan (I don't even like calling it a "diet") so easy to stick to, I've found that on the rare occasions that I cheat on it, it's very easy to get right back on track. In fact, cheating on the plan helped remind me how well it works-- I recently skipped the balancing and was quickly reminded how spacey and tired I feel when I don't follow it. At my last follow-up with the endocrinologist, my male hormone levels were still elevated, unfortunately, but he was happy to see that I hadn't gained weight and said I could stay at my new lower dosage for now. So I can't say for sure right now that the Insulin Resistance Diet is curing my PCOS, but I can definitely say that it helped me lose 15 pounds very easily. I really hope this works as well for you as it did for me. Tip: I used a free online food journal that helped me calculate the grams of carbohydrates and protein. Good luck!
Rating: 
Summary: A Miracle
Review: I decided to buy this book after I was diagnosed with insulin resistance. I had failed at the traditional low-fat, high-carb diet over and over again. My eating felt totally out of control, I was always starving, and packing on the pounds.
Its been a month and I've lost a healthy 8 pounds using the general principles of this book. I'm not one that likes to "count grams" whether they be carbs, fat, or protein, but I do pay attention and do my best to follow their formula. I've also disregarded their emphasis on low fat products, but am no where near the Atkins insanity.
The biggest difference for me is that I am no longer hungry all the time. Before, I never felt like I had any will-power. Now I know that there were forces beyond my control willing me to eat more and more. Now, I do have will-power. I control how much I eat and what I eat and allow myself the occasional splurge when I feel like I need it.
For the first time in years I have a sense of hope that I can conquer the one issue in my life that has seemed insurmountable-- my weight. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is tired of feeling hungry and losing the battle.
The only reason for 4 stars instead of 5, is the lack of recipes and the emphasis on low-fat foods, which usually taste inferior and in most instances have close to the same amount of calories as the regular.
Good luck!
Rating: 
Summary: A bit hard to follow, but full of good information...
Review: I have read this once already, and am halfway through it the second time. Some of the text is hard to follow, and it is generally hard to read due to layout and choice of font. However, there is a lot of good and current information in this book about insulin resistance (this being my unprofessional opinion). I plan to take this to my next endocrinologist appt to get his professional opinion on it. The reason I give it 3 stars instead of 4 is due to some puzzling contradictions -- I won't tell you what they are, since I may be the only person confused.
Rating:
Summary: It helped and is helping me
Review: I started doing the Atkins diet, but found it hard to stick with. This book showed me a way of eating that help me shed 25 pounds and reduce my headaches I would get from eating carbs. It is an easy read and the food charts, eat what with what, have been very helpful.I received this book for my birthday along with this amazing new beverage as an alternative to coffee. Made from 100% soy that's organic, its absolutely delicious! It's caffeine-free and comes in 8 delicious flavors. Just google it under "s oyfee" to find it and you won't be disappointed
Rating:
Summary: Easy, Flexible and Works Really Fast!
Review: I started following the Insulin-Resistance Diet after learning from from my doctor that my blood sugar levels indicated I was close to getting diabetes. I already knew that my blood pressure, cholesterol and triglyderide levels were high. The possibility of getting diabetes too finally got me scared enough to make some lifestyle changes - which for me were following this diet and walking 30 minutes a day 5 days a week. In just 2 months on this diet and walking routine these were my results: - I lost 22 pounds
- Blood pressure went from 130/90 to 130/70 (almost normal)
- Blood sugar dropped from 6.0 to 5.7 (top of normal tange)
- Total cholesterol dropped from 167 to 127 (normal range)
- Cholesterol:HDL ratio went from 5.0 to 3.6 (normal range)
- Tryglycerides dropped from 207 to 120 (normal range) Now, after one more month I've lost an additional 11 pounds. A friend of mine also got inspired to follow this diet and in 1 1/2 months she lost 15 pounds and her total cholesterol dropped from over 300 to 150. We were both amazed at how fast this diet works for both weight loss and correcting blood chemistry. Also to our amazement, neither of us experienced feelings of cravings or deprivation - you eat so well on this plan. It's not really a diet but rather an eating strategy that is healthy, flexible and easy to follow. I think the greatest gifts of this book are it's emphasis on how the timing of eating affects weight loss or gain, and the effort by the authors to make the diet as easy and flexible as possible. I can't say for sure if this diet will work for everyone, but IMHO, I think it's likely one of the best and most realistic (in the sense that people can actually DO it) answers to a lot of America's overweight problem. I hope it catches on in a big way. Many thanks and kudos to the authors!
Rating:
Summary: worked wonders for me!
Review: I think this book is great!! I have tried other diets and exercise plans but none worked for me. I am a very self disciplined person and it wasn't like I didn't stick to the other plans..I did and htey just didn't get me anywhere. I think the main reason is that I do have an insulin resistance problem which makes it extremely hard for me to lose weight. When I finally got diagnosed with this by my Dr I went out and got losts of books on the subject..this being one of those books. By far it was the easiest to understand and follow and so I decided to try to follow this book first. In less than 1 month with no exercise at all (although I do intend to add exercise to my plan in the near future) and adhering STRICTLY to the link/balance theory I have lost 20 pounds! I also upped my water intake from pretty much nothing a day to 10 cups a day (carrying a bottle with a straw makes it much easier to do this) I am thrilled! The only downside that I would say is that I wish it had more fast food info in it but other than that I think it is super and would highly recommend it to anyone else who has insulin resistance problems. I don't think it would work as well as it did for me if your insulin was fine..I am actually eating more calories now than I was before so I don't know how that would affect someone whose insulin is working right. But for pre diabetics or those with insulin resistance (PCOS) try it and I think you will be amazed. I sure was!
Rating:
Summary: Okay, but not in depth
Review: I was a little disappointed in this book since it was highly recommended to me by my doctor. It is a good overview of insulin resistance problem and explains the balance between carbohydrates and protein very well. I would have liked to see more detail on the diet itself, other than write down what you eat, balance carb w/protein, exercise, etc. I found the Good Carb Cookbook more helpful with the diet (recipes, GI tables,
Carb tables, etc.)
Rating: 
Summary: STUFF AND NONSENSE!
Review: I was amazed and the nonsense in this book! The idea you could lose weight by eating protein with everything, and I mean anything, just does not fit. There does not seem to be good nutritional advice. The links and balances was cute, but seemed a bit too complicated for everyday use. This book would be good for those who do not really want to lose weight, but like to read about it.
Rating: 
Summary: Mostly just a low fat diet
Review: I was disappointed with this book. While it stresses the importance of eating enough protein to balance with carbohydrates, the authors seem to treat all carbohydrates the same, without emphasizing the difference between starchy and non-starchy carbs. The authors are apparentlly unwilling to break from the low-fat paradigm that has dominated diet books for the past 30 years. They recommend questionable foods that I will personally never eat again, such as frozen microwavable dinners, white bread, non-fat "cheese" and margarine. I think a much better book on Insulin Resistance is Syndrome X by Jack Challem, et al. I have also just purchased The No-Grain Diet by Dr. Joseph Mercola, which looks at first glance to be an excellent book, and deals with many of the same issues. I'm convinced, by my own experience, that a diet with too many grains, and especially flour can lead to insuin resistance, so I was dismayed to learn that these authors do not really recommend cutting these way back.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent choice if you have PCOS!
Review: I was recently diagnosed with Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome after trying unsuccessfully to become pregnant. My doctor told me I was insulin resistant & I looked everywhere for a book that would not only inform me regarding what exactly insulin resistance is, but help me take charge of my own health by teaching me make successful changes. This is the book!!! I read the entire book in one and one-half days, and found myself continually reading sections to my husband. I couldn't put it down! It was the missing link of info that I needed to do my part to keep my insulin resistance in check and work to prevent it from becoming Type II Diabetes. I have been using the Link-and-Balance program and I believe I can do this. Today I saw my OB-GYN and was so excited about this book that she decided to get it. This book has changed the way I think about food, including explaining why I couldn't resist carbs & sweets. Now that I am linking my carbs with the appropriate amount of protein, I have been able to manage the cravings. This book has everything, medical info, and personal roadmaps for success and even troubleshooting in case you need to adjust what you are doing to fit your own needs. The menu portion is great (I have tried three main courses already---the chicken enchillada are wonderful!) and it made shopping easy. I can't say enough about this book. I feel like it was written for me! My sincere thanks goes out to the authors!!!
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