Tough Talk About Fat!: How to Reach and Maintain Your Ideal Weight

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Summary: The Only Way to Reach and Maintain Your Ideal Weight
Review: TOUGH TALK ABOUT FAT! doesn't scold the reader for being too heavy. It tells him to GET TOUGH with that excess fat and get rid of it--all of it! And it's not just about looking better and feeling better. There are important health issues, most significant of which are heart attacks, diabetes, and worn-out weight-bearing joints. The increasing Epidemic of Obesity now puts more than 2/3 of the US public in the overweight or obese categories, increasing every year. And, since obese parents raise obese children, we are also killing our children, as evidenced by the Epidemic's extension into children and teen-agers, producing an alarming increase in type 2 diabetes in young people.
The "weight loss industry" in the US has been characteried as "a $58 billion industry--with a 98% failure rate." So for every two persons displaying their better bodies in ads, there were 98 others who did not succeed. Think about it. If there were an easy, effective way to lose and maintain weight, everyone would know about it and everyone would be using it. But they aren't, are they?
Dr. Parsons tells the truth, that only TOTAL CALORIES matter, and IT WORKS LIKE YOUR BANK BALANCE. If you consistently put in less than you take out, it will steadily fall. He says not to "go on a diet" because they always fail. Instead, TAKE CHARGE OF YOUR LIFE--and stay in charge. He explains why, if the word "carbs" is in your vocabulary, you should throw it away! [And isn't the current "low carbs/good carbs" food advertising a disgrace, messing with the minds of a public that has been led to believe that it's OK to eat all the high-calorie fats you wish, just so you limit your carbs. With fats at 9 calories per gram and starches/sugars at 4 calories per gram, I don't think so!!]
His method is to look up how many calories are in the foods you have usually been eating. Then have your mind work like a great table in the book: "Instead of this, eat that, and you'll save .... calories." If you can reduce your caloric intake by 500 calories a day, you'll lose a pound a week--since the magic number for losing one pound is a net deficit of 3500 calories. This means that, if you can reduce your old intake by 700 calories a day {not hard if you have been a dessert eater, a snacker, or have one or two beers a day or whatever, you will lose a pound every 5 days. This is 4-6 pounds a month, 48-72 pounds a year, plus more when you increase your exercise.
Dr. Parsons warns, however, against the perception that exercise will play a major role in your weight loss program. It plays a role,but a minor one, and thinking it is a major factor can make you let up on getting tough with your caloric intake. {I have been so good with my exercise that it won't matter if I eat that piece of cheesecake.") But it DOES matter, and that kind of thinking can destroy your progress and ruin a program.
He explains that the only exercise you will ever need is 30 minutes of brisk walking (the best you can manage) each day, which you must GET TOUGH and build into your day's schedule.
TOUGH TALK lists 11 tips on how to design your own program, 16 strategies to reduce your intake before even think of a calorie number, and 20 ways to reduce your intake of fats, the highest in calories. There's no higher mathematics involved, just an awareness of how to save calories, partly by learning or re-discovering how delicious fruits can be as snacks and desserts, along with vegetables as low-calorie choices for meals and snacks as well.
Finally, he asks you to work to lessen the Obesity Epidemic in your community by getting fast foods and high-calorie soft drink machines out of schools, in the nation by urging your lawmakers in Washington to sponsor or support a law he proposes, to require a display of the total calories in any food item as it is advertised or served. {Example: "590" in the corner of the screen when a Big Mac is shown, "1,020" for a Double Whopper with Cheese--and on and on, a gentle but ongoing educational effort that will etch such numbers into consumers' minds.
He also suggests that you help your friends who need the message by giving them copies of the book. But how to avoid seeming to say, "You're fat--here's a book?" Well, each book includes a bookmark that says, "Presented with loving concern, knowing that weight control can prevent heart attack and diabetes, while sparing your weight-bearing joints." How warm and fuzzy is that? Like the whole book, it is thoughtful and effective. Buy it, use it, and enjoy your slim-trim future!