Body with Soul: Slash Sugar, Cut Cholesterol, and Get a Jump on Your Best Health Ever

I enjoyed reading Randy Jackson's journey of a lifetime struggle with weight, and a perspective that has recently changed. He tells the story of growing up with food being such a huge part of his daily life; continuing to be the center of his social life; and ultimately being a major focus in his business life. He confesses that he knew he was getting bigger and bigger as he ate more and exercised less, but it was so easy to ignore. His big wake-up call was ending up in the emergency room with diabetes. It's a sneak peak inside of someone's mind who is going through the process of changing from "living to eat" to "eating to live". He works in great advice from his doctor and his dietitian by asking questions many people wonder and then having the answer from the experts (Why is eating breakfast important? What are the benefits of keeping a food journal? What if exercising just makes me more hungry?) He includes fantastic recipes--lower calorie versions of tasty items from gumbo to cobbler--and tips for being sure your recipes always come out well. He has an entire chapter of exercises for anyone starting out, and even a play list of songs that will keep your energy up! And finally, he encourages those with children to be mindful of the example you are leaving the next generation. One of the greatest gifts you can give your children (I believe) is a lifetime of healthy habits. This book is positive, upbeat, and truthful and is a great motivator to show you that someone else--someone famous--has been exactly where you are, too!

This book caught my eye for one reason - I like Randy Jackson. He seems like a cool guy who'd be great to have as a friend or neighbor. Oh...so it's a weight loss/ lifestyle book? Well, that fits as, like Randy, I've been up and down in the weight department - mostly up - and have tried every diet in the world. Like Randy, my weight has lead to health issues and also like Randy I found there is no great secret beyond calories in, calories out. You lose with more going out and gain when you feed your pie hole too much. You have food choices to make and portions to control. While I was well on my way to my new lifestyle (lost 50 pounds so far) I bought this anyway. It's written by a real person who understands and it's encouraging. This book will never make the NY Times Bestseller List because it has no gimmicky fraud diet-of-the-week. Randy tells the truth. He could have taken advantage of his celebrity and created some fraud diet with a catchy title but instead he decided to tell anyone the truth who wants to listen. High fives to Mr. Jackson for taking the high road. One thing I'd add to the book is to keep a food diary. Extremely important to see and measure in calories what you're feeding your face. Oh, I had a light breakfast today. Why am I gaining weight - all I had was Cheerios and toast! Yes, Cheerios and toast. 2 1/2 cups of Cheerios with milk and sugar, 3 slices of toast with butter...and a glass of OJ. That's like 3/4 of a days worth of calories...and it's 8:00am!!! Reading this book will make you aware of things like this and how to move your butt more but in realistic ways. It's a fun and friendly read for real (YOU!)people and it's especially nice to hear the message from a guy that knows. He's been there, IS there and understands that you hide Snickers bars in your desk drawer at work so your wife won't find them. He's been there. If you need to lose weight (especially a lot of weight)and are prepared for the truth - read this book and take it to heart. Quite honestly, read it before you eat yourself to death; literally. If you haven't had your doctor give you a diagnosis of Type II diabetes yet, you will. Just keep eating and denying. I know all about this too. And start a food diary. If you have an iPhone or an iTouch there is a great FREE app called "Lose It" where you input all the food you eat in a day plus exercise and it allows you to set weight loss goals of a pound or 2 per week. It's just math. At the end of the week, step on the scale and the promised pounds are gone. Calories in. Calories out. This is an enjoyable book to read because you feel Randy's presence and he is someone, like you, who has been there and will always be there. You don't need some white lab coated 165 pound guy who doesn't understand what it's like telling you how to lose weight. You need Randy who been at 350 pounds and still ate with abandon. He's an honest guy who put himself out there and has heard all the fat jokes and snide behind his

Recently I purchased and read this book in conjunction with a books signing. I highly recommend this book. It's well written, very clear language, and has an very important message. Fans of American Idol, can clearly hear Randy's distinctive voice in every word, no ghost writers here. And Randy writes what he knows. And what he knows is how to help people who like him, and myself, have struggled with weight issues. I was lucky enough to start to figure out some of this on my own before I got Randy's book, but for years I was clueless. If this book had come out 2 years ago I might already be at my goal weight. The book has everything. A wonderful story of Randy's struggle. Practical suggestions on Diet and Exercise. And even suggested motivating workout play lists. What more could you want? I think this book is destined to inspire a whole new generation of people to start living their best and healthiest lives. The most impressive thing about the book is that you can "feel" that Randy is doing this because he REALLY believe what he is saying, and he truly wants to help others avoid some of the pain he has experienced.