Jonny Bowden's Shape Up!: The Eight-Week Plan to Transform Your Body, Your Health and Your Life

I am a physician in residency training who was also a personal trainer before I went to medical school. It has been my experience that the majority of books on diet and exercise on the market suffer from a noticeable lack of simple common sense advice. Therefore it was my intention at the end of my residency to write my own book on diet and exercise. I don't think I have to any more. Jonny Bowden's ideas parallel my own so closely that at times it seemed that I was reading my own words. His nutritional views, most notably that one diet, even a great diet like the Zone won't work for everybody is the most sensible advice I've ever seen in print. His workout advice too is absolutely top notch, and will save the average trainee years of wasted time. And moreover from the cover photos, you can see that this is a man who practices what he preaches. Bravo!

i picked it up because my wife's doctor was raving about it and because the cover looked like bill Phillips Body for Life! But boy was I surprised. This book is witty, funny, filled with personal anecdotes, absolutely loaded with information and turns the "diet industry" on its head. this guy really knows what he's talking about and he's a terrific writer to boot! In my opinion, you have to be a pretty darn good writer if you're going to make this stuff interesting. After reading it I felt downright inspired... it'll tell you how to change your weight, but then it sneaks up on you and you realize it's really helped you change the way you think about your whole life.

Jonny's insight and wealth of knowledge is incredible. After reading his book, I felt more powerful and in more control of my destiny than ever! Unlike many other "diet" books, (and this is no diet book), Jonny acknowledges the importance of differences between individuals. Never before have I heard a nutritionist truly address the impact that factors such as ethnic background, genetic make-up, hormones, social support, etc. have on weightloss. He doesn't construct a list of rules and promise that if you follow it exactly, you will get the results you want. Rather, Jonny acts as a coach and suggests strategies that will help you defeat the things that are preventing you from reaching your goals. The reader executes the strategies and decides how to overcome obstacles based off of the information that Jonny provides. I use Shape Up! as a handbook. I refer back to it when I decide it's time to change my strategy, and if I have questions, I simply e-mail the coach on ivillage.com. Shape Up! helped me to believe in the promises I make to myself and I know it will do the same for anyone else who uses this book.

They are not found in this refreshing book and program. As a member of iVillage.com, I have had the opportunity to put this program and its author to test. Shape Up teaches one to find the value of a food beyond its caloric value. Because the program introduces healthy habits and foods gently and encourages the weaning of less favorable foods and habits, the probability of a person succeeding at losing weight and gaining a healthy body is great. The book is well written with witty stories and easily understood explanations of the science behind Shape Up. I encourage anyone interested in improving their health to purchase this book.

This guy just has a way of talking to you that makes you feel he totally understands you. It's down to earth- you just can't put it down. He has an encyclopedic knowledge of nutrition but that's not even the important part- the important part is that he really helps you to get back in charge of your own life. I did this program when it was on ivillage, and after doing every- I mean EVERY- diet program in the universe, I can tell you that no other ever "spoke" to me like this one- He makes you feel you can take back the power in your own life, starting with food, but continuing on to self-image, and to your whole life. He smashes all these myths, takes on the medical and dietetic establishment, and really helps you see what's going on with you when it comes to weight and food. It's not your "usual" diet information, that's for sure. It's nutrition, psychology, motivation and weight loss all rolled into one, and it left me downright inspired and feeling powerful in a way no other diet book ever did. Highly highly recommended