THE 2 KEYS TO PERMANENT WEIGHT LOSS

A debut guide to weight loss emphasizes behavioral changes.

Weight loss is a perennial subject about which countless books are published annually. Many of the titles recommend specific diets while others concentrate on combining healthy eating habits with exercise. Typically, these works are authored by weight loss “experts” who are often doctors or nutritionists. This clearly written manual departs from the more traditional paths to weight loss by instead focusing on two primary “keys,” which Flett depicts in oversize capital letters as “YOUR MIND” and “HAVE YOUR HORMONES WORK FOR YOU—NOT AGAINST YOU.” The author’s credentials are also nontraditional; he learned how to control his own weight and then decided to write a book to help others. Flett based his work on seven years of research, which included sending out over 2,000 questionnaires. The guide is neatly organized into four parts. Part 1 discusses human nature and foods in general; Part 2 presents a thorough plan for weight loss as well as covering specifics such as types of food, the evils of sugar, and frequency of eating (including a fasting strategy); Part 3 offers tactics and strategies for implementing fundamental change and maintaining a healthy weight; Part 4 is comprised of three appendices with apps and websites, a comprehensive list of weight-loss topics, and a look at the questionnaire and accompanying results. Much of this material will undoubtedly be familiar to readers who have explored dieting, but the overarching theme of Flett’s book is essential to those who want to achieve permanent weight loss: “There must be a fundamental change of nature that occurs within an individual.” That theme, more than the common advice about what foods to eat and which to stay away from, is reinforced in a positive, meaningful way. For example, the author provides some very simple yet clever and powerful methods of behavioral change, such as eliminating just a single unhealthy food or drink from one’s diet to “feed your new nature,” eating “facing a mirror,” and learning “to hate or at least strongly dislike and avoid foods that have power over you.”

Cogent, thoughtful, and actionable weight-loss advice.