STEPHEN PHD GULLO
1 What a Great Book!
This book can work alone or with your current weight loss regimen. Although Stephen Gullo includes a 10 day diet plan to get started, he advocates any nutritional weight loss program that is right for you. That means, unlike so many other books today, he doesn't bash other plans.
Gullo gives you 10 strategies to learn how to deal with food. I wonder if there is really anyone out there who records inspirational messages for themselves. I can't imagine doing this. However, if I had consistently failed at so many diets, maybe I would.
What I found most fascinating about this book was the idea of one's food history. That is, there are some of us that can NEVER have a chocolate chip cookie, NEVER have a piece of cake, etc. Our history is our behavior with a certain food. If we've always, in the past, wound up finishing the Pepperidge Farm Milano cookie sack, or always finish the bag of potato chips, Gullo makes the argument that we should learn to consistently make the choice to abstain from these foods. For some of us, he reminds us, one bite is never one bite. One bite leads either to two hundred bites or thinking about another bite until we cave in. I had never heard this spoken about and this, above all his other commandments, was worth the price of this book.
Gullo also gives sources for some of the foods he recommends that aren't likely to be found at your local grocery. This, too, is thorough and worthwhile. He talks about specific foods that I didn't necessarily know were even available. Having these foods available make watching what you're eating that much easier. Among these are walden farms' calorie free (yes, calorie free!) salad dressings, spaghetti sauces, and syrups, as well as vitamuffins-- 100 calorie delicious muffins that are as nutritious as whole wheat toast and peanut butter but tastes like the richest chocolate cake.
I completely recommend Stephen Gullo's book for absolutely anyone who is trying to either lose weight or learn about proper nutrition and health. It's really not your average weight loss book and has something useful for anyone.
2 Makes sense
At first blush is very exciting, because the kernal of good sense rings through it. Better than most of the B.S. that passes for dietary advice today.
3 If You Buy ONE Diet Book This Year....Make It This One!
I ordered "The Thin Commandments Diet" expecting to find most of the same diet advice that is contained in the 50+ other diet books that grace my bookshelf. Weight has been a life long struggle for me although many times I have managed to remain quite slim. However, I felt that if I managed to gain even ONE piece of advice to help with the weight battle - it would be worth Amazon's small price of $10 for a hardback book with over 300 pages in it.
Like many people, when I experience stress I have often turned to food. Unfortunately, the older I have become the more difficult it has been to get the weight off again.
Before I even opened this book, I jotted down the "10 Commandments" that I expected to find. I mean, after all, how different could his advice be? And yet I found, that while Dr. Stephen Gullo incorporated some of the dieting advice that I had encountered before - he presented it in such a way that it was as though I was reading it for the very first time.
How many times have you read a diet book that had lots of recipes, but you really didn't have a clue as to what to eat when you weren't following complicated recipes? The Thin Commandments IS DIFFERENT. Dr. Gullo has included a list of "110 Best Diet Foods" and lists specific brands! In my opinion, THIS BOOK IS WORTH BUYING FOR THE LIST ALONE! The list doesn't deal with "exotic, gourmet" foods at all. These items can be purchased at your local supermarket and Trader Joe's or if you live in a smaller town - he lists the websites as well.
He presents this approach because you can have the BEST INTENTIONS in the world, but if you are absolutely SICK of "diet food" or are eating the same things over and over again - how long are you going to stay on ANY diet? If you feel you are being deprived, technology in the last 10 years has made such an abundance of foods that taste even better, in some cases, than foods that are loaded with calories.
I had to smile at what was termed "expensive" food in one review because it's not. Eggs are used a lot as well as fruits and other items. NO! Expensive is buying a grocery cart full of sweets and snacks; expensive is having to buy wardrobes in three different sizes; expensive is health problems such as diabetes from weight gains; but most of all expensive is not living your life to its fullest because you are too embarrassed to go to a social event or a reunion; full of regret for letting life pass you by.
Dr. Gullo mentions that you can be the most successful person in the world (I thought of Oprah BEFORE she lost her weight) and if you are heavy - how happy are you going to be with yourself? But he also mentions the reverse: You can have the most overwhelming problem or the worst day of your life - and if you have conquered your weight, that is the one area at least that you can feel pleased about during that time.
As I mentioned above, this book is $10 (or a trip for two to McD's). I urge you to just take one more step and believe you can do this just one more time and order the "The Thin Commandments." I learned SO MUCH from this book (and remember I'm a diet book "expert")! It has my absolute HIGHEST recommendation!
4 Weightloss winner
Gullo has amassed an arsenal of information about the biological triggers that set so many of us off on binges. He has worked with so many overweight people that he knows the main issues that undermine our success at weightloss. I had so many ah-ha moments reading Thin Commandments. I'm not crazy about the title (too religious sounding), but they do represent the laws of food behavior that ultimately lead to success or failure. Gullo is clued into the fact that you have to know your weaknesses in order to find your strengths. In other words, we all need strategies for any success--no achievement happens by magic. The use of tapes/cds has been the most helpful and have gotten me over some low spots in staying motivated. Keep reading the thin commandments and keep listening to the tapes/cd and success becomes part of your thinking. I've lost over sixty pounds with Gullo's strategies, and consider him a General amongst the army of authors of weightloss books. I have read all of the most popular, and many of the others. Gullo gives you a plan for life, so you can win the war not just one battle.
5 Dr. Gullo makes a weight loss house call!
Famed diet doctor,Stephen Gullo charges $1,000 an hour to advise clients on how they can lose weight. Now his tips and techniques can be yours for the price of this book.
The hardcover 318 page book is slim but it's definately quality content. The book is essentially two parts. The first section includes strategies to employ to keep yourself IN CONTROL and IN CHARGE when it comes to your food. Dr. Gullo describes 10 "Thin Commandments". These include tips such as; separate mood from food, structure gives control, slips should teach not defeat you etc.
The tips are pretty common knowledge but the twist is the techniques Gullo shares to master them. For example with his tip, "strategy is stronger than willpower", Gullo suggests you pop a sugar free cough drop or a breath strip to help you resist the bread basket in a restaurant. I tried this the other night when faced with a basket of crispy fried (read fattening) taco chips and voila..ate many less than I normally do.
Gullo also shares foods that he has found give enormous bang for your calorie buck. As another reviewer pointed out, these foods are hard to find. He recommends a 16 calorie crispbread that is an appetite suppresent due to the fiber and is a nice crunchy food item to eat instead of say chips. I hunted high and low in my area and came up emptyhanded. Ended up mail ordering the breads to the tune of $49.50 plus shipping. He pushes these crispbreads so hard in the book as such a wonder food I had to ask the company when I ordered if Dr. Gullo had ownership or derived any monetary gain from the sale. (He does not.) He also recommends a delicious waffle that was also hard to find. BUT its really not Gullo's fault that these foods are hard to find. They are unique in what they offer and they can be very beneficial. He has a resource section so you will be able to order them.
Mastering the strategies in the first section will help you get in control. In the second section Dr. Gullo shares his ABC turbocharged diet. This is definately a low calorie diet with foods selected to help suppress appetite. He gives a choice of breakfasts, lunches, dinners and snacks. A typical day might be 2 hard boiled eggs with high fiber crackers for breakfast, a cajun fish fillet with spinach and veggies for lunch, a frozen stouffers entree for dinner with a side salad and several snacks such as a class of V-8, grapefruit or bowl of soup. The diet is definately a diet. Personally I would rather eat more and lose weight slower and include treats like chocolate and wine. BUT Gullo's plan is only intended for 10 days to "turbocharge" you and appears healthy for those who are inclined to follow such a plan. It does not eliminate protein or fat or carbs like other plans.
Once you have finished the 10 days you go into a maintenance plan which includes more goodies. Dr. Gullo also gives a list of his top 110 best low calorie foods on the market. Some of these items are "faux" foods that are not the best choice in my opinion such as fat free mayo. I would rather have a little of the real stuff that doesnt have all the chemicals in it free mayo does or just substitute mustard. But many of the foods are good and nutritious. The crispbreads have no sugar and may take some getting used to but with a little spread on them..are a very tasty snack. Other winners include Babybel Cheese Wedges, Thomas English Muffins and Starkist crabmeat. The list is really great.
Gullo includes recipes in his book. angel cakes, raspberry souffle, organic turkey breast, cheese crepes etc. I made the eggplant parmegiana recently and it was excellent!
Overall the book is a great resource of tips and techniques to help you achieve your weight loss goals!
6 Fill full on a 1000 calories day
I accidentally came across this book at the library while I was doing an 1800 cal day diet (using a PDA program to keep track) to drop some weight. This book showed me how to eat better, and feel fuller on what amounts to be around a 1000 calories per day (of the correct calories). The updated information was very helpful and informative. Needless to say I am dropping the weight faster and have more energy. As soon as I reach my target I will up the calories again. I also appreciated his experience in identifying what substitute foods/products are recommended and available now that cut out lots and lots of calories.
7 Excellent insight into weight loss!
This book offers a lot of advice to those of us who are still battling the buldge and not getting anything out of the low-carb craze. What I liked most was 'success without substution' which means that you can still eat the foods you love. This is a great diet book and I hope that it will bring an end to the low-carb craze, finally .I enjoyed this book [...]
8 seems pretty restrictive
i have a few problems with this book (and suggested diet):
1. dr. gullo recommends many "boutique" type foods that are not only difficult to find, but VERY expensive. if you are on a budget for your groceries, his suggested food items will destroy that budget.
2. the actual diet is very restrictive and the portions are small. he has you eating the "boutique" foods throughout the day but it sure does seem to me that his suggested portions are tiny.
3. he has recipes that include zuchini but then bans squash from the diet.
4. most of gullo's "free" foods simply replace bad foods (bad snacks) with diet versions of the same. therefore, healthy eating is not encouraged -- you are simply substituting the junk with another junk food
5. my overall impression of the diet is there seems to be a lot of rules and regulations. this is not an easy diet to follow.
dr. gullo has some great advice in the thin commandments but most of it is common sense (drink cold water, when entering a restaurant use a listerene thin strip to supress the urge to go nuts on the breadbasket). the book lists at $24.95. you can find most of the information in this book at various online resources.
9 A Good Rehash of Thin Tastes Better
I am the biggest fan of Dr. Gullo! Ten years ago I bought his first book, Thin Tastes Better. That book was so awesome I bought copies for all my fat friends, and I kept it by my bed to read every night for YEARS!
Using Dr. Gullo's methods, I lost 100 lbs and kept it off for ten years. About 6 months ago I started to gain weight because I slipped into old habits. Naturally I ordered this new book before it was even printed.
The Thin Commandments is basically a rehash of Thin Tastes Better with some updated information; but the message is one I needed to hear again.
Basically, Dr. Gullo teaches us to treat our food addiction as the illness that it really is. No one would ever tell an alcoholic to "go ahead and just have a little", and yet dieters are continually bombarded by this message. That old argument, "you can't deprive yourself" certainly would never be preached to other kinds of addicts.
I know now that I can never eat certain foods in moderation. I have chosen to do without those foods in exchange for a healthy body. I don't feel deprived. I feel liberated from my fat body!
As Dr. Gullo points out, "If food could make you happy, fat people would be the happiest in the world!"
