TLC Blog Tour: Secrets From the Eating Lab

Last year as a part of a blog tour I reviewed The Well Path which was a fantastic book about achieving your weight goals while not undergoing some rigorous (and sometimes ridiculous) diet plan. I felt like the information in the book was well researched and made sense.  

I was excited to read Secrets From the Eating Lab by Traci Mann that is just as chock-full of good advice as The Well Path.  I found myself devouring this book last Saturday morning.  When I took short breaks from reading, I found myself on the phone chatting with friends, reading them excerpts.

This was a great book for me to start the year off with.  I've taken away many bits of information that I've been thinking about ever since I started reading.  While I can't share all the things that stuck with me, I'm sharing a few important gems, and encourage everyone to read this book for themselves.

From the beginning Mann emphasizes that dieting will not help you attain your goals.  (The subtitle does happen to be: The Science of Weight Loss, the Myth of Willpower, and why You Should Never Diet Again). Although people do lose weight while dieting, the weight is often regained.  In fact, five years after a person has had dieting success, they are often heavier than before they dieted.  
Mann's done her research and can back up her claims about dieting.  Identical twins in a study were given the same number of calories to eat. The twin pairs gained roughly the same amount of weight, but some pairs of twins gained as little as nine pounds, while some gained twenty-nine pounds. This just goes to show that your genetic make-up controls how many calories are burned, and it is different for everyone. 

Obesity is not as unhealthy as people think. Yes, it may contribute to cardiovascular problems and pre-diabetes, but it does not kill you.  As Mann looked at death rates, the data shows that people who are slightly heavier may actually live longer.  

Just as "sitting is the new smoking" became my mantra after reading The Well Path, I have found a quote that really has stuck with me in Secrets From the Eating Lab: Willpower is like holding your breath. At some point you have to breathe. 

Common sense seems to be the key to maintaining a healthy weight.  Mann's advice includes getting enough sleep, not spending too much time at meals since the more time food is in front of you, the more you end up eating, and making healthy choices in your diet.

I loved this book. Even though there isn't an easy solution to weight loss, the research she has conducted and has used in this book affirms what I have long believed about weight loss and dieting.

For anyone wanting to kick off 2017 with a change to their lifestyle, or at least the information to make a change if they want to, Secrets From the Eating Lab is a fantastic read.  This is non-fiction at its best and even with all the research and results given, isn't dry or boring.  

I'm keeping this book because it is a title I will refer to often.

Thanks to TLC Book Tours for providing a copy of this book. As always, all opinions expressed are my own.  

Visit the HarperCollins website for more information on this title.