The ABS Diet: The Six-Week Plan to Flatten Your Stomach and Keep You Lean for Life

by David Zinczenko and Ted Spiker

Book Overview

The latest research shows that starting an exercise program from scratch, even in middle age, can quickly make a man as healthy as one who has been exercising religiously for years. Regardless of age,... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1579549985
• ISBN13: 9781579549985
• Release Date: June 2004
• Publisher: Rodale Books
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.25 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.5" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

One of the better diet books out there

Overall, this book is full of good information, presented in an easy-to-understand format. The dietary recommendations are sound, advocating a balance of protein, healthy fats, and carbs with the majority of the diet coming from whole food sources. The only objection I had was to the use of chromium picolinate supplements - this substance has been shown in animal studies to cause cancer and there is not enough evidence to call it safe for humans. If you need it, chromium is found naturally in brewer's yeast and other foods. The exercises presented were excellent, with both gym and home workouts. The ab-focused moves range from beginner to advanced, and cardio and yoga exercises are also included for variety. I personally like the book's focus on improving health - weight loss is a natural secondary benefit of a healthy lifestyle. Reading was a bit choppy though, with vignettes scattered throughout, frequently in the middle of a paragraph, which makes you flip back and forth through the pages to catch everything. Overall, I enjoyed this book, and I have followed some of the recommendations given. In 2 weeks I have already noticed results. I highly recommend this book.

How to turn your body into a metabolic dynamo (recommended for bodybuilders).

Calorie controlled diets are the most scientifically valid diets. Less calories in, plus cardio = weight loss. The problem with this is that we generally loose fat and muscle at the same time. However, very low-calorie diets are beaten by the body after two to three weeks. The body learns that you are starving down and so starts to conserve fat. You can even eat half the allotted calories per day and watch as you stay the same weight and look like you have the same fat (and you do). Combine cardio and you can loose it all eventually (fat and muscle) but at least you lost the fat. Hard, but it can be done. Although this backbone of dieting is important, actually very important, and works, you can't start eating bad again or else you will put it all back on. You can't stick with a very low-calorie diet forever either without repeating this process every time you put on fat. In general this isn't a bad way to go about getting fit, especially if you are obese and fed up with that fat. This traditional method will rip the fat off for at least 3 weeks and get you down a bit. Then the low-carbohydrate diet is the next obvious choice to get down even more, like the Atkins diet. Low-carb diets limit what you eat so that you find it hard to eat and what you do eat doesn't convert to fat quickly. Lots of foods with medium to high carbohydrate levels vanish from your menu and so if you don't eat fatty foods on this controlled diet your body will continue to loose more weight. Combine this with the traditional method of a very low-calorie intake with cardio and you have a diet on rocket fuel. The problem though is that low-carb diets are very limiting, remove healthy carbohydrate foods that your body needs, and may even be considered dangerous by some experts. Shopping for low-carb foods is not as fun, or as easy, as it sounds. Even health stores and low-carb sections do not have such a great range of foods for low-carb diets. Even food producers have tried to corner this market by adding hidden ingredients to the low-carb foods. You will tend to eat the same things over and over. You can't do it forever. If you want something you can do forever then the Abs Diet is the way to go. The Abs Diet has the right ideas, and really that is the bottom line. It is quite humorous at times too and is easy to read. Modern medicine tells us that the human body can use food to burn fat if we eat the right foods in the right proportions. When we eat certain foods our body's metabolism increases. The very activity of our digestion can use more energy than what we are ingesting. This is the way our bodies where always supposed to act. By avoiding appetite suppressants (the type that stops you feeling full!) food additives (like HFSC) we can eat healthy and feel full like we should, not drinking 2 litres of soda containing appetite suppressants and then want to snack out on a candy bar containing the same appetite suppressants, an endless spiral of overeating. Trans-fats, w

Goldilocks finally find her bed (diet).

Just like Goldilocks from the "Three Bears" children's tale, I finally found the perfect eating routine. My first diet (bed) was the Atkins' Diet. This diet was okay, but I got tired of the greasy food, and started missing carbs and vegetables. When I got off that diet I gained all the weight back with interest. My second diet (bed) was the "South Beach Diet" which was better than Atkins', but it was missing something but shared similar methods to the Abs diet. My third diet (bed) was the Abs Diet and it was the perfect fit for me! You are not deprived of anything and everything in the book makes perfect sense. The key to my success is what the author calls the "12 Powerfoods" which consist of high proteins, fiber, and "good" carbs. As a carb addict it's important for me to have carbs incorporated in my diet. This way I don't have to worry about carb binges and regaining weight. Another factor that works for me are the recipes that are really good, I even enjoy eating ground turkey now. The books maps out how to combine flavors to what is perceive my some as bland food into cuisines that you could serve to your guest. My favorite recipes are: Strawberry Field Marshall Smoothie (Life saver when you want something sweet) Banana Split Smoothie Yo Soup for you Mas Macho Meatballs (FAVORITE!) Chili Con Turkey (Great for those cold winter nights) Even though the books states six weeks, for me it took six months to lose 25 pounds. I overindulged in both snacks and meals, didn't exercise much, and around the holiday ate like it was going out of style. With that being said, I still did well and went from a size 16 to a size 12. I still have 35 pounds to go, but now I'm exercise frequently, and eating less. Within two weeks, I noticed my skirts are fitting looser which encourages me to continue with exercising which will give me the results that I'm looking for sooner. The only thing I would change is the title of the book; I would change it to the "The Abs Lifestyle". I have changed everything about how I eat and carve the "Powerfoods" instead of junk food which is loaded with fat, dangerous carbs, and empty calories. I know I will become healthy and maintain the weight, this is truly my perfect bed (diet) and I hope it will be the same for you.

Good honest information

I think I have read every diet book written and I doubted that this book had anything more to add to my knowledge. Alas, I was wrong. This is a good book but if you are looking for instant magic, then this book or any other, will not help you. Covered here are basics that can help anyone, even someone that is not seeking to loose weight. Your food intake is composed of a balance of foods that are all good for you. Only the traditional junk is left out. There is an emphasis on fiber and protein that will keep you filled up without overeating. Sorry no bacon! I have religiously charted my progress in terms of calories, and clearly on the days that I follow the diet, I always consume less calories than I utilize, which equals weight loss. (and I do this without any agony) On the days that I stray, I tend to overeat! Duh!! Exercise is focused on the mid area (abs) but includes aerobic as well. You abs show by reducing fat (everywhere including the abs area) and building muscle. Basically adding muscle increases caloric demand. As we age we loose muscle etc. Additionally, the book has a great series of illustrated exercises, that can be done in a gym or at home. Too many books expect you to have access to a gym or have $5K worth of equipment in your home. Not required here. A worthwhile read for sure!! Oh by the way, I have actually read this book cover to cover several times, unlike some of the reviews posted here. It works, what more can be said.