What are the best diet books and how do you find them? This is not easy, as there are so many thousands of books on diets, weight loss, health, exercise and related topics. Many more are published each year. So how do you sift through these to find that one diet book that will work for you?
The first thing to remember is that no one diet is best for everybody. For example, there are books that advocate vegetarian or vegan (which means no animal products of any kind) diets. If you are an avid meat lover and have trouble getting through a whole day without some kind of animal nourishment, then this kind of diet probably won’t work for you. You will be fighting against yourself, and you’ll probably end up quitting the diet and feeling like a failure. On the other hand, some people find the idea of a vegetarian diet very appealing. It depends on you.
So don’t try to go against your nature. If the idea of a raw foods diet, where you eat absolutely nothing that’s been cooked, makes you feel queasy, then why torture yourself by trying a diet that you know deep down you won’t stick to? We might even get psychological here and suggest that some people pick extreme diets that are contrary to their nature so they can abandon them and go back to their old ways! Maybe so, maybe not, but in any case, it’s better to find a diet that is in harmony with your basic nature.
Beyond the type of diet, you should consider the style of the book. If you are a very detail oriented person who likes to read, a thick, 500 page book that describes in scientific terms why Diet X is so great might be just the thing for you. If, on the other hand, you are a skimmer and only want to know, “what should I eat and when?” then don’t pick the 500 page book. Pick one that cuts to the chase and gives you the basics.
You can also use your intuition when it comes to picking a book. If you are looking at a book in a bookstore, pick it up and browse and read several paragraphs. Find out how it resonates with you. Even if you are shopping online, you can often read excerpts and reviews. Sometimes even the title and author biography (and sometimes picture) can give you a good or bad feeling.
So, you don’t need to find the best diet books for everybody, only for you. It’s also a good idea to not collect stacks of books before you give one diet or system a fair chance. You want to collect information, but you also need to put it into practice!
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This is great information. It is really important to understand that although there are some great books out there, each book should be evaluated on the individuals needs and situation. In the short term, every single diet works but the problem is that many of them are unnatural ways to eat and can not be sustained (ie only eating grapefruit). The long term challenge is to find a program that you can adjust to and frankly live with not what is printed in a book and some “expert” states. One of the most important points is that when you are making any change to your diet or activity level that you consult your doctor first.
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