Best book 2013

I read some great books this year but for me the best one that I've read is "the fast diet" by Dr Michael Mosley and Mimi Spencer.

 

 

 

My sister told me about it and lent me her book.  In late May I thought I would give it a go, especially as it involved no exercise and besides weight loss there were other health benefits. 

 

The basic idea is that 2 days a week you limit your calorie intake to 500 calories (600 for men) and you also do a 12 hour fast during the days you have chosen.  I liked the idea that it was only 2 days a week and that for the other 5 you could eat normally because I do enjoy eating. 

 

The 12 hour fast is meant to trigger your body's ability to look after it's self as it sees the lack of food as a famine.  Anti aging abilities kick in as well the body's ability to repair itself.  Sounds good...but for me the biggest benefit was the repair work to the brain. 

 

My mother in law lived with us for several months while we waited for a place in an aged care home.  We got to experience dementia first hand....so cruel.  Listening to her splash water around the bathroom instead of washing as she doesn't know that's what she was meant to be doing.  Not using the toilet, roaming the house at 2 am, randomly appearing next to our bed and turning on the light to look at us.  Eating, not eating, feeding her lunch to the dog because she doesn't know what else to do with it.  And the worse was showering her while she screamed and tried to grab on to me because she had no idea what I was trying to do.  It was like having a toddler in the house but one that wasn't learning anything she was just lost...

 

Soooo when I read that there was a link between fasting and delaying things like dementia I was ready to try it.  There was also evidence that fasting may also "lower your risk to a range of diseases, including diabetes, heart disease and cancer".

 

My husband was sceptical as he knows how much I love food but to his surprise (and mine) I managed to do it...yay...I lost 11 kilos in 6 months and it's changed my eating habits.  I now eat appropriately for my height, age and lifestyle and not the same as the boys (young men with very physical jobs) need to eat.  I also stop eating when I'm full, you don't need to finish every on your plate.  When I don't listen to my stomach I really regret it.

 

Does this mean I have no fun at meal times...no no no.  To be perfectly honest I've just had chocolate before breakfast and I still have dessert, ice creams and cake just not all the time.

 

If you want to read more about it here's the link.  I definitely think it's worth reading the book but you can get the gist from the website. 

 

Cheers, Judith