Secrets From the Eating Lab - Traci Mann, Ph.D

3 Stars

ABOUT THE BOOK -

A provocative expose of the dieting industry from one of the nation’s leading researchers in self-control and the psychology of weight loss that offers proven strategies for sustainable weight loss.

From her office in the University of Minnesota’s Health and Eating Lab, professor Traci Mann researches self-control and dieting. And what she has discovered is groundbreaking. Not only do diets not work; they often result in weight gain. Americans are losing the battle of the bulge because our bodies and brains are not hardwired to resist food—the very idea of it works against our biological imperative to survive.

In Secrets From the Eating Lab, Mann challenges assumptions—including those that make up the very foundation of the weight loss industry—about how diets work and why they fail. The result of more than two decades of research, it offers cutting-edge science and exciting new insights into the American obesity epidemic and our relationship with eating and food.  

Secrets From the Eating Lab also gives readers the practical tools they need to actually lose weight and get healthy. Mann argues that the idea of willpower is a myth—we shouldn’t waste time and money trying to combat our natural tendencies. Instead, she offers 12 simple, effective strategies that take advantage of human nature instead of fighting it—from changing the size of your plates to socializing with people with healthy habits, removing “healthy” labels that send negative messages to redefining comfort food.

Purchase Links

HarperCollins | Amazon | Barnes & Noble

Traci Mann, Ph.D. , is professor of psychology at the University of Minnesota and is an expert on the psychology of eating, dieting, and self-control. She was a tenured professor at UCLA before moving to the University of Minnesota, where she founded the Health and Eating Lab. Her research has been funded by the National Institutes of Health, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the National Aeronautics and Space Association (NASA). She lives with her husband, University of Minnesota professor of psychology Stephen Engel, and their two sons in Edina, Minnesota. 

Find out more about Traci and her book by visiting secretsfromtheeatinglab.com. 

  

MY THOUGHTS -
This book certainly gave it a good try, but it just didn't quite make it for me. There was some very good information and great ideas, but also a lot of useless studies that took up a lot of space. That sounds a lot worse than it was! This was not a bad book. I found parts of it interesting because I am into that kind of thing - healthy eating, nutrition, healthy body etc. and I love learning more. But I can see where your average overweight person looking for a book to help them loose a few lbs. would be overwhelmed with this book and quit before getting to the good part half way through. I almost want to tell them "No, wait! Skip the first half and just go right to the midsection." That's where the good stuff is.

So this book was not a total loss for me but I did get tired of one study after another. It seemed like this book was almost totally made up of studies. And I don't really feel like a learned anything new. It was all stuff I had heard before.

In between all the facts, stats, data, and numerous studies there are actually a few great ideas, its is just hard to find them and I don't think I would buy the whole book just for that.

I voluntarily posted this review after receiving a copy of this book from TLC Book Tours. Thank you! 

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