Every year there are multiple books written on weight loss. These books usually focus on one specific aspect of weight loss. Many will focus on a new exercise program while others have some new exclusive diet plan. Some of the more popular programs are the keto and fasting diets. These programs often appear to work initially with their primary goal of losing weight, however, the sad state of affairs is that the long-term success rate for these quick fixes for weight loss is a paltry 15%.The concern with most of the weight loss programs is their sole goal is the number of pounds they are trying to lose. That is not the premise of this book. The goal is for the reader to become healthier and in the process of getting healthier they will lose those unwanted pounds. In this ultimate healthier state they will decrease their risk for chronic disease or if they already have a chronic disease they will be healthier despite having a chronic disease. This approach gives a patient a better success rate in losing weight and most importantly allows them to keep the weight off. Success is often measured in years and Canyon Ranch has been in existence for over 40 years. Health and wellness has been their total focus over those 40 plus years. In the second half of Canyon Ranch's existence I have been their medical director and I have continued their philosophy of getting people healthier. Using this philosophy and constantly following the science of weight loss, this approach has been successful in helping my patients at Canyon Ranch become healthier and in the process they are able to lose those unwanted pounds. This is the essence of this book. This book puts you in my shoes as to how I evaluate and advise my patients here at Canyon Ranch. As I do with my own patients, I methodically first look for any medical causes of weight gain. Most weight loss programs glaze right over this very important aspect. Many individuals may find out that it is not their fault for the weight gain. An example may be that the new medication they were placed on added those pounds by increasing their appetite. The book continues to look at medical goals, not just goals in pounds lost, but also goals that are associated with improved health. Some examples are cholesterol levels and blood sugar levels to be attained. The reader will also learn that getting healthy and losing weight is accomplished by using the Canyon Ranch comprehensive integrative approach to wellness. This is a holistic lifestyle change that includes improving a person's overall medical state, their mental health, their dietary pattern, their exercise regime, their spiritual wellbeing and maximizing their sleep. This book looks at the newest science of attaining a healthy metabolic weight. We are all individually very different, not only externally, but internally. Each of us will metabolize food differently and there are multiple factors that can affect this such as our age and gender. With this in mind this book discusses how we at Canyon Ranch utilize the newest tracking devices such as a continuous glucose monitor to determine how each individual metabolizes foods. What may be a good food for one person may not necessarily be good for another in relations to their metabolic response to that particular food. How we metabolically respond to food is a major factor in gaining and losing weight. Finally this book looks at more futuristic approaches to weight loss through knowing ones genetics and microbiome. Science is learning more every day how these two areas can influence our health and our weight.There are many books written that address a lot of the pieces that are in this book but few address in total what this book has to offer for success in losing weight and improving ones overall health.
