A Review of “Belly Fat Diet For Dummies” Book

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A number of weeks ago I received Belly Fat Diet for Dummies to review from the popular For Dummies book line up. Never one to think myself so educated that I can learn immediately from text book style verbiage – the For Dummies books are right up my alley. We have used For Dummies books in our homeschooling curriculum (currently my daughter and husband are working their way through Beginning Programming with Java For Dummies), and I love the way they are clearly written so that anyone can follow the game plan, whatever it may be, within their pages.

Generally I’m the sort of person that skips the introduction to a book. Usually because I deem the information there optional. I mean if it were important it wouldn’t be in the introduction now would it? But if you’ve never read or used a For Dummies book before, a word of advice; Don’t skip the introduction — it’s important! Really, this is where you’ll find out how to “decode” all the great tips and tricks that you’re going to get from whatever For Dummies book you’re reading through.

These are the type of things you’ll learn from reading the introduction, they will help you out immensely as you read through the book.

The reason I was interested in reading through Belly Fat Diet for Dummies is that I’m knocking on ’40’ and I simply needed to find some “tools of the trade” to help me get this baby fat around my midsection (yes my ‘baby’ is 16, don’t judge…) under control, and gain an understanding on how to maintain a healthy ‘middle’ for the remainder of my years.

As has been my experience with every other For Dummies books I’ve read through, I found this one very good. While the “dummies” thing might seem disparaging to some, it just means that the information is written in a way that everyone can understand and then put into practice.

The author of Belly Fat Diet for Dummies is Erin Palinski-Wade, RD, CDE who is a nationally recognized nutrition and fitness expert. Wade starts the book out with information on belly fat and the details of the diet. When you first read about why you want to take control of your waistline and ultimately through that your health as a whole, you’ll want to keep reading and choose one of the plans (yep there are more than one, remember this is a For Dummies book, so one size doesn’t fit all!) to start on the goal to flatten your belly.

Early in the book Palinski-Wade states:

“Achieving your ideal body weight and flat belly isn’t always easy. You may hit some roadblocks along the way, which can cause you to get off track with your Belly Fat Diet plan. But don’t worry.”

This book is written for real people. Not super models, not fitness coaches, not cheerleaders. It’s written for the 39 year old woman like me, who has 16 years of belly fat to deal with, other family members to feed and a busy lifestyle. And here’s why you shouldn’t worry…Palinski-Wade helps you identify the most common obstacles that will thwart your progress and the best way to avoid them in the first place, plus she realizes that we’ll fall off the wagon, we’re human, and so she also will show you how to fix it and get right back on the wagon should you fall off.

If you’re wondering how the Belly Fat Diet can work for you, the first reason I’d recommend it is the cost. The list price is $19.99 (but it is actually only $12.60 on Amazon), and other than food (which you have to buy anyway every week or two, right?!) the only other investment you’ll have to make is time and lifestyle changes. That’s a pretty low cost should you follow the program and see results.

For myself, even though I haven’t been following it rigorously, I have been using the meal plans outlined in Chapter 8 for the past two weeks, and feel significantly better with the kinds of food and amounts of it that we’ve been having. It’s all food you can get at your grocery store, and it doesn’t require a chef or a culinary degree to prepare.

The second reason I’d recommend this book is the way it explains the dangers of having belly fat. Palinski-Wade has made the science and health aspect easy enough to understand. With diagrams and simplified wording, all the stuff your doctors or fitness experts have told you in the past that you didn’t get much of…well she explains it in a way that will definitely get you thinking about your current and future health. The whys and the hows are tied together, and then she gives you the knowledge on how to counter the effects, or if your lucky enough to not have too much belly fat yet, to keep it at bay.

The book isn’t all you get either. There is a website that you can use in conjunction with the book to give you more information and support.

I can’t guarantee you results – but the Belly Fat Diet For Dummies can support you on your way to trimming up that belly fat that can be so unhealthy for you. With the background information, visual exercise moves, sample meal plans, plus plenty of recipes and encouragement – you are armed with the tools you need to achieve the goal of a healthier body and life. I think it would be an excellent start to someone who is looking to change their life to a healthier one, doesn’t know where to start, and doesn’t want to be overwhelmed either.

You can read a sample chapter of the book and find out more information about Belly Fat Diet For Dummies on their website.

Tune in for another For Dummies book review in the next couple of weeks where I’ll give my impressions on iPhone 5 For Dummies.

I received a copy of Belly Fat For Dummies from John Wiley & Sons, Inc. for review. All opinions are my own. Published by Tammy Litke.