by Stephen Gullo Ph.D.

Ok I am not far into the book yet, But I think the beginning is really good
It's like coping skills.
He talks of strategy.
He says he has seen a predictable pattern of behavior and food choices that lead people to fail. We face the same temptations over and over again. We have seen it all and tasted it all. He will show us the tools to use to deal with it all instead of having a constant tug of war.

"Food is not free ~~~~~ You have to wear them for years" (how true)


Scales show you just how far you strayed from being thin.
It is about keeping the it going and not backing down
He gives a quiz to see how your eating behavior goes
He also say those who keep a food diary keep the weight off the most.
He recommends making a tape with encouragement about dieting.
Saying things like " What is wrong with this picture of my life, that I am losing to a piece of food, taking orders from a cookie, I will start my diet NOW not later, not tomorrow NOW.
The role of strategy is to save the foods you love the most and keep them in your life. And still lose the weight, and keep it off. Being thin will not make you happy, but being fat will make you sad.
The next chapter has important things to say to us, well to me any way.

I just wanted to give you a idea of what the book is about,
I don't mind giving a summery for everyone if you wanted it. Everyone should read it them selves.

WHat do you think?
sandi

I've got the book right here beside me on the end table, but haven't gotten into it yet.

I think it would be cool to do a chapter a week, maybe assign a chapter to each person who wants to do this, hopefully there will be many (10 at least) and we could have a week to chat about it and apply it to our lives.

I know, I always have ideas, but I am reluctant to take charge, so some else grap ahold of this and go.

I love, love, love this book!

There are treasures on almost every page.

I have taken notes, and was including bits of info in my newsletter, until my life got sidetracked lately.

My mantra these past couple of weeks is this one from his book: Separate mood from food.

Good advice!

He gives some good strategies that could help anyone on any plan, especially for maintenance.

I ordered Thin Commandments based on recommendations on the forum. I should be receiving it by the end of the week. I can't wait. I also ordered Life Without Bread and Eat Fat, Lose Fat.

Robin

I would love updates!
Thanks.

Christin told me about this book...I need to get my hands on a copy!

It is not low carb, per se. He has his own diet guidelines in there, but it is not the biggest part of the book.

The bulk of it is just sound strategy and rethinking, which is where it can be valuable, i think.

He discusses 'boxing in' and 'boxing out' some foods, which is simple and obvious and brilliant, when you read it.

He acknowledges we may have some trigger foods we need to avoid forever.

i love the book
he talks about history of your diets
what makes you cheat and all.
Lets do this book
Do you want me to do the next chapter?

how should we work this?
sandi

Wow, sounds like some great insight to have. I want to use low carb to diet because of getting rid of the physical cravings, but sounds like this book can certainly help with the psychological cravings!

Ok, I thought I ordered The Thin Commandments but instead I ordered "Thin Tastes Better" by Dr Stephen P Gullo.

I saw The Thin Commandments at the bookstore but didn't pick it up because I thought it was on it's way! I am going to go buy it today!

let me know how that book is, Robin, I was thinking of getting it
sandi

Ooh, I'm going to order that. Also a great book is Living the Lowcarb Life by Dr. Jonny Bowden. I learned a great deal from that book. I'm also reading Dr. Bernstein's Diabetic Solution. My husband is a Type 1 diabetic and he has been eating low carb with me.

Ritmeyer, 3 1/2 years ago my Dr told me I was diabetic. I have not been on medication . . . . . I guess my A1C was borderline. The Dr's office just called me today with the lab results of my last test and said that I am no longer diabetic??? My A1C was 5.8 so this WOE is really working for me! I was supposed to get the lab work done in April but I knew from doing my testing that it would not be good so I waited until I'd been doing low carb for a month and then had the lab work done! I know that Type 1 is different but I am sure that low carb has to help alot.

OOO Sandy I'm here I'm here!!! I'd love to have a discussion group about this book. I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!!! This book has been my saving grace as I transitioned into maintenance. (notice my siggy!)

Here's another great insight: "It's time to stop resenting what you do to keep your body healthy and attractive."

Sandy - don't move to chapter 2 yet! We've just barely touched on chapter one! LOL

Let's hear some thoughts on strategies based on the concept of being able to lose the weight just not the vulnerability to food. What do you guys think? Will we ever be at a point that we just won't worry about it any more and it will come naturally? Will eating right eventually become a habit and we just won't look the other way again?

Like Dr Gullo said, we don't lose our history with food, our taste buds or the things that first attracted us to what caused us to put on the weight in the first place. But we are all here to solve the real issue at hand which is permanent weight loss. Stopping this yo-yo epedimic which is so rampant amongst hardcore dieters in America.

One breaking point for me was accepting that my food was not going to love me back. Whatever I was eating was not plotting against me and calling me into its clutches... I was drawn to that food because of a habitual history with it. I had to change my strategies and create a new history. For me.... cookies and I do not have a great history. One chocolate chip cookie and I'm done for! I can't stop! But... I have found that I make myself little protein cookie treats and one is more than enough and I have satiated my appetite and can move on.

Think about this: "Food control is an ongoing, dynamic process. And to make the transition from dieting to lifestyle mode requires changing your thinking and staying with the strategies, which will give you the tools for life, to maintain a lifetime of trim."

OH I know I'm going to enjoy this little discussion... sorry but my book is "BLEEDING" yellow! LOL

Your wish is my command, Christin! Check out the new Maintenance Mode forum.

I would like to talk about it and get peoples thoughts on it and all
I think it is great, and will help alot of people
Because diet is mental too
how do you want to do this
sandi

Think historically, not just calorically --



Wear form-fitting or tight clothes! When you reach maintenance, you should have one size, and one size only, of clothing. I've found that nothing sounds the warning siren faster or motivates people to act with greater haste than when their clothing gets too tight!

Think about what motivated you to start your diet. If you're like many of my clients, you were uncomfortable with your clothing (or you couldn't fit into it) and appearance. When you have a little extra trouble buttoning a pair of jeans or find it necessary to add an extra notch to your belt, it reawakens the original motivation. When you have only one size, you have no choice but to stay trim. If you save larger sizes, you are making it easy -- too easy -- to just switch to a larger size instead of acting to correct any errors.

Also, if you don't plan to be heavy again, why save the larger sizes? When you reach maintenance, throw out the larger sizes -- immediately!

Knowing that you have only one size of clothing adds another powerful incentive to maintain your weight: economics! How many of us can afford to buy a whole new wardrobe especially one in a larger size? Your wallet gives you extra incentive to guard your weight loss.

Before people ever respond to the clarion call to health, they listen to the cry of their clothing getting too tight. I'd have a nearly empty office if I tried to motivate people to stay on maintenance on the basis of health alone.

Your wardrobe is the most powerful deterrent I know of against sliding once more into out-of-control eating. It signals your commitment never to be heavy again. That's why I insist that all maintenance clients discard all clothes that no longer fit, with one exception: I ask them to save the outfit that's their largest size (preferably one they disliked ever having to wear) as an eternal reminder.

Keep problem foods you have a history of abusing out of your home. Almost all the women and a very large percentage of the men I have worked with who regained weight started the slide in their own homes. The slide often began with a food they had a history of abusing but had avoided while they were losing weight.

Remember the study by researchers at the National Weight Control Registry that found that two out of three people who lose weight and keep it off keep problem foods out of their house? Although that food might not tempt you at this moment, I can't urge you strongly enough to remove it from your home or at least keep it permanently out of your sight. Remember, you're always vulnerable to the foods that have tripped you up in the past -- even on maintenance. Eventually, people tend to return to their old favorites if they are continually available. On maintenance, even more than weight loss, availability stimulates craving -- even if it doesn't happen immediately. Along with keeping only one size of clothes in your house, it's critically important to keep problem foods out of your home.

Set a weight ceiling, and defend it. Pick a number -- typically about 3 pounds for women, 5 pounds for men -- and don't let your weight go above it -- ever. No matter what happens, don't let yourself off the hook. Draw a line in the sand. When the weight is back down, you can return to maintenance eating. Most of my clients expect increases in weight on weekends because of higher-calorie maintenance meals at home and out. Monday is typically the "high number" day of the week, but by Friday, they bring the weight back down to their goal weight, via Phase A and B eating.

Weigh yourself every day. Your bathroom scale can't weigh your behavior. However, it will tell you when you gain a pound or two. If you step on the scale the morning after a big meal at a restaurant or special event, your weight could be up. Don't be alarmed. If it's water weight, it will dissipate in 24 to 48 hours. You should expect slight variations during the week, especially after maintenance meals.

If it's real weight (3 or more pounds that remain over a period of several weeks), that should be a warning to you to take immediate action.

If you find it a bit maddening to follow the daily fluctuations of the scale even though you are eating properly, pick three days of the week on which you will always weigh yourself (for example, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday).

Exercise. It gives you structure and control. It gets you thinking about calorie burn and health consciousness and directs you away from obsessing about food. It's been shown that dieters who exercise regularly succeed the longest at keeping weight off. A study of more than 32,000 dieters by Consumer Reports magazine found that "regular exercise was the number one successful weight-loss maintenance strategy" of more than 81 percent of the long-term maintainers. In second place, at 74 percent, was the related strategy of increasing activity in daily routines. Also, as your body becomes lighter, it burns fewer calories. Exercise helps expand your calorie budget by burning the higher-caloric foods of maintenance.

And remember: Exercise generates endorphins, increases energy, and elevates mood.

Exercise provides you with a healthy outlet for stress. These effects help you follow through on your commitments, especially to control your weight. And as an outlet for stress, exercise shortcuts mood eating. It's the perfect alternative to keep your moods out of your foods.

Keep a photo of yourself at your heaviest weight. For added emphasis, place it next to a picture at your lightest weight. Many of my clients put the photo in a place where they feel most vulnerable -- the refrigerator door or kitchen counter, for example. Others elect to carry the photo in their wallet or purse.

Some of you may find it upsetting to stare constantly at a picture of yourself at your heaviest weight. Instead, carry a picture of what you look like at your lightest weight. You may find it motivates you even more to protect your accomplishments.

When it comes to weight control, a picture is truly worth a thousand words.

Keep a food diary. I'd like you to keep a diary for at least the first 90 days on maintenance. I ask my own clients to keep a diary for a full year. I want them to be certain they can manage the entire cycle of the year, with its holidays, vacations, special events, birthdays, summer versus winter eating, and so on. Since the same events and seasons come up year after year, once you get through the first year, you should be well prepared for the coming ones. After the first year, I frequently ask some clients to continue to keep a food diary or to keep a record of any "error" such as eating problem foods or excessive quantities of caloric foods.

A diary will serve as a daily reminder of the extras and/or negative eating habits. Writing out your meals and snacks a day in advance will help structure your thinking and help you steer clear of potential trip-ups.

Give yourself clear boundaries. Boundaries are a strong structure for your eating behavior. A major study of the winners found that 88 percent limited some type or classes of food. Another 45 percent limited the quantities of the foods they ate. Remember, if you don't have a good history of limiting a particular food, avoid it.

I help my clients establish clear boundaries and control their calorie budget with the lighter menus of Phases A and B of my eating plan from Monday through Friday, saving their maintenance meals or higher-calorie foods for weekends and special events. This clear boundary helps build an infrastructure of positive behaviors and smart eating habits that becomes automatic after a few weeks.

Most of my winners reinforce their boundaries with the techniques of Box It In and Box It Out. Many decide to Box Out a certain category or type of food. For some, it's baked goods, especially breadbaskets. Others avoid sweet baked goods (but may indulge in another type of sweet, such as a chocolate mousse). I want to emphasize again: They don't do this to make their lives difficult or to deprive themselves of something they want. They do it to make it easier to succeed at weight control -- which is something they want more.

Go beyond the food reward system. My winners enjoy the pleasure of fine food. Many of them dine regularly at fine restaurants. However, they've evolved beyond the childhood programming that views food as a reward or a treat.

They understand that no matter how beautiful a food looks or how enticing its aroma, if it's a food they have a history of abusing, it's no reward at all.

Some of my clients reward themselves with new clothes. Others enjoy a trip to a spa, a new necklace, or a weekend getaway with friends.

These are material rewards. A far more meaningful reward occurs each morning when they look in the mirror and see a trim body. There's no greater reward you can give yourself than to live the vision you have for your own life.

what he says about his diet

some of my favorite qoutes
“Think historically, not just calorically.” If you learn to recognize what compels you to eat, you can adjust your response to the situation."


“The more you say ‘tomorrow,’ the more you’ll weigh tomorrow.” The longer you postpone or cheat on your diet, the harder it will be to get back on track and reach your goal.



“Do you like it enough to wear it?” Being a healthy weight is more gratifying than the fleeting enjoyment of any food.

Sandi - I love that second line there. Isn't it so true that we do that to ourselves? When we say tomorrow we are only putting of the inevetable and postponing our own happiness. So why do we do it? For the sheer pleasure of one more cookie?

This is what gets me about food "baby talk." That's just it! It's baby talk! I finally learned to think of myself as an adult and learn to treat myself as one with adult rewards! I don't "deserve" a potato chip. When you think about it that way, we're really selling ourselves short. Am I worth only one potato chip?? I'd like to think that my accomplishments are more costly than that! I love what my friend Deni says... I DESERVE to be healthy... By not treating myself like I child and rewarding with food I can learn to treat my body the way it should be treated. Like a GROWN UP!!

What do you reward yourself with instead of food?

Shoes, and music. I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOVVVVVVVVVVVVVEEEEEEEEEEE shoes. Too much according to my husband. After each 10 lbs gone I buy a pair of shoes and when I feel like treating myself I download another song off ITunes.

what do I reward my self instead of food
That is a lesson I still have to learn
Happy= treat, sad=treat, sick=treat you get the idea
I was teaching my boys that too
Maybe for every 10 pounds weight I loose, I can buy beads.
I was thinking of doing a necklace or bracelet and add beads to every pound I lost
sandi

Lindasue, I know exactly what you mean. I have a really hard time buying clothes with a higher number on the tag, even if it fits me perfectly (and it's just the brand that's got funky sizing).

I haven't read this book, but it sounds intriguing.

"Do you like it enough to wear it?"...

That could be a good comeback line to the "don't you miss.../I couldn't live without..." people - "No thank you, I don't like it enough to wear it."

We have our own topic so we can. I just don't know if you want me to do the chapters or take turns, etc etc
SO we should plan how we want to do this. I think the next chapter is important too.

I als think he wants us to get rid of our fat clothes, then when we "feel" our clothes getting tight, a alarm should go off, not go in closet take out a bigger shirt and say ill start tomorrow a new diet
sandi

Sandi - would you like to start chapter 2 in a new Topic w/ a summary? We can alternate then as we move on through the chapters. We can keep each chapter open for discussion then with everyone's thoughts and ideas!

Yes, let's organize according to chapters!

Ive read the whole book and am happy to participate!

Bella

ok Ill do it tonight in another subject in this part
sandi

ChrissyLizzy, Sandi and Bella...

Thanks to all of you for this thread! I, for one, really appreciate all your hard work in putting this together and making this happen. I don't yet have the book, but I am absolutely loving the information and inspiration I'm gleaning!

My mind needs a good talking to! The cravings are gone but my old mindset still tries to push me into doing things I don't need to.

Again, thanks a million to all who are participating in this highly educational and motivational thread!

Ron, aka The Former Donut Junkie

Thank Ron
Glad its helping
Its really a good book,
It's almost like they are writing my story
trigger foods, time, place
sandi

Wow.. inspiring.

I'm lurking here. I'm soaking it in.

Thanks!

Ron, aka The Former Donut Junkie,

I read your blog . . . . . very informative and interesting. I am not able to post comments for some reason or I would have posted one there. I think I am just not computer literate enough yet!

Robin

I'm catching up here. This is far more rewarding that the other soap operas happening.

I remember the first time during this weight loss I bought a pair of no stretch jeans and felt so good wearing them and comfy. Now they are way too big. Keep giving stuff away. Every once in awhile I come across something I have no idea why I'm keeping it. Didn't realize it was too big.

I will be doing the 5th commandment on Friday night, unless Christin feels up to it and wants to do it.
The more I read this book, the more I want to make it a part of me and WOL
ANd I got his 2nd book, we should do that one too.
sandi

Just picked up this book due to all the excerps on this thread. Really looking forward to reading it. I think it is just what I need to help break old habits and keep the weight off.
thanks everyone for bringing this to my attention. I'll be back to discuss after I get into it. WooHoo - I need all the help I can get.

great looking forward to talking with you about this book
sandi

Finally started this book and what an eye opener it is. Funny all these years and all this food and some of the stuff in the very first chapter is turning into those "Ah ha" moments. I quoted the part about the gaining lost weight with the same food, at the same time, for the same reasons to my girlfriend today and she had that look that deer get in the headlights. Yes - it's repeating the same pattern over and over and the food isn't new or exciting it's the same old junk. So, anxious to keep reading here.

Same here! I've just started reading "The Thin Commandments Diet" as well. I'm just barely into the third chapter, but it is absolutely a God-send so far as I'm concerned. Yes, zyarah, there is lots to absorb here and it is worth going over time and again. I really needed the 'psycho' part of this food thing to sink in.

I just put a little quote from Dr. Gullo in a new post on my blog, "Everything In Moderation...Truth or Myth?" It's a little long, but it exposes a long time myth.

Thanks to all who are posting the Thin Commandments summaries here. You are doing a great job and I really appreciate it.

Ron, aka The Former Donut Junkie

Thanks Ron
now that your reading the book, do you want to do a chapter
I really like the book,
It is like they are talking to me, about me lol
sandi

well how about the 7th one
i dont think it would hurt going ahead by one chapter, it is about slips
let me know
sandi