Book Review: Bob Harper's "The Skinny Rules"

Any Biggest Loser fans out there?

I love that show and shamelessly admit that I follow multiple contestants on Facebook, currently own 4 Jillian Michaels workout dvds, and love reading materials from any of the trainers, cooks, etc. on the show.

So I was pretty excited when I was able to quickly reserve Bob Harper's newest book entitled "The Skinny Rule: The Simple, Nonnegotiable Principles for Getting to Thin." Admittedly, it took me a couple weeks to actually dive into the book. But when I did, I loved what I read. Bob starts off by introducing 20 "Skinny Rules" to help people eat healthier and smarter. That's where the bulk of the content exists. The second part "The Skinny Way" actually outlines meal plans to follow, and the third part "The Skinny Tools" shares recipes.

I did not expect this to be a meal plan/recipe book!!

Overall I thought this was a great book. It was easy to get through, probably a little bit because the first section is the only straight reading. Plus Bob Harper is behind it...come on, do we really need more reason?

I was actually pretty impressed with the meal and advised food selections. These are actually things I regularly eat and WANT to eat. So often when people share meal plans, they don't include foods I want to eat. Bob includes lots of eggs, whole-grain, fruit, Greek yogurt, lean meats, roasted vegetables, ground turkey, sweet potatoes, etc. etc. These are all staples of what I eat, so I can imagine myself actually using these recipes or turning to his meal selections.

Now to the rules!

I love rules. According to the "Surviving Your Serengeti" quiz, I am a Strategic Lion which means I like to have plans and am most successful in anything when I am able to have at least a mental outline of what I'm doing and how I'm going to do it. And I don't do anything until I have that plan.

To spare your attention span, today I'm just going to share a list of the rules. (And I feel fine doing this because they are all listed in the Table of Contents which you can find anywhere.) There is a lot of additional great information, so look for that in a future post.


Bob Harper's Skinny Rules
Rule 1: Drink a large glass of water before every meal
Rule 2: Don't drink your calories
Rule 3: Eat protein at every meal
Rule 4: Slash your intake of refined flours and grains
Rule 5: Eat 30 to 50 grams of fiber a day
Rule 6: Eat apples and berries every single day
Rule 7: No carbs after lunch
Rule 8: Learn to read food labels so you know what you are eating
Rule 9: Stop guessing about portion size and get it right—for good
Rule 10: No more added sweeteners, including artificial ones
Rule 11: Get rid of those white potatoes
Rule 12: Make one day a week meatless
Rule 13: Get rid of fast foods and fried foods
Rule 14: Eat a real breakfast
Rule 15: Make your own food and eat at least ten meals a week at home
Rule 16: Banish high-salt foods
Rule 17: Eat your vegetables—just do it
Rule 18: Go to bed hungry
Rule 19: Sleep right
Rule 20: Plan one splurge meal a week