The Plan: Eliminate the Surprising 'Healthy' Foods that are Making You Fat - and Lose Weight Fast Kindle Edition

This review is written for all the 40+ women out there who have struggled and struggled to lose weight on any diet. I am one of those women. I am 48, work out 10 hours a week, eat 1200 calories a day, and am 20-30 pounds overweight and no matter what I did, could not budge the scale. I used to work out 5 hours a week and decided to double it thinking that the extra workouts would "beat" the weight off of me. So, I upped my workouts and......NOTHING! I had three kids in 5 years - the last when I was 42. I was able to get the weight off with the first two, but what worked with the first didn't work with the second and nothing worked with the third. I had had previous success on weightwatchers, so I tried that again, but given that I'm a vegan and the points system now doesn't count any of the fruits and vegetables you eat, well, that's a problem since that's where all my calories are coming from. I tried a high protein/low carb diet, which had limited success, but vegan sources of protein tend to be carby and although I'd only be eating about 1,200 calories a day, I'd struggle to even take off 1/4 of a pound a week! My 6'6", 185-pound husband, who eats whatever he wants, whenever he wants says, "it's calories in/calories out". Clearly, if that's the case, then this is new math that I don't understand. I would get down in the dumps because I felt like I'd never get rid of the extra weight, but was at a complete loss for knowing what to do to get it off. I was ready to give up, but I couldn't give up. Carrying extra weight around for many years is unhealthy.

A friend of mine, who is also in my age group, recommended this book. I'd never heard of it before, but went out to Amazon to read the premise and the reviews. The reviews seemed like they were all written by people like me. I read on and saw that she provided options for tailoring The Plan to vegans and vegetarians, so I decided "what the hell" and bought the book. I spent the first week reading the book and looking through the recipes. There's a fair amount of prep work that needs to be done to get your food ready for the first week. That said, the recipes are all super simple to make. They're not gourmet, but they're palatable. I read the book's Plan for the first week and then pulled down the vegetarian and vegan menus off her website and kind of put together a hybrid plan for the week.

I've been on The Plan for a week now and have lost.........wait for it..........9 pounds!!! How is that even possible? I don't know and I'm not asking - who cares? And even though I'm only one week into this and still have a fair number of days left to go, I don't even really care what happens from here on out because I'm down 9 pounds! The Plan makes perfect sense to me and is the first time I've ever come across a diet plan that is tailored to your body. I did another "medically supervised" diet plan where you were eating 1,200 calories a day and were supposed to take off 2-3 pounds a week. When I struggled to take off 1/2 a pound a week, I asked them why and they couldn't answer me. If it's a simple calories in/calories out equation, then anyone who was dedicated could lose weight. For some of us, our bodies attack the food we put in it and that has to be remedied. Her premise is such an interesting concept and explains so much about those folks who we all know who seem to eat whatever they want and stay as skinny as a rail. Most of us chalk it up to a faster metabolism, but how could someone's metabolism be really that much faster than another person's? The way I interpret The Plan is that it's a personalized eating plan that tailors foods to your body chemistry so that we all can eat "whatever we want" and stay slim and fit. We all have the same metabolism, but those people who stay slim eating everything have a much more efficient metabolism because there aren't any foods that hang up in their system. For the rest of us, it's a scientific puzzle to figure out what works for us and what doesn't. I also think she's really on to something with the whole aging process and our systems becoming sensitized to certain foods that once gave us no trouble when we were younger.

I am a huge believer in this book and plan. I have turned three other people on to it and they're now doing it as well. Given that it's the only thing that has worked for me, if you're in the same boat and find you can't budge the scale no matter what you do, it's at least worth a try. I feel great, my arthritis has lessened, and I'm eating avocados for the first time in a couple of decades! Give it a try.

After my friend has great success on this I was so excited to try it out and contrary to so many, I actually enjoyed the cleanse and didn't feel too sick, just a little tired. I lost 5lb in 5 days which is quite remarkable considering I was full on the food, but the good review ends there! My weight didn't shift for a week after that, even while I was stuffing myself with "friendly foods" and my allotted water intake. The flax granola is gross, even though the author raves about it, and the prep work is so time consuming and labour intensive that I had to start during spring break when I wasn't working. There is nothing easy about this plan apart from easy money spending as the ingredients are not cheap. If you are cooking for a family, you will not be able to do both. My kids were fending for themselves while I focused on plan food! Not doing that anymore! I was tied to the kitchen and even though some recipes were delicious, after a few days I couldn't take anymore brocolli or zucchini! Especially as my weight wasn't shifting, forget that! I just couldn't do it anymore. There are many inconsistencies but if you want to try it, it's worth just getting into her website and downloading the info as opposed to getting the book. In fact the website (lyngenet.com) tells you NOT to use the menus in the book as they are being tested all the time. I'm heading back onto South Beach. Happy dieting friends, and don't let the claim that this is not a diet fool you, it is soooo a diet!

I just purchased this book last night and have read it through already. I really wish I would have gotten a hard copy although there are links in place for the kindle version, it is a pain getting back to where you started once you leave your last page. UPDATE ***I do not have a Kindle Fire my Kindle is one of the original models. People with Kindle Fire are not having this problem. I am also not having this problem while using Kindle Software on my PC.***

The plan itself seems logical and I am going to do it. I have hypothyroidism, I'm 40 and I can't lose weight. I've suspected food allergies or excuse me having high reactivity to foods. I've gone through "boot camp" type programs in the past and ended up with some beautiful muscles but little to no fat loss.

One gripe I have is that the breakfast required to start "flax granola" coud be purchased via a website for $40. For the $40 you get three bags of flax granola and a bag of special flat bread. Where I'm from that's a lot of money for breakfast lol. The Author did redeem herself by putting a recipe to make it at home in the book, thankfully.

The other gripe I have is all the "It worked for me jargon" cluttering the chapters. I don't need that to try the plan, but maybe others do. I mean I bought the book already stop trying to sell it to me. It also made it hard to link back where I left off. I strongly suggest reading the book through skipping the stories, then go back and read the "it worked for me jargon" so you don't get confused.

I'll edit this post as I go through the plan and let you all know how it goes. I've already upped my water intake to prepare for the first phase. I hope to start this next Monday or Wednesday.

***Updated

1/15/2013
I made it through day 1. I had a headache all day yesterday and some back pains. The headache got so bad that by 5:00 pm I broke down and had a cup of coffee. It didn't really help. I made my own flax granola. It's not bad. I put frozen blueberries in it and vanilla coconut milk. I think when I'm done with the first part of the plan and I test honey, I'll sweeten it a bit with some honey. The lunch yesterday was way too big. I couldn't finish it, it was so filling that I accidentally skipped my snack. I am very surprised with yesterdays dinner. I've had kale in the past and I didn't like it. I couldn't chew it lol. I guess I was under cooking it. Needless to say dinner was really good. A bite of spicey then a bite of cooling carrot and beet salad. I ended up losing .6 pounds yesterday. It probably would have been more had I not had the coffee so late in the evening, or drank mint tea as suggested in the book.

1/16/2013
Yesterday was day 2 on "The Plan" I cheated and had coffee in the morning. I also couldn't finish my lunch again. It was carrot and ginger soup, broccoli and the part I skipped which was suppose to be greens with a 1/4 avocado and 1/2 an apple with sunflower seeds. But there just wasn't room to fit it in. I also tested raw almonds which I ate with 1/2 a pear and it looks like a go for me as I lost 1.4 pounds yesterday. Any weight gain would have alarmed me to a reactive response to the almonds.

Yesterday was also brain fog supreme. I suspect it's because I skipped part of my lunch. The brain needs healthy fats to operate normally. Today I have to try to fix my mistakes I made when paying my bills. LOL!

1/17/2013
My last day on the cleanse portion of the Plan was yesterday. I awoke with a headach, that went away later in the day. I was able to eat all the food today that was on the menu. And I lost another 1.2 pounds. Ending the cleanse I lost a total of 3.2 pounds. I will come back and update when the 20 days is complete.

1/18/2013
I know I said I wouldn't update for 20 days but I was shocked that I lost another 1.6 pounds. I feel great! The goat cheese yesterday was a little rich and I was afraid I may have a reaction, but nope, I'm still going strong. At this rate I will be at my goal weight in a few weeks. I only have about 12 more pounds to lose.

1/19/2013
Updating because I ate a reactive food. Yesterdays test was the rye cracker and I knew within 10 minutes of eating it. I got stomach cramps and a lot of gas. I downed a 16 oz glass of water with lemon juice. The reactive food showed up on the scale today as maintaining, thankfully I didn't gain. So today I'm having a food friendly day and tomorrow I'm testing steak.

1/20/2013
I'm back on track and lost an additional 1.6 pounds. I'm so looking forward to testing steak tonight for dinner. Yum! Tomorrow will be 1 week on the plan. Total weight excluding the 3.2 pounds I lost prior to starting the plan by upping my water intake is now 6.4 pounds I haven't been able to lose weight like this since I was a teenager and even then I didn't do it right. I feel like my body was patiently waiting for me to find this missing link so I can be healthy and it could drop the weight.

1/21/2013
Absolutely no weight loss or weight gain today. Yesterday I tested steak, when the author says its best to eat steak medium rare, please believe her. My steak accidentally got over cooked, in a mysterious grill fire. It felt like a rock in my stomach, and I knew it was a problem. I'm going to retest it again after I work through the 21 days. Today is a rest day. Lets see if the rest day gets the scale moving again.

1/23/2013
Sorry I haven't been updated I ran into brick wall.. But I'm getting back on track here is what happened.

On 1/22 I missed the mark for my water and I gained .4 pounds, then yesterday I went ahead and tested the bread not realizing being dehydrated causes reactivity so I maintained my weight again today. Today I'm doing a food friendly day and will stay at food friendly days until I lose the .4 pounds I gained. PS. I got help from their page on facebook. It takes a while but they do answer your questions if you ask on a post that was posted that day. You can find it by searching for TheLynGenetPlan on FB.

1/31/2013 Total weight loss is now 12.4 pounds! Today is day 16 for me. I've had an amazing week as I've watched the scale drop, my energy increase and oh yea, yesterday was my favorite day of all. I put away 2 pair jeans 5 years ago because I outgrew them. Well I tried them on and they FIT!! I can button them up and they're comfortable. I'm so happy!!! And... I normally plateau at 138 well I'm below 138 now and have been for 2 days. I have not worked out once on the plan because I'm an over-exerciser. My body is healing and I'm feeling and looking great.

2/8/2013: At the end of the 20 days doing the plan I lost a total of 14 pounds. I waited to update because I had labs done. Everything came back perfect! My monthly cycle is also so much better. I think this book should be mandatory for everyone 40+ who wants to feel good. I don't crave sweets, I don't crave salt, I've learned how to use my freezer to save time by reheating using the microwave. My mood is so much better and I don't HAVE to drink coffee everyday, I drink it now more out of habit then need. But it doesn't stop here! I'm still on the plan, I'm still planning my meals and staying away from foods that I'm reactive too and I have so many more foods that I want to test. I'm starting the plan over next week, just to get more foods that I'm not reactive too. Besides I love having my menu planned out already for me.

This book was confusing. It says it is a day to day food/eating/cooking guide where it enters in a different food each day to test your reaction to it, yet if you follow the recipes exactly there are many things that are added in each day. With the recipes there are sauces and other items to spice things up - yet then how do you know if your reactive to the new food item or the sauce. Additionally, by the time I finished the plan I had more than enough of goat and manchego cheese. I used to love goat cheese before doing the plan - yet it is used so much in the recipes I had OD'd on it and haven't wanted it since.

There are some good recipes and some not so good. I did learn certain foods that I do react to. So it was good to learn the philosophy behind this.

If you are single and work full time - the amount of time spent cooking and chopping is extreme and very difficult. Additionally the sizes of the meals appear to be for four people - so when you make something you may want to cut the recipe in half. I still have soups in my freezer from doing the testing phase.

Additionally, I did the thyroid menu because I am hypothyroid. None of the techniques to increase my BBT - an I tried really hard with that part because who wants to be hypothyroid. So while this may work for some folks - I found it a very difficult plan to maintain due to the excessive preparation and cooking times for a working person, some good recipes, some not so good - yet NOT that well planned out so that you can tell what food you reacted to due the days plan adding more than one new item a day.

I heard about this book through a friend and instantly ordered it. As one who suffers from food intolerances and seasonal allergies, I was hopeful this book would help. But this book makes NO sense. It takes more than three days to cleanse the body. You cannot add a new test food everyday since it can take up to three days to feel a reaction. Since the first day menu contains approximately 30 ingredients plus a supplement (which people can also react to), if you have even a slight reaction that day, how would you ever know which ingredient was the culprit? The author seems to contradict herself by telling you to avoid certain foods but then adds the taboo foods into her recipes. I gave it three stars because I could see myself using some of her recipes but I will not follow her plan. I do not believe the plan will work for those with multiple food intolerances as you must have more than one day between test foods.