From Fat to Fit: Turn Yourself into a Weapon of Mass Reduction

From Fat to Fit: Turn Yourself into a Weapon of Mass Reduction
by: Carole Carson
List Price: $14.95
Paperback: 264 pages
Publisher: Hound Press; illustrated edition edition (April 1, 2007)
Language: English

From the author: In my latest book, I’m on a mission to communicate an empowering message: “You and your friends can have fun, get fit and lose weight!” Just before turning 60, I totally remade my life. After chronicling my 62-pound weight loss—shrinking from a size 18 to a size 6—in weekly newspaper articles, I inspired more than 1,000 people to team up and lose nearly 8,000 pounds of fat in two months. Dr. Henry S. Lodge, coauthor of the New York Times Best Seller Younger Next Year and Younger Next Year for Women, calls it “a remarkable book about the remarkable person inside each of us. Whenever you decide to take charge of the rest of your life, Carole Carson will be waiting to show you the way.”

Amazon.com review: “This guide chronicles how one woman’s very public journey to lose weight mushroomed into a community quest to get fit. At the age of 60, Carole Carson broke the taboo of speaking about obesity when she openly admitted her shame and guilt about being fat and out of shape on the front page of the local newspaper. As she recounted her transformation from butterball to butterfly in a weekly newspaper column, she gradually inspired more than 1,000 people in her Northern California community to join her. People who had struggled with weight loss and fitness suddenly found that when they joined with their friends and neighbors they could accomplish together what they could not do by themselves. They learned a completely new way of living and discovered that getting fit was fun and in the process lost the equivalent of a school bus! Through the guide’s seven-step process, among other practical strategies and resources, readers will find a framework for duplicating the Nevada County Meltdown’s successes in their respective communities—their congregation, their office, their friends and family—realizing the power of partnership and revitalizing their ties with each other.”

From Fat to Fit was named a finalist in the health and fitness category of the National Best Book 2007 Awards, sponsored by USABookNews.com.

My take: You’d have to be living under a rock to not see all the headlines about obesity in America these days. As a country, we are in real trouble. The trouble is, we are all (myself included) looking for a quick fix to our weight problems – pills, surgery, a “magic” solution. And it’s no surprise shows like The Biggest Loser is such a hit and weight loss programs like Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig and the like are such big money makers.

We (“we” meaning those of us who are overweight) all want to get healthy – but many struggle to accomplish permanent weight loss. But in the end, to accomplish that, all we have to do is create a calorie deficit – burn more calories than we take in. That’s it, that’s the “magic” bullet. And that’s what I think was Carole Carson’s main point in the first part of this book. She MOVED her body more and ate healthy. She stopped the “garbage in, garbage out” cycle. Her story is truly an inspiration for anyone on a similar weight loss journey. I felt the second half of the book was mainly a “how-to” manual for how she inspired an entire community to do the same. So if you are looking to inspire yourself or others, this could be a good book for you. Just don’t go looking for any “magic bullet” here or any “new” weight loss solution – there isn’t one here or anywhere else.

Bonus: Be sure to check out Carole’s website for more inspiration, resources and articles.

About the author: Carole Carson, dubbed “An Apostle for Fitness” by the Wall Street Journal, is the author of From Fat to Fit: Turn Yourself into a Weapon of Mass Reduction. Just before turning 60, Carole decided to reinvent herself. After chronicling her transformation from butterball to butterfly in weekly newspaper articles, she invited others in her Northern California community to join the fun. Inspired by her example, more than 1,000 ordinary people teamed up to lose nearly 4 tons of fat in two months during the Nevada County Meltdown. Carole’s multifaceted background includes business leadership, marketing, public relations, event planning, writing, training and consulting to businesses and nonprofits. Her mission is to communicate her empowering message: “You and your friends can have fun, get fit and lose weight!” Carole writes a featured newspaper column and has appeared on NBC’s Today show, CBS’s Early Show, MSNBC’s Countdown, CNN News and national radio programs. Besides teaching and consulting, Carole has produced a weekly community television show, The Tipping Point, and a reality show, Go Fat to Fit.

This post was written for Hound Press who provided the item for review. I was not compensated in any way except for the complimentary product.