How Not to Diet Summary | Michael Gerber

The Groundbreaking Science of Healthy, Permanent Weight Loss

We’re scratching the surface here in this How Not to Diet summary. If you don’t already have Michael Greger’s popular book, order a copy or get the audiobook for free to learn the juicy details.

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Introduction

How often have you tried to achieve your target weight, only to reach a plateau? Or do you think you don’t have the willpower to lose weight, so you haven’t even tried?

Here’s the good news: Willpower and starving yourself aren’t the answer. Losing weight is easier than you think.

How Not to Diet harnesses Michael Greger’s years of experience and thousands of studies. It aims to help you move away from other fad diets and towards evidence-based diet practices.

Our diets are paramount to our health. Still, we often gravitate toward the end result instead of the process. This approach can have harmful effects. Many diets are unhealthy.

When choosing something as life-or-death as what you put in your mouth, you need the most accurate evidence possible. Backed up by almost 5,000 references, How Not to Diet offers a diet for sustainable, healthy weight loss and lifelong lifestyle changes.

About Dr. Michael Greger

Dr. Michael Greger is a physician and New York Times bestselling author. He is an internationally recognized speaker on nutrition, food safety, and public health problems. A founding member and fellow of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (ACLM), Dr. Greger is licensed as a general practitioner specializing in clinical nutrition. He is a graduate of Cornell University School of Agriculture and Tufts University School of Medicine.

In 2017, Dr. Greger was honored with the ACLM Lifestyle Medicine Trailblazer Award. He also became a diplomat of the American Board of Lifestyle Medicine. 100% of all proceeds he has ever received from his books, DVDs, and speaking engagements always have and will always be donated to charity.

In his notable work, How Not to Die, Dr. Greger advocates for a whole-food, plant-based diet and provides practical guidelines, including his “Daily Dozen” checklist, to help individuals make healthier food choices and enhance their overall well-being.

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StoryShot #1: Obesity Is an Epidemic

Obesity is a greater epidemic than it has ever been. We are now 10 times fatter than we were 100 years ago. What’s more, this growth in obesity has not been linear. Obesity in developed nations has grown exponentially in the last 50 years. This increase in obesity is showing no signs of slowing down.

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Some dieters claim the issue is your willpower. Greger, in his ultimate weight loss guide, challenges this claim and explains how our bodies simply react to the food we eat in the way they’ve evolved to do so.

The human body evolved within environments where food was scarce. Due to this scarcity, we have evolved to store excess calories as fat to survive the winter months. We tend to crave high-calorie foods for the same reason.

The reason for the obesity epidemic is that these high-calorie foods are now readily available. The 70s brought deep-freezing and ready meals. Around this time, treat foods as an everyday option were introduced.

The issue with the increased processing that developed in the 80s is that these food items lack fiber and nutritional value. Plus, they are filled with added sugars and oils. Greger calls these foods CRAP (calorie-rich and processed).

StoryShot #2: The Ideal Weight-Loss Diet Is Plant-Based

Dr Greger presents a plant-based approach to weight loss that focuses on whole, minimally processed foods. According to Dr. Greger, these are the key ingredients in the ideal weight-loss diet:

• A variety of non-starchy vegetables. It should make up the majority of the food on your plate. They’re low in calories and high in fiber, nutrients, and antioxidants.
• Fruits. Choose a variety of fruits, including those high in fiber and antioxidants, such as berries and apples.
• Whole grains. Choose whole grains over refined grains, as they are higher in fiber and nutrients.
• Legumes. Legumes, such as beans, lentils, and chickpeas, are high in protein and fiber and can help you feel full and satisfied.
• Nuts and seeds. Nuts and seeds are high in healthy fats and can be a good source of protein.
• Plant-based protein sources. These include tofu, tempeh, and plant-based protein powders.
• Healthy fats. Choose healthy fats, such as those found in nuts, seeds, and avocados.

Dr. Greger recommends avoiding processed foods, added sugars, and refined grains. Also, limit your intake of animal products and highly processed plant-based foods. Everyone’s nutritional needs are different. It may be helpful to work with a healthcare professional to create a personalized weight-loss plan that meets your specific needs and goals.

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StoryShot #3: The Ideal Weight-Loss Diet Is High in Fiber-Rich Foods

One of the greatest issues associated with CRAP foods is their lack of fiber. Eating fiber-rich foods is critical to losing weight. Fiber is satisfying and contains fewer calories. Also, as fiber-rich foods often take longer to chew, you will get full faster. Fiber-rich foods allow you to get full quickly and for longer without a significant number of calories.

Take apples and apple juice as an example. An average glass of apple juice contains five apples. The fruit juice can be drunk in a matter of seconds and will not keep you full for long. An apple will take you considerably longer to eat and will keep you full for longer. The difference between the two is the presence of fiber.

Another benefit of fiber-rich foods is that they can trap calories in food. Due to the tough outer layer of plant fibers, your colon will take longer to digest this food. Subsequently, your colon will not extract all the calories. So, despite obtaining enough energy, you are less likely to store plant fiber as fat.

What’s more, fiber-rich foods nourish our gut microbiome. Gut bacteria thrive on fiber, releasing short-chain fatty acids that reduce our appetite and boost our metabolism. A 2017 study found that CRAP foods, like donuts, are far less appetizing after eating a fiber-rich meal. This effect lasts up to 12 hours after a meal.

We must do much better on the fiber front. Less than 5% of Americans meet the minimum daily fiber recommendations. To increase the amount of fiber in your diet, add more root vegetables and legumes to your weekly shop.

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StoryShot #4: Low Glycemic Load

“To remove refined grains from your diet is to remove America’s number one source of calories. Switching to whole grains may help reduce body fat, but there’s an even better swap. See the Wall Off Your Calories section for taking your grain game up a notch and graduate from mere whole grains to intact whole grains, such as oat groats (also known as hull-less or hulled oats).”

– Dr. Michael Greger

A common argument made in favor of low-carb diets is to aim for foods with a low glycemic load. This is one feature of fad diets that is correct, even though Dr. Greger does not advocate for low-carb diets. He suggests you avoid foods that can cause blood sugar spikes, like white bread. White bread tastes sweet after you eat it because your body can quickly digest this type of bread.

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Having high glycemic index foods in your diet will only lead to cravings. On the flip side, replacing them with low glycemic index foods will provide you with a slow release of energy that prevents overeating.

Another benefit of introducing higher glycemic index foods is no longer struggling with weight-loss plateaus. People who cut all carbs out of their diet are at risk of lowering their metabolism. They initially lose some weight, but then get their weight loss plateaued.

Continuing to eat carbs, but ones with a low insulin index, will allow you to continue losing weight. Try swapping white rice, bread, and cereal for whole grains, legumes, and oats.

StoryShot #5: Low in Added Sugar, Fat, and Meat

Fat has a greater calorie-per-gram rate than sugar. Added sugars should be eliminated from your diet. However, unhealthy fats are driving the obesity epidemic, according to Greger. Intuitively, fat is far easier for our bodies to convert into body fat than sugar. Plus, we are obtaining a far larger proportion of our calories from fat than we used to. Animal agriculture is partly to blame, as animals are bred to be far fatter than before. Therefore, cut out all dairy, oils, and meat. A study by Dr. Dean Ornish found that, by living on a whole-food, plant-based diet, participants lost an average of 24 pounds.

As well as cutting out animal products, which are the primary sources of fat, cut out added sugar. We now eat 12 times more sugar than we did 200 years ago.

Crucially, sugar has zero nutritional value and offers excess calories. Studies have shown that children given high-sugar cereals ate 7% more than children who had a low-sugar alternative. Therefore, eating excess sugar will only make you eat more. You might initially struggle to cut out animal products and sugar. However, your tastebuds will quickly adapt, and you will no longer notice the difference.

StoryShot #6: Eat Low-Calorie-Density Foods

Your typical meal should be filled with foods that have a low calorie density. One of the greatest benefits of adopting a whole-food plant-based diet is that you do not have to restrict your portions. You can eat unlimited quantities of food on this diet and still lose weight without exercise. Foods that have a low caloric density generally have a high water content. Examples of these foods are non-starchy vegetables and fruits.

Generally, we eat the same amount of food each day, determined by stretch receptors in our stomach. Therefore, if we fill our diet with low-calorie-density foods, we will easily lose weight. Plus, you can eat as many courgettes, apples, pears, and other nutritious foods as you like.

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How Not to Diet Infographic

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