Fad diets are supposed to come and go like a breeze during the day. Some, however, have turned into religions for many.

Fad diets have a ton of followers and are typically riddled with questionable theories. Most have a M.D. backing their way of eating, and they cost you money to learn about or to do. What’s more, fad diets are rarely recommended by the food health professionals as a healthy approach to nutrition.

It seems like almost every year there is yet another fad diet craze going on. The media loves to exploit the emotional side of dieting because people are very interested about losing weight or getting into shape. I am going to tear apart some of the most popular fad diets over the last 20 years and that are still thriving as a sales force in the United States of America. Those such as Atkins, The Zone Diet, South Beach Diet, Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, The Subway Diet, The Svelte Gourmet, and Body for Life.

Many of these diets are full of great well-written handiwork. Some have absolutely die hard and wonderful content. Often, for some of the diets, full pages are written in a way that include healthy approaches and skewed thinking into one. This combination, to the untrained eye, can all seem very believable and doable, even exciting. Add the fact that many of you recommend what works to your friends and family and the word-of-mouth marketing becomes viral. So, even today, with all of the science that proves how the body works, there are many myths and untruths that are being touted as fact by herds of people.

In my first article, I exposed The Atkins Diet (1). In my second thru seventh articles, I exposed The Zone Diet (2), The South Beach Diet (3), Weight Watchers (4), Jenny Craig (5), The Subway Diet (6), and The Svelte Gourmet (7).

Now you get to examine Body-for-LIFE, by Bill Phillips, with me. You be the judge for yourself and choose for you, the most important person in your life.

BODY for LIFE:

Does Body for Life work to lose body weight: Yes.

Is it a healthy approach? Yes

BODY-for-LIFE: History

The Body for Life book, Body-for-LIFE: 12 Weeks to Mental and Physical Strength, was first published in 1999 and was quickly lifted to #1 on the New York Times bestseller’s list (153 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list.) The program, as evidenced by Body for Life’s Website, identifies winners from the program dating back to 1997, however.

Body-for-LIFE began by enticing participants to compete for a cool one hundred thousand dollars for their body transformation, story, and marketing rights. In 2010, the prizes have been modified to be $25,000 for each a male and female “Grand Master Champion,” in addition to a leather jacket, reimbursement for all EAS products used, and a home gym.

The catalyst behind Body-for-LIFE, Bill Phillips, is no longer involved with Body-for-LIFE. He sold his majority interest in Body-for-LIFE in 1999 to North Castle Partners. Bill Phillips founded Experimental and Applied Sciences (EAS,) a sports nutrition brand in 1990, which also went to North Castle Partners. Bill Phillips was the founder of Muscle Media magazine too (In 2002, David Kennedy became the editor in chief and in 2004 the publication stopped.)

In 2004, Abbott Nutrition, a division of Abbott Laboratories, took over control of the Body-for-LIFE and the EAS empire. Abbott is a massive company that has offered products such as Similac® infant formula and Pedialyte®. They have been in business since the 1950’s.

Bill Phillips and Michael D’Orso co-authored the Body-for-LIFE book. Bill Phillips seems to be given most of the credit as the brainchild behind the work.

Michael D’Orso is a genuine author with 15 narrative nonfiction books under his belt. “He is currently working with actor/activist Ted Danson on a book describing the various threats facing our planet's oceans and sea life, and is also working with the founder and director of the Harlem Village Academies on the story of those schools' remarkable success.”

Bill Phillips has continued his successful work in fitness by remaining an author. After his departure from Body-for-LIFE, he authored, Eating for Life Your Guide to Great Health, Fat Loss and Increased Energy!  in November 2003; and most recently in June 2010, Transformation: The Mindset You Need. The Body You Want. The Life You Deserve.

BODY-for-LIFE: The Science

I am extremely critical of every program or advice that is given by any ‘professional’ or ‘expert’; it’s just my nature.

The Body-for-LIFE system emphatically tosses the following (and more) into your face on their Website:

• “In 2006, the International Journal of Sport Nutrition and Exercise Metabolism published the first clinical proof that the Body-for-LIFE program not only works, but works wonders.”

I cannot dispute that Bill Phillips, Michael D’Orso, and the current handlers of the Body-for-LIFE entity are great writers. They are as smooth as they come. In fact, the motivation and inspiration that I feel from their writings make me think of Weight Watchers and Tony Robbins. They aim to get you excited and stir emotion and provoke action. I don’t mind this type of provocation, however when it comes to science, it raises red flags-every time.

I welcome diet and exercise programs to cite scientifically sound resources like The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) and The New England Journal of Medicine (NEJM), for example. There are several other scientific resources, too, that I consider sound scientific communities and entities.

So, when a company as large as Abbott Nutrition puts a word spin on a potentially great source, I get a little angry.

They proudly cite The International Journal of Sport Nutrition, but they do not offer the verifiable science. They instead are general, not specific. It’s like being in a house of mirrors. They presumably extract only that information that serves their purpose of promoting their program, without the inclusion of anything negative-Much like the politicians do everyday on the networks misquoting their opponents or party rivalries. I spent a considerable amount of research time to verify their claims as asserted on their Website and came up empty.

I would expect such fanciful, forceful, and proud claims to be easily verifiable. The fact that they are not makes me believe, with over 90% of certainty, that their scientific claims and quotes are completely skewed.

BODY-for-LIFE: The program

Body-for-LIFE is a 12-week fitness challenge. Bill Phillips began by offering his Lamborghini Diablo as the top prize and motivator for people to attempt this challenge. The challenge has since gone through a few changes in both ownership and structure. The elements and principles of the program, as Bill Phillips instituted them via Body-for-LIFE, have essentially remained the same.

Perhaps it is most fitting that this approach to weight loss and fitness is the final of my 8 part series on diets. The book was first published in 1999, as mentioned. That year either skipped my memory or I just became aware of this. For some reason, I was thinking the challenge had been out for several years prior to 1999. The fact is, I did this challenge in 1999 myself (see, “A personal journey‘ below.) Will this make me a biased reporter and not an objective analyst and writer of the methods suggested? No, on the contrary, it makes my scrutiny even more vigorous!

• Nutrition

What does Body-for-LIFE want you to eat? Bill Phillips trademarked, “The Performance Nutrition Advantage.” Within, there are lists to choose your foods (proteins, carbohydrates, and vegetables.) You have many quality nutrient dense foods to choose from such as: orange roughy, chicken breast, top sirloin steak, potatoes, pasta, beans, artichokes, green beans and mushrooms.

Body-for-LIFE also wants you to eat six meals per day. “To look better, feel better, and improve your health, you must develop the pattern of feeding your body frequently throughout the day-of grazing.” I don’t have an issue with this eating pattern. I’ve consulted with hundreds of individuals regarding their specific nutritional plan. Most often, six meals per day has worked nearly miraculously when combined with a moderate to high intensity workout regimen to get weight loss results. This doesn’t mean that you necessarily have to eat six meals a day to get results. However, it is the Body-for-LIFE recommendation that you do eat six meals.

The issue with Body-for-LIFE is not what you can or cannot eat, from my point of view. It’s how it’s prepared and if it will taste good. If you don’t like it, are you going to force yourself to choke it down? No, you probably will not. This is where my previous article on The Svelte Gourmet comes in quite handy!

How many of you made it through college eating pasta? Or how many of you now love to eat pasta? Being part Italian, I grew up on a lot of Italian food; I love just about anything with pasta in it. I have prepared enough pasta dishes to know what tastes great, and what doesn’t. Plain pasta with nothing on it? No, thank you. Maybe once a month I could grit my teeth and just add a little lemon juice for a topping. As an example, Bill Phillips in regards to pasta writes, “Also, no alfredo sauce, butter, or cheese. When I do eat pasta, I usually eat it plain or just squeeze lemon over it. Nice and simple and clean.”

When I casually contemplate the Body-for-LIFE food plan, my thoughts are the advice is generally sound, but not realistic. I want you to enjoy your eating, not make a chore out of it. To be fair, Bill Phillips also writes, “Don’t fall for the common misconception that healthy, high-nutrient meals have to be bland and boring-that’s just not the case. The meals I eat taste good to me and are relatively simple to prepare.”

While the few examples given in the Body-for-LIFE text for recipes and consumption are not bad, they are not comprehensive enough. They simply leave the food preparation to your graces and luck. For you to successfully follow a food plan, you must like the way the food tastes.

If you are just beginning to modify your food intake and you are not used to eating highly nutritious foods, let alone preparing them in a way a healthy chef might; you’re setting yourself up for a face-plant.

This is where you will have to take the reigns and modify the Body-for-LIFE journey to suit your needs and desires. Yes, it is nice to have everything dictated and for you to not have to think about what to do, but for the food to taste good some adjustments will need to be made. This doesn’t mean that you have to become a chef, not at all. If you choose to follow The Svelte Gourmet methods, you will no doubt enjoy savory foods with equal calorie and nutrition benefit that will serve you well with the Body-for-LIFE program.

There are also other alternatives available in 2010, such as food packaging services like the one I found near Portland, Oregon while I was there dinnersdoneright.com/. You can watch Steve Harris from Dinners Done Right prepare one of these meals here. There are also other services such as Dream Dinners that might suit you well. Spend a day and learn about the alternative meal solution services in your area.

The key will be to find a service that matches your unique desires and needs as well as staying within the nutritionally healthy parameters set forth by a program like Body-for-LIFE. I know finances are a concern for many, too. Take the time to evaluate your true food expenditures for your current eating habits. Contrast those expenditures against the real cost of a service like mentioned above. I wager that the food costs will be the same or will be even less than what you currently spend.

You can certainly buy all of the food yourself from the grocery store, prepare it ahead of time, freeze it and do it all yourself. I did just that when I did Body-for-LIFE. The process did get easier as the weeks went by, however, I could have saved myself countless hours by simply planning & ordering meals from a food service like mentioned above. Had I known about those services at that time, I would have done just that. My time is extremely valuable to me. I’m believing you feel the same.

BODY-for-LIFE: Supplements

Remember, Bill Phillips was the founder of EAS, a sport nutrition company. From a business perspective, it makes obvious sense to include recommendations for use of these products in the book. I’ve said it before, the nutrition and supplement industry is a billion dollar a year business. Why do you think a company such as Abbott Nutrition was interested in acquiring Body-for-LIFE and EAS? I certainly doubt the initiating factor was concern for peoples health; it was money.

That said, I do think Bill Phillips has quality concern for people in general. He recommends eating six meals per day. In Body-for-LIFE, he recommends you use Myoplex products that are offered from EAS. His reasoning? He states, “Now, I’m not saying you can’t get good results with just regular food. That is possible, especially if you have time to shop for and prepare six quality whole-food meals day in and day out.” People lead busy lives and they “just don’t have time to eat six whole-food meals a day,” he accurately assesses.

Having done both the whole-food no supplement approach and the supplement + whole-food approach, I recommend finding supplements that you enjoy and that you agree with for their content. Or, simply make your own concoction ahead of time as the ‘supplement’ to accommodate your needs throughout the day, rather than making a whole meal from scratch. It is difficult to prepare six fresh meals per day for consumption. I did it, but I wouldn’t recommend it unless you plan on staying in the kitchen all day long.

BODY-for-LIFE: Grocery shopping

It is imperative, for any food modification, that you have your kitchen full of foods that will enable your progress, not limit it. “Stock up only on quality sources of protein, carbohydrates, and vegetables,” is what Bill Phillips suggests. I agree, leave the Hostess Ding Dongs at the grocery store!

BODY-for-LIFE: A ‘free’ day

A lot of programs, like Weight Watchers & Jenny Craig, want you to consume every meal of every day their way. Not so with Body-for-LIFE. They encourage eating six days per week with specific detail and attention, and on the seventh to drop all the rules.

I agree with this approach mainly for psychological reasons, after having worked thousands of hours with hundreds of clients over the last ten plus years. There’s less guilt, more mental freedom, and adherence to a food program is more apt to occur when this is done. Bill Phillips states, “There is actually a physiological reason to purposely overeat once a week-it may help convince your body that it is not starving.” I haven’t seen any science to back up this claim, but it sure sounds good.

I go a step further; once my clients have mastered their food approach, many find that they simply do not care to have a ‘free day.’ They want to eat the quality foods that they have become accustomed to and that their body now wants. That is when I institute a 90/10 rule. In essence, if you eat quality foods 90% of the time every day, you will get my seal of approval. This is not a license to eat blindly, but it does allow for additional daily leeway without taxing yourself emotionally; once you reach that level of food consumption mastery, that is.

BODY-for-LIFE: Exercise

Body-for-LIFE is an exercise program, with both the food element and psychological element contained within, at least to some degree. You’ve heard me state in each of my articles on Weight Watchers (1) & Jenny Craig (2) that they take on too much in trying to be more than a nutrition approach-they also try to play psychologist, doctor and expert fitness professional. Then in my article on the Subway Diet (3), I talk about Jared not giving a direct nutrition plan, but instead giving more advice on living a healthy lifestyle. In other words, he gives a more emotional and psychological approach to weight loss.

Body-for-LIFE is part motivation/inspiration (like Tony Robbins,) part nutritional resource, part exercise and part support. It does fail at being the best tool for psychological modifications and the best tool for food preparation and adherence, but the effort is extremely valiant. That is why it did so well on the New York Times bestseller’s list-it is a well-written easy to follow dictation on a way to better your life. It is also why so many people have been able to get results from the program.

Body-for-LIFE gives you specific exercise parameters to follow during the 12-week challenge. You must follow the exercise guidelines in order to be competitive for the prize. You will get results following this program; it’s designed so that you will. You are given tracking sheets to keep notes on what you do and for how long-which is also dictated. You will not be working out for 2 hours everyday. The workouts designed for you are efficient and last 20-50 minutes depending on the day. Six days per week you will workout, one day you will take ‘off.’

As a professional in fitness, I’ve designed countless exercise programs for hundreds of individuals. Every program has been unique and tailored to the persons needs and desires. There are very few people, other than the athletes I’ve worked with, that set out to lose weight or become more fit that are injury or limitation free. Most people have some type of body limitation, or nutrition specific exclusion that will not allow them to fit into a cookie cutter approach for either exercise or a general food program.

While I identify with Bill Phillips exercise and training methods a lot, they simply will not be useful for a great many people due to their individual limitation(s). This doesn’t mean that Body-for-LIFE won’t work for you. It just means that modifications will need to be made in one, or perhaps in several, of the exercises given. The last thing I want is for you to get injured trying to blindly follow a popular exercise program. This is where I recommend that you definitely see your doctor and your local exercise guru to evaluate your physical and nutritional limitations. With these evaluations, you can then take the step into a program such as Body-for-LIFE having taken realistic precautions prior to beginning it.

As predicted, Body-for-LIFE gives similar advice lost in the Copyright pages of the beginning of the book. They state, “The Body-for-LIFE Program is intended for healthy adults, age 18 and over. This book is solely for informational and educational purposes and is not medical advice. Please consult a medical or health professional before you begin any new exercise, nutrition, or supplementation program or if you have questions about your health.” They go on to say individuals results will vary, yada yada yada.

Note: The Biggest Loser approach is a perfect example of not taking precautions. People get hurt, really hurt. I won’t get into it again, but you can review my write up on How to Lose Weight for Free to see an example why the 24 Hour Fitness Biggest Loser approach is dangerous.

My experience over the last ten years is that people will say they saw their doctor. People will also say that they will, but they just don’t. At least these people were in front of me, someone sensitive and intelligent enough to give them a fair assessment of what I could do for them. If you are going to ignore my advice, and that of the disclaimer of the book as mentioned above, do me a favor, be careful!

To find a quality personal trainer to help guide you safely in your exercises, you can also see my article: How to Choose a Personal Trainer.

Also, if you have knee concerns, one of my most popular write ups is about knees: How to Strengthen Your Knees.

BODY-for-LIFE: A personal journey

In 1999, arguably either by coincidence or as a catalyst because of Body-for LIFE, I made some life changing decisions. Not just about my health and exercise program, but for what I would focus my mental and physical abilities on for the next 10+ years! I could say the same about what Tony Robbins did for me and date that back to 1994 and his tape series Personal Power (that’s right, cassette tape!)

Needless to say, I did not win the Body-for-LIFE challenge. In fact, I was not even acknowledged by the program after I spent a good deal of time taking professional photos pre-challenge and sending in all of the information by mail as directed. I followed through in every way like a nitpicking mother would in the hair of her child. What a let down! I made contact with the phone service that was in operation for the challenge at the time, and within a few weeks they had sent me my “Winner” certificate (for having completed the challenge.) I was disappointed.

I learned two important things during my attempt at winning Body-for-LIFE. 1) My mobility decreased significantly (stretching is not recognized as a critical component to Body-for-LIFE,) and 2) I did not want to be a bodybuilder; Kenpo Karate was much more important to me. Additionally, I was a competitive cyclist. It was impossible for me to ride as much as I wanted to and maintain the strict structure of the program-impossible.

Ultimately, I did gain 8 lbs of lean muscle over the coarse of the 12-week challenge, which I was happy about. I was a lean contender, not one that needed to shed pounds. Within a year of completing the challenge, I was teaching Kenpo Karate as an instructor and I began to immerse myself in personal training study material and additional college courses on nutrition. If anything, Body-for-LIFE was encouraging for me to learn more about myself and science. Body-for-LIFE is a part of my history, and one that I consider to be a positive experience.

I did not exclusively use EAS Myoplex supplements to replace meals during the challenge. I mainly used the Creatine Phosphate that they offered at the time (Creatine has since been shown to cause cancer in lab rats and I wouldn’t suggest it.) I felt thirsty because of the Creatine Phosphate and I just didn’t feel like it was healthy. I did use some of their EAS Myoplex protein, but since I didn’t care for the taste and thickness of that product, I chose to focus on food preparation mostly.

I chose to prepare my weeks meals in advance, every Saturday night, and freeze them in freezer space reserved just for me. You might think that doing this interfered with my family dinners (my son Aaron was 2 years old at the time) but it didn’t. I simply prepared my meals and either the same food or something different for my wife and son. I was working 50-60 hours per week at the time, with an additional 10 hours of drive time that added to my schedule.

My schedule was: wake up at 3:30-4am everyday, workout, eat, then shower and be on the road by 6am to be to work by 7am. I would then get home from work, eat and to bed by 8pm. I found that my energy levels did increase significantly and that my attitudes were improved.

BODY-for-LIFE: Conclusion

Body-for-LIFE is a fairly well-rounded program. It is a ‘health challenge’ with money and prize incentives in place to motivate you to get results during a 12-week time frame. A long-term implementation of repeating the methods promoted by Body-for-LIFE will result in a bodybuilder type body, for a man or for a woman.

If you are simply looking for a more healthy lifestyle and one that will be realistically maintainable, you will be best served to modify the intensity of the exercise recommendations given. If you intend on competing in natural bodybuilding contests, by all means, you could conceivably do so by continuing to follow a program such as this over a long period of time-1 year +.

The fancy results and photographs viewable on their Website, are absolutely rare. They claim to have helped transform millions of bodies to date. Of those, what percentage do you think they use for their promotion? Very few. I would surmise less than ½% of their contestants are able to submit such drastic transformations in such a short period of time. And, since money is involved, you can bet many of the participants are not ‘true to form’ meaning that they don’t stay within the Body-for-LIFE parameters as set forth.

Healthy weight loss is not weight loss that occurs rapidly over 12-weeks. Healthy weight loss is a moderate weight loss over a period of several months, and many times healthy weight loss is over a period of years! Ask any cardiac surgeon about heart health and you will find that sudden drastic weight loss is difficult for the heart to manage. How important is your heart to you? There are exceptions, clearly, but we do know enough about the heart to know yo-yo dieting is not good for your heart, and neither is sudden drastic weight loss.

I recommend the nutrition aspect of Body-for-LIFE, in as much as the foods and food tracker are reasonable. I would significantly alter the food approach to include something like The Svelte Gourmet approach and/or the inclusion of support from a food preparation service such as from Dinners Done Right.

I recommend the exercises from Body-for-LIFE, without modification, for healthy adults that do not have any limitations or injuries whatsoever. I recommend that you do not take on the task of attempting these exercises by yourself, however. Find a certified professional personal trainer for assistance-How to Choose a Personal Trainer.

I also recommend that in addition to your exercise program that you take up a flexibility class such as Yoga or Pilates as an adjunct to your overall health. Your muscle tone (for the ladies) and your size and strength (for the men) depend on good flexibility. Additionally, your risk increases exponentially for muscle tears or strains when you only focus on weight training and cardiovascular training. Be safe, include a regular flexibility class into your schedule at least once per week (5-6 days per week is better.) I further expand this section and I recommend regular therapeutic massage of at least once per month (once or twice per week is better.)

Body-for-LIFE adds urgency and gives you a deadline for your goals arbitrarily. There are motivational, psychological, and inspirational elements strewn throughout the program; which are wonderful to read, contemplate, and implement into your life.

The 8 Part Diet Series Conclusion (Concise)

This concludes my current focus on the most impactful of the national fad diets of the last 20+ years. In the end, Body-for-LIFE accompanies Top 4 space with The Svelte Gourmet, Jared, The Subway Guy, and with Jenny Craig on board too. Each of these programs offer substance that can be applied realistically into your life with some effort.

Nothing of real substance or value comes easy, and so it is with losing weight. Unless you are going under the knife for liposuction or some type of lap-band procedure, you will find losing weight can occur through application of one, or a combination of, these methods.

I would purchase Body-for-LIFE, The Svelte Gourmet, Jared, The Subway Guy and Jenny Craig. I would then take time to evaluate each for myself, take out what I like from each, and create a unique individualized plan that I put in a binder to begin on my journey for a healthy and lasting lifestyle; not just a short-term weight loss attempt. I would also seek out other motivational tools such as can be found from Tony Robbins. The more positive support; the better!

I wish you the greatest of lives on our planet earth-one that is beyond your imagination. Open your mind, take a deep breath; breathe & achieve!

Thank you for your time, your attention, and your votes!