Harper - Mind your body : 4 weeks to a leaner, healthier life : 10 core concepts for an optimally balanced you

May this book teach you to awaken and harness the power that lives in you, and help your mind and body work together toward a single purpose, so you can reach new heights in your health, have increased vitality and self-confidence, and achieve all your life goals.

To my parents, Eileen and Michaux, who gave me both wings and a safety net, so that I could take risks, make mistakes, learn from them, and keep on forging my own path in life.

D ear Reader,

Much of my time as a doctor has been spent trying to help patients who struggle with the plethora of health problems associated with excess pounds, including high blood pressure, high blood sugar, and high cholesterol. Too many jump at quick-fix solutions that only lead to further frustration and defeat. The yo-yo pattern of weight loss that befalls most dieters is devastating, wreaking havoc not only on the body but also on the mindset of sincere people trying one more time to change their lives for the better.

Thankfully, Joel Harper has crafted Mind Your Body as an effective approach to long-term weight loss that harnesses the powerful resources housed in your mind. Joel is my longtime personal trainer, friend, and fitness designer for the bestselling YOU books. He is also my antifluff hero when it comes to healthy, effective fitness.

I first met Joel Harper when I asked him to review the fitness section of my very first YOU book. He was appropriately critical of the initial program and quickly offered an alternative approach that was simple and accessible. Since then, hes been my main fitness collaborator on DVDs and multiple bestselling books. Joel is down to earth, passionate about health, and extremely time-efficient. He helps me and many of the busiest people on the planet come up with programs for fitness and healthy weight that work because he knows how to tap into thinking patterns that promote healthier living.

Joel offers a clear, user-friendly plan for people who have no time to waste. The Mind Your Body 4-week plan clearly outlines what youll do for a powerful mindset, a quick 15-minute workout, and healthy eating. Theres no frustrating flipping back and forth to find which mindset, move, and meal goes with what day. Youll learn how you can lose weight while eating the foods you like prepared the way you like them, thanks to Joels commitment to coming up with healthy, simple options that fit any lifestyle.

{photograph by Dylan Coulter}

Youll also appreciate Joels ability to digest and present dense scientific research in a clear, concise, and fascinating fashion that anyone can comprehend and incorporate into their lives. Joel gets the message right, whether hes sharing how his 15-minute workout is as effective as huffing and puffing for twice as long, teaching you how the right foods can eliminate cravings, or illuminating how negative messages can change the neural pathways in your brain to sabotage weight loss and cause weight gain.

In a nutshell, Mind Your Body will empower and enlighten you by showing you how, armed with a powerful mindset, you can achieve lasting weight loss, health, and fitness. Joel knows what he is talking about; he has helped countless people get slimmer, fitter, and healthierand he will help you, too!

Happy reading.

Mehmet Oz, M.D.

Professor and Vice Chair, Surgery

New York Presbyterian/Columbia

Medical Center

D ear Friend,

I am excited you are here. Just by picking up this book and reading the words on this page, youve shifted into a receptive frame of mind, and in just that flash of openness, your brains neural pathways have lit up. Your brain is now taking notes, in a manner of speaking, by releasing chemicals and sending electrical signals to represent the information you are digesting. If you pause right now and close your eyes, youll feel the electricity flowing through your body. Keep reading and following the suggestions in this book, and those signals will become stronger, more empowering, and more permanent. This is just a peek at what Ive learned about the powerhouse in your head, and how emotions, thoughts, ideas, and intentions affect your whole being, brain and body.

Whether you are looking to lose ten pounds and feel more energetic or envisioning a deeper and fuller transformation into a whole new you, the path to success begins with clearing away outdated messages and embracing the truth you deserve and the success you desire. To do this, you must understand how to harness and change your thoughts. This requires you to be fully awake, aware, and present in your life. The Deserve Level Test will help you master these skills. Youll have the key to your fitness and weight loss goals, as well as all your other life aspirations.

By completing the same test and series of questions that I use with my private clients, you will have the opportunity to intimately explore your unique needs. At this very moment, you are in the right place, and it is the right time for change to begin. If you want it, you can achieve it. You might think you already know where you are, but I guarantee you, you dont. By exploring the ten categories that make up the Deserve Level Test, youll learn how to truly understand the undercurrents that determine your actions and present situation. Youre going to learn how to chisel away unnecessary thoughts, emotions, and actions that hold you back. With renewed clarity, youll be able to use your mind as the awesome difference maker it is, and your life will break wide open.

The 3-Step Whole-istic Approach

The following triad gives a general idea of how the Mind Your Body method flows and maintains balance to quickly, efficiently, and effortlessly yield successful weight loss, a leaner and firmer body, reduced stress, improved health, increased happiness, and enhanced energy.

Youre going to learn how mindset, meals, and moveswhich make up my Whole-istic approachlead to true success. My program works because it consistently and dynamically addresses all the factors involved in sustainable weight loss and behavior change. More than 97 percent of diets, fitness plans, and weight loss programs fail because they only address parts of the problem instead of addressing the needs of your entire being. Im going to teach you how to trust your gut and never give up, and I will show you exactly what steps to take to become precisely who you want to beone day at a time.

Thanks to the publicity Ive received from being Dr. Ozs longtime trainer and fitness consultant, as well as through the popularity of my DVDs and word-of-mouth recommendations, Im fortunate to have worked with thousands of people and to have seen what drives them to successand what doesnt. A personal trainer is like a therapist or a hair stylistpeople trust you from the start, and while they are doing sit-ups or push-ups, you get to see how they are wired. I hear about their dreams, fears, and doubts, and I have seen some shocking patterns and themes emerge, some to avoid and some worth emulating. Ive spent nearly a decade developing this book, extracting the elements that make people successful, because I wanted to perfect every detail before I shared it with you.