Marjorie Nolan Cohn - The Belly Fat Fix: Taming Ghrelin, Your Hunger Hormone, for Quick, Healthy Weight Loss

This book is intended as a reference volume only, not as a medical manual. The information given here is designed to help you make informed decisions about your health. It is not intended as a substitute for any treatment that may have been prescribed by your doctor. If you suspect that you have a medical problem, we urge you to seek competent medical help.

Mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities in this book does not imply endorsement by the author or publisher, nor does mention of specific companies, organizations, or authorities imply that they endorse this book, its author, or the publisher.

Internet addresses and telephone numbers given in this book were accurate at the time it went to press.

2013 by Marjorie Nolan Cohn

Illustrations 2013 by Scott Cohn

Exercise photographs Rodale Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or any other information storage and retrieval system, without the written permission of the publisher.

Ghrelin Masters photographs courtesy of test panel participants

Exercise photographs by Mitch Mandel/Rodale Images

Book design by Christina Gaugler

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is on file with the publisher.

ISBN 978-1-60961-966-4 hardcover

eISBN 978-1-60961-967-1 e-book

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TO MY PARENTS, CRAIG AND LISA NOLAN.

Thanks, Dad, for believing in me so much as a child that even after your passing, I carry your love and support with me along this journey.

Mom, your participation means the world to me.

Thank you for trusting me and my work so much that you put yourself out there for the world to see.

CONTENTS

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

I want to acknowledge every one of my clients. If it were not for you sharing your struggles, pain, stories, and successes, I would not have been inspired to create the Belly Fat Fix. Thank you for trusting me enough to show you the way, and for your encouragement and support in writing this book. You will see a piece of your story on every page. Your dedication and effort to improve your health kept me inspired throughout this process. I thank you all eternally for every bit of it.

I am grateful to have met Deborah Grandinetti, my writing coach and teacher. Thank you, Deborah, for leading by example and showing me how to work on my own as we completed this manuscript. You are truly an amazing writer, coach, and leader. I am captivated by your craft and am indebted to you for sharing it with me. Thank you for believing in me and my work.

Thank you to my husband and artist, Scott Cohn, for your creative talent. I am grateful to have you part of my team, helping me balance my science research with practical imagesin the same way you balance my life with your patience and love.

Thank you, Claire Gerus, my literary agent, for believing in me. It was only after you took me on as a client that I fully believed in myself. Thank you to my supportive editor, Nancy Fitzgerald, for your advice, guidance, and coordination to complete this project. I was able to have a stress-free honeymoon thanks to your willingness to shift deadlines and coordinate the Rodale team on my behalf.

Many thanks to my graduate intern, Christina Harvey. Your hard work not only made my life easier, it brought even more practical information to The Belly Fat Fix. Thank you for helping me analyze seemingly endless recipes, create meal plans, and complete researchand for all the countless tasks you took on to support my work. You will be an excellent dietitian. I am proud to call you my colleague.

Finally, thank you to my family. Your support and infinite encouragement have given me the time and energy to complete this dream you have shared with me for so many years. Special thanks to my mom for participating in my book and proving that the Belly Fat Fix is the way to live. Thank you to my in-laws, Dr. Robert and Nancy Cohn, for your help in researching and teaching me about the science of ghrelin. I am so happy to call you my family.

INTRODUCTION

Ghrelin is new to me in comparison with dieting. The first time I ever heard the word ghrelin, I was 24 years old and almost 180 pounds. Yup, in the not-so-distant past, I was you. I was always on a diet. You name it; chances are Ive tried it. I may not look like it now, but the truth is, I was fat kid. I know fat is a bad word. It is politically incorrect and considered way more of an insult than obese. But lets be real: Who looks in the mirror and tells themselves, Im so obese? I use the word fat because that is how I felt every time Id look in the mirror. At 12, I weighed more than I do now. I am a living, breathing example that you can beat the odds.

When I was 12 years old, I weighed 150 pounds. At 5 foot 2 inches I was, without a doubt, obese. I was teased by my classmates: Large Marge was my nickname. Luckily, I was quick-witted enough to throw a zinger right back to defuse the situation and distract my classmates, at least for a little bit. As I grew into my teens and adult years, I stopped being obese. Now I was overweight or big. However I still felt fat.

I became a dietitian and personal trainer years before I fully figured out how to control my weightit goes to prove that even if you have knowledge, putting it into practice is a whole different story. Ive drawn from my weight-loss experience while writing this book. I know how hard it is to lose weight and keep it off. But I promise you this: Once you learn the ways of ghrelin, that task will get easier. It did for me.

Only after I was well established in my career did I begin learning more and more about ghrelin. What was this hormone? Where did it come from? And how was it affecting me and countless other people trying to lose weight? I was fascinatedand I still am. Ghrelin, quite literally, will make or break you. This one hormone has helped the human race (along with most other animals) survive. Its also helped keep them healthy. Balancing your ghrelin will not only help you to lose more weight with less effort but it will also improve your overall health in many significant ways.

Once I learned the science of ghrelin and started eating in a way that balanced it, a funny thing happened. I lost weight and kept it off, and it was not hard. Thats when I started to create the Belly Fat Fix.

In the pages ahead, Ill share with you all the strategies, tricks, and tips I have developed throughout the years. I know they work because I use themand so do my clientswith great success. I have reached my weight goal. But even though I am 5 foot 8 and 135 pounds, I still use them today.

I said earlier that I beat the odds. Well, thats sort of a lie. Weight loss is about the odds, but not in the way it seems. Losing weightand keeping it offisnt a game of chance. Its a matter of playing your cards the right way. If you keep at it consistently, you always beat the odds eventually. Ive designed this plan so that you can easily continue on a healthy path for the rest of your life. By following the Belly Fat Fix, you, too, will beat the odds!