Book Review by Clare - England - It Took Me 10 Years To Lose 10 Pounds

By Clare / Book Review

It’s hard to narrow my book review down to just a few ideas as they all clicked
I already feel less preoccupied with food and eating
You have no idea how much you’ve helped me

Meet Clare

Hi! I’m female, age 45 and have a history of disordered eating dating back to early childhood. I’ve been various weights from obese to underweight. And I’ve tried conventional calorie restriction diets and attended Overeaters Anonymous for a time.
I connected with Kelly’s message because it felt so sane and sensible.— Clare, England
When I came across Kelly’s blog, I’d become attracted to the idea of intermittent fasting and had begun to experiment with various methods. But I couldn’t sustain any of them and ended up making myself ill. I connected with Kelly’s message because it felt so sane and sensible. Below is my book review of It Took Me 10 Years to Lose 10 Pounds… It was hard to write the review and narrow it down to just a few ideas as they all clicked!

Overall thoughts

How long did it take you to read It took me 10 years to lose 10 pounds?
I think it took me about 3 to 4 hours to read. Bear in mind that I read very slowly and often stop to take in an idea.

Did you read it all at once?
I read it in blocks of about 20 minutes. This is generally the most practical way for me to read.

How would you rate the book out of 5 stars?
Definitely 5 stars. Most sensible, useful book I’ve read in ages.

After you finished the book, did you have questions?
I feel the book is comprehensive without being heavy and wordy. It’s made up of sound principles. So I feel like I have a solid foundation of the information I need.

What makes this book work for you?
I think the book has struck a good balance between comprehensive and accessible. I love the glossy, graphical format – it makes it easier for certain quotes, etc. to stick in my mind. And they come back to me when I’m off to raid the vending machine, again.

What’s one improvement you’ve noticed?
I’ve stopped saying to myself “I need to lose weight” and changed it to, “I need to try to stick to my plan of eating.” Much gentler.

Book Review: It took me 10 years to lose 10 pounds

The first thing I noticed about the book was the size and format. It’s like reading a big, glossy magazine, lots of colour, graphics and photographs but without airbrushed photos of impossibly thin models to increase my insecurities! There’s a sticker on the front stating that for every copy bought, a donation is given to a healthcare charity. This helped me feel reassured that Kelly is genuine in her intention to help others, which has been reinforced by her communications with me.

Following a moment of doubt when I read the dedication at the front of the book (Is it really for me? What if I’m not committed enough?) I found the central messages of the book very useful and practical and have begun to implement them with some success.

What to do after making a “mistake”

One of the suggestions I found useful is the idea of keeping on when you’ve made a mistake. It made me remember something my piano teacher once told me. I was in the habit of going back to correct wrong notes whilst playing and she said this is much more disruptive to the listener than if the player just goes on regardless of wrong notes. Keeping on when I feel I’ve made a mistake is much less disruptive to life and means less wasted time.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who's seeking to live a healthier way of life. I already want to re-read it!— Clare, England

Each of the three steps is simply explained and well-presented with cheerful photographs and graphics, plus useful quotes from reliable sources. Despite the three-step presentation, it does not feel linear or rigid, and I find I’m incorporating principles from all three steps as I make small changes.

I already feel less preoccupied

Principles I’ve found incredibly useful include the suggestion to eat three roughly balanced meals made of whole foods. And to divide the day into manageable ‘chunks’ between meals where I can focus on one or two things I would like to achieve at work or home. I don’t have the ability to eat intuitively (left to my own devices, I’ll eat family packs of crisps, chocolate and biscuits). So I find the three healthy meals structure very helpful; I never get too hungry and can safely ignore the urge to snack on junk food as I know I’m meeting my nutritional needs with my planned meals. Thanks to this approach, I already feel less preoccupied with food and eating. What a joy and relief!

Clare’s Rescue Dog, Toby

I highly recommend this book, and the principles it contains, to anyone who’s seeking to live a healthier way of life. I already want to re-read it!

Thank you Kelly for sharing what you’ve learned. You have no idea how much you’ve helped me and I’m so grateful.

P.S. I completely love the picture of you walking your dog Rocky by the graffiti wall in your book… Something about the way he’s placing his feet is so appealing.