Hormone Revolution Weight-Loss Plan

Simple calorie counting often fails-and cutting back on certain foods ""can actually make you fatter""-because these strategies ignore the role of hormones, according to this fact-filled but readable weight-loss primer. Ullis, a physician specializing in sports and anti-aging medicine, details the myriad ways in which hormones like testosterone, insulin, and human growth hormone influence (and are influenced by) fat metabolism, exercise nutrition, sex drive, sleep patterns and aging. He argues that diet and exercise plans often end up burning muscle instead of fat because they don't allow for these effects, and outlines meal plans, recipes, work-out regimens and nutritional supplements that take hormones into account. Ullis's advice is ultimately not all that revolutionary: he recommends weight-training along with aerobic exercise, and an Atkins-like diet of limited portions low in starch and high in vegetables, poultry and fish. But he does insist on a rather strict scheduling of meals, workouts and supplement popping to ensure optimal hormone levels (starch and sugar, for example, should be ingested only during a 30-60 minute ""Magic Window"" after one's daily workout), along with meticulous food and exercise logs; some readers may find all the synchronization and record-keeping inconvenient. His suggested hormone-boosting nutritional supplements are more controversial (he butts heads with the FDA on some of them) so readers should consult a physician before taking them.