Ms Bliss Fit

Book Recommendation! “Making the Cut”

Last night I stumbled across a book that I purchased last year when I decided to lose weight. During my second time around with the weight loss process, I needed something that would get me over the plateau. Before I bought it, I had already dropped about 15 pounds.  This book is highly recommended to anyone who needs help with a diet and workout plan and is trying to lose the last 20, 15, 10, 5 pounds. Even if you are already at your ideal weight, it will help change-up your routine. “Making the Cut” is an excellent book. Jillian Michaels knows her stuff. She has been a trainer for a very long time and has herself experienced weight loss battles. I was in Target one day and I decided to buy it. It was well worth the $15.00 that I paid for it. She pretty much gives you all the tools you need to get on a 30 Day plan. This book is geared towards people who have a little bit of experience working out already but find themselves bored and stuck, and for those who don’t want just an average body.

I like this book because Jillian addresses the importance of having a positive mental attitude. You can’t do anything if you have a poor attitude. You need to go into this with an open mind and have confidence that you can do it. Her programs trains you mentally, physically, and nutritionally. I call this the pyramid of success. In the beginning you will take a “before” photo, measure your body fat, take your measurements, and take a fitness test. It might seem like a lot to go through but you need a way of seeing your progress. If you’re going to be lazy about this, then you definitely won’t be able to do the program. She also has a section where you take a “metabolic test” to determine what type of metabolism you have. I was a little concerned about this part. I do not think it is 100% accurate but it can give you a little guidance into why you crave certain things. No one is 100% ANYTHING but you can be closer to one of the three metabolic types than others. (Don’t take this part as 100% truth…it takes testing in a real dr’s office to determine your metabolic type.) However; genetics do play a small role in the way your body responds to food…but we will not go into that. Just eat clean and you will be fine. If the test says you are a “slow oxidizer,” you can still eat from the other types. Just eat what you like that is healthy…it will save you a lot of frustration.

Jillian gives you a workout plan to follow and tells you when to rest. You can’t go wrong if you just do it! You can make modifications for exercises that are too difficult but you need to try your hardest to challenge yourself. When you do this workout in the gym, people will be looking at you because you are doing unusual exercises. Everyone at the gym does the same old boring thing. Her workouts will have you doing many different things. Please do not worry about what people think you are doing…actually, they might even ask you because they are looking for something new to try.  In the back of her book, she has an exercise guide that shows you how to do each exercise. You can also use YouTube as a resource. You do need to know what you are doing before you go to the gym. It can be done at home with a few modifications and switching out of exercises….just use what you have! Don’t feel like you have to follow everything to the tee. It depends on what you have access to.

Another thing that I love about this book are the recipes! She has some delicious, clean recipes in her book. You can make adjustments for foods you do not like or can’t eat. Finally, she goes into how to supplement your diet.

If you feel lost and cannot afford a personal trainer, you might want to give this book a try. It worked for me!