Anyone choosing to follow the ‘official’ Mayo Clinic diet can't go far wrong, as long as they stick to it. The Mayo Clinic Diet isn't a diet as such, rather it's more of a healthy eating plan designed to be followed for life and is generally considered one of the most nutritionally sound diets around.


For seasoned weight loss addicts, the Mayo Clinic diet doesn't offer anything new that hasn't been heard many times before. However, the diet book is full of sound nutritional advice, backed up by the weight of the scientists, researchers and physicians from the Mayo Clinic. This naturally gives a great deal more credence to this diet over many others, while the book serves as a valuable reference source and guide for all the family.

It's not a speedy diet so those hoping to lose copious amounts of weight in a short time probably won't find this book quite what they're after. However, the first couple of weeks are designed to kick-start your weight loss, helping you lose between 6-10 pounds. This initial fast weight loss provides an excellent motivational boost to keep the dieter in a positive frame of mind during those crucial first few days. But this may be an unrealistic goal for many since this initial loss is mainly down to water loss. Once two weeks are up, weight loss is kept to a steady one to two pounds a week which, of course, is the healthiest rate to lose weight.

Since the diet is based on everyday foods, there are no special purchases of weird or hard to find ingredients which means everyone within the family can eat the same food and probably feel much healthier for it. With unlimited quantities of fruits and vegetables on the menu, it's hard to see how anyone following this plan would go hungry and for many dieters the word unlimited is always very welcome.

There is no rigid diet plan to stick to so it's good for those who enjoy a bit of freedom to pick and choose what they eat on their diet. Additionally, there is a healthy weight pyramid tool which tells you how much of each food group can eat as well as giving you a daily calorie guide. There is also advice on dealing with eating out and healthier alternatives to fast food. But, as with any eating plan, the dieter must use a healthy dose of their own willpower or it won't work.

The plan devotes much time in helping to change ‘bad’ habits by giving up old, unhealthy habits while replacing them with new ones. Dieters may come unstuck at this point, especially since many have held onto bad habits for much of their lifetime. But it’s worth persisting as the book deals with common behavioral issues relating to the way people eat while providing plenty of encouragement for individuals to discover their own motivations for losing weight.

Exercise is strongly encouraged throughout the diet. It doesn't insist the dieter follow strenuous workouts and anything that raises the heart rate is counted as exercise. For instance, mowing the lawn or making the beds. Some people though, may find it difficult to fit in the required 30-60 minutes of moderately vigorous physical activity each day, especially those whose work necessitates a lot of time at their computer.

Once criticism of the Mayo Clinic Diet book itself is the lack of recipes within and those that are included are generally given for a serving size of eight. However, the Mayo Clinic, along with New York Times bestselling cookbook author, Phyllis Pellman Good, created the Fix-It and Enjoy-It!® Healthy Cookbook which contains 400 recipes, all adapted to fit within the Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight pyramid and is reviewed by the Clinic's nutrition experts.

While the Mayo Clinic Diet doesn't proclaim any wondrous new theories or magical weight loss formulas, it does provide a sensible, easy to follow and scientifically backed-up guide to healthy eating. It also explores the emotional ties we have with food and endeavors to change unhealthy eating habits by replacing them with healthy new ones. As with any diet, it won't work unless the principles of the plan are adhered to, in which case followers can expect to lose excess pounds while maintaining their new healthy weight for the long term. And these days where obesity is rife, the Mayo Clinic Diet Plan really should be a prominent feature in homes around the world.

Further information:
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/mayo-clinic-diet/MY01040