February 24, 6:40 PM
by Mila Lowery, Baltimore Healthy Living Examiner
The latest diet generating buzz is the Engine 2 Diet created by Texas firefighter Rip Esselstyn. Determined to get his co-workers into better shape, Esselstyn created this diet plan to help them lower their cholesterol levels and lose weight. Everyone who participated was successful; one person’s cholesterol went from 344 to 196.
Impressive? Sure. But is it groundbreaking? Not really. This diet is essentially the vegan way of eating, just repackaged with a firefighter angle. Veganism is nothing new. It’s been around for quite a while — since 1944, in fact.
It’s no secret that plant-based foods are healthy and can help you lose weight and lower cholesterol levels. But can the average person stick with this diet plan in the long term?
The diet challenges you to try it for 28 days. For people who already embrace the vegan lifestyle, this diet would be a piece of (vegan) cake because they are already used to this way of eating. Diligent dieters, too, will likely be able to stick with it for 28 days, which isn’t such a long time in the grand scheme of things.
But then what? If you are truly ready to embrace the idea of eating only plant-based foods for the rest of your life (sans even olive oil), this book would be a good start. However, if you’re just looking for a quick way to lose the pounds (as the vast majority of dieters are) it’s likely you’ll grow tired of the plan’s restrictions and soon be on your way to the next diet book you see. In a few years, this book will likely end up in the bargain bin at the bookstore for $1. Such is the vicious cycle of dieting, and it’s what keeps the diet book industry humming along.
What do you think? Do you plan to try this diet? Leave a comment or send me an e-mail at healthylivingexaminer@gmail.com.
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