Jumpstart to Skinny: Lose 20 Pounds in 21 Days

                                                       
Jumpstart to Skinny is the latest book from Biggest Loser trainer, Bob Harper.
He says that dieters can lose up to 20 pounds in 21 days, but is almost a pound a day weight loss realistic?
Harper says that this Jumpstart plan should only be used for 3 weeks as a way to accelerate weight loss, especially helpful before special events like weddings, beach vacations, etc.
The plan revolves around 13 simple rules that dieters must follow if they expect to lose 20 pounds in 21 days.

Some of the Key Jumpstart to Skinny Rules

Bob Harper says that these rules are some of his insider celebrity secrets that he uses with his celebrity clients to get them ready for red carpet events and now everyone can benefit from these “secrets” as well.

Low Calories for 3 Weeks

Haper says that women should eat no more than 800 calories and that men should eat no more than 1200 calories a day during the 3 week period.

40/40/20

Jumpstart to Skinny says that 40 percent of those calories should come from carbs, 40 percent should come from protein, and 20 percent should come from fat.
Free Calories: Dieters can eat as many low starch vegetables as the want. Lettuce, brocolli, carrots, cucumber, peppers, etc. can be eaten without restriction.

45 Minutes of Low Intensity Cardio Before Breakfast

Bob believes that exercising on an empty stomach accelerates fat loss.

Drink Espresso Daily

Jumpstart promotes using espresso as a way to rev up the metabolism and perform better during exercise.  Harper describes espresso as the “perfect caffeine delivery system” because it doesn’t promote jitters and is calorie free. He says to drink it black and have several throughout the day.

No Fruit During Week 3

No fruit should be eaten during week three. Bob Harper says that the fructose in fruit sends signals to the body to store fat instead of to burn it.

Additional Tools

Jumpstart to Skinny is designed to make this 3 week diet a “no brainer”. Harper provides dieters with the following:

• Grocery lists of exactly what to buy.
• 3 weeks worth of meal plans that tell dieters exactly what to eat.
• Recipes that show dieters exactly how to make the food.
• Detailed descriptions of which exercises to do. 

Is Bob Harper a Nutritionist?

No, and Jumpstart to Skinny seems to undermine a healthy approach to weight loss. While some of the principles in the book will promote rapid weight loss, I think the overall message of the book is that it is acceptable to “crash diet”.
This type of philosophy contributes to unhealthy yoyo dieting instead of losing weight gradually and keeping it off by changing one’s lifestyle and unhealthy relationship with food.
Also, some of his scientific rational is pretty flimsy. He claims that fructose causes the body to store fat, but the study that he is referring to involved high fructose corn syrup, not the simple fructose found in whole fruit. It’s a big stretch of that study’s data to say that a woman on an 800 calorie diet would store fat if she ate an apple.
Calories too low? Perhaps for some. Advising women who are only eating 800 calories a day to exercise before breakfast could be dangerous for those with certain conditions, especially for those that might not yet be diagnosed.
While losing 20 pounds in 21 days may sound appealing, I think Jumpstart to Skinny probably isn’t a very healthy approach to do so.
What do you think?
Jumpstart to Skinny is available on Amazon here.