My sister is doing this plan and thought I might like it. Makes getting healthy a competition. With the added benefit of weight loss. Simple concept, simple rules, still undecided whether I will compete. ( )

The Short and Sweet of It
This is not your typical diet book. 1) It sets up healthy living as a competition. 2) The authors are real people instead of doctors. 3) The word fuck is peppered throughout. Even if you don't want to lose weight or get healthy, you should read this because it's so freaking funny.

A Bit of a Ramble
First, a bothersome note. I hate Grey's Anatomy. McDreamy isn't dreamy, McSteamy isn't steamy, and the lead female character bothers me something fierce. Why do I mention this in a review of a diet book you might ask? Because the primary author, Krista, is the lead writer on that annoying program. While I may not like Grey's Anatomy, I really love the writing in this book. Krista writes from a very personal, very honest, and very funny point of view.

The diet works on a points system with certain actions gaining points for participants (like eating well, exercising often, and sleeping regularly) and other actions detracting points (like snacking and drinking alcohol). The idea is to set up two teams and see who gets the most points. At first the system seems a bit complicated, but once you've read the book and printed the worksheets, it's clear that this is a plan people can follow. I am not saying it's going to be easy, but it's definitely doable.

I do have two tiny issues though. First and foremost, what's up with me not being able to drink Diet Coke?!?!?!?!?! I have been addicted to Coca-Cola for like six years, and finally, finally I manage to switch it up to Diet Coke, like one month ago, and now I'm going to start a diet which requires me to give even that up! You have got to be kidding! Second, and not quite so earth shattering, eating five times a day is going to be a problem, but just on Tuesdays and Thursdays. Those are the days I teach three back-to-back classes with like no time in between. I have yet to figure out how exactly I am going to finagle some food time in there. I typically don't eat until 3:30 in the afternoon. I know, I know, that's seriously unhealthy, especially since I then proceed to eat until I go to bed. :)

Overall, I think this is a manageable, healthy choice for me at this point. Again though, informative awesome weight loss healthy living stuff aside, the book itself is worth a read just for the excellently hilarious writing. ( )

Diet and exercise, we were all told that is how you lose weight healthily. The Game on Diet bases itself along those lines, but making a game out of it. A friend challenged me to the game. While neither one of us lasted more than 2 weeks when we attempted the game, with in the first week of trying the game the first time, I lost a good 7 lbs. Getting me out of a plateau that I have been at for the last year.
The game didn’t work for us, because the eating 5 times a day and drinking 3 litres of water rule didn’t fit in our lifestyle. We were at the beckon of someone else schedule. Although if you are someone who has controlled over when you take breaks at work, can eat when you want and don’t mind spending lots of time in the bathroom, this diet truly works. You just need to fit everything into your life better then we could.
The book itself is well written, and funny and very easy to follow along. ( )

I’m ashamed to admit how many diets I have tried in the past. After living on cabbage soup for a week and forcing down a ton of chili peppers (Yikes!) I vowed to never try another fad diet again. If I was destined to be pleasantly plump for eternity, then so be it. Then a friend of mine asked me to be on her Game On team. After I lectured her on all the reasons I refused to be a slave to another ill working diet she simply smiled and asked me to read the book.

And so I did. A week later we started the game.

So what changed my mind? First and foremost I felt like the primary writer, Krista Vernoff, wasn’t just some health nut trying to get another fatty like me to hop on the bandwagon so they could make a few bucks. She had actually been to the land of the chub herself and figured that if the game could work for her when nothing else could then it might just work for anyone. The book itself is also laid out incredibly well, giving each element of the game its own hysterical chapter. Understanding the ins and outs of a diet can be frustrating, but I quickly got how (and more importantly why) this worked and felt that it was something I could do. I loved that it asked me to eat five, well balanced and correctly portioned meals a day instead of living on bacon and eggs (Fun, but not the best idea). But the real reason I decided to break my vow of fattitude and play the game was because it actually sounded like fun. Even if the scale didn’t go down at all I was pretty sure the competition itself would be worth it.

Four weeks and two dresses sizes (in the right direction) later and I’m thanking my lucky stars that I didn’t stay too firmly rested on my laurels. The Game On Diet works. I admit that at first I was having some trouble re-arranging my life. Having the time to make and eat five meals each day takes careful planning. Finding twenty minutes to exercise when it wasn’t part of my routine at all was a challenge. And forcing myself into a full seven hours in lala land meant not putting off all the things I usually saved until the last minute to do in lieu of sleep. However, I quickly adjusted and started to both look and feel better. I looked forward to each of my meals every day, discovered twenty minutes really isn’t very long at all and spent an entire day yawn-free. I even got closer to my teammates and found that a little competition really can go a long way.

Any time I usually recommend something to someone I usually end by telling them that so and so isn’t for everyone. Yet I am telling everyone I know that they should play the game. Unlike all of those other food plans that torture you with little payoff, The Game On Diet is a fun way to drop those pounds. And while you won’t stay completely on plan when you aren’t playing a game (Oh donuts, how I’ve missed you so) it manages to teach you smart skills like portion control that will stay with you even when you think you’re being bad. The best thing about it, like all good games, is that it can be played again and again. I now believe there is a thin person inside all of us, we just need to beat someone else to find it in ourselves. ( )

I just finished reading this book, and my friends and family are planning on starting this diet next week. I am really excited. The book is laid out in a way that is very accessible and clear. As for how well the diet actually works, I don't know. I'll let you know in five weeks.

* * * * *

Well, we did it, and I lost 6 and a half pounds in 4 weeks. I think that is pretty good since I was already within a healthy range, and was just wanting to lose a few pounds and firm up. My husband - who was my team member lost more than 15 lbs. Our last day of competition was 4 days ago, and I have to admit that I was ready for the game to be over. I was really getting tired of giving up my bad habit (I couldn't leave dishes in the sink over night) and making sure I got 7 hours of sleep a night. My husband and I took two days off from exercising and from watching what we ate, but after that we both got back to it. We both still drinking 3 liters of water a day, exercising for at least 20 minutes a day, and eating 5 small, balanced meals a day. Hopefully, we'll continue to lose the last little bit of weight that we have to lose and see the amazing changes in our bodies. My arms look great and my calves are more defined than they have been in years.

I think this is a really fun way to lose weight, and it teaches you a lot of great healthy habits. We're planning on getting another game together before the holidays to reinforce all that we've learned before being bombarded with holiday treats.

Two suggestions that I would have for anyone who wants to get their own game together would be not to start your game on a Sunday or Monday and to try and not travel while you are playing the game. You will want to take your meals off one the weekends, but if you have to weigh in on Sunday morning, it is really hard to do it. You're weight will be up just because of all the extra sodium in restaurant food. And trying to travel and keep up with the diet is really hard. First of all, if you are going to be in the car for any length of time, you don't want to be pounding water because you will have to stop and pee a million times. Plus, trying to eat healthily from a convenience store can be a challenge. It isn't impossible, but it is harder than eating at home.

If you are thinking about doing this diet, I say go for it. What do you have to lose, except some weight? ( )