Table Of ContentCredits
Mayo Clinic
Medical Editor-in-Chief - Donald Hensrud, M.D.
Associate Medical Editor - Jennifer Nelson, R.D.
Senior Director, Consumer Products & Services - Nicole Spelhaug
Editor-in-Chief, Books and Newsletters - Christopher Frye
Managing Editor - Kevin Kaufman
Creative Director - Wes Weleczki
Art Directors - Stewart Koski, Rick Resnick
Illustrator - Kent McDaniel
Proofreaders - Miranda Attlesey, Donna Hanson
Indexer - Steve Rath
Administrative Assistants - Beverly Steele, Terri Zanto Strausbauch
Each of the habits in Lose It! has been the subject of scientific studies that
support its role in weight management. In addition, Mayo Clinic conducted a
two-week program to test the validity of this habit-based approach to quick
weight loss. The 33 women who completed the program lost an average of 6.59
pounds, with individual results varying from 0.2 to 13.8 pounds lost. The 14 men
who completed the program lost an average of 9.97 pounds, with individual
results varying from 5.2 to 18.8 pounds lost. Individual results will vary. Consult
your doctor before starting any diet program.
Good Books
Publisher - Merle Good
Executive Editor - Phyllis Pellman Good
Assistant Publisher - Kate Good
First electronic edition published 2011 by RosettaBooks LLC, New York.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means, electronic
or mechanical, including photocopying and recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system,
without permission in writing from the publisher, except by a reviewer, who may quote brief passages in
review.
© 2011 Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research.
ISBN 978-1-56148-676-2
The Mayo Clinic Diet is intended to supplement the advice of your personal physician, whom you should
consult regarding individual medical conditions.
MAYO, MAYO CLINIC and the Mayo triple shield logo are marks of Mayo Foundation for Medical
Education and Research.
Photo credits: Artville, BananaStock, Brand X Pictures, Daniel Brevick, Comstock, Corbis, DAJ/Getty
Images, Digital Vision, Jordan Eady, EyeWire, Joe Kane, Rick Madsen, PhotoAlto, Photodisc and
Stockbyte.
Cover design by Paul Krause.
Table of contents
Introduction
Part 1 ~ Lose It!
Chapter 1 • Ready, set, go
Before you start
Finding your inner motivation
Are you ready?
The Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid
Quick reference guide to Lose It!
Chapter 2 • Add 5 Habits
Eat a healthy breakfast — but not too much
Eat vegetables and fruits — at least 3 or 4 servings daily
Eat whole grains — whole-grain bread, others
Eat healthy fats — olive oil and vegetable oils, nuts
Move! Walk or exercise for 30 minutes or more every day
Chapter 3 • Break 5 Habits
No TV while eating — and no more TV time than exercise time
No sugar — only what’s naturally found in fruit
No snacks — except vegetables and fruits
Moderate meat and low-fat dairy — the size of a deck of cards
No eating at restaurants — unless the meal fits the program
Chapter 4 • Adopt 5 Bonus Habits
Keep food records — write down everything you eat
Keep activity records — type of activity, duration and intensity
Move more! Walk or exercise for 60 minutes or more every day
Eat ‘real food’ — mostly fresh, and healthy frozen or canned
Write your daily goals — what motivates you every day
Chapter 5 • What have you learned?
Analyzing your results
What worked and what didn’t?
Part 2 ~ Live It!
Chapter 6 • Preparing to Live It!
Setting your weight-loss goal
Selecting your daily calorie goal
Determining your daily servings
Quick guide to serving sizes
Chapter 7 • Eating to the pyramid
If you’re hungry, eat
Chapter 8 • No food scales or calculators needed
Breakfast — Practicing portion control
Lunch — Taking apart a sandwich
Dinner — Unscrambling food jumbles
Snacks — Recognizing the best options
Chapter 9 • Burning calories
Start where you are
Adding activities to your day
Chapter 10 • A quick review . . . and a look ahead
Reviewing the steps
Your ultimate goal
Part 3 ~ All the extra stuff
Chapter 11 • Finding your healthy weight
What’s your BMI?
Is your health at risk?
Why am I overweight?
Chapter 12 • Understanding nutrition and weight control
Dietary sources of energy
Your energy account
Chapter 13 • The Mayo Clinic Healthy Weight Pyramid
Vegetables and Fruits
Carbohydrates
Protein and Dairy
Fats
Sweets
Physical Activity
Chapter 14 • How to change behaviors
Preparing for change
Put the brakes on stress
Chapter 15 • So I slipped up — what do I do?
Breaking behavior chains
How to stay motivated
Getting family and friends on board
Chapter 16 • Making meals easy
Quick & healthy menu ideas
Adapting recipes
Sample menus
Chapter 17 • Sticking to the diet when eating out
Maneuvering the menu
Your guide to healthy ethnic cuisine
Chapter 18 • Burning even more calories
Aerobics
Strength training
Calories burned in 1 hour
Action Guide to weight-loss barriers
Pyramid servings at a glance
Recipes for weight loss
Index
Introduction
Donald Hensrud, M.D.
Medical Editor-in-Chief
If your experience is like that of many new patients I see, you’ve probably tried
at least several diets in an attempt to lose weight, yet the weight keeps coming
back. Welcome to The Mayo Clinic Diet, a program designed to be the last diet
you’ll need — or want.
This diet is not a fad. You’ve had enough of those and know the result. This is a
program that helps you make simple, healthy, pleasurable changes that will result
in a weight you can maintain for the rest of your life.
The Mayo Clinic Diet isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach. Using clinically tested
techniques, it puts you in charge of reshaping your lifestyle by adopting healthy
new habits and breaking unhealthy old ones.
Why the emphasis on health? Well, Mayo Clinic is a medical institution, and
good health is our goal. But aside from that, it turns out that a healthy lifestyle is
also a great way to lose weight and keep it off. You get better health and better
weight. Not a bad deal.
Perhaps best of all, this program is enjoyable. Eating is one of the great joys in
life. What you eat on this diet has to taste good, or you won’t do it. The Mayo
Clinic Diet emphasizes foods that not only are healthy but taste great, which is
why we can say, “Eat well. Enjoy life. Lose weight.”
So dig in — turn the page and start today on a path to a healthier, happier life.
P.S. Why did we write The Mayo Clinic Diet? Because you wanted it. Bogus Mayo Clinic diets — based on
everything from cabbage soup to grapefruit to bacon — have been circulating for decades. These diets have
no connection to Mayo Clinic, but their popularity told us that people are hungry for a diet based on Mayo’s
research and clinical experience. So, here it is — for real — The Mayo Clinic Diet.
How to use this book
This book is designed to help you start losing weight now.
Part 1, Lose It!
Jump-start your weight loss with a two-week quick start designed to help you
lose 6 to 10 pounds in a safe and healthy way. Very little preparation — just read
Chapter 1 and dive in. Part 1 is intentionally lean on background info because
it’s focused on action. Anytime you need more information, see Part 3 for
additional help.
Part 2, Live It!
After Lose It!, transition into Part 2, Live It!, which is designed to help you
continue to lose 1 to 2 pounds a week until you reach your goal weight — and
then maintain that weight as you Live It! for the rest of your life. That’s why
there’s no specific length for the Live It! phase of the diet — hopefully it will be
a very long time!
Part 3, All the extra stuff
Part 3 of the book is all the additional information — meal planners, recipes, tips
on overcoming challenges, and much more — that will help you understand the
whys and hows of what you’re doing in Parts 1 and 2, so that you can be
successful in both Lose It! and Live It!
So, to use this book:
1. Jump-start your weight loss with Part 1, Lose It!
2. Continue losing weight and keep it off with Part 2, Live It!
3. Use the resources in Part 3 for help along the way and for more detail on
the “why” and “how” of things, if you’re interested.
4. While in Lose It!, look ahead to Live It! so that you know what’s coming
and can be ready.
5. While in Live It!, feel free at any time to repeat Lose It! if you want to boost
your weight loss again.
All you have to do to lose weight
during this two —
week period is:
