The Petite Advantage Diet

JessieNeutronGirlGenius

So I bought this book a couple of days ago and so far it's pretty interesting. Jim Karas (the author and fitness guru) talks about how women under 5'4 need to be on a different diet and what not. He even recommends not to take part in cardio? This doesn't make sense to me. He says that for petites it can assist in actually GAINING weight....is anyone else reading this book?

shakybabe

Never heard of it.. Can dowload it as PDF? Or do you have a link? I'm 5ft 3 and half.

MB_Positif

Interesting, as I have lost weight doing a lot of running mixed with circuit training and I am barely 5'-2". Not saying my methods would work for everyone, but I've never heard anything like that before. Let me know if you yield good results!

hottottie11

Sorry...sounds stupid... I'm 5'2'' I've lost over 50 lb they same way tall people lost weight.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I'm also curious how being short makes our bodies work so differently that we would require a completely different diet/exercise plan from our taller counterparts? It sounds a little silly.

cameralinds

That's really interesting... can you post more information about it? I'm 5', definitely petite.

Doing some mild research this was the first thing that I found about it... it basically states the obvious. Short people can't eat as much as their equally weighed, taller friends, because BMR is different. Cardio will make petite people more hungry....

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2079454/New-Petite-Advantage-Diet-reveals-weight-loss-tips-SHORT-women.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

Not that the dailymail is a scholarly source on the matter, but that's what I found in a quick google search.

jam0525

Marking my spot.

A different diet sounds right for us vertically challenge people, but no cardio does not sound right. A certain amount is good for the heart.

Keep us posted on what you are reading and what sounds like it makes sense.

Jeannie

busterbluth

Sorry...sounds stupid... I'm 5'2'' I've lost over 50 lb they same way tall people lost weight.

Yeah. Me too. And Joan Benoit, the first female Olympic Marathon winner, is 5'2", 100lbs.

RunningAddict

Everyone needs exercise in my oppinion, tall, short, big, small!! I think I would pitch that book-

klcinwpg

I have read about the book and read the first chapter. Some things seem interesting but I don't know about other things that he talks about. That no cardio thing is interesting and the eat your biggest meal at breakfast!.

firedragon064

I don't belive it but I want to keep an open mind since I used to not believe in low carb and IF.. until I tried them myself.

ILiftHeavyAcrylics

I just went to the website and it sounds like a lot of hooey to me. If a person's credentials are that they've appeared on The View, Dr Oz, and Good Morning America, that hardly qualifies them as a "guru" in my experience. Also this is another eating plan that requires you to eliminate certain foods completely from your diet.

nikkirenee79

I could get behind his theory that strength training might be better, but I am very skeptical of his claim that cardio will make us gain weight. I found a little bit more info about the book via a quick google search-

http://www.weightloss-hq.biz/weight-loss-reviews/the-petite-advantage-diet-review-sneak-peak-into-the-book.html

kellyb63

I'm 5 foot 3.5 inches and have an apple shape body. I'll check it out, thanks for writing about it. Maybe he thinks excessive cardio is bad. I know when I run an hour, I'm starving!

yvonnej1

I just looked on Amazon and 'read inside' quite a bit of it. I'm 5'3 and I've lost my weight through a mix of cardio and strength, and I do think the strength training has been vital to getting the body shape that I want. Overall though this book seems to say a lot of what I have read before. I've read plenty about how it can be harder for smaller people to lose weight because of tighter margins in calorie requirements and deficits etc. There are also plenty of claims about cardio not being as effective for weightloss for some people, but to claim it can make you gain weight? hmmmm. However the deal breaker for me would be his insistence on breakfast having to be the biggest meal, that does not suit my style of eating at all, I like my big evening meal and always will. I've lost weight eating like that and I've seen studies that show that meal size and timing are irrelevant when calories are constant.

edited for spelling!

mamitosami

I'm 5 foot 3.5 inches and have an apple shape body. I'll check it out, thanks for writing about it. Maybe he thinks excessive cardio is bad. I know when I run an hour, I'm starving!

Just sayin' -- I'm 5'11", if I run an hour I'm starving too!!

tangal88

Sorry, sounds hokey to me personally.

5'2" here, medium frame.

I use heavy lifting and cardio both. When I cut out cardio I have a harder time losings. When I add my cardio back, I loss more consistently - but certainly don't gain weight. (other then the normal weight gain related to stored water in muscle which happens to everyone, or all sizes, and gains as I build on muscle.)

Personally the only difference I see, is that stature can dictate differences in calories needed to loss and maintain weight. But you can find free calculators everyone online, that will provide correct cal numbers based on height, body build and age.

I have lost 60 pounds, I am older at age 47, which also mean slower metabolism issues. I do not cut out any foods, just use moderation and common sense, and staying in my calorie and macro goals.

Meal size does not change how you burn calories, many studies have shown that to be inaccurate, and I cannot see how stature would matter. There are many many female (and male) athelites of short stature that eat small, or no breakfasts, and lose or maintain weight. (jockeys, ballerinas, gymnasts, female body builders)


Pretty much everyone, any stature, male or female find they are more hungry after working out hard. This is true or cardio or resistance training. Its normal. Usually means you need to eat.

Your body needs fuel to rebuild, repair, stressed tissues, muscles and body systems.

Resistance training and cardio are both important for well rounded fitness, health, fat loss, toning, muscle building and conditioning. Both have benefits.

estherpab

I too bought the book and I was a bit skeptical about the cardio part because I do tons of cardio, am constantly hungry and I don't gain or lose weight! I just joined MFP so I'm hoping if I get my eatting in check I can lose the last 4 pounds I want to lose. I thought the meal plans were to complicated as I work and don't have time to make a bake sweet potato for lunch. Im in sales so I'm always on the road. I've been on MFP for 3 wks and have I have only lost one pound

significance

I'm 5'1" and lost almost 20kg (over 40 lbs) in 2011 by doing lots of cardio and sticking to 1200 net calories per day. I don't have a big breakfast, but reserve calories for a big dinner. If I don't do cardio, I have trouble sticking to 1200 calories and am hungry a lot. If I do a lot of cardio, I have much less trouble and I'm rarely very hungry.

KC5ZRQ

Does petite mean short, or small? I agree that someone who is obese (see gov't BMI standards) should initially diet only, for weight loss. Persons that are obese shouldn't participate in strenuous repetitive exercise because of risk of injury and aggravating existing health problems. When the person drops to being overweight, then start an exercise program. A normal weight person should exercise to benefit their overall health. I don't know why a petite person should not do cardiovascular exercise.

Pebble321

Sorry...sounds stupid... I'm 5'2'' I've lost over 50 lb they same way tall people lost weight.

I have to agree - I'm 5'4" but although the numbers are going to vary, and there isn't going to be so much wiggle room as when you're bigger - sounds silly!