Leigh reviewed Counterclockwise: My Year of Hypnoisis, Hormones, and Other Adventures in the World of Anti-Aging on + 378 more book reviews
Kessler won me over with her candor in this book. It's rare for an author to be as brutally honest as she was in her pursuit of finding the secrets behind age reversal. I don't consider her vain or superficial or obsessed; she's an immersion journalist and honesty is just part of her MO.
I appreciate that she did all the footwork for me in regard to the cosmetic side of the anti-aging movement. I'll admit I want IPL and I want it soon. I like that she used herself as a guinea pig for this and I felt safe with the process, if that makes any sense.
Being a little obsessed with nutrition, I dove right in to the sections on food. I've long been a "superfoods" advocate (minus the meat and dairy), so I was cheering for her when she gave herself two weeks to eat following the general superfoods guidelines, which were cross-referenced from several sources. (And she gave them all!). I want to do the two-week cleanse she was on. It sounded heavenly and wonderful and so clean. I want to feel that way.
I'm enough of a personal cataloger (books, movies, FitBit steps, etc.) to confidently say that I'm way into calorie restriction. For six months I assiduously tracked calories, protein, carbs, fiber, fat, sat. fat, cholesterol, and various minerals. The weight loss was astounding and I did it by getting all my nutrition. So I am on board with CR! I don't think she did it right, though. I think she could have made wiser decisions and kept herself a little fuller. That's the only section I read where I questioned her true dedication to exploration.
Perhaps the most eye-opening part of the entire book was the supplements section. Historically, I won't look at a product unless it's been thoroughly studied through several large-group studies (placebo, double blind, etc.). Kessler makes insightful, logical points about why this *might* not be the best way to determine a supplement's efficacy. A lot of this had to do with how the FDA operates - which isn't busting on the FDA, just stating their operating policies. Completely understandable. However, my disgust with Big Pharma renewed itself as I read. I know the process for getting products approved is long and tedious, due to regulations on clinical trials and the length of studies (as it should be to ensure honest results and safety issues). But I won't restate her arguments here - read those for yourself and decide.
BTW, I'm supplementing now and I'm not ashamed to say it. Not with everything she decided to supplement with - I researched the specific ones I was interested in for hours one day until I felt confident I'd found which ones were right for me. But her case for it is pretty strong.
Her conclusions were a let-down for me, as I'm plagued with bad genetics and one just can't change that. Liver: let me just remind you that one day you're going to regret making so much cholesterol in my body. I will shut this whole thing down and possibly torture you with alcohol before I let you win!
This body's going to be the death of me. Mark my words.
I appreciate that she did all the footwork for me in regard to the cosmetic side of the anti-aging movement. I'll admit I want IPL and I want it soon. I like that she used herself as a guinea pig for this and I felt safe with the process, if that makes any sense.
Being a little obsessed with nutrition, I dove right in to the sections on food. I've long been a "superfoods" advocate (minus the meat and dairy), so I was cheering for her when she gave herself two weeks to eat following the general superfoods guidelines, which were cross-referenced from several sources. (And she gave them all!). I want to do the two-week cleanse she was on. It sounded heavenly and wonderful and so clean. I want to feel that way.
I'm enough of a personal cataloger (books, movies, FitBit steps, etc.) to confidently say that I'm way into calorie restriction. For six months I assiduously tracked calories, protein, carbs, fiber, fat, sat. fat, cholesterol, and various minerals. The weight loss was astounding and I did it by getting all my nutrition. So I am on board with CR! I don't think she did it right, though. I think she could have made wiser decisions and kept herself a little fuller. That's the only section I read where I questioned her true dedication to exploration.
Perhaps the most eye-opening part of the entire book was the supplements section. Historically, I won't look at a product unless it's been thoroughly studied through several large-group studies (placebo, double blind, etc.). Kessler makes insightful, logical points about why this *might* not be the best way to determine a supplement's efficacy. A lot of this had to do with how the FDA operates - which isn't busting on the FDA, just stating their operating policies. Completely understandable. However, my disgust with Big Pharma renewed itself as I read. I know the process for getting products approved is long and tedious, due to regulations on clinical trials and the length of studies (as it should be to ensure honest results and safety issues). But I won't restate her arguments here - read those for yourself and decide.
BTW, I'm supplementing now and I'm not ashamed to say it. Not with everything she decided to supplement with - I researched the specific ones I was interested in for hours one day until I felt confident I'd found which ones were right for me. But her case for it is pretty strong.
Her conclusions were a let-down for me, as I'm plagued with bad genetics and one just can't change that. Liver: let me just remind you that one day you're going to regret making so much cholesterol in my body. I will shut this whole thing down and possibly torture you with alcohol before I let you win!
This body's going to be the death of me. Mark my words.
