The 5 Factor Diet

by Harley Pasternak, Myatt Murphy

The author of F-Factor Fitness introduces a proven new nutrition and diet program that emphasizes five small meals a day, includes a simple five-week diet program, and features more than one hundred simple recipes with five or fewer ingredients and five minutes of prep time, five weeks of meal plans, and a bonus section of fitness workouts.

Genres: Health, Cookbooks, Nonfiction, Fitness, Diets

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Harley Samuel Pasternak is a Los Angeles-based personal trainer, public speaker and NY Times best-selling author known for The Body Reset Diet and the 5-Factor Diet, a popular diet and fitness lifestyle. He holds an Honours Degree in Kinesiology from the University of Western Ontario and a Masters of Science in Exercise Physiology and Nutritional Sciences from the University of Toronto. [wikipedia]

Reviews

[Yvonne]

I would give this book ZERO stars if I could. Oh, wait, you mean I CAN? OK, then this is a ZERO STAR BOOK. It's completely unrealistic that someone could actually eat the crap this guy has dreamed up. Allow me to demonstrate:

(in this critique, the parentheses are my comments, and capitals are my emphasis)

Recipe: Roasted Asparagus Spears with Turkey Slices (my first reaction: meat and asparagus? Yummy! I will make!)

Ingredients:
20 asparagus spears
6 ounces sliced turkey (so far, so good)
2 cups shredded carrots (um, WHAT?)
1/2 cup very thinly sliced red onion (OK, could work)

Instructions:
-preheat oven (very reasonable)
-roast asparagus (OK, also makes sense)
-lay turkey on cutting board. SPRINKLE WITH THE (2 FUCKING CUPS OF) GRATED CARROTS and place roasted asparagus spears in the middle. Roll turkey around asparagus. Garnish with onion.

OK, WTF? How can you force 2 cups of shredded carrots into 6 ounces of turkey? WHAT? WHAT???? Are you proposing *crossing* a turkey with a carrot? I don't understand how this will work.

The rest of the diet is almost totally devoid of fat, which I can't stand. EVERYTHING calls for fat-free stuff: cheese, sour cream, cream cheese...anything that can have the fat sucked out of it is recommended in this book. What the hell happened to moderation? To low-fat stuff? Who could actually eat so little fat without freaking out and shoveling a pound of butter into her mouth at the end of the day? Not me, my friends. Not. Me.

I feel dumb even READING a diet book, much less for reviewing it, but I feel SO compelled to let the world know how ridiculous this diet is. God, people! Just go to the goddamn gym!

[Doroti · Rating 2 out of 5]

Another marketing trick criticizing all popular diet plans and combining principles from most of them in the end of the day!
Suggested meal recipes are too complicated contrary to the initial promises; still, some cooking ideas might be interesting.
Generally, i do not like the regular use of too much dairy and the throwing away of the egg yolks. Encouraging the use of low-fat dairy as well as processed low-fat sauces and mixtures is ridiculous in 21 century.
The workout plans seem reasonable though - that is the reason for the 2nd star.
As a whole - crap, crap, crap, etc.!

[Victoria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I first read his Body Reset Diet at the beginning of summer last year since then I've lost 41 pounds without incorporating his excercise plan. This books was next and I've used recipes from both to alter my diet. It's been super easy. Most of his recipes are not to my taste so I've altered them. He gives you the tools to make your own recipes and I'm no cook so it wasn't hard. All my recipes are still 5 ingredients and under 5 minutes to make and are just variations of recipes he provided. If you incorporate enough of the tools he gives you it makes a big difference. Went to the doctor and all my tests showed how much healthier I'd become. I "cheat" on some meals because life but very rarely will it be a whole day.

[H.M. Gooden · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was curious about this book as I’ve seen the name in connection with blockbuster movies/training Hollywood stars so I gave it a gander. A lot of the information was practical and a decent review along with the ubiquitous recipes one finds in each of these books. There was nothing in here that I haven’t seen in most bodybuilding forums but the layout was convenient and would be a great start for any beginner. I may try some of the shake recipes so worth a look.

[Shirin Abdel Rahman · Rating 1 out of 5]

He is attacking all type of diets( low carb- low GI- high protein etc), most of chapters about other diets and how bad they are for your health on the wrong run.
His 5 factor diets are eating healthy balanced food - sleep well- workout and supplements.
he is not saying anything thing valuable or anything you can not find on cosmo or marie claire!

[Amanda Andrews · Rating 5 out of 5]

I got turned onto this book via stalking Jessica Simpson's social media. I think Harley did a good job on this. I'm lacking in knowledge when it comes to nutrition so I feel like I learned a lot of good foundational information. It's easy to understand and he is definitely experienced and educated on the subject. It is also loaded with recipes to use.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked the exercise and the other info in here, but the recipe part was just....ugh. Scallops, no fat cream cheese, no fat cottage cheese, tomatoes, more tomatoes, tuna, etc. I couldn't find much in the recipes that I actually would want to eat.

[Lisa Eagen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple guidance on healthy eating

[Kristen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I really don't know why I picked up this book at the library, since I usually shy away from "diets," but I'm really glad I did. It read more like a nutrition text and its precepts were common sense stuff. I wouldn't even call Pasternak's plan a diet, but a sensible eating plan. I like the idea of one day off a week. Everyone needs to be naughty sometimes =) The workouts were helpful, but I didn't like many of the recipes because they would cost a lot to prepare and are not practical for feeding a large family like mine. If you're going to choose a diet book, I'd definitely recommend that you start here.

[Stephanie · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the workout section a lot better than the diet section. While a lot of his dietary arguments make sense, I am just not able to prepare myself five meals a day - three of them would be while at work! (And even if they take "only five minutes" - which I doubt, making quiche at work is just not going to happen.)

Perhaps this works for his celebrity clients and it could work for some "regular" people, but not for this regular person.

[Kristi · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very fast little read. Very motivating, but not much new information for me. There are several new recipes I want to try, so that's a good thing. I did enjoy reading about the benefits of continuing my healthy lifestyle journey I started two years ago. I'm a big believer that a fit life feels better than anything in the world and it comes with some small sacrifices....like putting the ice cream down!

[Erica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've read many diet books this one is the closest I've read to seeming pretty legit. He makes some excellent points and has great ideas. The best thing I've read is that he doesn't restrict you from anything when you're on this diet. Overall the book is telling you the same thing we've been hearing from our families since we were young. Eat right and exercise. Who would've thought right? Mmmm yeah. I'm going to try some of these recipes at least to try them out they seem yummy :-)

[Whitney · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have to say that I like Harley's take on nutrition. He is all about eating everything in moderation without having to give up certain food backs. It also helps that many celebrities endorse his nutrition ideas. However, I think the dangegr lies in the fitness side of things. I think in order to lose weight you would probably have to exercise longer than 30 minutes everyday. Many celebrities have hired him as their nutrition counsellor, but they also have their own personal trainer.

[Niknesha Q. Hairston · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just started the Harley Hollywood workout so I figure I better eat right also. I mean what's the use of exercising and burning fat when you put it back on with bad food choices, this book was very helpful especially with all the food choices and education on reading labels on food. Hopefully this book helps me reach a healthily lifestyle.

[Yaelian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my latest obsession, but it seems better than the others because it does not neglect excersise. It's a diet book, so who can really say whether the writing holds up. The point is that the recipes are pretty decent and I like that the workout routines are really diverse.

[Nina · Rating 2 out of 5]

I heard about this diet but I didn't really know what it was about. I saw the book on the new books shelf at my library and I was curious so I checked it out. The recipes didn't sound very good to me and the workouts seemed too easy.

[Rayna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Seems easy enough, unless you are greedy like me =) No, it's the best way to eat and really simple, you still need willpower though.

[Jtg · Rating 3 out of 5]

Am about to finish the first 5 week cycle recommended by the author. I like the fitness portion of this book better than the diet/nutrition portion.

[Erika]

years later..and I still randomly read this book
Even if u dont follow exactly - lots of great info/ideas and easy recipes

[Shiv allad]

yeh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! itz nice

[Jen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sounds reasonable - I tend to skip irrelevant chapters and only read what I want to with books like this, but it makes more sense than a lot I've read. Maybe I'll give it a try....

[Gail · Rating 5 out of 5]

Re-read

[Kim]

I bought it but never really read it, I keep meaning to get to it!!

[Colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some decent advice, but some of it is a little gimmicky.

[Bonnie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good advice

I liked that this diet does not forbid everything. Very sensible. Lots of fiber and good fats are good for you..included. Low in junk..sugar and sat fat. Lots of fruit veges whole grain fish...good foods for my preferences.
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