Not a Diet Book: The Must-Have Fitness Book From the World's Favourite Personal Trainer

by James Smith

This is NOT a diet book

Are you ready to change your life? Welcome to the James Smith revolution.

Self-confessed disruptor of a billion-dollar diet industry, James is armed with every tool you’ll ever need to achieve incredible results from dieting, training, and staying in shape to identifying the fads, phonies and nonsense that get in the way of genuinely lasting progress.

But this is so much more than just losing fat. It’s getting to the root of why you always wear black; why you get undressed in the dark; why eating the foods you love make you feel guilty; why you’re afraid to step into the gym; why your confidence is at an all-time low; and how all of this is having a negative impact upon all areas of your life, relationships and happiness.

So, be prepared to transform your attitudes, fix bad habits, lose fat, gain confidence, and become the best possible version of yourself with the last ‘diet’ book you’ll ever need.

It’s so much simpler than everyone wants you to believe…

Genres: Nonfiction, Health, Self Help, Audiobook, Fitness, Personal Development, Nutrition

320 pages, Paperback

First published January 23, 2020

Reviews

[Becky · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't remember exactly how or when I discovered James Smith, the World's Favo[u]rite Personal Trainer and "That Hashtag-Calorie-Fucking-Deficit Guy" (#CFD!), but I have been following him for a good while on the Social Media, and I freaking love him. He speaks my language, which, for the record, isn't ENTIRELY f-bombs, because my vocabulary is comprehensive and multifarious (and I obviously have access to Thesaurus.com) but it does comprise a goodish chunk of it. But mostly I mean that he's fluent in No Bullshit, which I appreciate. There's so much garbage out there, and it is entirely refreshing to have discovered someone who really just wants people to be educated and in control of their own lives and bodies.

I joined his James Smith Academy (JSA) back in 2018, and one of the best things about it (besides Diren Kartal's fine self *drool*) is that it's NOT the kind of program you join and then can never leave if you want to continue your progress. I'm looking at you, Weight Watchers, et al. Let me elucidate. I did a free trial of WW several years ago, back when it was just WW Points. I lost weight, but absolutely LOATHED HATED AND DETESTED having to track the points - which meant looking up EACH FREAKING INGREDIENT, figuring out the points for them, and then adding them up for each meal, and then calculating my total for the day, and subtracting that from my allowance. Here's the thing about WW - they don't want you to know the actual nutritional value of foods, or that what they are essentially doing with their complicated hocus pocus is creating a calorie deficit you could do on your own. That's why their program changes every time the wind shifts. I googled "Weight Watchers Points" just now, and the suggested results included: Points, Points Plus, Freestyle, & SmartPoints. Question: Why does the points program calculation need to change so frequently if it's working? Answer: They want you as a member. And they make the program ever more "simple" by taking all of the education and information out of it so you must rely on them for it to work.

Same with food prep programs like Jenny Craig. Yes, you'll lose weight. But you won't know how to do it WITHOUT THEM. And that's what they're counting on.

James Smith isn't about that life. He wants you to join his program (or don't, you can learn a lot from him for free on social media), learn as much as you want or need, and then go on about your life without a recurring bill showing up on your credit card each and every month until you die. (Except maybe that gym membership charge. But only if you use it. :P)

Anyway, so I followed him for a while, and then I joined his academy, and was rocking it, but I'm a lazy wagon-falling bitch and so this is my kickstart to get back on that freaking wagon and ride it into the sunset. When I found out that James was writing a book, I was all YES PLEASE and pre-ordered that beech. AND, it should be telling that it didn't sit on my TBR for a decade before I got around to reading it, either.

A lot of the book was rehashing stuff that I was already familiar with, having followed him and suchlike, but that's to be expected. His social media and online presence will only reach so many people, and despite how much his following has grown in the last few years, a book, published and released into the wild, will reach a much vaster audience, and likely a good chunk of those readers will not know who he is or what he's about. There is a ton of good information in here, but it is true to its word that it is NOT a diet book. You will not come away from this book with a new fad eating plan that's guaranteed to burn the fat into lean muscle overnight without lifting a finger, just eat this one mystery food every day at 3:29PM and watch the fat melt/burn/evaporate/transfigure off like the magic it would be. You will come away from this book with a LOT more information, a much improved fitness industry Bullshit Detector, and a more positive outlook on your prospects for achieving and maintaining a lifestyle that works for you.

Because that's what it's all about, right? Maintenance. Can you maintain that Low/No-Carb diet forever? Can you maintain that uber-restrictive clean eating plan? Or that juice fast/skinny coffee/coffee with butter/fat-blast lollipop/whatever diet? I sure the hell couldn't. I can't maintain even the CONCEPT of those kinds of insane restrictions long term. One of the first things that I learned from James via his videos was this: You don't need a diet. You HAVE a diet. You just need to make it work for you. And that's where the education that he provides comes in... to learn what your daily energy expenditure and calorie needs look like, and then work with those numbers to create a sensible, reasonable deficit that will result in losing fat.

This book is not a diet book. It's more of an inspirational, educational, self-helpy kind of book with a lot of nutritional and fitness science thrown in for good measure. I LOVED how many times he said "What does the science say?" on a topic. That's the content I want. The science, the facts, the real. This is why I follow him and happily bought a book that rehashed so much of what I already knew, and why I highly recommend his program to all of the people. (Including my wagon-falling ass self, of course.)

[Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

He describes himself as crass and a bit of a prick and I can’t help but agree. Some interesting stuff in the book, but a lot of info. he’s clearly taken from others (e.g. Matthew Walker’s “Why We Sleep”). I checked out his Insta profile and if I’d done this first I probably wouldn’t have bought this book. He’s too laddish for me, that kind of thing turns me right off. Mostly though all his hints and tips are not particularly new, and as I follow so many other fitness professionals on Insta and elsewhere, and read a lot about nutrition, sleep and what not, I didn’t learn as much as I’d hoped. However, I did appreciate the chapter on female hormones etc.; not all PTs would address this, especially male PTs.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

What a load of rubbish! This guy thinks he is something he is not. I struggled to get through his vacuous egotistical ramblings. Nothing new here. All rehashed ideas. His views on relationships are ill thought out and potentially dangerous, encouraging ppl to leave relationships as you have to look after no1. No mention of being open, patient or longevity. There are so many holes in most of his laddish philosophies.
I find him quite pretentious aswell looking down on ppl who stay stuck in jobs they 'don't absolutely love' you've just insulted most of people who work. Welcome to reality. Most ppl don't get £100 a month from daddy in our early 20's to buy 'sausage rolls and beer'. And drive around in Daddies range rover for our first selling job.
I'm sure lots of young ladies will think he's brilliant and he'll conquer many bed posts because according to the the law of averages he reckons if I dislike him (which he wants) more WILL LIKE him...
Who cares anyway!!!!

[Leah · Rating 4 out of 5]

The best book ever on the fitness industry, advice, diet, exercise!

James Smith is "That Hashtag-Calorie-Fucking-Deficit Guy" (#CFD!) He covers a range of topics from diet, diet fads, training routines, supplements, sleep, when to eat, how to eat, motivation, and even women's menstrual cycles.

What I loved most was James' attitude and how he speaks. He is very down to earth, real, no bullshit. He simplifies the complicated world of weight loss which I appreciate.

He says if you miss one work out of if you have a "calorie dense meal (aka cheat meal - he doesn't like to use this phrase) then it's O.K. it's not going to be the end of the world, so you shouldn't hate yourself for doing it. Everything in moderation and if you do it once in a while then it's fine.

What it all comes down to in losing weight, fat, getting healthier, lowering your BMI etc is just going on a calorie deficit diet. More calories out than in will make you lose weight, it's really that simple.

All these diet fads are just some ways in consuming less calories overall, and whichever one you believe in will generally work because it's a placebo. Some others are better than others, for example Intermittent Fasting is a great way to lose fat because you're basically skipping breakfast and only consuming lunch and dinner, less calories, more weight loss.

[Ben Zerbe · Rating 5 out of 5]

There are three parts to this book.

1. The basic mechanics of how nutrition affects how fat/skinny/strong we are and the principle that a Calorie (Fucking) Deficit is the only thing that really matters. This also deals with the importance of protein and the balance between fats and carbs.

2. Bullshit busting. James attacks a heaps of myths and fads and in doing so potentially saves you a lot of discomfort, shame and money. This book isn’t going out of it’s way to be difficult. It is just hammering home basic scientific principles - unfortunately a lot of “fitness advice” you’ve probably heard conflicts with the basic science.

3. The best part of the book is the philosophy.
It’s about grabbing life by the balls, not allowing yourself to be tied down by a diet, a shitty job or partner, someone else’s opinion or too much body fat. There is no puritanism here. Just a solid understanding that people need to live their lives and an approach that lets them take more control over their own life without being dragged in by marketing, spin or bullshit.

Track your calories, (but not on holiday) eat enough protein and don’t stress if you over eat or have a calorie dense meal or a wild bender of a weekend because “one hot day doesn’t make a summer”.

Also a seriously enjoyable read. Grab it!

[Olivia Saman · Rating 1 out of 5]

NOT A DIET BOOK
.
Written by: James Smith
Narrated by: James Smith
.
Man I really dislike this book and this guy. What a load of rubbish I just listened to. It was like he was having an argument with someone the whole time.
.
First off he starts the book by telling you off. Like calm the F down dude I just bought your book don't have a go at me.
.
Then everything he talks about, it's like he is talking about how good he is and then has a come back for all the critics that are going to nay say about the thing he just talked about.
.
The title is correct, this is not a Diet Book. I learnt absolutely zero about how to do better and get fitter. There was one thing that he started to talk about, about how diets are more in our heads and we need to fix our mindsets... and I was like finally he is going to teach me something. Then that's was it. That's literally all he said.
.
I got sad mad listening to this book. Some of the stuff he was saying was utter rubbish. So frustrating.
.
Second book I've returned and got my credit back. If you want a book that is going to get you annoyed and if you want to learn nothing but hear about how good this guy thinks he is then this is the book for you. If not find something else. Grrrr.
.
For my Liv review
🌱 1/5 content (I learnt that email is a good marketing tool)
🎨🎨 2/5 for Narration... just coz he was the author.

[Pietrino · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good Stuff.

[Paulina · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like him. And his no-bullshit approach.

Being that I read a handful of the books James cites and whose lessons were paraphrased here (and often) some parts seem like collections of other peoples anecdotes. Which is not to say he didn’t facilitate a great re-telling, relatable, and at times motivational.

Some parts were too simplistic. And you can’t crush everyone else’s anecdotes and then promote your own...unless it’s you writing your own book...which this situation falls under. Grain of salt and everyone can enjoy it.

But honestly, I think this is me trying to be critical. Because I told myself I’d write more book reviews in 2021. Overall I enjoyed it and would recommend it to others. Especially those starting out on a new life/fitness journey. For those of you that aren’t, most of his lessons can be found on his Instagram.

[Suzannah Rowntree]

I realised lately that I only ever read one nutrition/diet book once, years ago, and that I probably needed to do a little bit more reading in that area. The Internet spat out a list of books at me, and this was the first one I decided to read, since my main challenge with food is maintaining a weight that enables me to have a horrible time for mere hours instead of whole days each month.

This was a useful book, although I didn't care for the author, his relationship advice, or his hustle mentality. A natural overachiever, I don't need to be encouraged to work harder every hour of every day, and I also don't think anyone needs to be encouraged to dump committed relationships, just because the sex isn't exciting.

On the other hand, in amidst the guff, the book did contain an amount of basic diet/nutrition information. Smith is probably at his most helpful when he's discussing what he's learned and applied in studying diet and helping people get in shape and stay that way. None of the info is groundbreaking but I didn't come to this book for groundbreaking. I wanted to know best practices with solid scientific evidence behind them, and the book contained a bunch of that: for instance, as someone who for some years has been eating controlled-carb on an approach inspired by the insulin hypothesis, it was helpful to hear of a meta-analysis of various studies, all of which combined to show that low-carb versus low-fat didn't make much appreciable difference to fat loss or maintenance; it's mostly about calories in vs calories out.

The part that absolutely blew my mind was the chapter at the end on how the menstrual cycle affects women's metabolisms and dietary needs. Smith explains that women often need significantly more calories per day towards the second half of their cycles, an insight that stunned me: I often have increased trouble sleeping in the third week of my cycle, and I've noticed that poor sleep and hunger are linked for me. Knowing how my calorie needs are linked to my cycle is a piece of information that might just make life a lot more bearable for me (and knowing that protein is the most satiating macronutrient is going to make bedtime snacks last a lot longer).

Overall, there's a lot that's helpful in here, and it's certainly put into a format that's easy to read, but you do have to sift.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

In his own crude and vulgar way James Smith goes about dismantling a locker rooms worth of fitness and health myths. Having had no prior knowledge of his style or personality I approached the read with a skeptical yet open mind. James’ big sell appears to be his unstoppable quest to cut the crap out of the fitness industry. Unfortunately, he’s not taken his own advice, adding in his own rags to riches story, cliched analogies and a good deal of padding the book could do without. The message he is trying to get across is clear and obvious and one that could be delivered in a third of the pages. He delivers it in the form of a witty (in parts) and combative help yourself life coach memoir in which he hopes to send the reader on a journey of enlightened self discovery. He himself admits to wanting to be either loved or hated. By no means concise, “Not a diet book” is however educational and honest and James does well to dismantle the many fads and fitness fables he has encountered in his career as he simplifies over complicated jargon and a health industry repackaging the concept of fat loss = calorie deficit. My personal view is it is a helpful, informative good read that would ultimately benefit from a deficit of James. 4 stars more than fair.

[Linda · Rating 5 out of 5]

James Smith PT (follow him on Insta you won’t be sorry @jamessmithpt)

A fantastic book for inspiration and motivation when it comes to fitness, food, females and fat loss. He is no nonsense and debunks so many untruths we’ve all been taught during our fitness and weight loss experiences. I think I’ll be rereading it often.

[Luke Phillips · Rating 3 out of 5]

From the first page, Not a Diet Book by James Smith bursts with pace, charisma, and for the most part, common sense. This book is about changing your life and lifestyle so that you make better choices when it comes to what makes you happy, especially in terms of fitness and food. For me, this is both the book's greatest strength and clearest weakness, as Smith often wanders into territory where he has no expertise, but plenty of opinion - and his strength of resolve, personality, and self-esteem means that there is no difference in the telling. Fact and opinion find themselves interchangeable and indistinguishable as a result.

James Smith' no-nonsense approach to food and fitness is completely refreshing. Boiling it down to one principal - that of creating a calorie deficit, is the stand out message of this book. Nothing else really matters - as Smith himself points out, the method isn't really important. But trajectory and where you're headed is. Whether recommending apps, examining exercise that's right for you, or discussing diets and why they tend not to work - Smith maintains a neutral and knowledgeable source of excellent insight. The general principles laid down in the book will undoubtedly help anyone who reads it and follows the advice to feel happy and healthier.

There are some principles though, that I think are more typical of a younger generation, and not quantified by James' expertise or level of life experience, and would be dangerous if taken to heart. For instance, despite stating he is no relationship guru, nor qualified career advisor, his advice of "if it's not f*ck yeah, it's a no," has dangerous connotations. Getting into shape and losing weight takes work and a healthy commitment to maintenance, and the same goes for relationships. And yes, spending time in a job you don't "absolutely love" is not ideal - but circumstances don't always allow for that. I obviously agree with Smith that changes are always possible, and you should certainly work towards them when you identify an area in your life that you're not happy with. But, there was a flippancy and disregard of reality in just a few areas of the book that made me wary. Sometimes, life is about taking small steps instead of big, drastic jumps just because something doesn't work for us straight away.

However, for the most part, the book is motivational, positive, and gives the reader the tools to cut a very clear and decisive path towards a happier and healthier life based on where they want to be.

[Sara Bader · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is so bad that there’s no way 4K people bought this on Amazon. There’s not a single new information, you can find everything he mentions in any random PT’s caption on Instagram. Also he’s just not funny

[Amy Gilbert · Rating 4 out of 5]

I resonated with this book so much, however it lost a star because I don’t believe he needed to touch on relationships so much & what his views & beliefs are around that (relationships take time & patience & it’s not so black and white).
Other than a few more other minor details I disagreed with I think it was a very great, simple way to explain calorie deficits, macronutrients, etc!
The best “self-help” book I’ve read so far & I will recommend this to anyone who wants to learn more about the basics of nutrition & training as it’s very easy to digest.
I’ve followed James smith for a while & I love his approach to fitness and nutrition - it doesn’t need to be complicated, it’s literally so simple. It’s just a shame there’s so much crap out there.

[Aaron Oakes · Rating 5 out of 5]

Inspired

[Stefania · Rating 5 out of 5]

What an impressive book. I've been in the fitness world for some years now, and it took me years of trial and error, and a lot of research on my own time to learn about these concepts. I'm delighted James was able to explain these fundamental health concepts SO CLEARLY - from nutrition, to good habits (sleep, keep NEAT up, let go of toxic relationships that don't support your new lifestyle), to training, fat loss and muscle gain, and more. I particularly loved the chapters about Type I and Type II diabetes (even if you don't have it, someone in your life might have it or develop it if not addressed) and about female physiology and PCOS. Not enough women know how our hormones and menstrual cycle influence fat loss and muscle strength, which can lead to a lot of disappointment and frustration.
I'm going to recommend this book to everyone - gym rats like me as well as everyone else. Preventing obesity and disease should be a social goal.

(Bonus points if you read the book in James' accent haha.)

[Renée · Rating 1 out of 5]

Didn't really gain that much knowledge from this book that I didn't already know. But wtf is up with the part about relationships? "If it's not a fuck yes, then its a no", literally telling you to dump your partner and all your friends if they don't choose to live their life exactly like you aspire to? That those relationships are toxic? Come. On. Such a selfish mentality. I lost interest after reading that and skimmed through the rest, but the book did not redeem itself. Should have DNF.

[Ramona · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you want to read one book, just one, about fitness and mostly fat loss, this book is for you. It gives you most of the basics and even gives you some important points from other non-fiction books like Matthew Walker’s Why We Sleep. Have you already read multiple books on this topic or do you have quite a bit of knowledge on the topic, then this book is not the best for you.

[Emily · Rating 2 out of 5]

Some good bits but mostly reads as an over-privileged arrogant guy trying to tell everyone why he is so great. Disappointed although one or two nuggets of good wisdom in here and he did redeem it a bit for me by including a chapter on women's health and fitness. He should definitely steer clear of giving relationship advice though as simply throwing the towel in if your partner isn't perfect seems ridiculous standards.

[Aneta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Here's the thing with books about losing weight/getting in shape - there are as many opinions, methods and approaches, as people, who preach about them. Even James acknowledges this couple of times in his book - he mentions fitness influencers and how they rely on anecdotal evidence. He mentions bias, present in the work of many PTs. He obviously doesn't spend too much time on this matter because he is selling his way of influencing people.

There are some fundamental truths, research and facts that you will hear time and time again, but at the end of the day, what works and what doesn't will depend on the individual applying the methods. And each of us changes - we go through different phases, different levels of motivation and different circumstances.

What type of person will be happy to have found this book? I think it will be someone, who is discouraged from having tried to lose weight many times and has many explanations as to why their efforts had not panned out. The type of a person, who constantly compares themselves to others and feels like a failure, especially when scrolling through Instagram profiles of fitness influencers.

I quite liked James' approach - it's straightforward, easy to implement, relies on teaching people to get back to basics and stop looking for miracle cures to being overweight. The language this book is written in is kind of "myth-busting" in style- there are jokes about how people follow fads, intermittent fasting craze, keto and similar. The author advises you to get moving, eat fewer calories, get enough sleep, supplement vitamin D, change your thinking from focusing on the goal to focusing on the journey. These are all smart pieces of advice and I feel that, at times when everyone has an opinion/trick/solution, every other fitness influences is not a trained PT but a person, who lost weight through trial and error, voices from the industry that reject unattainable body goals and talk about lifestyle changes, are important. He talks about changing your life and your mindset, sometimes letting go of wanting to reach the perfect streak and not focusing on the photos you see online. When the mindset is right, the consistency is maintained and results will come.

This isn't new or innovative but I can see how James' personality and his philosophy would make for a convincing proposition for someone, who struggles to implement healthy habits. This book is an equivalent of an attentive friend, who sits you down and tells you that you need to get off your butt (mate) and stop being a knob.

Will I follow his advice? I already do. Like I wrote, it's not revolutionary. The audiobook was fun to listen to :)

[Sarah Wakeford · Rating 1 out of 5]

Terrible. It’s all about me, me, me, me

[Rebecca (Medusa's Rock Garden) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good book with a good amount of information which helps debunk a lot of myths that abound about health, fitness, and diet. I already knew most of it though, so it wasn't super new to me and all that I know was gained for free online, so while the book is a great way to get that info in a single place easily without need for researching it yourself - it is available for free and pretty easy to find with a little research. Still, I listened to this via my library, so I didn't have to pay for it, so no loss for me.

One thing I really appreciated is that he took the time to actually discuss menstruation and how the menstrual cycle - and other female stages - can impact hunger, diet, calorie loss/gain, energy levels and the like. Not many people actually look at this even a little bit, they don't even acknowledge that the female body is different to the male body and that the monthly changes we endure have massive impact on so many things. I would like to read a book that goes into that topic as the main focus rather than just a small chapter.

I do recommend this book if you struggle to understand health, diet, and fitness and/or find the vast amount of info out there to be just too much and too confusing.

[Anastasia · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rather biassed and lots of conflicting and inaccurate advice.

[Millie Barrow · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really loved this book. As someone who has had disordered eating and never 100% recovered from it with negative mindsets sneaking back, this book made an intimidating subject welcoming. It’s not only incredibly information, myth busting everything I ever thoughts, but James’s voice throughout just emphasises a healthy lifestyle is more then about food and exercises but the environments and people around us.

I’ve got a lot to digest from this book, but one key thing for sure is the power of NEAT and you’ll bet I’ll be standing up a lot more on the tube going forward and allowing myself those sweet treats I always crave in the evening.

[Ciarán Murray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wish I had this book when I started training for powerlifting/ going to the gym. Will be using this as my go-to for people asking me gym/ diet-related questions in the future. While I had a fairly good understanding of the topics brought up as I have been training for an extended period, this book is a great evidence-based insight into basic dieting and autoregulation without bogging down in research papers.
Only 4 stars as the author does go on some tangents that I think would have been better suited in his other book Not a Life Coach

[Emma · Rating 2 out of 5]

I appreciate that the author attempted to take a more contextual approach to weight loss. That being said, I found reading this book to be an excruciatingly painful experience and would not have persisted if it hadn’t been recommended to me by a friend. I can, however, imagine this book resonating well with readers who enjoy listening to motivational speakers.

[Rachelfrim · Rating 1 out of 5]

Listened to the audiobook with the author reading it with a very stilted delivery that stopped sentences making sense. Didn’t learn anything new except that I don’t rate James Smith. He is arrogant and critical of others when he displays the same traits himself. Forced myself to finish it just in case there was something of worth in there - there wasn’t.

[Chelsea Hazendonk · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the start of this book but by the end, I couldn’t help but skim as information repeated and the author’s successes kept being mentioned which felt egotistical. I also disliked how it constantly stated ‘see page *blah blah*’ after referencing something that had already been said previously in the book. Still had some good information that was worthy of reading though.

[Rachel Sloan · Rating 2 out of 5]

A lot of ‘later you will read’ ‘further on in the book..’ and was so constant it actually got annoying!

Had a lot of good information however was very typical and uses way too many metaphors to explain things

[Perman Atayev · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I started reading this book, I was around. 93 kg. Now I am in the realms of 81 and pushing further.

There are a lot of simple but very powerful ideas about weight loss here, so I would suggest it for anyone who is serious about weight loss.