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by Leo Galland, M.D., and Jonathan Galland
Science of Weight Loss:
The Fat Resistance Diet
I am pleased to have the opportunity to
share with you the latest weight loss
tips based upon medical research
and my own clinical experience, from
my new book The Fat Resistance Diet.™
True weight-loss can be very challenging,
but once you listen to your body and
really tap into what it needs, it doesn’t
have to be quite as hard. We need to
reprogram our body chemistry from its
unhealthy condition of inflammation to
the state designed by nature, in which our
appetite, metabolism and food choices
all work together to effortlessly maintain
a healthy weight.
A major emerging piece of the weightloss
puzzle is tapping into leptin, a highly
important hormone that is the subject
of cutting-edge research on weight-loss.
When our bodies are working properly,
we eat what we want, and if we inadvertently
gain a few pounds, the leptin in our
system works to suppress our appetite,
rev up our metabolism, and reestablish
our original weight.
If you’ve struggled to lose weight on
diet after diet but still can’t shake those
excess pounds, chances are you are
“leptin resistant”—that is, your body no
longer responds to leptin. Leptin is your
body’s natural weight loss mechanism: it
curbs your appetite and jump-starts your
metabolism.
Leptin, the key to weight loss
The discovery of leptin in 1994 revolutionized
the scientific understanding of
fat. Scientists and physicians used to
think that body fat was simply an inert
storehouse of unused calories. From that
perspective, weight management should
be a simple matter—exercise more, eat
less, and the pounds will drop. We now
know that obesity and its related problems
are not just about pounds; they’re
about hormones like leptin that are produced
by fat. These hormones are called
“adipokines,” and they tell us that fat is
not just an inert repository of unused
calories. It is a living organ, as biochemically
active as the heart or kidneys or
liver. Through the actions of adipokines,
excess fat by itself can cause high blood
pressure, diabetes, heart attacks, cancer,
strokes, and arthritis. More importantly,
fat regulates itself by producing
adipokines that can increase or decrease
appetite and metabolic rate.
No more counting carbs, calories, or fat grams.
This revolutionary diet plan works with your hormones
to curb your appetite, boost your metabolism, take the
weight off—and never put it on again.
Leptin was the first adipokine
to be discovered. Scientists at
Rockefeller University found that
genetically obese mice laced the gene
for producing leptin. Injecting leptin into
these mice restored them to normal body
weight. Researchers soon discovered
that administration of leptin curbed the
appetite and stimulated the metabolism
of all types of laboratory animals. Leptin
appeared to function as part of a negative
feedback loop. When an animal is
overfed and begins to gain weight, the
increase in body fat leads to an increase
in production of leptin, which in turn
suppresses appetite and stimulates fat
burning, restoring the animal to a normal,
lean weight. Unlike the mice who
became obese due to a genetic deficiency,
overweight humans are not leptin deficient.
For humans, the problem is that
the leptin being produced is not working
properly. This condition is called leptin
resistance. The latest scientific research
indicates that the main reason for leptin
resistance is chronic inflammation.
Research indicates the main cause
of chronic inflammation results from
the modern diet and lifestyle. A major
problem is that the natural, inflammation-fighting components have been
removed. It’s true that our food supply
is loaded with concentrated high calorie
ingredients like added sugar and added
fats. Just as important is what has been
removed from our food: nutrients that
fight inflammation.
The good news is that the solution to
weight loss is eating delicious all-natural
foods that you can find in your local
natural products store. By adding flavorful
fat resistance superfoods to your diet,
you can quickly reverse leptin resistance
and reprogram your body to start melting
away the pounds.
 As the first weight-loss plan specifically
designed to combat the hormonal
imbalance called leptin resistance, The Fat Resistance Diet lays out a revolutionary
three-stage program that reverses this
imbalance and delivers a loss of six to
ten pounds in the first two weeks and at
least five pounds a month thereafter. The Fat Resistance Diet incorporates a variety
of superfoods (foods that help fast-tract
weight-loss by healing inflammation and
restoring the body’s sensitivity to leptin)
into an assortment of tasty recipes and weekly menus. Some of the many delicious
superfoods include: salmon, spinach,
broccoli, carrots, apples, unsalted
almonds, egg whites, pomegranate juice,
and so on. When you reverse leptin resistance,
you restore your body’s natural
weight-loss mechanism—the pounds
will come off easily and efficiently, and
you will become “fat resistant” for life.
The goal in Stage 1 is to jump-start the
weight-loss process by healing inflammation
through the consumption of an
abundance of superfoods (vegetables,
fruits, and proteins). This sudden intake
of high-level nutrients will help improve
body chemistry and lower insulin levels,
allowing your body to regain its sensitivity
to leptin and begin shedding weight.
The tasty recipes in Stage 1 include: a
Tuscan Frittata, a Parsley and Tomato
Omelet, a Tuna Avocado Lettuce Wrap,
Grilled Sirloin with Garlic and Herbs, and
Grilled Vegetables with Tofu.
After your chemical balance has been
reinstated and your leptin resistance has
begun to improve, Stage 2 offers a wider
variety of delicious foods to filter into your
diet. This expansion of dietary options
makes The Fat Resistance Diet ideal
for long-term weight-loss and enables
people to comfortably lose two pounds
per week. The tasty recipes in Stage 2
include: Banana Strawberry Smoothie,
Insalata Caprese, Chicken Caesar Salad,
Ginger Lime Grilled Tuna, and Stir-Fried
Vegetables with Beef or Tofu.
Stage 3 is designed to help you maintain
your diet weight while keeping
inflammation down. Whole-grain and
pastas are new integrated into the mix
and offer dieters even more variety and
choice without derailing all of the progress
they have already made. The tasty
recipes in Stage 3 include: Carrot Raisin
Muffins, Orzo Salad, pasta with Tuscan
White Beans, and Chicken Quesadillas
with Tomato Salsa.
Here is a sample of two of the many recipes
you’ll find in The Fat Resistance Diet.
Ginger Lime Grilled Tuna
Grilling perfectly accentuated the subtle
flavors of tuna. In this recipe a quick
ginger marinade gets the fish ready for
the grill. Tuna is high in protein and rich
in omega-3s. Ginger is used around the
world for its flavor and contains dozens
of inflammation-fighting phytonutrients
called gingerols.
- 1 tablespoon peeled, minced fresh ginger or 1 teaspoon ground ginger
- Juice of 1 lime
- 1 tablespoon low-sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 12 ounces tuna steak, 1 inch thick
- Olive oil spray
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh chives, for garnish
Whisk the ginger, lime juice, soy sauce,
and extra virgin olive oil together in a
shallow bowl. Add the pepper, then put
the tuna in the bowl and turn to coat
well. Cover the bowl and marinate the
tuna in the refrigerator for 15 minutes.
Heat an electric grill or grill pan. Spray
the grill with olive oil. Remove the tuna
from the marinade and place on the
grill. Dispose of the remaining marinade.
Cook the tuna over medium-high heat for
2 minutes, then turn. Cook for another
2 minutes, or until the inside is a nice
light pink. You want to take the tuna off
the grill before it’s well done, because it
continues to cook even after it’s off the
heat. Garnish with chives. Serves 2.
Nutrition Per Serving: 267 Calories 52 g
Protein 2 g Carbohydrates 4 g Fat
Teriyaki Chicken
- 1/3 cup low-sodium soy sauce
- Juice of 1 orange
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- 1 tablespoon peeled, minced fresh ginger
- Two 8-ounce skinless, boneless chicken breasts
- Olive oil spray
- 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro, for garnish
In a small sauce pan, combine the soy
sauce and orange juice. Bring to a boil,
reduce the heat, simmer over medium
heat until the sauce thickens, about 10
minutes. Pour the mixture into a shallow
bowl and mix in the garlic and ginger.
Place the chicken in the bowl and
coat well with the marinade. Cover the
bowl and marinate in the refrigerator
for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the
oven to 400° F.
Spray a baking pan lightly with olive
oil and place the chicken in the pan.
Spoon some garlic and ginger pieces
from the marinade over the chicken,
and discard the remaining marinade.
Put the chicken in the oven and roast
for 15 minutes. This browns the chicken
nicely. Then turn the oven down to
350° F and roast for 15 minutes more,
or until the chicken is cooked through.
Garnish with fresh cilantro. Serves 2.
Nutrition Per Serving: 183 Calories 33 g
Protein 6 g Carbohydrates 2 g Fat
With such a wide array of recipes and
choices, the three stages of The Fat Resistance Diet offer an eating plan
that is realistic and can be comfortably
followed for an extended period of
time—even for life. In addition, all three
stages are so effective on their own that
I even encourage dieters to stick to just
one of the stages if they are achieving the
results they desire.
The Fat Resistance Diet works with
your hormones to curtail your appetite,
boost your metabolism, and help you
lose weight—making you essentially
“fat resistant”—so you’ll never put the
weight on again. I firmly believe that the
body knows what it needs—although
sometimes, particularly in our modern
world, it can lose touch with its own
innate wisdom. My goal is to help the
body regain its natural knowledge, and
that is precisely what The Fat Resistance
Diet is designed to do.
The Fat Resistance Diet is published by
Broadway Books a division of Random
House, Inc. ISBN 0-7679-2052-X
 Leo Galland, M.D., an internationally respected expert in nutritional
medicine, received his education and medical training at
Harvard and NYU. Regularly chosen by New York magazine as
one of the best doctors in New York, as well as listed in America’s
Top Doctors, he has appeared as a medical expert on Good
Morning America and on CNN, Fox News, and PBS. The author
of two highly acclaimed books, Superimmunity for Kids and Power
Healing, he is Director of the Foundation for Integrated Medicine
and maintains a private practice in New York City.
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