Engine 2

I recently read, "The Engine 2 Diet" by Rip Esselstyn. This book/diet is endorsed by the same people who made the Forks Over Knives documentary. The author is a firefighter from Texas whose main mission is to teach people that the food we eat will have a direct correlation to your ideal weight and health. I was interested in this book solely because he is a vegan firefighter, which may be a weird but I have a reason! It piqued my interest because my father happens to be a vegetarian, turning vegan, firefighter. He has been with the FDNY for 30 years this past winter and says he has never met another vegetarian while on the job. The firehouse sounds like an environment where the machismo mentality reigns, thus every meal is meat-based. Even though this diet plan is practically the same as “Forks Over Knives” it was probably published because there really aren’t any books out there that try to make vegetarianism “manly.” Even though this book does not state that it is for men only, it’s obvious that it’s there target audience. 

The book was predictable for me since I had already read "Forks Over Knives." The book is a low-fat, plant-based 28-day diet plan that is all about eating real foods. If you want all the science that backs up the plant-based diet I would recommend reading "Forks Over Knives," but if you're more concerned about the actual diet plan, how to go about it,  access to over a hundred recipes and some exercises then read "The Engine 2 Diet." It is more straightforward for those who want to lose weight and get healthy fast. The diet consists of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, nuts and seeds for low-fat protein. Fish and chicken is suggested during a transition period. It also includes soy, seitan, soy yogurt, veggie burgers and everything is low in fat, refined sugar free and low in salt. The recipes are basic but hearty, nothing revolutionary. Many of the recipes are available on their website if you don’t feel like buying the book. 


The Engine 2 diet plan combined with exercise is a sure way to lose weight. I would recommend this book as a basic vegetarian cookbook and diet plan, and will definitely pass it on to my dad (maybe he won’t feel weird being the only vegan in the FDNY anymore). I've been thinking that my vegetarian lifestyle went awry in the past because I didn’t have any structure, so I’m considering trying out this diet plan step by step and recording my results. 28 days is nothing!......