All fat loss programs that are so well inspired will have fundamental similarities, so you will definitely notice some of the same nutrition and training principles in Burn the Fat and Body for Life. What Burn The Fat does differently - and superbly well - is to address the 2 major drawbacks of Body for Life, which are the same problems of most other mainstream diet programs including The Zone, The Atkins Diet, The Ketogenic Diet, the High carb Diet and many others. These drawbacks are: (1) lack of individualization, and (2) way too much push for supplements and other products that are completely unnecessary.

First, BFL and all these other diets have their positive points (BFL has more positive points than most). The problem is; none of them are 100% applicable to all people all the time. Genetics and metabolic individuality explain why some people thrive on high carbs, while others get fat on high carbs. It explains why some people do extremely well on Atkin’s and Ketogenic diets, while others only lose muscle and feel lousy on these programs.

Burn the Fat is the first program to take the best of all the programs, compile the information into one exhaustively detailed resource, and throw away the junk and the hype - leaving a solid backbone of universal principles which apply to everyone. Then, instead of prescribing one generic program for everyone, this “baseline” program has room to be personalized – which is an absolute necessity for long-term success.

You should question any program that prescribes the same diet and exercise routine for everyone. There are 6.2 billion people on our planet today and no two bodies and metabolisms are exactly the same. Don't you know someone who eats anything they want, yet they have six pack abs and never gain an ounce of fat? And don't you know someone who is the opposite – If they eat one cheat meal, it goes straight to their waistline or thighs? It’s true! The need for personalization is obvious.

Burn the Fat is incredibly flexible and customizable. Once you have your fundamentals mastered (BFL covers the fundamentals for beginners quite well), the question remains; do you know how to “tweak” and fine tune your diet and training to fit your body type? If not, you could be like the fly trying to get outside by flying straight through a glass windowpane: It’s going to die trying right there on the windowsill. With equal or even less effort, the fly could simply change direction and zoom right outside through the open door ten feet away. That’s exactly what happens if you’re eating wrong for your body type and then you switch to the right way for you.

You won’t find one single nutrition program in Burn the Fat – you will find THREE different nutrition programs, starting with the basic fundamentals (which you have to master first). Then you simply adjust your nutrition based on the information you’ll learn in chapter 5 on body types and nutritional individuality (there’s a whole chapter on this subject where you can learn the real reason why some people can eat whatever they want and stay skinny).

And what about training? How could one workout work for everyone? Do you give the same weight training program to a competitive bodybuilder that you do to a complete novice? It’s ridiculous to even consider. Burn the Fat has not one, but FOUR training programs. And within each of these four training programs are TWO schedules, one more conservative for time-scrunched people, and one more aggressive for people who really want to go for it (that’s eight routines all together).

Ditto for cardio: How can you recommend one cardio program for everyone? I teach you how to systematically manipulate cardio frequency, duration, intensity, timing and type to accommodate your goals and get the results you want. One cardio workout just doesn’t cut it for everyone. Even if you use a scientifically proven technique like high intensity interval training, how long do you think you could do this before your body adapts to it? Variation and individualization is a must!

Okay, second drawback… Although BFL has a lot of solid information, it’s undeniable that it’s also an advertisement for a supplement company. The author of BFL, Bill Phillips, while he has now sold the company, was the founder and CEO of EAS supplement company and publisher of Muscle Media 2000 Magazine (which was also a promotional tool for nutritional supplements, as are almost all bodybuilding and fitness magazines).

I’m not singling out BFL specifically, this drawback is true with many of the popular diet programs today: You buy the book/program and then you’re told that you have to buy all this other stuff to make the program work; pills, bars, powders, drinks, etc, etc. Is all this stuff really necessary? I say definitely not!

This doesn’t mean I’m “anti-supplements” either, it’s more correct to say that I am “pro-food.” I believe in proven supplements for “insurance” purposes, such as a daily multi vitamin and essential fatty acids, (2) for convenience purposes (meal replacements and protein powder), and (3) on rare occasion, a legitimate natural product emerges which really does enhance performance (such as creatine). I’ve used these products myself and recommend them to my clients on occasion.

I have nothing against even aggressive promotion of legitimate products and services as long as they help enhance the lives of other people. What irks me is NOT the promotion of supplements and weight loss products, it's (1) the selling of unproven, bogus products to make a profit, and (2) the dishonest way that legitimate products are often misrepresented and marketed. Some diets make it sound like supplements are a necessity or you have absolutely no chance of succeeding.

The truth is, supplements are NOT required to lose fat – they’re not even a major factor!

A GREAT BODY DOESN’T COME IN A PILL!!

What’s unique about Burn The Fat is that it’s NOT a promotional vehicle for product sales. It’s an information resource and a complete fat loss program that really is for life - not for just 12 weeks. I know people who have spent $3000 to $5000 per year on supplements – and that’s not an exaggeration! Think about that for a minute! What’s really ironic is that many of these people – even after spending all that money, haven’t gotten the results they wanted!

The bottom line is, I think Body For Life is a very solid program. It’s got nutrition, weight training, cardio and motivational aspects all rolled into one, which is a winning combination in my book. I also think Bill Phillips has done a commendable thing by getting weight training and bodybuilding style nutrition out to the general public. Phillips is an excellent motivator too. If I hadn’t developed my own program, Body For Life is one of the programs I would recommend (with the previous warnings about supplements and personalization).

A lot of people who did the Body For Life challenge said that Burn The Fat was like the next step beyond Body For Life…sort of like an advanced course, but still good for beginners because it covers the basic stuff too. If you’re currently in a Body For Life challenge or planning on entering one, Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle can help you by giving you advanced tools and strategies to take it to an even higher level.

So if you’re a B.F.L.B (“Body for Life Burnout”) and you want to take it to the next level with a program that that’s more customized to your personal needs, (and you don’t want to miss your car payment because you bought so many supplements), then check out the Burn The Fat website at: Burn The Fat, Feed The Muscle
 

About the author

Tom Venuto is a lifetime natural bodybuilder, personal trainer, gym owner, freelance writer and author of Burn the Fat, Feed the Muscle: Fat Burning Secrets of the World's Best Bodybuilders and Fitness Models. Tom has written over 140 articles and has been featured in IRONMAN magazine, Natural Bodybuilding, Muscular Development, Muscle-Zine, Exercise for Men and Men's Exercise. Tom is the Fat Loss Expert for Global-Fitness.com and the nutrition editor for Femalemuscle and his articles are featured regularly on literally dozens of other websites.