3.92

3

Dec 28, 2014

I really wanted to give this 2 stars but hey, I'm drinking the coffee so let's go for 3. Unfortunately, Asprey is extremely salesy and if you're not into used car salesman-types, he's going to make you very uncomfortable. He also loves to tout the benefits the Bulletproof Diet will have on your body as if it is going to shred you up with minimal exercise—I can promise you much of his fitness tips are misguided. Aside from dubious testimonials sprinkled throughout the book, he offers no numbers, I really wanted to give this 2 stars but hey, I'm drinking the coffee so let's go for 3. Unfortunately, Asprey is extremely salesy and if you're not into used car salesman-types, he's going to make you very uncomfortable. He also loves to tout the benefits the Bulletproof Diet will have on your body as if it is going to shred you up with minimal exercise—I can promise you much of his fitness tips are misguided. Aside from dubious testimonials sprinkled throughout the book, he offers no numbers, statistics, case studies, or evidence that his readers have dropped in body fat percentage OR gained muscle mass using his program. Bottom line: If you're looking for tips on physical training, look elsewhere.

The pros is that Asprey has absolutely done his homework regarding mold toxins that typically go unrecognized as well as the benefits of healthy fats in the system (disappointed he didn't talk about ketosis even once, though).

The net: Worth a read, but with a healthy amount of skepticism. ...more

2

Feb 20, 2015

My wife and I were interested in this to see if we could learn anything to augment the mostly primal/paleo way we've been eating the last few years. We picked up a few great ideas (mainly realizing we may have been eating too much protein and not enough saturated fat), but were mostly left disappointed.

Dave Asprey is reaching very hard to brand every salable aspect of his lifestyle while simultaneously avoiding identifying it with the paleo/ancestral movements. He's not paleo, he's a My wife and I were interested in this to see if we could learn anything to augment the mostly primal/paleo way we've been eating the last few years. We picked up a few great ideas (mainly realizing we may have been eating too much protein and not enough saturated fat), but were mostly left disappointed.

Dave Asprey is reaching very hard to brand every salable aspect of his lifestyle while simultaneously avoiding identifying it with the paleo/ancestral movements. He's not paleo, he's a "biohacker." Great. So every idea he has that he can possibly market becomes "Bulletproof X" or "Upgraded Y." Yuck. And the constant dropping of his geek hacker cred gets tiresome.

Having let the contents of this book stew around in my head for a few weeks, I've got two unique and positive ideas left that I can say I picked up from reading it:
1) It's possible to get the benefits of intermittent fasting and ketosis without outright starving via the "hack" that ingesting saturated fat alone doesn't cause the body to leave ketosis. This is cool, and actually seems to work. We've been doing the nothing-but-butter-coffee approach to breakfast and going about 15-18 hours a day without eating anything else and it really is causing fat loss without corresponding energy loss. I don't weigh myself but after only a week my not-sure-i-should-have-bought-them tight pants fit comfortably. I write code for a living and wouldn't take on a diet that leaves me foggy headed and this does not. In fact I feel wonderfully focused at work.
2) Mold and other "toxins" may be serving as digestion or endocrine disruptors for you, depending upon your sensitivity. I've been well aware of the phytate/lectin issues with the grain family of foods but not so with the mycotoxins found in an apparent host of vegetables and spices. That said, I think he over exaggerates the importance of this point. The takeaway should be "test and see how you feel by removing and reintroducing these foods from your diet one at a time" but instead comes off as "you'd be crazy to keep eating mushrooms if you knew how TOXIC they are, but if you really can't live without them, test and see how tolerant you are!" I'm not going to stop eating onions and garlic because they land in his "suspect" group due to likelihood of mold contamination. My gut can handle some spores in the name of flavor.

Which leads to the food. Dave Asprey says he does most of the cooking for his family and, if so, I feel sorry for them. His recipes are rather bland due to the fact that he likes pretty much only salt and turmeric as spices and avoids everything else that tastes interesting, whether due to mycotoxin sensitivity or other factors. Black pepper? Nope: toxic! We ate his recipes for 4 days and couldn't take it anymore: drowning everything in turmeric while otherwise leaving it flavorless, then coating it in butter and MCT oil was kind of...yuck. It seems quite possible to honor his basic approach to diet while eating much more flavorful recipes, which we immediately embarked upon. ...more

4

Feb 08, 2015

There are always naysayers. I also think it's a bad idea to skip breakfast. Being vegetarian twice in my life, I had to stop both times. Why? Deep depression, anxiety, panic attacks, insomnia, and my skin looked old and crappy. Back on animal protein and a high good fat diet and I feel great again. AND... I lost quite a bit of weight, no inflammation and no puffiness.

For vegans, sorry. Every vegan I know starts to look super unhealthy after some time. Even Pres Clinton's doc told him he needed There are always naysayers. I also think it's a bad idea to skip breakfast. Being vegetarian twice in my life, I had to stop both times. Why? Deep depression, anxiety, panic attacks, insomnia, and my skin looked old and crappy. Back on animal protein and a high good fat diet and I feel great again. AND... I lost quite a bit of weight, no inflammation and no puffiness.

For vegans, sorry. Every vegan I know starts to look super unhealthy after some time. Even Pres Clinton's doc told him he needed to get some animal protein back in his diet as his health was suffering from a vegan diet.

Here's the thing. Besides the breakfast thing and the amount of MCT oil, I'm on board. Not everyone is the same, but people don't realize that your body treats fruit just like a Snickers bar.

It's also very important for organic and pasture raised food. If you add sugars, alcohol and/or dessert items to this diet, yes, your bad cholesterol will go up. There's a reason for that.

Interestingly enough, the foods he tells you to stay clear of are all the foods I tested a sensitivity to. Has to be something to it. Yes, I am allergic to mold.

...more

5

Nov 30, 2014

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Asprey's Bulletproof Diet is worth paying attention to.

I've gone through several diets in my life. And just when I thought there was nothing better than Tim Ferriss' Slow-Carb diet mentioned in the 4-Hour Body, I came across Dave's work. That marked a significant moment in my approach to nutrition and health, and changed a lot of things in my life.

Dave is an unusual wealth of information. He had his own struggles with nearly every health problem imaginable until he started hacking his health in Asprey's Bulletproof Diet is worth paying attention to.

I've gone through several diets in my life. And just when I thought there was nothing better than Tim Ferriss' Slow-Carb diet mentioned in the 4-Hour Body, I came across Dave's work. That marked a significant moment in my approach to nutrition and health, and changed a lot of things in my life.

Dave is an unusual wealth of information. He had his own struggles with nearly every health problem imaginable until he started hacking his health in his 20s. This guy has been everywhere from intense neurofeedback centers to Tibetan monasteries. His experience is unique, which is one of the main reasons this book is special.

The Bulletproof Diet is reminiscent of many of the Paleo books out there. There's emphasis on healthy fats, grass-fed proteins, and a good amount of vegetables, but Asprey is also very concerned with the very real aspect of food contamination by mold toxins in particular. His damaged immune system is extremely sensitive to mold toxins, which forces him to remove certain foods from his diet, and why he has his own product line with specially produced coffees and other foods. These toxins have varying effects on everyone, and are linked to a wide array of health problems, including cancer. One of the reasons Paleo works is because it removes grains from the diet, which are a very high source of mold contamination. Getting toxins out of your diet can dramatically help you reduce inflammation and lose weight, even if you're not particularly sensitive.

The backbone of the Bulletproof Diet is Bulletproof Coffee, a delicious, filling, high fat drink to be consumed in the morning. This curbs cravings, helps your body burn fat (literally, as well as ketones). Bulletproof Coffee alone is a powerful diet hack that helps followers of the Bulletproof Diet keep their willpower throughout the day. Honestly, a lot of diets out there are not realistic, and basically require good genes and an excessive amount of willpower, while not providing the calories to fuel that willpower. The Bulletproof Diet totally fixes this problem.

This book is a great sit-down read, as well as a reference guide. There's a comprehensive index that covers many things that other diet books don't even get near. Also, topics such as exercise, sleep, and supplementation are covered extensively in their own chapters.

My favorite section is Dave's killer refutations of the most common diet myths, not commonly covered in other books:
1. If you're not losing weight, you're not trying hard enough
2. You're not as hungry as you think you are
3. A low-fat diet is healthy
4. Eating fat will make you fat
5. Cutting calories is the best way to lose weight
6. Everything natural is good for you
7. You have to work out a lot to lose weight
8. Coffee is bad for you
9. Salt is a hazardous substance
10. Moderation is the key to success when dieting ...more

2

Apr 26, 2015

In many ways he is the George Foreman of the coffee drinking world. He sells coffee and sells it well, he's come up with one idea and is so proud of it he's put his brand on it. in every paragraph.

The guy is a hack, a used car salesman. This book is an overloaded with broscience, celebrity endorsements and bulletproof branding, with little or no empirical data to back up its claims. He is selling the bulletproof brand and the dream of an upgraded lifestyle which can be obtained through his In many ways he is the George Foreman of the coffee drinking world. He sells coffee and sells it well, he's come up with one idea and is so proud of it he's put his brand on it. in every paragraph.

The guy is a hack, a used car salesman. This book is an overloaded with broscience, celebrity endorsements and bulletproof branding, with little or no empirical data to back up its claims. He is selling the bulletproof brand and the dream of an upgraded lifestyle which can be obtained through his buttery mould free coffee, and his bland recipes. ...more

4

Mar 15, 2019

You have to avoid toxins that trigger the immune system. Antinutrients such as preservatives, colorings, pesticides, etc. are all toxins.
- The main categories of naturally occurring antinutrients are lectins, phytates, oxalates, and mold toxins (mycotoxins).
- Lectins: A lectin is a type of protein that permanently attaches itself to the sugars that line your cells, disrupting small-intestine metabolism and damaging gut villi (fingerlike projections on the small intestine’s lining that absorb You have to avoid toxins that trigger the immune system. Antinutrients such as preservatives, colorings, pesticides, etc. are all toxins.
- The main categories of naturally occurring antinutrients are lectins, phytates, oxalates, and mold toxins (mycotoxins).
- Lectins: A lectin is a type of protein that permanently attaches itself to the sugars that line your cells, disrupting small-intestine metabolism and damaging gut villi (fingerlike projections on the small intestine’s lining that absorb nutrients). Lectin causes insulin resistance and irritates the gut. Beans, nuts, and grains have a dramatic level of lectin. Long term results include sore joints, migraine, brain fog, and bad skin.
- HYTATES: another plant defense mechanism. They attach to minerals suc as magnesium, iron, zinc, etc so you won’t absorb them. Whole grains and nuts contain phytates. Cooking certain foods that are high in phytates and then draining the water or soaking them in something acidic like lemon or vinegar minimizes phytates, but many of the grains and seeds that contain phytates are irritating to the gut even when cooked.
- OXALATES: found in vegetables like spinach, kale, chard, black pepper, parsley, buckwheat, etc. when oxalate binds to calcium, they crystallize in the a body part and cause pain. Also, they’re one cause of kidney stones. Similar to phytates, you can get rid of the oxalates by soaking them in acid or cooking them and drain the cooking water.
- Mold toxins or micotoxins: some coffee beans contain mold toxins which causes fatigue after consumption. Besides coffee, wheat, corn, and other grains, but peanuts, fruits, chocolate, and wine may have mold.

- saturated fat and cholesterol are the building blocks for all of our hormones,

- Leptin is produced by fat cells, and your leptin levels are proportionate to your body-fat levels. This means that the fatter you are, the more leptin you have in your body. When you are overweight like I was and have high amounts of circulating leptin in your body for a long period of time, you become leptin resistant. In this case, your brain is constantly bombarded with leptin and doesn’t receive the signal that your stomach is full.
consuming a lot of fructose also causes leptin resistance by elevating triglyceride levels. Triglycerides impair leptin transport and prevent it from entering the hypothalamus, 11 the structure in the brain that most needs to receive the leptin signal to inhibit hunger.

- If the food contains toxins, your liver uses blood sugar to oxidize the toxins, which causes a drop in available energy for your brain. The result is that you feel like you need sugar right away.
- When your small intestine detects protein in the food you’ve eaten, it helps leptin stimulate satiety, and when the pancreas detects fat in your intestines, it releases a hormone that prevents ghrelin from turning off the satiety call.
- Fruits have fructose which s converted to either glucose or triglycerides the latter of which gets stored as fat. Fructose is not satiate no and causes cravings. Fructose also causes aftery diseases. It causes AGES by linking to collegan. Fructose also feeds bacteria the output of which would be Urin acid which causes joint pain and kidney stone and gout.
- Bulletproof Diet limits fructose to no more than 25 grams a day and preferably less. That’s roughly the amount in 2 large apples.
- On average, men should aim for at least 120 to 150 grams of fat (8 to 10 tablespoons) per day. Women should aim for at least 90 to 120 grams (6 to 8 tablespoons). As a general rule for edible fats, the shorter the fat, the rarer and more anti-inflammatory it is. This is why the Bulletproof Diet ensures that you get adequate amounts of the harder-to-find short- and medium-chain fats, which include the butyric acid found in butter and several types of medium-chain triglycerides found in coconut oil.
- the second way of finding good fat is to see how stable they are. The most stable fats are saturated because saturated fat molecules have fewer places for oxygen to damage them through oxidation.
- The second most stable fat is monounsaturated fat, which is relatively stable because there is only one place where oxygen can damage it.
- scientists have indeed found that excess protein can cause inflammation because it is more difficult for the body to digest than other macronutrients.
- **Compared to healthy fats, protein itself is metabolically difficult to turn into glucose for energy. This is because your liver requires a source of fuel to efficiently process protein, and that fuel must come from either fat or glucose. This is one reason a low-fat, zero-added-sugar, and high-protein meal can leave you feeling full but still cause you to crave sweets later in the day.**
- 20 percent of your daily calories should come from Bulletproof protein sources such as:
- low-mercury fish,
- grass-fed beef and lamb,
- pastured eggs,
- hydrolyzed collagen,
- gelatin, and
- clean whey concentrate.

### Poisonous Kryptonite food
- sugar
- Processes food are brain killers.
- Soy is also one of them.
- Monosodium Glutamate MSG is one of the most common artificial flavorings added to processed foods. MSG is a chemical that is meant to make food taste better. MSG also messes with the way your neurotransmitters cause the nerves in your brain to fire. MSG is an excitatory neurotransmitter that sends signals from one cell to another. Consuming it can cause the cells it activates to become overexcited. This leads to cell damage and often cell death. As your cells become damaged and/or die, your neurons signal for more energy. You may experience this as a headache, a sudden mood swing, or a craving for sweets, the fastest source of energy. This is obviously a substance to avoid for optimum performance! The most common sources of MSG are processed chips, commercial salad dressings, broths, commercial soups, and sauces like barbecue sauce and ketchup. Most spice mixes also contain MSG.

- **Artificial sweeteners** Aspartame is one synthetic sweetener that is responsible for a large number of adverse reactions. Diet soda contains Aspertame. Other harmful sweeteners include: acesulfame K (ace-K), saccharin, sucralose (Splenda), and tagatose.
- Genetically Modified food are kryptomidess.
- Unstable fats are bad. The worst of them being: easily oxidized, and therefore inflammatory fats are polyunsaturated fats. such fats include: **canola, corn, cottonseed, peanut, safflower, soybean, sunflower, and all other vegetable oils**
- If you eat the oils that most restaurants and processed food companies use, you’re getting huge ...more

5

Dec 14, 2015

Five-star reviews are reserved for books that are a life-changing, paradigm-shattering force to be reckoned with that I'm compelled to force on everyone I know. The Bulletproof Diet delivers on all counts. I started this book while in bed with terrible back pain because if pain is the truest roadmap to where God is working in our lives, somethings gotta give with my diet and exercise routine. Throughout the course of the next couple weeks I started incorporating minor Bulletproof principles and Five-star reviews are reserved for books that are a life-changing, paradigm-shattering force to be reckoned with that I'm compelled to force on everyone I know. The Bulletproof Diet delivers on all counts. I started this book while in bed with terrible back pain because if pain is the truest roadmap to where God is working in our lives, somethings gotta give with my diet and exercise routine. Throughout the course of the next couple weeks I started incorporating minor Bulletproof principles and wow, I'm a new woman. This book not only confirms principles I've known from my own experience that are frowned upon by pop-culture (and the food manufacturing conglomerates polluting our food supply) but also has the "missing links" to fuel my body so I can live fully, engaged, alive, and "bulletproof." ...more

5

Nov 27, 2014

Dave delivers again

I have been listening to the bulletproof radio podcast since 2012. Since I started just basic changes that year I saw a huge difference in my athletic performance. I took this all the way to triathlon and full ironman distance with great results. I am now not training at all and maintaining my weight and lean mass (I actually look better than when just was exercising 10hrs a week) and excelling mentally since the past few weeks I have integrated bulletproof intermittent Dave delivers again

I have been listening to the bulletproof radio podcast since 2012. Since I started just basic changes that year I saw a huge difference in my athletic performance. I took this all the way to triathlon and full ironman distance with great results. I am now not training at all and maintaining my weight and lean mass (I actually look better than when just was exercising 10hrs a week) and excelling mentally since the past few weeks I have integrated bulletproof intermittent fasting. Wow, this book is great for me to give out when they ask me how I do what I do. I will be buying extra copies just for this reason. I feel I need to share the wealth! Highly highly recommend. ...more

5

November 26, 2015

I finished reading the book only because I paid for it, but I wouldn't recommend it. The book is well written for those who want to follow this specific diet, but it didn't teach me anything I didn't already know as far as general healthy living. I did get bored half way through, because the information it does provide I did not find useful. If you're looking for information about nutritional benefits and advice, there are other wonderful books out there. Good luck to everyone on their healthy and fitness journey! ????❤

0

May 04, 2017

I'm going to "look and feel fabulous" they say.

A little skeptic, but price drop to $1.99 on 5/4/17
https://www.amazon.com/Bulletproof-Di...
I've had this on my wish list since a PT I worked with suggested it to me for health reasons. The coffee part at least sounds good.

4

Feb 06, 2015

No matter how much I tried to silence it much of the nutritional advice given in this book made my psyche scream, "NO!". If I wouldn't have already been reading research supporting the amazing health benefits of grassfed butter and beef I probably wouldn't even have tried the diet. Disclaimer: I'm not drinking the bulletproof coffee but have introduced 2tbsp (sometimes more) grassfed butter into my breakfast and on my vegetables throughout the day and am eating more grassfed beef and other No matter how much I tried to silence it much of the nutritional advice given in this book made my psyche scream, "NO!". If I wouldn't have already been reading research supporting the amazing health benefits of grassfed butter and beef I probably wouldn't even have tried the diet. Disclaimer: I'm not drinking the bulletproof coffee but have introduced 2tbsp (sometimes more) grassfed butter into my breakfast and on my vegetables throughout the day and am eating more grassfed beef and other healthy fats.

The author ranks fruits and veggies according to their overall healthfulness. He explains much of our produce is contaminated by myotoxins which cause health problems as well as brain fog. Much of the advice contradicts what modern (traditional) nutritionists are telling us. On the recommendation of the author I also started taking 2,000mg of vitamin D3 in the morning. All I can say is it sure seems to me like what we've been told is a healthy diet for the last 40 or more years (low fat, low cholesterol) is dead wrong and potentially harming us.

Let me share you a little about my personal experience a few weeks into just loosely following the diet. I'm 43 years of age and not overweight but I've noticed my muscle tone is getting better, my shoulders are more broad and my waist is smaller. I'm sleeping more restfully than I have in decades and my mental acuity and recall have been greatly improved. I'm a writer by trade and my creativity has been off the charts. I could never follow this diet to the letter but can vouch at least for the short term benefits of what Mr. Asprey is teaching and plan on continuing to experiment with his nutritional philosophy. I'm going to get a physical soon and will be anxious to see how the diet has changed my blood readings. This book will give you lots things to consider and will improve the quality of your life. ...more

2

March 4, 2019

I finished reading the book only because I paid for it, but I wouldn't recommend it. The book is well written for those who want to follow this specific diet, but it didn't teach me anything I didn't already know as far as general healthy living. I did get bored half way through, because the informa...Full Review

4

Oct 24, 2015

I’ve never been interested in health. I’ve tried a couple of fad diets in order to shed pounds quickly (often too quickly) and I’ve exercised myself into health problems on more than one occasion (particularly memorable was the ankle problem related to jogging and the heart symptoms related to cardio workouts). So, when a friend insisted that he was concerned about me and recommended this book, I was skeptical but purchased the book out of respect for the friend. The Bulletproof Diet isn’t so I’ve never been interested in health. I’ve tried a couple of fad diets in order to shed pounds quickly (often too quickly) and I’ve exercised myself into health problems on more than one occasion (particularly memorable was the ankle problem related to jogging and the heart symptoms related to cardio workouts). So, when a friend insisted that he was concerned about me and recommended this book, I was skeptical but purchased the book out of respect for the friend. The Bulletproof Diet isn’t so much a diet (though it has lots of dietary information, suggestions, and imperatives) as a wealth of body-hacking information. Combined with the exercise (careful exercise this time) under another friend’s tutelage, the information in this volume has given me new strength and energy. And that’s without making all the changes I need to make in order to conform more closely with this plan.

Even if one only learns that coffee (not cheap coffee because of its potential for mold content) is good for you (especially when blended with butter from grass-fed cows and concentrated coconut oil), The Bulletproof Diet is well worth the price of admission. As for me, I was completely ignorant of the 2012 discovery that the glymphatic system (Loc. 1694) uses mitochondria in our brain cells to cleans cellular waste from those brain cells as we sleep (Loc. 1700). Ketones, in the bullet-proof diet stimulated by MCT oil, are an extremely efficient fuel for said mitochondria (Loc. 1704). Drinking the “bulletproof” coffee with MCT oil is an investment in better sleep and more efficient brain function.

I also didn’t know that using MCT8 assured that ketosis would continue burning fats, even when used with carbohydrates (Loc. 1765). Otherwise, carbohydrates tend to tell the body that it doesn’t have to burn fat. Of course, one optimal way to burn fat is to use Audrey’s Bulletproof Intermittent Fasting (Loc. 4014) where the coffee is supplemented by two meals which need to be consumed in a six-hour window. Also, while some diets recommend tiny snacks in order to reduce the hunger pangs, this book recognizes that those tiny snacks may not pack a lot of calories or carbs, but they have a tendency to actually stimulate rather than satiate one’s appetite (Loc. 4022). The author tells us that snack-craving is a definite sign that he is doing something wrong (Loc. 4024).

The Bulletproof Diet will stay in my Kindle library for a long, long time. I haven’t implemented much of what is in the book, but everything I have implemented has made measureable improvements in my quality of life. It has reduced my appetite, made me more alert, and given me a desire to exercise. Physically, I’m still a mess, but there is a bit of hope after reading this volume—some sections more than once.
...more

4

Dec 03, 2014

I found this book to be very informative. He gives away a one page PDF of the diet's principles for free which I have been using and feeling the benefits. Now the books out I could learn the story and science behind it all.

People complain that he pushes his products but I feel he lays out what to get and how to get the right quality and offers his version. You can do it all without buyin his brand, it's just easy to buy his brand.

I've only dabbled with the diet for a month for a meal or two each I found this book to be very informative. He gives away a one page PDF of the diet's principles for free which I have been using and feeling the benefits. Now the books out I could learn the story and science behind it all.

People complain that he pushes his products but I feel he lays out what to get and how to get the right quality and offers his version. You can do it all without buyin his brand, it's just easy to buy his brand.

I've only dabbled with the diet for a month for a meal or two each day and have been more productive than the last year. I believe this really is a performance enhancing diet. ...more

3

Dec 26, 2014

Since I followed the diet for a month, I thought I'd come back and revise my original review (in its entirety below)...as well as my rating (downgraded from a 4 to a 3). The diet is NOT the easiest, nor most palatable I've ever been on - one gets tired of a greasy mouth feel to almost everything ON the diet. That's the bad news... the GOOD is that I did lose a total of 12 lbs in 4 weeks - not bad. However, it ISN'T a diet I can realistically stay on until I lose all the weight I'd like to - so Since I followed the diet for a month, I thought I'd come back and revise my original review (in its entirety below)...as well as my rating (downgraded from a 4 to a 3). The diet is NOT the easiest, nor most palatable I've ever been on - one gets tired of a greasy mouth feel to almost everything ON the diet. That's the bad news... the GOOD is that I did lose a total of 12 lbs in 4 weeks - not bad. However, it ISN'T a diet I can realistically stay on until I lose all the weight I'd like to - so am gradually weaning myself back onto a more feasible long-term eating plan.

The 4 star rating is ONLY a reflection of how I feel about the book as a reading experience, since I have not yet TRIED to implement the diet - although I will be soon. The book walks a fine line between being easily understood and a bit 'technical', but is a fairly quick read, and though some of Asprey's assertions appear counter intuitive to lose weight (i.e., 50-70% of one's calories from fat), he does tend to 'make sense' once you've gone through his data. I am skeptical of one of his main concerns however, i.e., that coffee, as well as many of the OTHER foods he either prohibits or insists you need to buy expensive versions of, are riddled with mold toxins - wouldn't such be totally DESTROYED by the boiling water one uses in coffee, or by COOKING the other foods in question, rendering the mold harmless? My other main complaints are that the diet is NOT terribly vegetarian friendly, and he could have easily given some pointers on how to make it so; the diet itself is really not all that 'new' - more of a combo of Paleo/low carb eating, but he does have a nice 'gimmick' going with the Bulletproof Coffee that starts each day; and third, although it isn't ESSENTIAL to get your products and supplements from Asprey's website, it strongly implies that for best results you purchase his fairly expensive products off his website. Once I've actually gone through his 2 Week indoctrination program, I may revise my rating... ...more

2

Apr 15, 2015

I seemed to be spotting lots of claims but either no or poor evidence to support them. It shows an inadequate understanding of evidence by an author and reader when correlation between two or more factors is held as causation as is frequently done in this book.
I have abandoned this book, some readers might find it helpful but I am not convinced by Asprey's claims. The book starts well and held my attention but soon its general lack of evidence irritated me. I have no doubt that Asprey is an I seemed to be spotting lots of claims but either no or poor evidence to support them. It shows an inadequate understanding of evidence by an author and reader when correlation between two or more factors is held as causation as is frequently done in this book.
I have abandoned this book, some readers might find it helpful but I am not convinced by Asprey's claims. The book starts well and held my attention but soon its general lack of evidence irritated me. I have no doubt that Asprey is an intelligent man but I can't help but this this book is a gross over simplification. Somewhere around the paragraphs recommending endless vitamins/minerals/heaven knows what else in a bottle I gave up.
As others have commented, Asprey's continual selling of his own products gets very tiresome too.
I really wanted to enjoy this book as an alternative take on diet and health but it's just lacking. ...more

5

Dec 12, 2014

scares you straight

First book I read on my new kindle. Could not put it down. Back on track after losing my way over the last 5 months and adding 20 pounds of weight and feeling brain fog again after 2 years of living awesome. Anyone and everyone should read the book and then make their own life decision after having more information to guide them.

4

Jan 04, 2016

Very interesting! After reading this I joined a Bulletproof FB Group to get some more information on real people's results. It definitely intrigued me based on the science behind this diet. I have tried and do enjoy the Bulletproof Coffee.

2

Mar 14, 2017

I was definitely intrigued by this book, and have even incorporated some of this diet into my daily routine. However, this diet is 50-75 percent fat and my husband who is a registered dietitian with a masters in sports nutrition said that no matter what this guy claims, he says there is no way this can be safe for long-term.

Then I started listening to the authors bulletproof radio podcast and realized he is kind of a dick. He has these awesome guests on and only talks about himself and when I was definitely intrigued by this book, and have even incorporated some of this diet into my daily routine. However, this diet is 50-75 percent fat and my husband who is a registered dietitian with a masters in sports nutrition said that no matter what this guy claims, he says there is no way this can be safe for long-term.

Then I started listening to the authors bulletproof radio podcast and realized he is kind of a dick. He has these awesome guests on and only talks about himself and when people try to disagree with his claims or tell him a study was de-bunked he dismisses them. Also, in the episode about eating for your skin he claimed that he got a brain eating amoeba.. YES THE SUPER RARE BRAIN EATING AMOEBA that only a handful of people have acquired in the US with only ONE known survivor. He swears he had it and that his bulletproof way of eating saved his life. Bullshit. It concerns me that SO many popular health bloggers are touting this “lifestyle” when it appears to be pretty dangerous. ...more

2

Jun 30, 2017

I guess I should be happy that I read this in 2017 instead of the year it was published. This book claimed that most coffee has mold! There was even an explanation of the research it took to find this out. Of course I had to look this up! Relax, it's not true. Even Folgers uses a wet processing to prevent any mold from growing on the beans. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't have been drastic enough to stop drinking the only liquid that lets me deal with other people, but I might have cut back to I guess I should be happy that I read this in 2017 instead of the year it was published. This book claimed that most coffee has mold! There was even an explanation of the research it took to find this out. Of course I had to look this up! Relax, it's not true. Even Folgers uses a wet processing to prevent any mold from growing on the beans. Don't get me wrong, I wouldn't have been drastic enough to stop drinking the only liquid that lets me deal with other people, but I might have cut back to only 4 cups a day. Thank goodness for Google because a lot of his findings were later debunked and I can still enjoy mold-free coffee.

Let me save you some time and money by giving you the basics of the diet:

You only "eat" twice a day. But you get fancy coffee!

Drink the special $25 a pound Bulletproof coffee with grass fed butter and MCT (Medium Chain Triglycerides) oil. Sound good?

Begin by grinding the beans, brew the coffee, heat your blender with hot water, pour out the hot water, pour in the brewed coffee with the oil and butter and blend until frothy. (This guy is not a half awake mom with kids who want breakfast and can't find their shoes or favorite shirt in the wee hours before school!) This IS your breakfast. This beverage is 450 calories. Lick the cup because you don't eat lunch for another 6 hours! No snacks. Lunch and dinner are basically Atkins diet recipes anyone can look up for free. Do that for two weeks and watch your hidden abs appear like magic!

One thing that was especially tiresome about the book were the infomercial type praises from random people on EVERY FREAKING PAGE telling me how great Dave Asprey and the diet are. Since those endorsements were several years ago, I wonder if all of them are still following the diet today or if they are all on Lipitor for high cholesterol?
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4

Apr 13, 2016

'Biohacking' is a word that conjures up something very technologically advanced and only reserved for geeks. This is not true. I am glad I read through the entire book. There is much wisdom to be found in this book, not to mention that my grocery bills will go down because I will cut spending on cheese, alcohol, certain nuts, nut milks, gluten free bean chips, and certain fruits. Many so-called foods are not helping us in terms of optimizing health and providing important key nutrients.

Most 'Biohacking' is a word that conjures up something very technologically advanced and only reserved for geeks. This is not true. I am glad I read through the entire book. There is much wisdom to be found in this book, not to mention that my grocery bills will go down because I will cut spending on cheese, alcohol, certain nuts, nut milks, gluten free bean chips, and certain fruits. Many so-called foods are not helping us in terms of optimizing health and providing important key nutrients.

Most books today that talk about the connection between health and diet usually cannot avoid making a reference to wheat (yeah, yeah). I always knew that wheat was bad for me, speaking from personal experience. But one of the new things that I learned about it is that wheat, when digested in our guts, produces an opioid compound known as gluteomorphin 'that trigger the same receptors in your brain as opiate drugs like heroin' (page 61). I had to pause for a moment when I read that: wheat is not only bad for you (a fact that is hard for many people to accept), it is also addictive (an even scarier fact). I was diagnosed with wheat allergy ten years ago, but I continued to eat 'delicious' foods like pizza and apricot Danish, all the while not knowing why my bloating did not go away, and why wheat was hard to give up. I have only been largely wheat free for the last year, and it took some effort. It's perhaps a nice coincidence that my gluten-free diet has largely followed the recommendations in the BulletProof Diet. The difference in how I feel, look and behave (my husband may have something to say on that) is noticeable.

My husband and I prepare our own meals using organic and fresh ingredients. We enjoy grass-fed beef, grass-fed butter and use coconut oil in a lot of our cooking. Cooking one's own meals is a great habit to develop, and is a lot more economical.

There is some information in the book that I don't completely agree with; for example, where are the studies showing that Himalayan Pink Salt contains iodine? I could not find any on the Internet. I continue to use iodized salt on my boiled egg for breakfast. Also, quinoa gets a bad rap in the book; the argument against it is rather weak.

Overall, the positive comments about the book exceed the constructive. The BulletProof Diet contains highly researched information and the author collaborates with a lot of medical practitioners to have his material stand under scrutiny. The back of the book includes recipes as well.

We borrowed the book from our local public library, and we plan to buy our own hardcopy.
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4

Apr 09, 2016

Dave Asprey is a former high-tech entrepreneur turned biohacker and the creator of Bulltetproof coffee and the Bulletproof brand. He has a popular podcast, Bulletproof Radio, which I listen to regularly. This book summarizes a lot of his philosophy in biohacking and how lifestyle, especially diet can affect how you can improve how you feel, your physical and mental performance and overall health.

Overall, there are many excellent tips and advice on diet and lifestyle that promise to lead to Dave Asprey is a former high-tech entrepreneur turned biohacker and the creator of Bulltetproof coffee and the Bulletproof brand. He has a popular podcast, Bulletproof Radio, which I listen to regularly. This book summarizes a lot of his philosophy in biohacking and how lifestyle, especially diet can affect how you can improve how you feel, your physical and mental performance and overall health.

Overall, there are many excellent tips and advice on diet and lifestyle that promise to lead to healthy and high performance living. Some of his views are a bit extreme and hard for me to accept (really? we should stay away from mushroom because of it encourages the growth of yeast in the body?) and others I am glad that I am starting to follow (eating cheese does makes me not feel well afterwards). Our bodies have been telling us in subtle ways that some of the food that we are eating is not good but somehow it is hard for us to connect the dots.

My wife and I have been following healthy practice (good sleep habits, meditation, wheat-free diets, grass-fed meat, whole and organic produce) and reading this book further reinforces some of our habits. Dave Asprey classifies foods into three kinds: bulletproof (those we should eat plenty of), kryptonite (those we should avoid if at all possible) and questionable (those we should eat moderately). I treat the advice in this book as a template and I am beginning to embark on the journey into biohacking on my own by figuring out what works for me and what doesn't.
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5

Jan 18, 2019

Alright then, 2 weeks for the full Bulletproof Diet.
I've started Bulletproof coffee and love it. It does keep me satiated for a long time, and I now intermittent fast for about 15-17 hours daily.
My wife thinks I'm nuts, but some nuts have mold in them ... read the book, you'll get it.
Losing weight, eating butter and the right fats, testing the body and finding what's good and what's bad is smart. One "diet" does not fit everyone body type and reactivity.
I am excited to jump into this and see Alright then, 2 weeks for the full Bulletproof Diet.
I've started Bulletproof coffee and love it. It does keep me satiated for a long time, and I now intermittent fast for about 15-17 hours daily.
My wife thinks I'm nuts, but some nuts have mold in them ... read the book, you'll get it.
Losing weight, eating butter and the right fats, testing the body and finding what's good and what's bad is smart. One "diet" does not fit everyone body type and reactivity.
I am excited to jump into this and see what happens. ...more

5

Mar 23, 2015

I must say that this is the most thorough and powerful diet book I have read so far.

You'll learn the basic science behind boosting your mental performance while losing weight, staying young, and extending your life span.

If there is one health/diet book you want to read, read this one. It'll change your life. I've already lost 5+ pounds easily in the past week following this diet about 85% of the time.

3

Oct 15, 2015

I have mixed feelings about this book.

The pros:
- It was well organized and contained a lot of great information, often in unexpected areas such as which fruits/veggies are highest in fructose, highest in pesticides, most likely to be GMO, etc.
- The author was very honest about places where he hated what he had to write (such as pointing out the beer is simply not “bulletproof”.
- Much of the dietary advice was very sound, and the author was upfront about some nasty food production habits that I have mixed feelings about this book.

The pros:
- It was well organized and contained a lot of great information, often in unexpected areas such as which fruits/veggies are highest in fructose, highest in pesticides, most likely to be GMO, etc.
- The author was very honest about places where he hated what he had to write (such as pointing out the beer is simply not “bulletproof”.
- Much of the dietary advice was very sound, and the author was upfront about some nasty food production habits that people need to know about but are often unaware of.
- Asprey took a great approach to “falling off the wagon” in explaining that once started, one is always “on the diet”. Poor eating choices simply mean you're veering towards the end of the spectrum that is not the best for promoting health, and one can always choose to veer back towards better options. This seemed like great and encouraging approach to take.
- He was also totally unapologetic about doing what it takes to improve one's health, and set a great example in that.

The cons:

- I was not a fan of the “executive” and “performance” geared language. Asprey typically works with high powered (read: wealthy) executives, performers, and professional athletes, etc., so much of his language fell along the lines of dominating, performing, and other “power” positions. This isn't inherently bad, but if you're not a fan of that kind of lifestyle, it can get old.

- The “bio-hacking” language also got a bit irksome. I'm all in favor of people listening to their bodies, learning to read their bodies' feedback, and tailoring their choices to what they specifically need. But I didn't feel like the idea of bio-hacking quite lined up with that.

- Questionable advice, coupled with apparent gappy knowledge of body chemistry. The author had some excellent points and has clearly done a lot of research. But he strategically researched “hacks”, rather than working on a deeper and broader understanding of the underlying body chemistry in many cases. This resulted in suggestions that sounded great, and may work in some cases, but that could also potentially cause serious problems.

A great example was the idea that one can simply train oneself to sleep less (say, 5 hours a night), which is problematic on several levels. First, everyone is unique and although some may be able to sustain such a behavior, it may be completely inappropriate for others. Second, he either ignores, fails to mention, or doesn't know a lot of important body chemistry realities related to this practice which have the potential to seriously harm someone. Proper sleep is essential to reducing stress and cortisol, and therefore weight loss; decided to sleep less can directly sabotage readers' many other efforts to lose weight. Similarly, your body does a toxin dump at a certain time every night. If you're not asleep before this happens, you can seriously impair your ability to detoxify; get in the habit of it because you've decided to function long term on little sleep, and the potential for damage goes up significantly. I could go on, but you get the idea.

- Impractical/expensive advice. The author has access to a lot of “anti-aging” physicians who are apparently very happy to run blood panels and other tests upon request, allowing him to specifically review his levels of various vitamins, etc. on a whim. Most of us (particularly those in difficult states) don't have access to this.

All things considered, if you're in fairly good health to begin with and looking for an edge this can be a good book to read if you take it with a healthy dose of salt and a willingness to research his suggestions on your own before implementation to make sure they're right for you.

If you are NOT healthy to begin with – particularly if you're dealing with complex issues like yeast, IBS, and other gut damage – it is absolutely in your best interest to start somewhere else to heal those issues first, and then come back to this later!! ...more