Brendan has done something amazing for us... he has given us recipes for amazingly yummy foods that you can feel good about inside and out!
Stress does affect us all, and by helping our bodies have as little physiological stress as possible, the foods and information in this book make it easier to spend your energy where you want to, on life, rather than in the boring waste-of-time state of digestion.
The athlete specific stuff was amazing and my training has taken on a whole new level now that I can properly fuel my machine.
I would buy it again just for the gel, energy drink and recovery pudding recipes!!

What an excellent book. I got The Thrive Diet as a birthday present while camping and I read the entire book with-in three days. It was such a great, inspiring read. I was familiar with the author Brendan Brazier's main message as I had just finished his new (and free!) Thrive in 30 program offered from his website. The book has clarified and expanded on those points, where I now have a much better understanding on his approach to a healthy body (and mind).

I love his premise on reducing all types of stress (nutritional, psychological, environmental) and his explanations for his Thrive diet. Truly amazing. And definitely following his advice will get you extremely healthy! I have many books on health, and the good ones stress the same elements: eat more vegetables. Especially green leafy veggies, plus switching a plant-based diet. Of course there's so much more, which is why I recommend reading this book.

I would say my only gripe is Brendan doesn't footnote; he does mention a lot of research and science-based studies but there are no further noting/resources about these studies. I know what he says is correct as I've read other books on plant-based nutrition (like Eat To Live book by Joel Fuhrman, MD and Michael Greger, MD DVD series) who do mention similar studies and research and provide the footnotes (and/or shows the studies on the DVD). I figure Brendan is coming from an athletes perspective, not from a researcher and/or MD, so he doesn't need to provide all the medical and clinical studies.

I have tried many of his recipes and I enjoy all his smoothies, pre/post exercise, cereals, and some of his veggie recipes. I have had to adapt many of his other recipes to suit my own tastes, but the recipes are definitely a good starting point. For newbie cooks, I suggest getting other healthy eating or specifically raw cookbooks (or checking out the internet) to complement Brendan's recipes. I love Ani's Raw Food Kitchen, Becoming Vegetarian, and The Gluten-Free Vegan, but of course, I usually adapt those as well.

Good book! Change your life (and health) and read it!

You may have to have been familiar with him prior (i.e. tried Vega products) in order to understand where he's coming from but he tries his best to explain his theories on vegan eating to newcomers.

And that's part of the big problem that I had with this book: Brendan stating "fact" without footnote. There is a reference section but it's a bit inadequate considering all the science he drops. The index could also use a bit of work because there's yet to be a time where I look something up in the back and find it listed.

Otherwise, try Thrive. It's an introduction to stricter/purer veganism (e.g. less processed foods) as well as the raw food lifestyle.

The popped amaranth worked fine for me. I think that sometimes it gets too dried out if you buy it in bulk, then it might not pop. But if you use fresher stuff from a package, it will work well. Or even soak it for a bit. Without moisture it can't expand and therefore pop.

love the recipes! They're so easy to make and fit in with my busy lifestyle. I started eating more whole foods about two years ago and did find that since moisture levels in different crops and freshness levels can vary in whole foods as opposed to processed ones, that you have to account for that when making any whole food recipes. So adding more water sometimes or adding more of a dry ingredient to balance the moisture level is all that's needed. Pretty simple, but I can understand if you're used to using "standardized" processed ingredients that can be more uniformed and therefore the results will be more uniform. But of course the best heath properties are in whole foods.

I love The Thrive Diet! I have way more energy since I'm sleeping so much better and have completely lost cravings for sugary and starchy foods. Plus, I'm off coffee! Thank you Thrive Diet!

The first section on food is wonderful, but the recipes are terrible, it's almost as if they didn't actually make them. And don't, whatever you do, try to pop amaranth in your hot air popcorn popper (as suggested in the book) not only did i make the biggest mess EVER, it broke my popcorn popper! The concept of the recipes is good but they need more work. Disappointing.

The Thrive Diet is superb! It addresses the root of most all ailments – stress. But more importantly, it provides practical and simple solutions. I just got the book a few days ago but have already started implementing some of the suggestions and have noticeably more energy and just simply feel better than I have in a long time. I’ve got off supplements and am now just eating whole foods as Brendan suggests. His recipes are very creative and delicious. They can be prepared quickly as well. They are also gluten and soy free which is important to me too. Thank you to Brendan for writing such an important book. I love Vega as well.