I am an avid reader of health and fitness books. This one has a lot going for it: A unique central premise; uncompromised authority; and it’s comprehensive, with actionable nutrition and exercise plans.

The author, Dr Gabrielle Lyon (with a research and clinical background in Geriatrics and Nutritional Sciences) operates a concierge medical practice serving leaders in many fields, including Navy SEALs.

In following her YouTube videos, Dr. Lyon (and her mentor Dr. Donald Layman) have won me over on the concept: What is good for skeletal muscle is good for the body and for the brain.

By focusing on the single metric of muscle health, one can realize a wide range of health benefits.

Forever Strong includes
• The importance of skeletal muscle, its many functions, and its role in health and longevity.
• How to design a nutrition plan including macros, meal plans, and recipes.
• How to design an exercise plan, including various assessments (including blood work), a comprehensive exercise plan, and instructions for each exercise.

The book includes interesting sidebars with case studies and pieces on developing a mental framework to help you realize your health goal. The unit on nutrition, includes an explaination on how to evaluate and weigh scientific nutritional evidence.

The only part of the book I found difficult was the detailed written exercise instructions (without illustrations). There are times when a picture (or a video) is worth 1,000 words. And for me, that is often the case with exercise instruction. So, one may want to search for video examples of the exercises on YouTube. Or, perhaps Dr. Lyon’s website will add exercise videos?

In my opinion, this is a good book for health professionals, health coaches, and personal trainers who want to stay at the forefront of best nutrition practices. It’s also good for health and fitness enthusiasts willing to track calories and macros to get their nutrition dialed in.

Forever Strong by Gabrielle Lyon is a good reference for better eating for a stronger body, with great focus on stimulating the muscles in the most productive way. I thought that it was easy to follow and well structured, with a mix of science and practical implications. Thank you NetGalley, the author and publisher for the advance copy for review. All opinions are my own.

Unfortunately, this book was not for me. I do think it had a lot of useful information about the body and the importance of protein and exercise, but I did not always agree with the "facts" in the book. I do not agree with the author that the popularity of plant based proteins is propaganda and that we should all be eating much more meat. She often says things that I just don't believe are true and backs up her arguments with things that don't even make sense.

One quote says, "Contrary to the messaging many of us are getting today, a hearty steak as part of your diet is better for you than ultra-processed plant-based foods such as Twinkies, Lucky Charms and Impossible Bugers." I mean, when people are arguing for more plant based sources of protein, I'm pretty sure it is things such as nuts, seeds, soy, quinoa, etc. Not Twinkies. So that isn't much of an argument there, in my opinion.

She also talked about a case study of a lady who was trying to eat a plant based diet, but she was only mostly eating fruit smoothies, so she was very thin, low muscle mass, low energy and her hair was falling out. She added one serving of red meat to her diet a week and saw significant improvement. But due to the fact that she was mostly only eating fruit before, I'm sure that the addition of more protein to her diet in general would have resulted in an improvement. There was no study done to see if an increase in plant based protein would have shown equally beneficial improvements.

I just thought that overall, the topic was interesting, and I liked what the author was trying to do in promoting eating healthy amounts of protein and strength exercising but I thought the arguments in the book to back up her plan were weak.

I received a copy of this book through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Dr. Lyon argues throughout this book that building muscle is one of the key factors in leading a healthier lifestyle. Not only by working out, but by incorporating more protein into our diets, we can build up the muscle in our bodies so we can feel better, have more energy, and lose unwanted weight.

I found so much of this book to be information I already know, but Dr. Lyon’s presentation and helpful calculations make it feel accessible. I wrote down a lot of notes and can’t wait to put some of these principles into practice!

Forever Strong is an informative guide to living a longer, healthier, fitter life. The first half of the book is an accessible reference for the latest research, with meal and fitness options presented in the second half. The advice is clearly presented and actionable. Not surprising given the title, the author stresses a protein-rich diet alongside weight lifting to create a higher quality of life as we age.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

This has a great deal of information packed into one book. I'm sure it will be helpful to many but wasn't a good match for me. It's a bit rigid in it's advice -- again very helpful for some -- and included info that wasn't relevant or helpful to me.

Thanks very much for the free copy for review!!

This book is dense with information and scientific evidence. I learned a lot about how to nourish my body as I get older, and the author motivated me to add more protein and strength training to my lifestyle!

I had a hard time reading it cover to cover though. I wanted more practical tips earlier on, which I would imagine is common for people who buy diet books. We want results and we want them now.

Thank you NetGalley & Atria Books for the early copy!

This is a great resource. I found Dr. Gabrielle Lyon after following Organic Olivia for a long time. Olivia has had great success with Dr. Lyon and is a huge proponent for muscle and protein as the key to health and longevity. This book takes everything so much further and provides a whole lot of scientific evidence that's easy to digest for the common reader. Thanks Dr. Lyon!

Forever Strong is a great book that focuses on extending your healthspan and not just your lifespan. It touts the benefits of strength training as you age. Many anecdotes and scientific evidence is included to break up the "science speak." It reminded me a lot of another new book along the same lines: Outlive by Dr. Peter Attia. Both books are important reads if you're reaching middle age.

An excellent guide for living a healthy life for a long time 👏🏼. It was an informative & interesting read. Enjoyed seeing the data side to the facts on how to live longer & better. Great scientific research has been made with this book and I thoroughly enjoyed the theory behind it all.

The first part of the book, the “why” for the author’s program is somewhat long and repetitive, but worth skimming. Meal plans and exercises are offered to achieve a muscle-centered take on health and longevity. The emphasis is on lifestyle changes rather than dieting. This seems comprehensive and may be helpful to people looking for a different approach to lifelong fitness.

A clear and comprehensive guide to healthier habits with a focus on muscles. I appreciated the accessible writing, learning more about the science behind Dr. Lyon’s approach, and the many options presented throughout for meals and exercises. Recommended to anyone looking to deepen their knowledge of health and fitness or for a reset/new way of approaching eating and exercising.

Thank you to Atria for the opportunity to read an advance copy.

Forever Strong is an informative and engaging read. It begins with useful data and explanations around how our body functions with strong muscle built through protein-rich diets. I especially enjoyed the research around the intersection of nutrition and marketing.
In the latter half of the book, Lyon weaves her research into reference materials for meal planning, exercise guides and lifestyle choices.

I did struggle with the flow of the book, and typically don’t enjoy when a writer references later chapters e.g. “This will be explained in-depth in Chapter 5” but overall felt it would continue to be a practical resource for quality health.

I received an advance reader copy from the publisher and NetGalley.

3.75 stars

An informed guide to diet and exercise as we grow older. She stresses the importance of adequate protein intake to maintain muscle, smart carbs, and the right kind of exercise. There is a ton of useful and clearly explained information and the data behind it.

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Forever Strong is quite the solid and informative book. Its almost a textbook on how to live a strong and healthy life as you age. Full of scientific research and first hand experience with her own patients, Dr Lyon advises the reader on health, diet, exercise. She gives practical techniques for implementing big changes and many necessary examples of both exercises and menus.
This book stands out from others of this type however, in the sheer magnitude of research. It was a bit overwhelming for me, so I skimmed to get an overview and will go back to read and digest at a slower pace.
This book is more of a reference book than a readalong. It could be very useful to personal trainers and diet consultants.
Thank you NetGalley and Atria books for the ARC of Forever Strong.

This was so informative! I enjoyed the information the Lyon writes about. I plan to put into place a lot of the tips she provided. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Five stars.

Forever Strong is an excellent guide to one of the key factors in healthy longevity: muscle. The author, who is a physician, gives the theory behind why the amount and quality a person has is so important to good health in the first part of the book. Without conscious diet and exercise choices, people will naturally lose a significant amount of muscle as they age. In the second part of the book the author describes the diet which she recommends to maintain muscle, which is a one which emphasizes protein consumption. She also gives general exercise recommendations for building and maintaining muscle in this part. The final part of the book gives specific meal plans, recipes and exercises for the reader.
As a nutritionist, I was aware of much of this research. This book would be an excellent reference for nutritionists, exercise professionals, health coaches or interested lay people. It gives great information in a format that could be easily implemented by the reader. I recommend this book.
I received a complementary advanced copy from the publisher via netGalley.