This book made me want to laugh and cry at the same time! Janey Sweet is put on sabbatical by her business partner, and forced to lose thirty pounds if she wants to keep her job. What follows is a satirical look at the ridiculous trendy fads that our beauty and fitness industry seem to be so obsessed with over the past couple of years. Janey tries them all, and in the end, she realizes that she never really was fat - she just had a jerk for a friend and business partner.

I'm not immune to the seemingly endless reminders that, as a woman, I should look a certain way. And as I've gotten older, I've noticed it gets harder and harder to keep up that image. It frustrates me (and my friends) that we have a double standard in our society; there is definitely more pressure on women to look like they did "on their wedding day" than there is on men. It pains me to hear some of my friends' husbands ridicule their wives with passive aggressive remarks like, "Do you really need another one?" Or, "No wonder your workouts aren't giving you the results you want."

I am thankful that my husband doesn't speak to me this way - my pressure is self-inflicted. I feel the heat from my Instagram feed, the beauty magazines in the checkout line at the grocery story, and whenever I put on my swimsuit. As my daughter gets older, I notice these pressures even more and my heart breaks for her. We are creating an unrealistic standard, yet the industry doesn't seem to care. I applaud models and actors that have spoken out against photoshopping and retouching pictures but still, the industry doesn't listen. I consciously watch the way I talk about my body and the reasons I chose to workout when I am in the presence of my children, and I hope I'm instilling healthy body images in both of their minds.

Overall, the book was ok. I liked that the authors, Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza, emphasized how unrealistic and stupid most of these fad diets and workouts are, but after awhile, the story just started to fall flat and became quite boring. The ending wrapped up a little too nice and quick - almost like the goal was solely to write about as many of these fads as they could and when the time ran out, the book abruptly ended as well. If you’re just looking for something quick and entertaining to read that doesn’t require a lot of thought, this one will work!

Thanks to NetGalley and Doubleday Books for the digital review copy – all opinions are my own.

There are many things that make being a booklover wonderful, but one that makes me positively giddy is when a book finds me when I need it most. That feeling of a book that knows what you need and provides it. No point in prolonging the suspense, I’m talking about Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza’s new novel, Fitness Junkie. DON’T. RUN. AWAY! It’s not a non-fiction workout book. It is a hilarious, intelligent, impactful novel about the crazy things women do for their appearance. And why it’s messed up. Which is kind of all you need to know, so if you want to leave right now and go buy the book you have my permission.

You’re still here? Awesome! Fitness Junkie is about Janey, a healthy, attractive, forty-year-old woman with an MBA who is the co-founder of the chicest bridal dress company in the U.S. The designer, Beau, has been her best friend since childhood. At least he was, right up until he told her at brunch in Manhattan (because, of course, most of my favorite books take place in NYC) that until she lost 30 pounds she needed to take a sabbatical. Her weight was not befitting the image of their sylphlike gowns. Janey is hurt, but willing to acknowledge that she’s put on a bit of weight due to an acrimonious divorce and maybe getting in shape and losing some weight would be healthy. So begins the journey into lunacy with Janey as the only sane person on board.

Janey soon learns about diets of nothing but clay (oh, the minerals!), “kelp is the new kale”, and a gym membership that if you miss class they charge you anyway and donate the money to a cause you hate—as in the Trump 2020 campaign. (Actually, that sounds like a great idea because it would motivate the hell out of me.) Then she meets a female shaman—a beautiful, breezy, calm woman who introduces her to all kinds of way to achieve transcendence (and get skinny). All of this culminates in being inducted into an invitation-only fitness class with more rules and regulations than most country clubs. Run by a sprite who only wears grey and spouts affirmations like “Hold your own hand”.

At this point, my head explodes. Or more accurately, I explode with laughter (in public) that just keeps coming because so do these insane takes on the health and wellness industry. Page after page of witty, snarky spot-on satire about the modern day obsession with the superficial aspects of a healthy lifestyle that only the wealthy can afford. Fitness Junkie works so well because Piazza and Sykes use multi-faceted characters to drive home their point. The novel is filled with highly intelligent, successful women who still feel compelled to try wild fads in order to maintain an unrealistic appearance. Throughout the novel they work with this theme, exposing it for what it is. While women being unhappy with their appearance is not a positive I do appreciate that Fitness Junkie does not play to the old stereotype about chick-lit—it’s not about getting or keeping a man. In fact, men and relationships are not even a factor in the plot. Yay!

Sykes and Piazza are so in-the-know that they impart the feeling of fact to the fiction in Fitness Junkie. They also have no qualms about skewering some of the new new-age fitness lifestyle gurus out there, like Gwyneth Paltrow and Tracy Anderson. You know, the kind of women who make me want to wear a polyester muumuu while eating lard on bacon because their aspirational ‘perfection’ is nauseating. The only ones for whom the whole wellness craze is working because they are making money hand over fist selling unattainable goals. Whether you are all-in on the latest diet or fitness craze (daily IV treatments, anyone?), this novel is perfect in its execution of how even things that start out as healthy can go very wrong when they’re co-opted by people just looking to make a buck. Grab a bowl of ice cream or your carb of choice, throw on comfy clothes and just ENJOY this fabulously witty, fun novel. All calories consumed will be burned off by laughing. You're welcome.

I absolutely loved this book all about different exercise and diet fads that women are willing to try to lose that "extra couple of pounds"

So many times reading this book I found myself laughing along and totally relating to Janey. We've all been there, someone we love mentions that we've gained a little weight and maybe we should lose some weight. In Fitness Junkie Janet Sweet finds herself out of favor with her best friend and business partner Beau for eating a bruffin in the front row of a fashion show.

On her journey to shed the pounds she loses weight but gains insight. Maybe her friend wasn't who she thought he was and maybe she didn't really need to lose the weight in the first place.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in return for a voluntary, honest review. If you've ever tried some crazy diet fad to lose weight, you'll understand this book. If someone has ever made you feel bad about your weight, you'll understand this book. Some of the things Janey does and goes through trying to lose weight, I laughed out loud. And her friend CJ is the perfect partner in crime. Reading through Janey's journey, and how she discovers things about herself is kind of eye opening. I've tried several crazy diets myself, but I wouldn't be willing to eat clay! It's great seeing Janey decide things are and aren't worth it. And finding out the truth behind The Workout, I want to know if that really happened!

thats-normal.com; Date: TBD
Fitness Junkie by Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza (7/8/17-7/11/17)
Free-the-Nipple yoga; dumpster diving first date; talking fitness watch that keeps going off at inopportune times. These are just a few of the experiences that Janey has while on her forced weightloss journey. Janey Sweet is the CEO of a bridal dress company--the kind that doesn’t make a dress over the size of 6--when she is caught on camera in the front row of a runway show eating a--GASP!-- bruffin. Her business partner/dress designer/life-long best friend, Beau, gives her an ultimatum: take 3 months off and lose 30 pounds by any means necessary or else.

Along the way, Janey reconnects with friends that were always stuck on the backburner with Beau in her life, coming to the realization that maybe he wasn’t as great of a friend as she thought. Yes, there is a little romance--would I read it otherwise?-- but it is definitely low on her priority list as she just got divorced (she’s not heartbroken BTW).

The book had just about every ridiculous diet you can think of (the editor’s note claims that most are real), including drinking broccoli-infused water and the things Janey puts up with to do so make a cheese lover like myself giggle. Mostly. I did start feeling the urge to go to the gym while reading it, and not in a good way (thank you PMS), so if you are sensitive to things like that maybe hold off.

For anyone with a sense of humor about their weight

4 Juice Cleanses

Just like that sweet crooner, Shawn Mendes, this book had me in stitches. It’s hilarious. Likely the best thing about Fitness Junkie is that everyone can relate to it because we have all struggled with our own body image issues at some point. Janey is a bad ass southern girl taking NYC by storm when her little pest, Beau tells her she needs to drop some weight because she represents their wedding gown brand & can’t be seen eating a bruffin. A bruffin is a muffin & a brioche hybrid- it’s a real thing; just ask Oprah.

Janey goes on this quest to drop 30 lbs & enlists the help of her weight-obsessed, but lovable friend, CJ & her cousin, Ivy. She enters the world of the NYC fitness obsessed elite. There are spin classes where the instructors treat you like a drill sergeant, color coordinated cardio classes tucked into a secret location & tropical retreats where they feed you clay (seriously). She ventures out to a juice bar, there’s mention of a broth store & she even plays a freegan for a night & goes dumpster diving.

There are serious Goop vibes displayed by some of the characters and there is plenty of talk about organic, non-GMO, humane, ion filtered, hormone free, anti-inflammatory, turmeric, ghee, vitamin boosting IV treatments, kale, swiss chard & many other “all the rage” diet/health tips. Many of these made me smile because I’ve been guilty of a few of them myself. I seriously laughed out loud hearing about a PR rep for swiss chard with plans of it becoming the new kale. I mean, it will probably happen!

Now, I know this is supposed to be an unbiased review, but I am Really Into these authors, Lucy & Jo. I read The Knockoff when it was published in 2015 & I loved it. Readers of both will love the small nod to Glossy as it shows up in Fitness Junkie. Lucy & Jo do a fantastic job balancing out the ridiculous diet fads with the real life struggle of obtaining a healthy image. The story wraps up nicely & left me with a smile & a gentle nod to my girl, Janey. This is sure to be a perfect, fun, easy read this summer (or anytime, really) & it’s guaranteed to make you laugh, smile & possibly rethink your fitness regime.

Special thanks to Lucy Sykes, Jo Piazza, Doubleday Books & NetGalley for providing our copy in exchange for an honest & fair review.

Received an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.
Fitness Junkie was a rollercoaster for me. I was skeptical of the plot early, completely engrossed by the middle, then as the story wound down, I found myself recognizing things about how it unfolded that impressed the hell out of me. Janey Sweet runs a wedding dress company with her best friend Beau. She's 40 and about to finalize a divorce. Beau blindsides her with a demand that she lose 30 pounds or be cut out of the business, citing one of the ridiculous and never-enforced clauses in the contract they signed when they started the company. Janey is immediately pushed by friends and family into the most insane diets and workout fads New York City has to offer, and the biting sarcasm of Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza shines through when they describe the health crazes and the socialites who swear by them. Janey tries a naked yoga class, $30 juices and finally stumbles upon a top secret workout everyone swears by... but it's clear early that something is off.
Just when I thought the rest of the book would be more of the same, the stakes are raised and Janey becomes a borderline-devotee to the high-end health industry but in a way that is gradual and believable. I started out questioning the safety what she was trying, but Janey was constantly skeptical and seemed so self-aware I lost some of my own skepticism. I saw the twist coming (I noted every red flag I saw) but still felt it was believable that Janey, who was realistically caught up in her own concerns, wouldn't notice right away. When Janey finally comes up for air and takes stock of her health and her weight obsession, I understood the slippery slope she had been on and did not judge her for it. I just cheered for her.
The way Janey dealt with her relationships was also really well done. Beau was behaving cruelly, but Sykes and Piazza allowed Janey to slowly come to the realization that the relationship was toxic, reflecting on the good but also opening her eyes to the bad that was there all along. Janey dates the young, hipster owner of a juice shop but also meets a wildly charming older man and recognizes their connection. She doesn't lose herself in either relationship and they don't become the focus of the plot. It remains a story about Janey coming to terms with herself. Because she isn't working, Janey has more time to spend with her friends and takes stock of those relationships as well.
Fitness Junkie is a great little piece of satire for anyone who needs a reality check about what it means to be 'healthy.'"

Unlike the other people who work in fashion, Janey Sweet enjoys eating and she is not afraid to admit it. But when her business partner and best friend, Beau, tells her that she needs to lose weight or she will lose her job, Janey has no choice but to go on a diet and hit all the gyms, yoga classes and juice bars that New York has to offer – including the Free the Nipple Yoga that, as the title implies, is practised topless. Along with old and new friends, Janey embarks on weeks of diets and exercise but at what price? In the meantime, Janey’s cousin, Ivy, is having her own problems as she finds herself working for a gym where people pay lots of money to be insulted during the workout.
I loved the authors’ first book, The Knockoff, so I was very excited about this new book and I wasn’t disappointed. Fitness Junkie is a hilarious, charming and terrific read. Some of the yoga and gym classes that Janey attends are ridiculous and seem so unrealistic that I was surprised to find out they really exist. Janey’s adventures as she tries class after class made me laugh out loud and I felt for her as throughout the novel she evaluates her relationship with Beau and finally discovers his true character. Janey, her best friend CJ, and her cousin Ivy are likable and honest.

I enjoyed reading "Fitness Junkie" so much!

I got a kick out of the authors poking fun at wacky diet and exercise "trends," but on a deeper level, it was refreshing to read about an older female protagonist who restores her confidence at age forty. I sure didn't see the twist coming at the end of the book, which only made it all the more fun to read. "Fitness Junkie" was a welcome respite at the end of each day. The creative, unique story provides a unique take on how a woman can start a new chapter in her life.

Janey Sweet, CEO of the fabulous fashion company B, which creates gorgeous high-end wedding dresses for women sized 4 and under, is pictured at a fashion show eating. Not just eating, but eating a bruffin (it's a combination of brioche and muffin). So the dress designer and 51% owner of the company, and her lifelong best friend, Beau asks her to take a step back and re-evaluate her life. Janey realizes that she has put a few extra pounds on, stress eating from her divorce and by working such long hours for the company, so she decides it's time to take on her fears and sugar cravings and lose 30 pounds. 

Little does she know what she's getting herself into. 

Janey dives headfirst into the world of organic meal delivery services and spinning classes led by rage-filled instructors. There are fitness camps based on Middle Eastern military exercises and juice bars with handsome owners. She meets a shaman and gets an invite to the most exclusive fitness retreat in the city. She watches women eat clay. And drink broccoli water. From Mason jars, preferably vintage ones. 

And through it all, as she loses the weight, Janey discovers that what she's gaining is so much better than a smaller waistline. She finds a clarity, a re-connection to her true self, and a knowledge of who she is and what she wants to do with her life. 

Fitness Junkie takes you on a wild ride. It starts out shocking, then gets hysterically funny, and ends in with a moving celebration of the power of a good woman. Just like in The Knockoff (which is at least as amazing--if you haven't read it yet, what are you waiting for?), Lucy Sykes and Jo Piazza offer us a powerful satire of a multi-billion dollar industry, and they do without diminishing women. Their women are smart, sassy, strong, connected, and unafraid of the challenges they face. 

My only problem with this dynamic writing team is that I read faster than they write. 

Fitness Junkie is a charming and funny read with a deep healing quality that both let me laugh at the insanity that we thoughtlessly put ourselves through and cheer for all that's fantastic about humanity. It's as perfect a book as I've been able to find. Read it immediately! 



Galleys for Fitness Junkie were provided by Doubleday Books via NetGalley, with all my deep appreciation.

All-juice diets, no-juice diets, vegan, freegan, paleo -- today's health & fitness obsession is ripe for a satirical book like "Fitness Junkie". In this novel -- tailor-made for beach and vacation reading -- protaganist Janey Sweet, co-owner of a couture wedding dress design firm, is sent on a forced sabbatical by her buiness partner after being photographed in the trades eating baked goods and looking a bit too "pudgy" at the latest fashion shows. Janey tries all manner of diets and new-fangled exercise trends to lose weight -- and save her spot and the company she's built.

While I enjoyed The Knockoff a few summers ago, this book just felt like one joke that went on way too long. Character development was scant, the plot was thin, and all loose ends got tied up in a bow in the last few pages.

2.5 stars rounded up to 3.

Thank you to Doubleday and NetGalley for a galley of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Reviewed by Tori

Favorite Quote: “You work out 3 hours every day for fun?

Fitness Junkie is snark-filled laugh out loud satire that wildly swings on a pendulum from realistic and relatable to the outrageous and insane as authors Sykes and Piazza mock and poke fun at the fitness and health fad craze of the rich and famous. Delightfully humorous and loaded with energy, we follow Janey Sweet, the CEO of B Wedding Designs, through her weight loss odyssey after her business partner and best guy friend catches her eating a bruffin at a fashion show. He informs her that she needs to lose thirty pounds in three months or not bother coming back. Apparently, being photographed eating in the fashion world is akin to sacrificing little babies on TV. Janey, devastated but determined, dives feet first into the complicated world of dieting as she investigates the latest and greatest weight dissolving ploys such as nipple free yoga, fat freezing, clay diets, and supposed terrorist run boot camps. With the help of a cousin and her best gal pal, Janey learns a lesson about relationships, friendship, family, and being happy.

As someone who hates working out and dieting, I can certainly relate to this book. Sykes and Piazza capitalize on the wild and crazy but also dig down deep and take a good hard look at the unrealistic expectations society places on people and the extent to which we will go to measure up. Thin is in and God help you if you aren’t what others think you should look like. The story does start out a little slow as we are dragged down memory lane and Janey recaps her relationship with Beau from first meeting in grade school to the present. Luckily, after that chapter, the book speeds up to a comfortable level.

Janey was very easy for me to relate to. Even with her $1500 Chanel distressed knee-high boots. She’s a divorced forty years old who built a business with her childhood friend, Beau, and is content with her life. She may have gained a few pounds here and there but she’s not obese nor unhealthy. But in a town where eating is a crime, her partner, Beau, humiliates her by calling her fat and demanding she lose the weight. Beau’s actions hurt Janey and cause her to doubt herself, but also force her to take an honest look at her life and the decisions she’s made through the years.

I liked that Janey isn’t made to be a martyr or a flake. She is a strong, self-assured, intelligent woman who at first follows Beau’s edict because she scared of losing her business and her friend. But as the story progresses, we see Janey slowly evolving. We see how she has used Beau and her work to shut herself off from the world and not have to deal with its unpleasantness. Through her reconnection with old friends, the making of new friends, and a few romantic encounters, Janey is ushered into the here and now with a stronger self, core, and outlook on life.

A very eclectic secondary cast punctuates the story with humor and drama as they filter in and out of Janey’s life.CJ is a diet & fitness aficionado and is a hoot as she joins up with Janey on her quest. Janey’s cousin Ivy is an expensive former ballerina/ fitness instructor with anger issues. We meet born again shamans, financial advisors turned juice gurus, and a few actress/bloggers *cough cough* whose unrealistic articles will leave you giggling at their pretentiousness.

Fitness Junkie is a hilarious look at humanity and it’s many many MANY issues. It left me giggling and promising myself to stop stepping in the scale so much.

Grade: B

This was a fun book, taking shots at the fitness and health industry while also revealing the treachery of relationship with a narcissist and the painful but beneficial journey back to one's self.

A relatively biting but funny satire. It takes a hard look at all of the ridiculous health fads and crazes and pressure on women to be someone else's idea of perfect. You should definitely instagram that piece of avocado toast you've been served at the restaurant of the moment, but you probably shouldn't eat it... ugh, bread! (That was sarcasm, by the way. I really love bread.) It's an interesting social commentary that somehow manages to be funny, relatable, outlandish, and ridiculous at the same time. I'm not even quite sure how they managed that.

It all started with a bruffin. (That's a hybrid of a brioche and a muffin, and frankly sounds delicious to me.) Janey Sweet was photographed rating that delectable treat in the front row of a fashion show. The picture isn't even bad, but her business partner is fuming as if it's a personal affront. Janey has gained some weight recently, and Beau isn't having it. They've been friends since they were children, but that someone doesn't stop him from lambasting her about her "weight problem". As the primary owner of their extremely successful wedding dress company, he gives her an ultimatum: lose thirty pounds in three months or you're out. He gives her time off to do it. As illegal as that sounds, turns out there's actually a clause in their initial contract which supposedly makes it okay.

Janey has recently divorced her husband, but she didn't experience real heartbreak. This is her heartbreak... her best friend, the person she seems to consider her soul mate, basically abandoning her. She's beyond hurt. Beyond dismayed. Beyond ashamed.

This is how if begins... a crazy funny journey of diets and workouts that seem to have come from another planet. (They might as well, for most of us, with what they cost.) They're incredibly ridiculous. This book made me laugh a lot, but about 70% in I started to get a little weary of all the diet and workout talk which kept it from getting a higher rating from me. Though it's not a long book at all, I may have enjoyed it a little more if it had been shorter. There's some romance thrown in there, but no sex. (We know it happens, but no descriptions.) There's also some incredibly strong friendships among some amazing ladies, which helps make up for the toxic Beau.

All in all, an enjoyable story. If you're a fan of women's fiction and humor and you're sick of the crazy health fads flying around or may have even participated in some yourself but have a sense of humor, you might enjoy it. I've never been a health fad kind of gal myself, except for the one where red wine is supposed to be good for you. I like that one.

I received an ARC of this book from Net Galley and Doubleday Books, thank you! My review is honest and unbiased.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this novel.
It began great. It was satirical and funny and easy to read. Then the emotional rollercoaster began and I just found it to be poking fun at modern weight loss and self esteem. It just wasn't my thing.
I really do believe though that if someone who is going through weight issues or self-esteem issues that this may put some light and give some perspective. It just didn't do anything for me.

his was a fun, fast read - perfect for summer. It follows one fitness/health cliche after another set against the back-drop of NYC. It was very similar to these authors' first book in terms of woman of a certain age at a professional crossroads, compounded by the city in which she lives. This one, however, dealt with weight/health rather than mere fashion but I found very similar threads through both books. This one didn't really make me think but I did like Janey quite a bit. She voiced a lot of those struggles we all feel but I couldn't help but think I wished she were a bit deeper. I think I had this same criticism of these authors' first book so maybe this is an area for improvement.

Fitness Junkie comes out tomorrow on July 11, 2017, and you can purchase HERE. My review of these authors' last book, The Knockoff, is HERE.

She made a few taps on her iPhone to start playing Dr. Dre's Chronic album. Nothing got a roomful a middle-aged white women up a hill faster than gangster rap out of Compton.

After having a few books that I added to my DNF list and reading a few mystery/thrillers, this book was the perfect book to read.  I laughed out loud and thoroughly enjoyed this book.  In today's society we are all so obsessed with our appearances and this book really brought that to light in a humorous way.  

Janey was a lovable character that was easy to relate to.  Her friends supported her in her decisions and were there with her through all of the crazy ways in which she attempted to lose weight.  

This was an empowering story with a great ending.  I want to pick up the authors' previous work.

A darkly hilarious and heart-breaking tale of one woman's journey to hell and back for the sake of a size. Such an important coming-of-age story, the right book at the right time. Love yourself; don't hurt yourself for society's wholly corrupt version of beautiful.

Funny story of the desire for the perfect body. Who knew there could be so many disgusting combinations of fruits, vegetables and weeds to make juice, not to mention so many ways to torture one's body for the sake of perfection?

I just couldn't get into it. I liked the premise of the book and the friendship between them.