I’ve been eating way too much lately. Living in a foreign country with limited vegetarian options has led me down the fast-food rabbit hole, and I know I need to make a change. As someone who has experienced both borderline obesity and anorexia in the past, I approach weight loss books with considerable skepticism. “Get thin quick” schemes set off alarm bells for me, so when I received Automatic Weight Loss Method by Christine Sutherland for review, I was both intrigued and wary. However, I’m pleased to report that this book isn’t a load of “malarkey.” It’s actually largely well-written and grounded in psychological science, offering a refreshingly simple approach to a topic saturated with gimmicks and false promises.
Sutherland’s book makes an appealing proposition: by following her methods, you should find yourself regularly standing in front of your mirror feeling delighted at the progress you’re making effortlessly. You’ll discover that clothes you thought were too small now fit perfectly, not because you starved yourself or adhered to some rigid food plan, but because this approach has fundamentally changed your relationship with food. This is what Sutherland calls “automatic weight loss.” The author argues this approach is superior to expensive weight loss drugs like Ozempic, costly home-delivered diet meals, or the forced restriction and starvation that many of us have tried.
I believe the book is essentially based on Pavlovian (or operant) conditioning, the science of conditioning and reconditioning our automatic responses, although here it is called SDR Therapy. The book pulls no punches, providing comprehensive tools to help readers gain a deeper understanding of their own conditioned thoughts, feelings, and behaviors, and how these impact their weight loss journey. As someone who isn’t an extreme compulsive eater but does overeat from time to time, I found Sutherland’s analysis of unconscious eating patterns particularly resonant. I typically binge unhealthy food either when I’m in a bad mood or simply without thinking, exactly the kind of automatic behavior she addresses.
One of the book’s strongest sections tackles why the conventional “eat less, move more” advice is fundamentally flawed. Sutherland doesn’t deny the basic thermodynamics of weight loss. Of course, you need a calorie deficit to lose fat. But she explains why the standard advice is impractical. On the “move more” front, she acknowledges that while physical activity is crucial for health, it’s often not feasible for significant weight loss for average people. Modern life’s time pressures and exhaustion make this unrealistic for the layman. More importantly, Sutherland argues that “eating less” isn’t actually under our conscious control. It’s governed by our unconscious mind, which she describes as “the boss” of us.
The book presents sobering statistics about the diet industry’s failure. In Australia alone, over $700 million in public funds and over $500 million in private spending goes toward diets and weight loss clinics annually. According to government reports, 96% of this investment produces no lasting results. I have an aunt who followed a nutritionally-supplemented smoothie-based diet program to lose weight. While it technically worked, she was miserable throughout the process, and she gained a lot of it back later. The book therefore makes a compelling case for stepping off what she calls the “diet merry-go-round”. Sutherland argues that with weight-loss dieting, what’s often lost isn’t just fat but also fluid and muscle, which further damages metabolic rate and overall health.
I’ll admit that some of Sutherland’s claims about the magic of her technique seemed slightly over the top to me. The situation probably isn’t quite as black and white as she presents it, as is the case in most “magic technique” diet books. However, the core argument about the futility and harm of extreme diets is well-supported, and I believe it. Beyond theory, the book provides concrete, actionable methods. The most intriguing tip in the book is probably the “Kill Cravings” method, also called the “overlay” technique. This process basically involves setting up two different psychological triggers on your knees, and trying to decondition yourself.
Despite her earlier comments, Sutherland acknowledges that exercise plays a role in weight loss. While exercise alone may not burn dramatic numbers of calories, it supports weight loss in several important ways. I appreciate that she included this section, and didn’t write off exercise completely. The commonly repeated phrase “you can’t out-train a bad diet” is true, but as Sutherland notes, it’s equally true that you can’t out-diet a sedentary lifestyle. Sutherland’s credentials as the founder of “Weightchoice”, a weight loss community, lend credibility to the tactics in the book.
All in all, Automatic Weight Loss Method offers a refreshingly honest, science-based approach to weight loss that doesn’t rely on supplemented smoothies or expensive pharmaceutical interventions. It’s particularly well-suited for anyone exhausted by the cycle of dieting and regaining weight, and for those who want to understand the psychological mechanisms driving their eating habits. While some of Sutherland’s claims may be slightly exaggerated, her core message is sound: lasting change requires reprogramming our unconscious responses to food. If any executives from the TLC show My 600-lb Life are reading this, I humbly suggest you ask Ms Sutherland to feature for an episode or two. You’ve got nothing to lose.
Final verdict: As someone who approaches fad diets and weight loss books with a degree of scepticism, I genuinely recommend this book. It may overpromise itself a bit, but the basic claims are backed by science and psychology. The perfect read for anyone looking to shed some weight before 2026.
You can get your copy of “Automatic Weight Loss Method” here!
