Book excerpt: The former Biggest Loser star and celebrity trainer presents a high intensity workout and eating plan that delivers big results in just 20 minutes a day. From his days as a trainer on The Biggest Loser, Bret Hoebel knows that when people log hours on a treadmill, they’ll lose weight. But he also knows that most of his clients don’t have the schedule or the desire to spend that much time at the gym. And the truth is—the number of minutes you spend working out isn’t the key to weight loss: intensity is. Time and again, Brett meets clients who’ve been making the same mistakes—not only are they focused on the clock, but they’re also concentrating on fat burn and pounds lost as markers of success. And with a fat-first focus on losing weight, plateaus come quickly and often. But it’s not about fat, it’s about muscle. In The 20-Minute Body, Brett explains why the key to long-term weight loss is building muscle. The more lean muscle your body has, the more calories your body will burn at rest. Metabolic muscle is the secret to fast metabolism. And all you need is 20 minutes a day to create it. Additionally, when you focus on inches, not pounds, you’ll find that you fit into your clothes better and love the shape of your body. Weight is misleading—muscle weighs more than fat, but it takes up far less room. So throw away the scale and invest in a tape measure to track your success. The 20-Minute Body will help you lose 20 inches—from around your stomach, hips, thighs, and arms—in just 20 days. All it takes is 20 minutes of exercise, paired with 20-minute meals that are focused on nutrient quality, not calorie counts. Brett offers readers sample meal plans and recipes for meals, snacks, and desserts the whole family will love—all of which can be thrown together in 20 minutes or less.