Fat Loss via Better Science and Simplicity
It is possible to lose 20 lbs. of bodyfat in 30 days by optimizing any of three factors: exercise, diet, or drug/supplement regimen. I’ve seen the elite implementation of all three in working with professional athletes. In this post, we’ll explore what I refer to as the “slow-carb diet”.
In the last six weeks, I have cut from about 180 lbs. to 165 lbs., while adding about 10 lbs. of muscle, which means I’ve lost about 25 lbs. of fat. This is the only diet besides the rather extreme Cyclical Ketogenic Diet (CKD) that has produced veins across my abdomen, which is the last place I lose fat (damn you, Scandinavian genetics). Here are the four simple rules I followed…
Rule #1: Avoid “white” carbohydrates
Avoid any carbohydrate that is — or can be — white. The following foods are thus prohibited, except for within 1.5 hours of finishing a resistance-training workout of at least 20 minutes in length: bread, rice, cereal, potatoes, pasta, and fried food with breading. If you avoid eating anything white, you’ll be safe.
Rule #2: Eat the same few meals over and over again
The most successful dieters, regardless of whether their goal is muscle gain or fat loss, eat the same few meals over and over again. Mix and match, constructing each meal with one from each of the three following groups:
Proteins:
Egg whites with one whole egg for flavor
Chicken breast or thigh
Grass-fed organic beef
Pork
Legumes:
Lentils
Black beans
Pinto beans
Vegetables:
Spinach
Asparagus
Peas
Mixed vegetables
Eat as much as you like of the above food items. Just remember: keep it simple. Pick three or four meals and repeat them. Almost all restaurants can give you a salad or vegetables in place of french fries or potatoes. Surprisingly, I have found Mexican food, swapping out rice for vegetables, to be one of the cuisines most conducive to the “slow carb” diet.
Most people who go on “low” carbohydrate diets complain of low energy and quit, not because such diets can’t work, but because they consume insufficient calories. A 1/2 cup of rice is 300 calories, whereas a 1/2 cup of spinach is 15 calories! Vegetables are not calorically dense, so it is critical that you add legumes for caloric load.
Some athletes eat 6-8x per day to break up caloric load and avoid fat gain. I think this is ridiculously inconvenient. I eat 4x per day:
10am – breakfast
1pm – lunch
5pm – smaller second lunch
7:30-9pm – sports training
10pm – dinner
12am – glass of wine and Discovery Channel before bed
Here are some of my meals that recur again and again:
Scrambled Eggology pourable egg whites with one whole egg, black beans, and microwaved mixed vegetables
Grass-fed organic beef, pinto beans, mixed vegetables, and extra guacamole (Mexican restaurant)
Grass-fed organic beef (from Trader Joe’s), lentils, and mixed vegetables
Rule #3: Don’t drink calories
Drink massive quantities of water and as much unsweetened iced tea, tea, diet sodas, coffee (without white cream), or other no-calorie/low-calorie beverages as you like. Do not drink milk, normal soft drinks, or fruit juice. I’m a wine fanatic and have at least one glass of wine each evening, which I believe actually aids sports recovery and fat-loss. Recent research into resveratrol supports this.
Rule #4: Take one day off per week
I recommend Saturdays as your “Dieters Gone Wild” day. I am allowed to eat whatever I want on Saturdays, and I go out of my way to eat ice cream, Snickers, Take 5, and all of my other vices in excess. I make myself a little sick and don’t want to look at any of it for the rest of the week. Paradoxically, dramatically spiking caloric intake in this way once per week increases fat loss by ensuring that your metabolic rate (thyroid function, etc.) doesn’t downregulate from extended caloric restriction. That’s right: eating pure crap can help you lose fat. Welcome to Utopia.
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If you enjoyed this post, check out my latest book, The 4-Hour Body, #1 New York Times and #1 Amazon bestseller. You will learn: the finer details of the Slow Carb Diet (outlined in the above post), how I gained 34 pounds of muscle in 28 days, how to produce 15-minute female orgasms, and more.
You can also get the Expanded and Updated 4-Hour Workweek, which includes more than 50 new case studies of luxury lifestyle design, business building, reducing hours 80%+, and world travel.
Related and Recommended Posts:
Tim Ferriss interviewed by Derek Sivers
Tim Ferriss articles on Huffington Post
The Tim Ferriss Show is one of the most popular podcasts in the world with more than 900 million downloads. It has been selected for "Best of Apple Podcasts" three times, it is often the #1 interview podcast across all of Apple Podcasts, and it's been ranked #1 out of 400,000+ podcasts on many occasions. To listen to any of the past episodes for free, check out this page.
I saw the picture of the pizza and it says you ate that post workout but in the title of the post it says lose weight w/o any exercise? I actually do enjoy working out so I’m just wondering if you don’t think I should work out with eating this food or am I just missing something? Thank you so much!
Read the book. The pizza is only for certain types of extreme muscle building/weight gaining type training. Stick to the diet. No white carbs, at veggies and beans and binge once a week if you want to lose weight.
If you read his initial post you’ll see 7:30-9pm he does sports training. His pizza is after RESISTANCE training or weight training
So I ran across this blog, my older sis and i decided to try it. My sis has lost 8lb in one and a half weeks and I have lost 2 and a half. Understadibly I weigh less so it will be slower for me to drop the lbs. The first day we had headaches, I guess its sugar and carb withdrawl, nothing that an advil can’t fix. I did feelt so much energy it was hard for me to go to sleep at night. I am on the second week. I am wearing clothes that I had not worn in a long time. I don’t feel like I have been depriving myself, and do not desire sweets or bread as much as I needed them before. I can honestly say this is does not feel like a diet, but better choices. I had chinese food for my day off and felt so bloated afterwards that I couldn’t imagine how many years I have lived with that feeling after eating. My sis has altered it a bit by adding some wheat crackers in some of her meals and it is still working for her. I would recomend this change for anyone wanting to lose weight and to feel healthier.
Thanks for the comment Mary, I enjoyed your description of the process. Gonna try this out myself. Cheers.
You can’t blame your wife lol I thought the same things once before – I have gained about 20 lbs over the last 7 years with my fiance but really when it all comes down to it – It’s only one person’s fault: yours.
But you can change the way you eat/live. I used to go out for lunch all the time at work. I would get a burger at McDonalds or pizza, burritos. You name it I ate it. I would scarf down snacks and treats all night and go to bed with it all sitting in my tummy, then wake up feeling sick.
I have not wieghed myself while on this diet and I can honestly say I am NOT perfect on it…..But I can tell you that I have changed the way I think and act with food and it is a heck of a lot better then what I was doing before.
I eat 3 times a day. I try not to have pop or heavy sugar drinks. I always try to do the protein, beans and greens and if I dont I am smart about things. I just went on a trip for 5 days and did my due diligence to pick different meals or foods when ordering. My tummy is getting smaller, I dont feel hungry anymore by 10am, I don’t have any treats at night and I am feeling really good about that.
You have to do this for yourself first and then for your family. 31 us very young and I am sure you have seen The Biggest Loser – so you can do it! It just takes dedication and I know that people in the military have that. You just need to resserect that inside yourself.
Good luck! And repost if you can Army guy 🙂
I hope this is allowed here, but this is a really good training program that i am sure tim will agree.
http://stronglifts.com/free-stronglifts-5×5-report/
Right now I’m jumpstarting my weight loss with a fast, but I’m definitely going to transition to the recommendations you make for diet. I also am a huge fan of the Four Hour Work Week! Thanks for your awesome work!
can we eat fruit?
No fruit, or fruit juice, save that for cheat day. Just legmes, protein, and vegetables. If you are having sweet cravings when you first start out, have a little bit of sugar free jello, or some diet soda to get you through.
Hi Sarah,
Fruit is considered too high in fructose (sugar – anything ending in ‘ose’) on this slow carb diet. That is why milk is not allowed either because of the lactose, unless it is reserved for a cheat day. Too much sugar causes your body to store waste glucose as fat if your body cannot use it for energy.
Stick to your veggies (complex carbs), beans or lentils (carbs and protein) (or a mix) and your meat/fish based protein source or protein shakes if you must.
With regards to exercise go for weighted resistance exercise where possible and don’t worry about turning into a body builder because you can’t unless you supplement your diet with testosterone based steroids.
If I have said anything that is wrong, I apologise and someone will correct me im sure!
What do you mean you got veins across your abdomen???
Great article, Tim, but I do take issue with allowing diet sodas. Aspartame is a real killer. Its toxins clog up the liver, which in turn, slows down the metabolism. But I do agree that by giving up the “white menace” we can make great progress in ridding our bodies of toxins so we can lose weight. I gave up all sodas thirteen years ago and have never felt better.
this eating plan is awesone I have lost 20 lbs and keeping it off and she is down 20 lbs aswell
So I came across this and was intrigued- I am now 151lbs (was 160lbs) but have been struggling to lose the 20lbs I want to before I get married on October 1st 2011- I have been walking every day at least 30 minutes…play soccer twice a week and try to eat 6 small meals a day…still nothing (and yes I have cheated here and there), but finding this eating plan may just be what I need! I am going to at least try- I like the idea that there isn’t a heck of a lot to chose from, it makes shopping easy and I feel for me it will be easier to stick with…. thanks, I really think I stumbled onto something great!
Tim,
I have been following your diet to the letter for 3-weeks now. I eat <30-40 grams protein in the am (4 whole eggs + smoked salmon) every day. I lost 9.5 lbs the first week and nothing in the past 2 weeks. What could I be doing wrong? I only eat carbs on my cheat day following the normal protein meal in the morning. All other meals on normal days include only items you have listed in rule #2. I do take natural T3/T4 and natural Testosterone. Could these be inhibiting my weight loss? Please comment as I am getting frustrated. (PS Your new book is really great to read).
My husband & I are on this diet because of our success my mom started it, about 2 wks ago. She has 2 concerns that I’m not sure of.1 is she only goes to the bathroom every 3-4 days. She is strict on the diet, eats beans every meal & spinach atleast 2 meals so I think she is getting enough fiber, not sure why she is having an issue & my husband and I aren’t. I suggested metimucle or something but she said it makes her bloated.2 she is worried about her cholesterol, the last time she was on a high protein low carb diet it sky rocketed. She is taking the supplements Tim recommended but she’s still worried. Has anyone had a cholesterol problem on this diet? Any input would be appreciated.
At the risk of repeating what someone may have already said: –
What Tim does is offer what he has found through his own self experimentation. What you must do is follow his quidelines and adjust where necessary to suit you according to your own tracking methods (in the book he offers many ways of tracking your weight, body fat, inch loss, etc).
If your mom is worried about anything blood based then she should get her bloods checked regularly because that will tell her what is happeneing not someones opinion. She can even track her blood sugar if she likes.
With regards to cholesterol eating protein and saturated fats should help to reduce cholesterol problems.
Try psylium husk to help keep regular and drink 3-4 litres of water a day to keep flushing waste. Protein does have a tendancy to slow things down (i have found or me personally).
Please read the book, again and again and again to pick out every detail that can help you.
Thank you for the input. I told her about the psyllium husk, she tried it for two days and gained a pound each day so she quit taking it. I think she is getting discouraged because of that & it takes atleast 4 days after cheat day to loose the weight. She’s doing everything the book says, same as my husband & I but she’s not dropping weight that quickly.
what can i take for blood pressure to keep fluid build up down…i take triamterene and atenol…and your recipe for cholesterol works…policosanol, chromium, reservatrol, niacin…thanks
Kristina, spinach is also high in iron. If your mum is also taking iron supplements (such as Fefol or similar), this would result in a high iron intake which can cause constipation and a ‘slowing’ of the works.
That Ezekial bread is like eating plywood
I say just make your own whole wheat bread, it’s good fresh out of the oven
Are any veggies ok? Tomatos? Is there a limit on the chicken breast and boiled eggs per day? I hate feeling hungry. I figure if i can eat the hard boiled eggs with each meal, that will help to keep me full and I really never get tired of them. 🙂
omg did he just eat the entire pizza post work out? :O
How about salt, pepper (black & cayenne), other herbs for flavor, are these allowed? Onions, Tomato, bell peppers, mushrooms allowed?
Hi Jay
I have all of the above mentioned and have lost 12kg.
I know the pizza in your example is for carb load up.
But I have a suggestion of a low carb, possibly slow carb alternative to pizza. I personally love pizza and it is my weakness. So I found a great solution to keep my pizza habit alive while slow/low carbing it. The product is called Simply Wholesome California Lavash wrap. You can find it in whole foods in the bread section. Makes for the best thin crust pizza ever. So just skip the tomato sauce and add veggies and precooked chicken and you are good to go!
10g Carbs for half a sheet.
Enjoying the slow-carb diet, but have yet to lose inches/weight/fat.
I am 5′ 7”, 135 lbs., 20% bodyfat, and have been following the diet to a T for 4 weeks. Only changes have been very minor fluctuations in inches/fat, both up and down. Nearly back to where I started a month ago.
I don’t need/want to lose any major weight, but I have a lot of fat around my stomach, arms, butt, etc.
Used to do 5 hrs walking + 50 pushups a day per wk. Now I do 1 hr walking + 150 KB swings + a few calisthenics from Tim’s book per wk.
This diet curbs all my carbo cravings! I usually ate a lot of rice/bread/pasta and fruit, but was always hungry 4 more. Now, I get full from the protein/beans/veggies combo. I rarely eat sweets, so the cheat day is new and fun 🙂
Seeing as how I don’t have a ton to lose, am I expecting too much from a month on the diet?
Claudia – are you really following to a T? Maybe keep a log and share it. Tim’s book also mentions some other boosters for fat loss. Ice baths, also other supplements that help, etc. It seems you work out a lot, possible you aren’t eating enough?
I am just starting out again and I have to be careful with my schedule because I eat too little and my energy drops heavily. A couple things that helped accelerate the loss for me were eating 30min within waking up and drinking a TON of water. I figured fat has to leave our body somehow and from what I found it is through sweat, pee, etc – nasty but true. Someone correct me if I’m wrong here!
I gained 60 lbs this year by going on beta blockers. I’m off them now and want to lose the weight. Ive never been fat before and it sucks!!!
I started a paleo diet 4 weekds ago. Meat, fats, veggies, nuts, seeds,dairy. I followed it religiously and ate a steady 1200-1300 calories along with cycling 10 miles a day. I think I gained weight and feel bigger now! I don’t get it! My butt is bigger! Is it possible that dairy,cheese, cream eaten in controlled caloric proportions made me gain?
I’m so glad I found this site. I am going to cut dairy and follow this diet and see where what happens. I hope to lose 10-15 pounds a month!
Thanks Tim for the diet ideas. I read it this morning and at lunch started the diet. Got some upper chest and stomach area “activity” happening I want to reduce. My wife (Thai) serves a lot of white rice every meal as part of her normal diet. I think that’s been part of the issue with my “activity”.
Hey, I read a lot of the comments mentioning Vit D and resveratrol as well as other supplements. I’d recommend looking at Eniva’s line of products. Their’s are the purist, most potent I’ve been able to find. If this sounds like hype to you, delete it. Just passing info on.
Thanks again for the diet tips.
No oats and no grains unless it is on your cheat day.
No dairy too much lactose (sugar) unless it is your cheat day. This slow carb thingy is not about counting calories and 1200-1300 calories per day is ok if you have a cheat day to reset your hormone levels but with cycling 10 miles a day it creates an unsustainable defecit.
I dont understand why you would tempt yourself with making pizzas and stuff when it is not your cheat day.
Keep your food choice simple and repeatable for 6 days a week and then have a blast on the cheat day.
If fact Tim suggests you eat away from your home on your cheat day so you never have the crap in the house on your normal days. Just keep your house stocked with veggies, legumes and a protein source.
The more you excercise the more you eat and dont be afraid to eat lots of the above.
This one’s for Tim and anyone else with insight:
I’ve been doing the diet very strictly for 3 weeks and have seen little change in my waist line. This is unfortunate, as my main motivation to start the diet was to fit back into some work suits after a 3 week vacation.
I’ve been icing in morning and night occasionally, as well as taking all showers cold. I have 2 whole eggs, a cup or more of lentils and some kind of vegetable for breakfast. And then the same, substituting chicken or pork for the eggs, for my other two meals. A few days a week I drink Healthya tea, available here in Japan as a supplemental diet tea, and do some lite exercise prior to gorging on my off day. My cooking oil is olive and Healthy Resetter–again, a Japanese product certified by the government to help prevent the build up of fat.
Despite all this, I’ve seen no real net losses on my waist line. It hovers very near the same marks every week. The only thing I can imagine causing problems at this point is 1/3 things (or a combination of the 3): my 2 days a week at the gym (sparring, heavy bags, body-weight exercises like pull-ups, dips); whey-casein Elite Gourmet protein in morning, post-workout, and before bed (I am quitting protein except for post-workout these final 2 weeks to test this); or the fact that I wasn’t fat at the beginning.
I’d like to know if anyone else (especially an active person who was relatively thin prior to starting) has experienced such stubborn resistance in their area targeted for loss or have had slower results than expected during a strict, sustained regimen.
To assist I’ve included the details of my last 3 weeks.
All measurements are avg. from 3:
7/23
63.8kg
12.6% body fat (from scale, but all weigh-ins are at the same time in the same conditions–immediately after waking on Friday morning)
79cm waist
[From here I changed my light lifting routine–all body weight exercises except bent over rows once a week–to 5 seconds each and quitting a few reps before failure. I keep my sets to 2 per exercise. I also started using calipers to measure body fat]
7/30
64.2kg
12.3% body fat
78-78.5cm waist
Calipers
Chest: 7
Stomach: 14.5
Thigh: 5.5
@ 28 years, the above numbers = 8% body fat
8/5
64.6 kg (the lifting regime may be proving consistently effective at this point)
12.3% body fat (no change here)
78.5cm waist (across belly button)
79.5cm waist (at bottom of belly button)
80.5cm waist (just bellow belly button)
Chest: 5.6
Stomach: 11.3
Thigh: 6.3 (notice nearly a cm gain here)
@ 28 years, 6.8% body fat
Between 7/30 and 8/5 I quit protein shakes in morning and only drank them the first few days of the week.
How are you preparing your chicken breast? I find it becomes very boring prepared the same way over and over. Thanks!!
For your chicken breasts search the net for meat rubs that you can put on it before cooking. There are mexican, chinese, indian, thai variations.
You can wrap it in bacon or parma ham before cooking it. you can slice it and stir fry it.
You have access to the biggest cook book in the world and it is called the internet. So just google something for ideas!
J,
Seems like you need to stop messing with your diet. Keep plugging away for at least 6-8 weeks before changing anything. Eat you 30grms + of protein within 30 mins of waking and keep it regular throughout the day with your other meals. Aim for about 1gram protein per 1lb of body weight maybe uping to 1.5grm with all that training.
Wayne,
Thanks for the input. I’ve actually been playing with the diet for 2 months, slowly eliminating factors to isolate the effects. For example, the first 2 weeks, I continued eating oatmeal and honey for breakfast, and snacked on a banana and nuts between lunch and dinner, then switched to the protein shakes and beans, and quit snacking. After that, I started including the grapefruit juice, air squats and wall push ups before the binge. Then I reduced the intensity and frequency of my training. Each change was after a full two week period. Results? Nothing to write home about after a month and a half. Then I switched to lentils and upped the amount of food for every meal, especially breakfast. That’s the 3 week period I’ve included above, as it’s the strictest and conforms completely to the diet as outlined in the book.
When training properly, all I have to do is change my carb sources to slower whole grain sources for better effects than I’ve seen eating beans for 2 months. And then I’m also snacking on yogurt, nuts, and fruit. I’m beginning to believe genetics or pre-diet composition is also an important factor in how effective the diet will be for individuals. As stated in 4HB, those who fail often don’t report their results. Maybe there’s a cohort of thinner and/or genetically effected adherents (like myself?) that have failed to see results.
I have ordered pure casein to include for breakfast and throughout the day. I’ll keep everything the same and do that for 2 weeks. After that, I’ll let you know how it’s gone.
@Skelly–for chicken, I bake with garlic, olive oil and stewed tomatoes; different Indian curry powders; sage, garlic and salt; salsa; cumin, salt, and cayenne. Toss anything on there and see what you think. Keep the combinations you like and stomach the ones you can and toss the recipe after.
This diet combined with intermittent fasting is the big time. Losing a ton of fat, waist is getting leaner and holding muscle. The carb-up/cheat day is a MUST!
In preparing vegetables like collard greens, can one cook them with ham hocks or other cured meat and still be okay on the diet?
What do I do inbetween meals? Also, are baked beans okay? :3
I need some help. I weigh about 200 lbs and have done this diet for 7 full days. i weighed myself today and I am still 200 lbs. What have I done? For the first 6 days I did the diet strictly:
breakfast: low sodium pinto beans (1/2 can), spinach, bell peppers, and onions stir fried, 4-6oz of chicken breast, and 2 eggs.
lunch: same as above but no beans in salad form using non-fat balsamic dressing (5g carbs)
dinner: same as breakfast with no eggs.
Binge day: drank grapefruit juice before every meal. started morning with brownies and ice cream. lunch was a sandwich. Dinner was crispy chinese noodles. I’d say the day was probably 2500-3000 calories easy.
Workout: I’ve been at the gym everyday doing 30 minutes of cardio (eliptical). my heart rate even dropped from 170bpm to 155bpm now so I know it’s working more efficiently. I’ve also been doing 3 sets of some weights to help me burn, sometimes incline bench, rows, or dips. Just 1 of them, not all of them.
Why am I still the same weight? I feel great. Did I just get leaner?
Did you check your body fat % before your started? Maybe you have added muscle?
Are you eating with 30mins of waking and drinking tons of water? Try lentils Tim says they work a treat for fat loss.
A few things:
J:
Wayne pretty much had the answer to your post, which was to basically stick to the diet as tim has written it. Then you go on to say how you keep messing with it, changing things all the time, including oatmeal, fruit, yogurt, pure casein, etc. Why don’t you quit with all the monkeying around and just try the actual diet for a change? It reads like you have done just about everything but stick to the diet.
Tommeh:
I would say “no” to the baked beans. They generally contain lots of brown sugar, molases and I would guess high fructose corn syrup if you are buying canned baked beans. All of those ingredients are to be avoided.
Bush’s baked beans have 12 grams of sugars per 1/2 cup, just as an example.
Here is a question, can someone explain whey and casein? Aren’t they both dairy by-products? And what is everyone making their protein shakes with? Is it milk? Do the shakes contain milk and dairy? I am under the impression that all of the above is dairy derived. If that’s the case then it seems like they should be avoided on a daily basis as dairy is not part of the diet.
Hi Luke,
Although these are dairy products the protein has been isolated and removed from the rest of the dairy. Milk has lactose which is essentially sugar. There are reportsin the UK that suggest milk is a great post workout drink because it contains a very good ratio of carbs (lactose) to protein along with other vitamins and minerals. Obviously if your body fat is above 15% (or something close) then you shouldnt consume post work out carbs.
My understanding is that whey is quickly absorded by the body and the casein is absorbed at a much slower rate giving you a sustained absorbtion throughout the day.
I just mix mine with water getting 40g protein per serving.
Wayne,
Thanks for clearing that up for me.
Hi,
I have been on this plan for about 8-10 weeks now and it is working very well for me. I have not reached my body fat goals as yet and i have probably dropped from about 29 to 20ish.
The last 10 days i have noticed that i am just not getting satisfied by eating slow carb food alone and have started resorting to dense oat flapjack (250-350 kcals) periodically to satisfy myself.
The only thing that has changes over the last 3 weeks is that i have started strength training and i am squating, bench pressing and back rowing 70kg 2-3timesa week ( I way approx.86kg). So i guess this is why my hunger has increased.
I eat approx 100g of protien per day, but i wondered how to get back on track with clean eating until my cheat-binge day whilst keeping my hunger pangs at bay.
Thanks again.
Hi Tim – thanks for this nutrition plan. Has been great for me. Question I have relating to workouts. To date I have only had my “pizza” type meals (other than free day) after a weight workout. If I go swim 1500+meters, I am presuming I need to stick to my “normal, no white-carb” meals. Is this correct? thoughts?
cheers in any case. Loving the 4 Hour Body book too.
How about subbing Swedish crisp breads (which contain zero carbs/sugars) for bread?
The problem with these products is the fact that there is no nutritional value so you have to ask what is the point?
Eating protein based foods and veggies gives you essential nutrition but the calorie count is usually very low.
Why dont you forget bread type food in all its forms then there is no need for you to look for substitutes or alternatives.
I posted yesterday that i have started eating flapjacks to curb in between meal hunger. However there is a nutritional value to this according to the protein, carbs,and fat content. The carb count is very high in relation to the protein amount so i know it is not a good habit to get into (hence why I am asking for advice). Oats are known to be a slow carb release although there is a very high sugar content from the golden syrup.
Thanks Wayne.
I must be doing something wrong. I haven’t lost any weight or inches. I have been doing this for two weeks now. I’m hungry almost every 3 hours. I pee like crazy. Is it possible to eat too much on this diet?
In response to Debra who was asking what she may be doing wrong…..
from reading about this diet (sadly don’t have the book, yet) all over the
internet, I’ve read that fruit is forbidden all week until your cheat day. As
well as legumes being the main bean recommendation….not green beans
because they are not considered a legume. Hope you can kick start
your metabolism back into gear and hope this helps….some.
WOW, Thank you Tim. This plan really works well. In about 5 weeks I have lost 26 lbs of fat and gained about 4 lbs in muscle. I can fit into all my old shirts and jeans again, in fact I have to buy a new wardrobe because everything is too loose! Thanks man this diet was a game changer for me.
hey guys I just wanted to know if anyone had a recommendation for how to loose weight in 30 days as much weight as possible I have a trip coming up and want to loose at least 30 pounds.
Hi Dadnerys~
That’s a tall order! 30 lb. in 30 days……..hmmm! That’s next to impossible and asking too much of your body. You should not try to lose more than 2 lb. a week in body fat. You will take off the water weight that is hiding in those fat cells too, so maybe the total would be 4 lb. a week or about 18 a month. The heavier you are the more weight you will lose in the first few weeks. I think the best way to lose is through healthy organic nutrition. For fast weight loss, I would recommend a 28-day cleanse. You can read more about that at your weight loss depot or here on this great site. Your body is begging for nutrition. You can make healthy, tasty protein shakes by using whole foods (spinach, berries, protein powder, walnuts, flax seeds, stevia, and cinnamon.) Spinach!! “Yuck,” you say? I promise you will not be tasting the spinach, but will be getting the nutrients your body craves. Your liver will love you and send wonderful messages to your metabolism to speed up.
Can I eat protein bars on the 4HD? It stated in the book that if you can’t stomach much food in the morning you can drink unflavored whey protein shakes. Does it absolutely have ot be unflavored? Has anyone tried this and still lost weight?
Yes, I am using strawberry whey protein shakes and still loosing the weight.
I meant to say the SCD. oops
is this diet ok for woman or is it more for men?
I realize the article suggests no exercise, but just 4 minutes a day, three days a week on an X-iser will dramatically boost the results and let’s face it who can’t spare 4 minutes.
I love this Blog. It is only day two and I started on a Wednesday. So I guess I will wait till week after next Saturday to have my binge day. Sweet potaotes are considered carb…….. or is it the good kind and can I add it to my lentils? Can I eat two whole eggs instead of the egg whites with one egg. I am yet to find egg white in the supermarket. I love nuts and peanuts. Is peanut butter considered a protein….. Could I have it as a snack? I usually eat it with celery.
You all are my inspiration…….. Keep it up! I can’t wait to see what I look like next Wednsday. I am just a little chubby(15-20) but it’s been over 10 years of yo-yo dieting and I have actually gained 10lbs on my daily, attempted, failed diet.
Sonali
My weight is 85kg,height 5.4′ &age 21 year.I can’t believe that it is possible to loose weight by 10Ib in such a short time.Is it possible?If then how?
I am writing this post on the morning of my 7th day on this diet and am delighted to say that I have lost 8 lbs. I have never felt hungry whilst on this diet and have done no exercise, something I thought impossible using a calorie in/calories out philosophy before.
My breakfast has consisted of a salami omelette (delicious) and coffee within 30 mins of waking. Lunch is usually lots of chicken or beef (cooked in olive oil) with vegetables. Evening meals are the same but with a glass of good red wine.
For reasons I won’t get in to, I detest lentils and beans so have not included these in the diet and eat extra portions of the other two groups to make the energy up.
The first few days resulted in headaches, probably from carb withdrawal but now they are gone and I have lots of energy.
I have also taken garlic, green tea and ALA supplements as advised in Tim’s book. A little lemon or lime juice in the 4 litres of water I drink every day also seems to help.
I am now on my cheat day and can’t wait to eat all those pastries I have deferred eating all weak.
I hope this serves as inspiration to anyone else thinking of starting the diet.
Special thanks to Tim for making us all aware of how to do this.
Ok. Well iv just had a baby and I want to look but most of all feel sexy again, before I had my baby even though I wasn’t a skinny size zero and a great flat stomach, I was a size 12 and I did kind of like my body… Ish. Anyway next month in exactly 30 days from now I would love to loose weight and I have found that now I am at home with my child I tend to gaze at the cupboards ALOT. But like I say from today I must commit which is very hard, yes ok it’s only been just 10 weeks since iv had my little boy, but in 30 days we are going out and it is highly important that I feel great. Again yes, I know I shouldn’t care what everyone else thinks but… I DO! I do a few stretch marks across my stomach but hey you know what iv kind of got over them because already they are starting to fade. And I’ve got my outfit hung up ready so everyday o can look at stand say, this is what I am working for. This may sound alot to some people bearing in mind I’m only 20, 21 next friday 🙂 bit this is something I really need to do. I just soooo hope that I can do this!!!!!
For everyone who is asking if they can eat this or that on this plan, you might as well just not even do the diet. You’re already looking for shortcuts on the easiest most sustainable diet out there. I would have to believe that the people who are really succeeding on this diet (myself included) are doing so because….get this….they’re actually FOLLOWING the diet. Just do what it says, over and over again, and you should see results.
If you follow it to the letter and you’re peeing like a race horse, yet still not losing you might have a food allergy or something.
As for protein powders, in all reality they’re not even food. They’re processed junk that our bodies were not designed to be eating. And I used to sell these as well as supplements…for over a decade. When throughout history did man ever walk through the woods and pick a canister of Whey protein off a tree? As Jack LaLane said “If man made it…beware”.
I would like to thank all the men and women who have contributed to making all those fine wines in the world though. Those don’t apply to the above example…ha.I never tried Malbec before this diet, now I’m hooked!
This diet rocks, I’ve already got some killer before and after photos and I’m going another 8 weeks. I’ve never seen my abs in my life but I’m confident this is going to take me all the way.
I’m so excited to have started this “new way of eating”! I began this on Wed. of this week so hopefully I will be able to maintain this over the weekend. So far so good, haven’t had any major cravings for anything, and I’m a serious chocolate lover but thankfully its been ok for me. I have gone down a pound and a half already, and I think I won’t re-weigh myself until the end of the week which will be Wednesday morning.. so good luck to everyone!!! 🙂
Hi Tim, greetings from Chile!!!
I’ve tried the diet for almost two weeks, and I’m already seeing some changes. Is very interesting for me, because I’m studing to be a doctor (this semester I get my title) and I never heard about this facts, even in my nutrition classes. Physiologically speeking, all the food that you included produces low glicemic index (high glicemic index elevates more insulins levels, wich induces insulin resistance and fatt production). Most of the doctors are resistence to promote a cheat day to their patients, but I think it will be interesting to try for myself that experience to see what happens.
I have two questions:
-Why don’t you like Garbanzo beans? More calories than the rest of the legumes? Because I’ve tried it some days, so upps… But it doesn’t matter because I discovered black beans and are espectacular!!
-I was before the diet fan of the home-made yogurt. Is very simple, because is just only no-fat milk (1 gram of fat per liter of milk), and a spoon of yogurt to add the bacteria. No sugars added. I was wonder if I can try it for breakfast.
Greetings!!
Alberto
He isn’t against garbanzo beans, I think he is referring to hummus there and that eating hummus in large quantities will send you backwards.
I have found yogurt to be really bad for making me gain weight. It isn’t added sugar or fat but the lactose that is the big problem.
By the way, to avoid international confusions, Garbanzo beans in english langauge are chikpeas
Utopia is right Tim….”Paradoxically, dramatically spiking caloric intake in this way once per week increases fat loss by ensuring that your metabolic rate (thyroid function, etc.) doesn’t downregulate from extended caloric restriction. That’s right: eating pure crap can help you lose fat.”
hi i am maria. i am 15 and i weight 140 pounds. i am not happy with my weight. and i am 1.77 meter. can any one pls suggest me how many pounds i should loose and tell me how
Just found this
http://www.easyhealthoptions.com/alternative-medicine/could-red-meat-be-the-next-high-fructose-corn-syrup/?eiid=&rmid=2011_08_19_EHD_%5BE02708693%5D&rrid=389374649
What does this mean for red meat lovers everywhere?
I have a few questions if you anyone doesn’t mind answering for me… I am 5’9” about 170. I only want to lose 10-15 lbs. Are the people who are claiming the fast weight loss typically heavier in the start?? It seems to me that heavier people who have more weight to lose usually drop it faster. I am not seeing that initial drop yet. I don’t feel as bloated so I know I am ridding my body of unwanted toxins through excessive peeing. I am not fat but I would like to see more muscle definition. Is it going to take me longer to se results? Has anyone else been in this position? I haven’t done ant of the kettle bell swings explained in the book.. should I??? PLease let me know what you all are thinking. thanks
I have been on the Slow Carb Diet a few times and I am definitely not a heavy guy (5’10” and at my heaviest about 170lbs). Using the diet I can lose 10 lbs in a week or two without much difficulty so your initial weight doesn’t make a huge difference.
A large part of how quickly you will lose weight is your metabolic rate and obviously what you eat on the diet. No matter your metabolism though you will definitely speed things up a lot with some kettle bell swings or some weight training. The best part of adding some resistance training to your diet is that any muscle you put on increases your resting metabolism and thereby will forever help to keep you lighter.
Hi guys,
It’s been great reading this blog and I’ve learned a lot, but . . .
I have decided to quit the slow-carb eating plan. ?
I’m into Week 7 and have lost no fat/inches/weight.
I have followed the plan to a T, but no dice.
I think the diet works wonders—for some people. I am just not one of them. ?
In the past, I have had great success on a diet that incorporate fruit and whole-grain items. I am going back to this.
Also, the way I’ve historically lost weight/inches is to do way more aerobic exercise than what 4HB recommends.
For those of you who haven’t lost weight on this plan (I’ve read a few on this blog), take heart. Maybe your body requires something different.
Cheers, and thanks for the inspiration! 🙂
Ok, so I’m on my first day of the second week and I’ve lost a total of 4 lbs. To me, thats pretty good considering i was able to eat a slice of cake and fruit on my cheat day!! I’m hoping that this 2nd week will continue to show the same results or better!! Good luck to everyone!
If I wake up around 8am and go to the gym straight away, is it better to do cardio on an empty stomach, then have my breakfast, or should I follow the ’30g protein with in 30 min of waking up’ and do like a protein shake before I go to the gym?
Amy you should go to the gym AFTER your breakfast. If you like black coffee have that with your breakfast too.
Dont work out too much – read the book – less is more on the exercise front. I do less cardio and more weights now and only do 2 gym visits a week for 1 hr and have lost 12kg in 3 months.
Good luck
Try and eat within 30 minutes, but if this upsets your stomach then try to get what you can for food in you so that your body doesn’t go into a lower metabolic state because of a lack of food.
Would you really have to worry about going into starvation mode? As long as you cheat day every 7th day you dont have to worry as your hormone levels have been reset.
In the book Tim suggests that your protein and carb uptake in your muscles is required pretty quick after excercise; however it could take a few hours to digest your proteins therefore you would be eating a very early breakfast prior to working out.
Go for your exercise and eat sensibly straight after and have something protein based after a further 1.5 to 2 hrs. Perhaps while you exercise drink water with a squeeze of lemon as this will help flush your liver before you send it into overdrive with your days eating.
hi,
I Just picked this out from the book and wondered if anyone has noticed the fat burning effects as suggested?
http://www.tabataprotocol.com/
Just read the book, i’m starting the diet in the morning and i’ll let you all know what happens. This is my first time dieting other than 11 months of vegetarianism as a teen. I am 30, male, 220lbs (most i have ever weighed but i have been close many times and back down to 200)
I will report the results.
Hi All,
I have been on this diet for over two months now I’ve lost 23 pounds. I started at 151 pounds and am now at my goal weight of 128 but don’t plan on stopping the diet any time soon, I have added in a little fruit and am still losing, for those that say you are stuck and not losing about half way through i did the same thing and I took out the beans at every meal and did them one time a day and sure enough it worked. My first two Saturady cheat days I ate evrything in site and felt horrible but after that on Saturdays i ate egg whites spinach and canadian bacon for breakfast, beans and small salad at lunch and whatever I wanted for dinner and one dessert instaed of going nuts and it works be patient don’t give up I’m really skinny now and never thought I’d see this weight again. I reccomend slowly adding in some fruit but never again will I eat the way I did I can live on this way of eating forever and I plan too. Good Luck!!
Hi TB,
This is what this plan is all about self experimentation.
Your tips are invaluable for those struggling to work out what is going wrong or how to lose those last stubborn pounds.
Been on this diet for thirty days…and it has worked for me. Not the full 20 lbs but very well.
I have lost 13.5 lbs and just over 2 inches from my waist.
Ate lots of white meat, tinned beans, tinned and dry lentils, nuts, black coffee, wine, water and vegetables. Cheat days were more about the things I was not allowed to be eating, not “bad” food in particular – beer, bread, dairy products, etc.
No cheating. Though it did get a little boring in the middle the results have come up. Will continue for a maybe two more weeks and see if I can get the last 6.5 lbs off and get to my ideal weight.
I should also of mentioned that like most posters my weight loss stalled after a big intial dip. Stay focussed. Weigh yourself once a week, the night before “cheat day” and at no other time. Trust me on this one. Come the third week I started dropping away slowly.
Is turkey allowed to eat on this diet????
Absolutely, it’s a terrific protein.
I started this diet on Monday 22nd of Aug 2011. I have lost 8 pounds so far. No exercise yet. Will start that tomorrow after work. This is my seventh day and so its my cheat day. I couldnt eat much but had sum sweets and pringles. I was worried about gaining too much. I will let you know by wed wat my weight is from the cheat day.
I eat the same thing very regularly. Works a treat cus i prepare them in advance.
Breakfast is scrambled/ boiled egg 1 whole and 1 egg white
Then around 11am i have beans.
Lunch is always a roasted chicken with plenty of veg
Dinner is a mixed of beans and chicken nd veg. tons of fresh veg.
I eat very early in the evening so i don’t end up carrying the meal to bed.
*****Great help is my fat free chewing gum and diet coke. I get through about only 2 diet cokes a day, Lastly drink water, the diet makes you drink more. Might be the chicken that makes me drink though.
Definitely tried and agree. Stuck with lean proteins and low carbs that were recommended. Love lentils with egg whites.
I recently heard a podcast interview with Tim and during the Q & A portion, he said to consume 1 gram of protein per pound of your target weight. Is that correct? Assuming my target weight is 155 lbs, I need to consume 155 grams of protein per day. With Chicken, beef, pork, eggs, salmon, etc averaging about 7 grams of protein per ounce, I need to consume 22 oz. of meat per day. That seems like a lot, almost 1 1/2 pounds. It seems like a lot especially when compared to the recommended 30 g of protein for breakfast. That’s a lot of making up to do throughout the day. I obviously have been falling short if the 1 g of protein per lb of body weight is correct.
I have also been eating only 3 meals per day. I suppose it wouldn’t be that hard to add another “meal”, or at least serving of protein every day. I guess if I average 6 oz of meat per “meal”, 4 times per day then I would actually consume 2 oz more than the “formula”. Can someone confirm this or strighten me out?
By the way, I have been folloiwng the diet for a few months and have lost about 15 pounds. I have plateaued as far as weight loss. However, I am comfortable at my weight of about 163. So, I do “cheat” once in a while during the week with maybe a spoon full or two of ice cream or maybe a third glass of wine or something like that but I am not going nuts with cheating during the week. Bottom line is that I am in kind of a maintenance mode as opposed to really trying to drop weight at this point.
However, I have a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu tournament coming up and I would like to drop about 7 pounds to get safely under 160 so that there is no room for error and variance in scales come weigh in time. The weight class I want to compete in has an upper cut off of 159. I will be cutting out that third glass of wine and any other “cheats” during the week to eliminate sabotaging myself.
Thanks in advance for the help.
Hi Luke,
Dont forget your beans and legumes have an amount of protein within a serving as do some of your veggies so dont forget to count the non-meat protein grams.
Perhaps you can shift your extra body weight by reducing any heavy weight training and by reducing your protein intake. If your body doesnt get protein for building muscle from food sources it turns to your muscles and effectively eats them. This would reduce your lean muscle mass and reduce your weight; however this is just an observation and i have no idea how boxers and the like reduce weight pre weigh in. Also perhaps you can try light weights and more reps/sets and perhaps try tabata training 3 times a week. I posted a website a few days ago so check this page and go back a few days.
I adopted these meals plans less than a wk ago, I’m not a fan of the scale. I prefer to use the fit of my my clothes show me how i’m doing. But, I wanted to know, how do peanuts affect the results of this diet? I usually have a couple of hand fulls through out the day.
Peanuts are fine. You have to keep it to a reasonable level, but they are a great snack.
True about the legumes (I mostly stick to black beans) and the veggies.
Just for everyones information, Tim mentioned a web site on his podcast called nutritiondata. You can plug in any food and get the protein, fat, calries, etc. According to that site, black beans have 15g of protein per cup and broccoli has about 6 g per cup. Not a lot of protein but I shouldn’t overlook it in my calculations.
As for the weights, I haven’t been weight training at all. I do train BJJ about 3-4 times per week which consists of about 45 minutes of learning and drilling moves and techniques then about 45 minutes of grappling. The grappling is usually 5 minute matches with a little rest in between so I usually get about 4 matches per training session. Other than BJJ class, I am not excercising. I am thinking of adding the kettle bell on the days I don’t train bjj.
Tim previously posted about how to lose weight prior to a weigh-in. It might be an article to take a look at: http://www.fourhourworkweek.com/blog/2008/01/18/how-to-cut-weight/
thanks!
Great stuff guys, I like the food combinations. You’re onto something good if you stick to it! I live by food combinations, as well as timing for certain foods at certain times of the day and certain water “break” fasting techniques. Keeps me in great shape as the years go by!
Still staying strong so far… I am down 36 lbs of fat and up 8 lbs in muscle. This is by far the best approach to dieting I have ever encountered. In fact it is happening so quick I feel a little shocked.
Just want anyone new to this diet to know ……IT WORKS!!!! Started this diet two weeks ago …….. It is simple, I am not hungry and I am full of energy. Lost eight pounds without exercise. I worked out (ran 5K) twice in two weeks due to lazyness. But the thickness of fat is not so heavy on my stomach and legs.
This is a new life style change for me. Main thing for me is to be sure the food is cooked and ready because when I am hungry I need to eat immediately!!
Thank you Mr. Tim.
SA
An interesting piece of research that I heard about on NPR indicates that the effects of 45 minutes of aerobic exercise increases the metabolic rate for up to 14 hours.
http://www.bodyrecomposition.com/research-review/a-45-minute-vigorous-exercise-bout-increases-metabolic-rate-for-14-hours-research-review.html
I started the slow card diet 3 months ago and have lost 12kg in weight and about the same in body fat. I have followed it religiously. In the last few weeks I have plateaued and tried a few new things but no joy. I increased my protein, drank even more water and did the cold exposure ice pack every night for a week but no more weight was lost.
Has anyone else 3 months in noticed that the weight has stopped coming off?
I weight 14st 3lbs (91kg), 5ft 9 Male.
I do weight training twice a week and including kettle bell swings. Have just started a bit more cardio which I had dropped as per Tims minimum effort required.
Any comments would be appreciate
Thanks
Ben, London UK
I posted this in August – I was at a stand still after 3 months. Still at a stand still. I am now doing weight watchers but I have not lost any more weight. I need to lose 19 more lbs to be at “my” goal weight!
August 11th, 2011
4:44 am
I have been on this diet since May 1, 2011 – which means 3 months. I have lost 23 lbs and can not get past the 23 lbs. 23 lbs is great but I wanted to be down 40 by now! What am I doing wrong?
Here is what I have been doing (I actually typed it out for a friend to follow) – every week!!!!
Here is what I eat six days a week:
1st meal – 7:00-7:30 am – green beans, other beans, low fat cottage cheese, slice of 97% deli ham
2nd meal – 10:30-11:00 am – green beans, other beans, 4oz lean meat (ham, chicken, beef)
3rd meal – 2:30-3:00 pm – green beans, other beans, slice of 97% fat free deli meat
4th meal – 6:00-7:00 pm – green beans, other beans, 4oz lean meat (ham, chicken, beef)
On the 2nd or 4th meal I sometimes have a salad! (But no dressing, croutons, fruit, only veggies)
NO SUGAR, nothing white (potatoes, rice), no bread, no fruit.
If you eat canned veggies try to cut back on your sodium they are high in sodium and you will get too much. I had to start buying no salt added green beans – you can add Mrs. Dash to them and they taste better!
Drink Water – Limit your diet drinks to two a day!
***very important – I take 1 beano with each meal! Probably more of a women thing! Guys will usually be guys!
________________________________________________________
On the 7th day eat what you want – I start at 5:30 am and don’t stop till 9:00 pm. I am going to try to cut back at night on the 7th day to see if that helps.
Hi everyone,
I have started this diet on 1st of sep after reading all the comments.
My starting weight is 233 pounds and I’ll weigh on Friday the 9th of sep. Saturday is my cheat day. In the past week cheated once (Had three slices of toasts. I was craving for Carbs). No more cheating till saturday.
Hi dear bloggers n Tim!
This is JeDi, 29M, married, from Punjab, India
This book was my only hope for loosing weight( especially waist).
Bcoz i have problem in lower spine, so
1: i couldn’t do most of the crunches n leg-raises.
2: I couldn’t run fast and longer for fat-loss.
3: I have a big appetite so could starve myself for 2 days.
4: I love junk food so saying Bye Bye to all junk was not thinkable.
But the fat-loss system circumvented all these problems, and i started the diet, ice-age and Myotic/Catvomit combo on 5/09/11.
On this day(09/09/11), i have lost 2.7 kgs / 6 lbs (90.2kg->87.5kg) / (198.5lbs->192.5lbs) and waist decreased by 1.8 inches (40-38.2). All this in 4 days!!!!!
and the biggest thing… i am enjoying everything even the diet, its so simple (though it took some time to match indian foods)
I used ur public competition by having a bet with my gym coach that i will make 6-pack abs in 4 months from waist size of 40 inches. n it kicks me to be on system.
Tommorow is DGW day, n I’m both excited n nervous what happens afterwards. Whatever the case be, i’m lovin it!
Will reply soon…
Thnx Tim. (I m ur big fan!!!)
Hello Everyone,
Reporting my weight loss of week 1.
Gone from 233 lbs to 224 lbs (106 kgs to 102 kgs). Loss of 9 lbs (4 kgs).
I’m 37, Female, 167 tall. No exercise in the past week.
will update you 17the sep about my second week loss.
Keep eating the right way.
Angle
Hi there! I am embarking on the 30day challenge of this eating plan. I have 5 kilo’s to lose after traveling for 6 months. Ill also be aiming to exercise 6 days a week. I’m very skeptical of the binge day,but willing to give it a shot. Ill report back in 30 days! Wish me luck!
Is there a portion amount for each to try to stick to? Like must keep to 6oz of meat, so much of vege’s, so much of legumes?
Hi Allison,
You want to aim for at minimum 20g of protein per meal and your plate should generally be broken into thirds. One third of meat, legumes/beans, and veggies. When I started I did a little work and researched how much protein everything I was eating had per cup/oz/kg and worked out how much I should eat. And remember, 20g is the minimum so feel free to go higher; I usually try to hit 30g as I find it increases and evens out my energy levels and actually speeds my weight loss.
Hi Tim/all
Questions:
Scrambled Eggology pourable egg whites with one whole egg – what ratio (how much is eaten). 2-3 whites and one full egg?
How did you prepare the lentils and pinto beans. They look ‘wet’ as if cooked in a sauce.
Thanks,
Dan.
Friday is when I started this diet, I kinda changed it a little bit at first but I decided I really wanna stick to this one; It just seems really good. Weighed in on Friday at 204.5, not bad, but the way my belly jiggles at me, I just wanna get cut so all this working out I have been doing lately will show a bit better! Anyway, It’s Monday night and I just weighed in at 196.4! Almost 8lbs in 4 days! So far so good! I have been over 200 since December coming in with a high of 212, now I sound like a weather-man. But I really like how well this diet works! I did not take a screw you diet day on Saturday cuz I had just started. But trust me, I can not wait for this Saturday to pack it all in!
Hi,
I really like your 4HB book. A bit technical at some pages, but very useful. I know the diet you are describing works but I can’t imagine myself eating same thing over and over…but I can see a lot of people would be happy with that. Less to think about what to cook 🙂
I would probably try the diet but just when I got the book I was already doing the dukan diet. I had great results. I lost 4kg in first 5 days and 7kg all together untill now. I aim for 3 more. At the end of the day these two diets share some similar thinking about the carbs and proteins. If you are a person who likes diversity with food and likes to cook and you think you will straggle with this diet, then try dukan diet. It works as well!
Cheers
Tea
Help me… Help me…. Help me….
Binge killed my weight-loss!!!!
From 90.2 kg to 87.5 kg ( 2.7 kg / 6 Lbs) in 4 days
…. and then again to 89.2 kgs!!!
At the end of the week, only 1kg lost or 2.2 Lbs… Shit!!
on Saturday, I ate 5 eggs and legumes in morning
and then before crap meals, ate fruits….
even did exercises before and after heavy meals.
Even had coffee and black chocolate…
still gained 2.2 kgs in 2 days!!
Very Disturbing….
I ate 1-2 things every hour i.e. all the things i couldn’t eat the week.
I was really wild i.e. i ate 18 things i couldn’t eat otherwise.
Even eating more didn’t make me poo a lot!(only once)
Maybe that’s the problem….????
Now i have again managed to reach 88 kg with average of loosing1/2kg or 1 lb everyday like the previous week.
Guys …pls help me… on binge!!!
I have to have binge as my safety valve but how??????
Tim, if you are listening…
Pls give me tips before its too late!!!
Hi Tim,
Currently, I’m following the diet you prescribed for 6 days a week, with Sunday as my cheat day. Starting next week, I’ll be doing weights/resistance training for 45 min on Mon, Wed and Fri. Can I have a pizza after each workout, or should I save it for the cheat day?
Best,
Eric
Hey there, I’m 24 and have lost 40 pounds over the last six months taking much of the advice given above. I work a pretty active job which I’m sure has helped, but i haven’t done a whole lot more than a few runs week to keep my cardio up. I feel great all the time (a problem before) and actually don’t crave the processed carbs anymore as I did before. This seriuosly changed the way I do life in general, and am very grateful for the free access to this diet plan! Thanks again!
Tim,
I stepped on the scale 4 weeks ago and was shocked to see the numbers coming back at me. I didn’t realize how much my weight had ballooned. I used to be at 200 lbs. and when I stepped on the scale I had hit 237 lbs at 6’0 in the span of one year. Also looking at myself in the mirror was a chore to justify why I was at the weight I was. The morning after stepping on the scale and getting my reality check I opened your book that was on my shelf , and proceeded to follow the diet.
I am happy to state I am at 219 which is a weight loss of 18 lbs. in 4 weeks. I couldn’t be more jacked. Thank you for sharing this information it has really helped me lose the weight and not dread going to the mirror.
I had a couple of questions on the diet :
1. I like eating hummus would this hinder my results in the diet?
2. Is chicken fattoush also going to work for this diet (fattoush being a middle eastern salad with pita chips which I have taken out and has vinegar and olive oil for flavor)?
3. I drink one Sugar free rockstar 3x a week to stay up late nights working I know you state that 12 oz’s should be good for sugar free drinks in the book does this apply to energy drinks?
Thanks in advance for your response.
Help please. I’m allergic to legumes. Could someone please help me with suitable alternatives? Quinoa??
Thanks
Tim
Your Post-workout pizza with extra chicken, cilantro, pineapple, garlic, sundried tomotoes, bell peppers, and red onions looks divine! Remind me of my mom’s Friday evening pizza mania experiments when I was growing up.
With the exception of Rule#4, your suggestions seem doable. They have worked for you and should work for others too. I guess I will try your ideas if I ever get to the point where I need to lose some weight again. I used the HCG diet plan a year and a half ago and it worked pretty well. I have maintained my steady weight since. Thank you for sharing with us!
“If we all treat each other like we treat ourselves – what a wonderful place earth would be.”
Hi, I’m 380 lbs and in need of some serious weight loss, duh, LoL. I work nights and was wondering what kind of schedule would you recommend I follow for optimal weight loss. I am a realist and i know its going to take some time for me to reach my weight loss goal but quite frankly I am lost as to where and how to start. Thank You for your time and any help/advice you can offer would be greatly appreciated. Thanks Again,
Aldo
I am wondering if i can use pure liquid stevia to sweeten my tea ? I am a huge tea drinker and a southerner that likes her sweet tea.
Ok so i am rely pissd off and confused. so i did this diet, followed it step by step. Yes i have been losing weight. So i take sundays off, and so then last week i started working out and the diet plus the workouts statrd melting a whopping 1 pound a day ! But then came the sunday where i can eat what ever and thats when i took a break from working out also. So i ate a lot of crap on sunday as usual, then the next day i wiegh myself and i see i gained 5 pounds. I thought it was a glitch so continued the day with the regular deit and excercise. But then the next day i weigh my self again and i am still 5 pounds HEAVIER!!
Dasha- How many inches have you lost? Number of pounds can fluctuate a fair amount with females.
ummmmm i don know how much i lost but i began to see that my thighs began to get thinner and so did my sides. But i think i lost maybe an inch off my thighs. And then the next day my pants felt so tight on me. So idk i think the fat may have come back or something but idk why thogh! Help!
And just to clearify i haven’t had my period and when i do, i never have and never do fluctuate. MY period never gave me any problems like that. I do measure my self with the tape measure. So 2 days after that sunday(tuesday) i did measure myself and went straight back to where i wass in the beggining. I just don’t know why. Plaese help!
Hi Aldo,
I have worked nights in the past, it is difficult to schedule food and not graze alnight on crisps/chips and chocolate plus if everyone decides to get fast food or bring in a box of chocolate. I treated when I got up mid afternoon as breakfast and took a dish of homecooked something to heat in the microwave.
I will be going on night rotation next month so I plan on sticking to this way of eating so breakfast (when I get up), eggs etc. Take in a dish of chilli and veg and a portion of veg soup. I have never felt the need to snack on this WOE but night shift can have periods of boredom so go prepared with healthy snacks like almonds or chopped carrots. If you find you still get hungry maybe start with a protein drink straight after waking, then later breakfast.
I best advice I have to anyone is to JUST START this way of eating but DO prepare, shop for beans, veg and spices. On sunday I usually make a huge pot of chilli (you can make 3,5 or more bean kinds), this I will divide into portions and takes only 4 minutes to heat in the microwave. I will also curry some contential lentils or do some beans ranch style also a huge pot. Thats the beans sorted.
For veg I get lots of frozen green beens, brocolli and mixed veg, put the frozen veg in a microwave dish, pour on some water, 4 minutes and drain. These you can mix with the beans or have on the side.
I try and one pot cook as much as possible so soups, stews are my favourite. Look in mexican and indian cookbooks for many ways to cook beans and lentils. One afternoon of cooking can set you up for the week and everything freezes and can be heated in microwave.
Good Luck and do let us know how you get on.
Dasha
I second Charlie’s comment. if I had to choose one method of monitoring progress I would choose a tape measure. On checking my weight on the week running up to my period and the week of my period I fluctuate anywhere up to 5 pounds but all the inches i lost off my thighs, arms and hips stay static. I only gain a bit on my belly, it is the same after cheat day.
Concentrate on your progress by tape measure and I recommend taking pictures of your progress. I now no longer look pregnant although my stomach is not yet flat.
I have being doing this since 8th August.
Female 37, 152cm/ 4ft 11 1/2
start 150 lbs/10st 10 (BMI 29.9)
4 weeks in 135lbs/9st 9 (BMI 26.3)
loss of 15 pounds
In the next 2 weeks i only lost 2 pounds (133/ 9st 7/BMI 25.9) but that is an overall loss of 17 pounds in 6 weeks.
Thanks Tim
This has been with no hassle, stress, hunger or feeling deprived in any way. I take full advantage of the Dieters Gone Wild day, any weight fluctuations only affect my belly inches and reduce after a few days.
I use Tim’s suggested total inches monitoring ie measure the following:
Both biceps mid point
both thighs (i measure widest part)
hips and waist
add them all together to get your total inches.
Start – 143 inches
6 weeks – 134 inches
= 9 inches lost
but I added another measurement to this my belly inches (2 inches below my navel the widest point). I have lost 4 inches here but it is where the fluctations most occur.
This was with no exercise at all although I will start doing yoga as I am getting a bit stiff.
So thanks to all the great comments, it took me nearly all of the 6 weeks to read them all. I will keep posting my progress even though the thread is very quiet.
Cheers
Donna
To clarify my above post
biceps left and right
thighs left and right
hips
waist
total loss 9 inches
plus belly measurement 4 inches
total inches lost in 6 weeks = 13 inches on a less than 5 foot frame.
How totally awesome is this way of eating.
Thanks Tim and everyone for their success stories.
Hi, having just finished the book I want to start the diet. There appear to be a lot of contradictions on message boards etc. I understand that sweet potatoes/yams are not allowed on the diet. What about beetroot, butternut squash and other squashes? Also, any explanations as to why brown rice is not allowed?
Many thanks
Hallo all……….. I did the diet for a month and I can actuall suck in my stomach and it looks flat. I haven’t been able to do that for about two years. Sorry to say that since I completed the month. Lost the weight, feel great. I have a hard time getting back on this now lifestyle change. It is now my fifth week and not……. good. I take sneak tastes of sushi and yogurt, licks of chocolate and I know it is because I am now too lazy to cook.
What I need is a good protein drink(Brand please) it is for my partner with a pressure sore that is five months in existence. In the USA he drank Juven which was great but I cannot get it in Germany…….
Revigor (source of HMB)
Helps protect proteins from breaking down in your body, which helps new tissue to build up.
Arginine
Is an amino acid that helps promote blood flow in the body.
Supports building of proteins that can contribute to building tissue.
Glutamine
An amino acid that helps cells produce building blocks needed for new tissue.
Plus L Carigine …….Sorry about spelling. So what to look for ??
Hi all,
Any women in their 30’s try this diet and have success (with the cheat/binge day also)?
Thanks in advance!
-J.
Hi, i want to know if i can eat fish? n also does beef have to organic? Iam starting this diet next week n i want to make sure i can eat fish since its what my family eat 2/3 times a week. Thanks
Tim….Tim…Tim…So far your plan has helped me go down 41 lbs of fat and up 10 lbs in muscle. I had to buy all new clothes and I have to look for different numbers and sizes…for example I went from a 38 waist to a 32 waist, went from an XL to a M (athletic fit), went from boot cut jeans to slim jeans, and had to replace all my belts.
Good show my friend.
Dan