Quinoa spaghetti

Can I just say that I love quinoa spaghetti? Its wholewheat PLUS it has quinoa in it adding protien! It also tastes just like normal spaghetti! :D

Update on the second detox: It didn't happen. I mostly did it but not 100% especially with Labor day festivities! I guess I just wasn't feeling hardcore/determined enough! I wish I could have considering the great results I had with the first detox!

Hey, at least I've been getting all my gym sessions in, haven't missed one yet :D I mark them on my calendar on evenings Im not in class and go at least four times a week.

I know I'm going to have to sit down and really think about another detox though, to get off this plateau. Especially before the holiday season creeps up on me! Mental preparation is 50% of the battle really. Weddings seem to be good motivators lol. One of my friends is getting married this October and in the past year she has worked out HARD and looks fantastic!!!

I'm not sure if I will use Dr. Ian Smiths Fat Smash or Four Day Diet Detox. I think it will have to be the Four Day Diet..

hmmmph....I brought Fat Smash because I already did the Four Day Diet and was kind of bored and ready for something new. But honestly it isnt as good for my body- he lets you eat unlimited fruits and vegetables which sounds good in theory but I can eat way too many yummy fruits etc and do better when its limited like in the Four Day Diet  where he spells it out 'eat four pieces of fruit today'.

Have any of you guys done a healthy detox that you really enjoyed and felt invigorated by?

To continue or not to continue with the Four Day Diet?

I'm so excited to be only ONE pound away from my goal!! Woot woot! I'm at 126 pounds, nearing 125! After I reach 125 I'm sure I will


I'm back at work after wisdom teeth removal! A co-worker cut this out the paper for me...hehe, so TRUE, my cheeks did look similar for at least five days!!

Still have trouble opening my motuh all the way and eating tougher foods. I'm also not sure what I want to do after I can eat normally again- wing it myself, or keep going with Dr. Ian Smith's Four Day Diet?

 Its given me good results, but the week and a half I've been off the diet I've lost more weight, and seem to be doing fine eating healthy by myself! It gives me more flexibility in recipes too, which Im enjoying.

 However, I think I may still do the Vigourous Module. Apparently its one of the modules people really lose a lot of weight- when I can chew normally again!


I went to the gym five times last week, woot woot- usually for 45 minutes to an hour!




Having a purple day- purple workout in a purple gym followed by a purple smoothie!



Wait, chocolate isn't part of this diet?

I'm still doing the four day diet by Dr. Ian Smith.

http://www.amazon.com/Day-Diet-Ian-K-Smith/dp/0312373589

 I really want to do ALL the modules even though I think that the Transition module was honestly the best one for weight loss for me! The other modules are a little too high in calories for my needs I think, especially Smooth and the Protein module! Though, saying that, I still havent tried the vigorous module and I've heard that is where the weight just DROPS off!

 The BEST thing is that I've been doing ALL the working out- my worst week so far I only went FOUR times to the gym (LOL- in the past that would have been my best week!) I'm getting SO much leaner and stronger, its amazing me!! And my body aches virtually every day, but its a good ache :D

I've been slipping a little though- a few drinks with friends at social happenings, cheese (my friends said 'come on, you have been so GOOD' and it was too hard to NOT try different types of cheeses while playing Apples to Apples!! Cheese is my weakness! Greek yogurt and cheese are the reason I will never be able to be a vegan) and I got this awesome Endangered species Dark Chocolate at my local organic store, it is 70% dark, proceeds help wildlife and it has a mint filling...mmmm....but no, not on the diet! Not even under the 'snacks' section!

Something else that has been killing me with the eating plan is the limited flexibility to be able to try new recipes! Just before I started it I brought TWO new cookbooks, and some of my favorite bloggers have also been posting drool inducing recipes I cant wait to try! But I can't! When Dr. Smith says "two servings of vegetables' he really means just that. Boiled or baked. Limited seasoning (I do lemon juice, pepper, salt, chili, braggs, and onions to add a little flavor) I feel guilty if I use marinara sauce at all, and forget about any fancy recipes involving lots of ingredients! Its not on the meal list....oh well...

I'm also not sure I will be able to stick to it 100% this coming Thursday onwards, as I'm getting my wisdom teeth removed and will only be eating SOFT food!

I do like the fact that I can sub in all my vegetarian protein:

Dr. Ian Smith says: On my diet, The 4 Day Diet, vegetarians are having great success, because they can make the substitutions they need to make. The program is very flexible for all types of eating styles whether you’re a vegetarian, vegan, diabetic, etc. If you want non-animal protein, you can load up on legumes and beans and things like chickpeas and lentils. If you eat eggs, egg whites are full of protein also.

Here is a cool sample menu plan I found online at http://www.3fatchicks.com/free-sample-menu-plan-for-the-4-day-diet/

The 4 Day Diet was created by Dr. Ian Smith. This diet is designed with 7 different modules, each lasting 4 days. Each module is unique and designed with specific goals. The 7 modules are: Induction, Transition, Protein Stretch, Smooth, Push, Pace and Vigorous. Below are free sample meal plans for each phase of the diet.

Induction

Breakfast:

• 6 oz plain yogurt
• 1 to 2 tsp psyllium husk
• 1 serving of fruit
• 1 cup of coffee with one packet of sugar and 1 tsp of milk or cream

AM Snack:

• 1 pear

Lunch:

• 2 cups leafy green vegetables
• ½ cup brown rice
• 1 apple
• ½ cup blueberries

PM Snack:

• Small side salad with 2 cups of lettuce and 3 tbsp fat free dressing

Dinner:

• 1 cup cooked beans (lentils or chickpeas)
• 1 cups steamed vegetables
• 1 cup brown rice
• 1 orange

Transition

Breakfast:

• 1 cup of coffee with 1 tsp milk and 1 packet sugar
• 6oz yogurt
• 1 tbsp low fat granola
• ½ cup berries

AM Snack:

• ½ cup low fat cottage cheese

Lunch:

• ½ cup cooked black eyed peas
• 1 cup berries
• 1 cup raw carrots

PM Snack:

• 1 fat free pudding snack

Dinner:

• 4 oz grilled fish
• 2 cups green salad
• 3 tbsp fat free dressing

Protein Stretch

Breakfast:

• 2 egg whites scrambled with a strip of turkey bacon

AM Snack:

• 1 hardboiled egg

Lunch:

• 2 slices whole wheat bread
• 4 oz lean roast beef
• 1 tbsp low fat mayonnaise
• ½ banana
• 1 cup bell peppers and cherry tomatoes

PM Snack:

• Small protein shake (200 calories or less)

Dinner:

• 1 cup navy beans
• 1 cup brown rice, cooked
• 1 cup steamed vegetables

Smooth

Breakfast:

• 1 serving cereal
• 1 cup fat free or skim milk

AM Snack:

• 2 oz cheese
• 3 to 5 whole wheat crackers

Lunch:

• 2 cups green salad
• 3 tbsp fat free dressing
• 1 cup cooked lentils
• ½ cup strawberries

PM Snack:

• 1 apple
• 2 tbsp peanut butter

Dinner:

• 2 medium slices of pizza (no meat)
• 1 cup green salad
• 1 cup steamed vegetables

Push

Breakfast:

• 6 oz plain fat free yogurt
• 1 smashed banana
• 1 tbsp wheat germ
• ½ tbsp peanut butter

AM Snack:

• 2 cups baby carrots

Lunch:

• 2 cups green salad
• 3 tbsp fat free dressing
• 1 cup raw carrots
• 1 pear

PM Snack:

• ½ large banana

Dinner:

• 5 oz skinless, boneless chicken breast
• 2 cups steamed vegetables
• 1 cup freshly squeezed lemonade with 1 tsp sugar

Pace

Breakfast:

• 2 whole wheat frozen pancakes
• 2 tbsp low calorie syrup

AM Snack:

• 1 apple

Lunch:

• 1 cup vegetable or chicken noodle soup
• 2 cups green salad
• 1 cup green tea
• 1 apple

PM Snack:

• 1 pear

Dinner:

• 5 oz grilled fish
• 2 servings of steamed vegetables

Vigorous

Breakfast:

• 6 oz fat free yogurt
• 1 tsp psyllium husk
• 1 apple
• 1 cup of coffee with one packet of sugar and 1 tsp of milk or cream

AM Snack:

• 2 oz lean roast beef

Lunch:

• 2 cups green salad
• ½ cucumber, sliced
• 1 cup steamed vegetables
• 1 orange

PM Snack:

• 1 reduced fat cheese stick

Dinner:

• 1 cup green salad
• 1 cup steamed vegetables
• 1 ½ cup broth based soup
• 1 pear

The meal plans above are designed for each module of the 4 Day Diet. For several modules, Dr. Smith provides strict meal plans that remain the same for each day, yet with other modules, the meal plans vary from day to day. In addition to following the meal plan, be sure to add the recommended exercises to your daily routine. Within 28 days, you should start to have healthier eating habits and see some change in your weight and body fat.

Weightloss with the Transition Module!! (The Four Day Diet By Dr. Ian Smith)

So after I did the four day detox I went into what Dr. Smith calls the transition phase. And boy have I lost WEIGHT :D !!!  Even with a massive cheat day on Monday-(you may remember I mentioned I had a True Blood premier party I had to host right? Well...I will fill you in on Mondays debauchery later....photo evidence at the end of this post)

However, even on Tuesday I am....wait for it.....127.6 pounds! WOW....Finally down from the 131 I was stuck on for a month!!  And that takes my total weight loss from when I started this year to 15.4 pounds!! That's a LOT- have you ever lifted a fifteen pound dumbbell? Yeah baby, I just worked that OFF my body!! Keep in mind that I am very close to my goal weight- if I was obese I'm sure it would have sounded better eg. 30 pounds! But for me 1 pound is like 30 pounds for a 500 pound person....hard to get rid of, and an accomplishment worth celebrating!

I am SO glad I started doing this eating plan and doing all the recommended cardio too, because it has REALLY worked. It helped kick me of the plateau I was on, and I feel so inspired and motivated! Its been easy in that I didn't have to sit there and try figure out daily calories or anything, I just ate the food I was allowed on my list! :D

I wasn't hungry either, I've felt full the past few days!

So let me fill you in on the Transition Phase.

It is still a very healthy phase compared to some of the upcoming modules (cant wait for the Smooth module, I get to eat pizza :D )

 I was a bit daunted looking at the food list for the four days of Transition- it all looked SO healthy with very little room for creativity!

However, once I hit up the local organic store and came home with a bunch of goodies like blueberries and raspberries it seemed I would be able to make it more fun after  all :D You are allowed two snacks on each day (from a list on page 139 of the book) eg. a small seven grain Belgian waffle (which I didn't buy, instead I made them myself with Hodgson Mill flour!)

I kept a food journal in a little daily planner so I could mark down what I'd already eaten of my list and not lose track.

Writing it down was still way easier thany tallying up calories like I usually used to do!

I dont think ya'll need an overdose of everything I ate though but let me give you a sample day:

Breakfast:

A whole grain waffle with blueberries mixed in the batter and blueberry sauce on top (made with half a cup of fresh blueberries, a little cornstarch and raw honey)

Lunch:


A 2 cup garden salad (spinach, tomatoes, mushrooms, kalamtas, cucumbers) and a cup of roasted garbanzo beans seasoned with chili flakes and onion powder and tossed into the salad, topped off with Asian sesame salad dressing (2Tbps) and a Tbsp of lemon juice


A cup of diet lemonade (allowed one diet drink a day in this module- I skipped anything with caffeine in it though, but having pink lemonade made me feel naughty enough for the day LOL without having to resort to sweets!)


Dinner:


4oz of vegetarian protein - Gardein 'chicken' cooked with a light mango salsa, with a cup of steamed carrots and a side salad of sliced cucumber and ranch

I took this with a smart phone, hence the quality!

Snacks:


1 Chobani or Stonyfield yogurt, a pear, an apple

A new fave!!

Strictly more what the diet calls for- no fruit on the bottom!

Workouts:

I did every required day of working out, even the one that called for 30 min in the morning and 30 min. at night ( I did Jillian's 30 Day Shred DVD in the morning, gym at night! I was VERY excited when I could actually do the harder sit up moves on LEVEL THREE for the FIRST time ever!! How far I've come...)

 It wasn't always easy getting to the gym, but I made it my NUMBER ONE priority! I had to skip a few things I would have liked to attend to make it happen. But I wanted to get all my workouts DONE so I could have my 'rest' day fall on Monday when I was having friends over for True Blood!

Monday:


Lets talk about my infamous Monday.....I ate a slice of this

Luscious glazed strawberries nestled on a bed of sweet Bavarian creme, atop a flaky golden crust.


And a slice of this creamy yet tart key lime pie:

And I made Pina Ghouladas like I said I would,and I made it all fresh- pineapple juice, OJ, heavy cream, coconut cream- no pina colda ready mix in MY house thank you very much...!

Here's the recipe:http://www.hostessblog.com/2009/10/halloween-cocktail-pina-ghoulada-with-creepy-speared-eyeball-garnish/

And here is a pic of me with the finished prodcut, including lychee/strawberry/blueberry 'eyeballs' and hard candy 'blood' dripping down the cup! My man and I had SO much fun prepping these!

Everybody loved them! We had fresh popcorn and mini-sandwiches too, but I just stuck to the popcorn!

I guess the message behind my confession of totally not following the four day diet on Monday is that you can STILL lose weight if you have a day off occasionally. Especially if you add an extra day to the module like I am. I'm doing another day of Transition to make up for the one I lost- which basically works out to an extra day of working out.

I wouldn't cheat more than once every two modules though. And I wouldn't cheat for more than a day- if you keep adding make up days to your module it defeats the whole purpose of the way the diet is planned, which is to keep you interested.

 I can only manage one more day of Transition, I'm getting kinda bored with the food list! I'm looking forward to the Protein Stretch phase though! I get to have a soy 'turkey' sandwich for lunch, and I'm going to bake my own multi-grain bread so that its awesome :D

Day Four of my Detox (aka. The Four Day Diet)

I've noticed I'm drinking a LOT more water than usual, without any effort. I just keep finding myself getting up and filling up my cup at least once an hour at work. My skin is so great right now I'm not wearing any foundation at all anymore, just a little sunscreen and concelar on my dark circles! I'm starting to notice some arm definition :D

Tux obviously admires my taste in shoes hehe

Its  my second week of consistently working out most days of the week, and that is translating into feel fab! My body doesnt feel so soft to me anymore...its a slight change, but I feel it.


 My calf muscles are actually hard little balls under my skin know rather than mush, especially after a run.  I'm noticing a slight definition to my arms!


I'm pear shaped, so my arms are the area I will show muscle definition first, its exciting :D Unfortunaltey that also means that my bottom will be the last thing to shrink!!


My only problem right now? I am hosting a little True Blood get together for the premiere at my house (yes, its back on HBO for the summer!!! :D ) Vampires, southern grit, fantasy creatures and a sexy (unsparkly!!) cast...

We have all been waiting for this date since our get togethers at my house last year! I'm going to play Jace Evertt's "Bad Things"  on a loop...(BEST intro song EVER)


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MDY42pFwq7c&feature=related


And True Blood themed food is a must for the first episode!! It definitley NOT on the plan though :( But considering the year long wait I think I will have a few bites and a drink or two - my stomach has shrunk so much I dont think its possible for me to go too overboard I'd get too full!


This website has such creative ideas: http://bombshelleventplanner.wordpress.com/2009/09/15/true-blood-party-vampire-themed-gala/


Some of my faves:

red velvet blood spattered cakes



And I just HAVE to make these- very easy, yummy and  I actually have ALL the ingredients on hand (they eyeballs are made with lychees and blueberries!)


http://www.hostessblog.com/2009/10/halloween-cocktail-pina-ghoulada-with-creepy-speared-eyeball-garnish/

Breakfast:


Yay! Today is unlimited fruit day! Well, I started off with this :

Lunch


Turned out to be a hastily thrown together garden salad.....I actually threw it all in a Tupperware right before running out the door for work as I didnt have time the night before. I chucked two handfuls of spinach, two tomatoes, a cup of brown rice and 3oz of cashes into my container and threw some fruit in my purse to snack on!


The salads arent that big, so I choose spinach as my leaf, as its more nutrient packed than lettuce or anything else!




Dinner:


Guess what I still have a lot of in the fridge? Yep.... Cabbage Soup!! Made according to Dr. Ian Smith's recipe....its actually pretty good though and hey, I don't need to cook dinner and can instead relax on the couch and watch how awful this years Bachelorette is on Hulu....no actually, that is a total waste of my time...


My man helped me polish off all the soup, I thought I had to much considering I only need two cups for this detox, but he enthusiastically had several bowls tonight. He even mentioned that he liked how many vegetables you can fit into a soup and that they are more palatable that way- I agree!


I had my 10grams of psyllium husk mixed in with my lemonade that Dr Ian Smith allows, but I subbed out the sugar and replace it with this instead

I LOVE local honey!!

Psyllim is important in the detox phase. Its a colon cleanser really, and it will allow you to abosorb all the nutrients to come in the upcoming Transition phase!


I snacked on a pear and a plum and had icy cold Florida Fresh OJ, made locally, after my workout!


 Gym:


I did my forty required minutes of cardio -20 on the Elliptical, 20 minutes of running and then 10 minutes on the weight machines just to get those arms I'm looking forward to :D

Its 'that time of the monnth' for me, but I'm really proud of the fact that I've been dragging myself to the gym and getting my workouts in, no excuses! Its a bit harder than usual and I dont have as much energy, but I'm not giving myself any excuses!!

Tomorrow is the new module in Dr. Ian Smiths Four day Diet - Transition! I'm excited :D

Day Two of the Detox (aka the Four Day Diet)

/hihi!

Today is the first day of summer! Yay :D I love sunshine, BBQs, and being by the water!Even more so after living in England for a bit, I even appreciate Floridas crazy hot summers  after living through the British winter LOL

In the Bahamas in 2010

 And I reached my goal that I first set when starting this blog, of being 130 pounds by the summer time! Now I'm only 10 pounds away from my final goal for the YEAR which is to be 120  pounds! Can't wait!

Day Two of my Detox (aka Dr. Ian Smith's "Four Day Diet")  started out great. I had my tofu scramble for breakfast and it was delicious!!

Basically I cooked crumbled tofu with nutritional yeast, chilli, a little torn spinach, tomatoes and mushrooms (less than half a cup of veggies in total)

I also had a Naked Berry juice for my fruit intake for the day, which contains: 3.25 apples, 1 banana, 27 blueberries, 1 blackberry, 38 mg vitamin b3, 11 mcg vitamin b12, 114 mg vitamin c, 19 mg vitamin b, 4 mg vitamin b6, 13g fiber, 57iu vitamin e.

 (I was trying to load more of my eating towards the beginning of the day- this backfired later though when I was hungry after work and wanted to snack on fruit but had consumed my quota for the day already!)

For lunch I had a garden salad (3 cups) and a cup of brown rice

Dinner was a cup of cooked down spinach with lemon juice (not a dinner I looked forward to haha!) /wahaha

I dragged myself to the gym...well, I went with my man so his enthusiasm gave me energy :D He has been great and really supportive lately! His music player died but he still went and did a 50 minute work out without any music (something I couldn't do!!  My music is the only thing that gets me through work outs!) Having him with me always helps :D

My rock --- >

He is also a vegetarian by the way, (and in his line of work where he hangs out with firefighters all day thast pretty brave!) and very strong even though he hadn't been working out for about a year!

He benched my entire weight + yesterday! =D>

There are a lot of great athletes who are vegetarian-  Bill Pearl and Clarence Bass were vegetarians and a couple other legendary bodybuilders were as well. Robert Dos Remedios, is vegetarian and is a lean 240 pounds and in incredible shape. Jon Hinds is a vegan, in his mid 40’s and is jacked and strong as could be. The greatest tight end in NFL history, Tony Gonzalez is also a vegetarian and obviously it hasn’t hurt him in the least.

I tried my hardest and did my 40 minutes cardio - 25 on the elliptical, 15 running - it was SOOOO hard though! /sweat

My legs felt like lead, my body ached from the previous days work out, I didn't have as much energy as usual.....but I felt a lot better at the end. My sore neck and back disappeared :D

My man and I traded back and calf/foot muscle massages afterwards too and that was great, my body needed it!!  One of my favorite parts of being in a relationship is having someone to trade massages with whenever I need one! /XD

The major downside to living with a man though? Man food. Delicious smelling, cheesy, fattening man food smells wafting through the house at all hours of the day...I had to watch him wolf down his yummy dinner of eggplant, tofu and cheddar smothered tortillas while I munched on spinach LOL

I had to fight the urge to ask for a bite....ahhh!!

When he washed it all down with a new type of blonde pale ale he found at our local organic store I was soooo tempted to cheat but I didnt, having this blog helps me stay accountable! And I REALLY want to lose weight and detox!

I felt fine going to bed that night though, wasn't too hungry. And I woke up half an hour before my alarm on Day Three, FULL of energy :D (weird huh!?!)

I've also been reading comments from people who have done the 4 Day Diet - this one is inspiring:

 went on this diet a year ago…lost 17 pounds in just over a month…I did the first month of modules and then another three modules…at that point I felt I had control of it and I have kept the weight off. I found myself craving salads with beans and rice (instead of things like icecream). He is right, just focus on the four days until you learn portion control. I needed a refresher and this diet (I prefer to think of it as healthy eating) did it for me. I have a bit of arthritis and found when I cut back on meat and focused on fruits and veggies and water (like he states in diet) that my joints didn’t ache as much. It is successful…on vacation I put on three pounds but that quickly disappeared again when I just “focused and remembered” what was good for me. I would now like to take off another 15 pounds and am going to go through it again.

Day One of the Detox (aka The Four Day Diet)

The first day of the cleanse my main issue was- HUNGER..../blur Ok, I LOGICALLY know I got enough food on day one of the plan...I ate all of this:


 Yogurt and nectarine, a banana and strawberries and blueberries for breakfast +2 cups of coffee. (forgive the lack of photos, still fixing my camera!)

 A cup of brown rice, plus a cup of beans and a cup of spinach mixed with a little organic mango salsa for lunch.

A plain garden salad (cup of spinach, cucumbers, tomato, 2tbsp low fat dressing) and a repeat of lunch for dinner ( A cup of brown rice, plus a cup of beans and a cup of spinach mixed with a little organic mango salsa)

A glass of fresh lemonade

An 8pm 'god I'm feeling hungry' banana......

... but as I lay there trying to go to sleep I felt super hungry, and all I could think about was the lovely stuffed cheese pasta with mushroom sauce I had given to my man as a sign of my commitment ( I had made it for myself for lunch on Monday at work, but then gave it up to him for his lunch the next day - wow!! LOL )


And I think its because I never felt that 'full' feeling even after a heaping plate of rice, beans and veggies...and I think thats a bad thing because it shows that my usual diet has enough crap in it that a clean day of eating makes me CRAVE things like sweets, alcohol, soda, heavy carbs and cheese to feel satiated!!

I thought I'd been eating pretty healthy-  I didnt realize I still relied on more refined carbs like bread (rather than very unrefined brown rice) to get that 'full' feeling! I could STUFF myself with rice, beans and salad and still be hungry in an hour I think....

I also went to the gym and did the forty minutes of cardio required- 20 minutes on the elliptical and 20 mintues on a stationary bike while working 3 pound weights at the same time.


As I pedalled on the bike I kept my arms moving with the weights in every direction- above my head, to the side, bicep curls....and boy do I feel it!

I cant believe 3 pound weights had that much impact, I've being using 5 pounders when doing Jillian's 30 Day Shred DVD...but I guess the fact that it was 20 minutes of arm workout is what matters, not the weights. I really liked the fact that I was working my arms AND legs at the same time ( I get bored just doing one!)

Detox Time!!!

On Sunday I made up my mind to do Dr. Ian Smith's diet plan "The Four Day Diet" Now stop- before you say 'oh that sounds like a fad!" and "nobody loses weight in 4 days" hear me out. It isn't a fad diet, and it isn't just four days. I've done this eating plan before and was impressed with his use of quinoa and his emphasis on fruits and vegetables! (the only downside to his eating plan is not enough dairy on some days, and I've taken a college level nutrition class so its a semi educated opinion) /wahaha

The four days is basically four day modules you do - you start out with a detox of mainly brown rice, fruit, yogurt, veggies and lemon juice, and then transition to adding in more food groups and he keeps changing the foods so you don't get bored.

I brought the book about two years ago and did it for a while and lost weight, but I wasn't as dedicated to my weight loss, nor did I have gym access which is also crucial for the plan (40 minutes on most days!)

Heres a little video about it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ibib5aBJ9Sk

And http://www.everydiet.org/diet/4-day-diet/comment-page-1#comments lays it out:

The 4 Day Diet was written by Dr. Ian Smith who is also theauthorof the Fat Smash and Extreme Fat Smash diets.

Smith claims that this program will help dieters to avoid the common pitfalls of dieting including boredom, not allowing treats, too much repetition, and plateaus.

4 Day Diet Basics

The 4 Day Diet is not simply a diet that lasts for four days but rather it consists of seven separate dieting modules that last for four days each. Smith claims that it is much easier for you to focus on what you are eating for the next four days rather than what you will and will not be eating for several weeks.

Another purpose of the different modules is that of increasing variety in the meal plan so you don’t get bored eating the same foods all the time. In addition it has the benefit of keeping the metabolism working well because the body is kept guessing and it doesn’t have time to adapt to the diet.

The seven dieting modules include:

• Induction (detox/cleansing)
• Transition (to reintroduce all food groups)
• Protein Stretch (to avoid plateaus)
• Smooth (when you can have some formerly forbidden foods like pizza and French fries)
• Push (the sprint just before the final stretch, back to a stricter eating plan)
• Pace (a comfortable module for you to catch your breath)
• Vigorous (the final module to lose those last few pounds)

Dieters can follow the diet plan through the seven phases for a one month program but it is also possible to create a customized program where you start with the first two phases and then do the other five in which ever order you like.

Smith places a great deal of emphasis on the psychological factors that are essential for successful dieting and says that losing weight is 80% mental and 20% physical. Dieters are provided with instructions on how to use tools like goal setting and visualization as well as with practical strategies for avoiding temptation.

Recommended Foods

Fruit, vegetables, low fat dairy, lean protein, whole grains, legumes, nuts, avocado, low calorie salad dressing.

Sample Diet Plan

The meal plans vary dramatically throughout the different segments. The following is a sample daily food list for the ‘Induction’ phase.

2 cups coffee. Limit sugar to one packet and cream or milk to one teaspoon per cup.

2 cups of raw or cooked green leafy vegetables.

1 cup freshly squeezed lemonade with no more than a tablespoon of sugar.

1 tablespoon psyillium husk.

4 servings of fruit.

6 oz plain fat free yogurt.

2 cups green garden salad with 3 tablespoons fat free dressing.

1 cup cooked beans (chickpeas, lentils etc.)

1 ½ cups cooked brown rice

Unlimited plain water

Exercise Recommendations

Each diet module comes with specific recommendations for exercise. Dieters are advised to build up slowly in accordance with their fitness levels and if necessary to break up exercise into several short periods over the day.

Costs and Expenses

The 4 Day Diet retails at $24.95.
Click Here to purchase the book at a discounted price.

Pros

• Unique and interesting approach to dieting.
• Good for dieters that get bored easily or don’t like to follow a strict diet plan.
• Addresses the psychological factors involved in weight management and dieting.
• Can be customized according to the dieter’s preferences.
• Highlights the importance of goal setting.
• Allows for controlled cheating, which may increase adherence to the diet over the long term.
• Does not require any special foods or supplements.
• Suitable for vegetarians.
• The author has a very motivating writing style.
• Includes recipes.

Cons

• Does not account for individual variations in calorie and nutritional requirements.
• The meal plan lists all the foods to be eaten in the day and does not break it down into individual meals.
• Will not appeal to dieters that prefer to follow a routine with their meal plans.

Conclusions

Smith has provided dieters with a unique approach that may help to keep up interest and enthusiasm that will enhance the chance of successful weight loss. The ability to customize the diet as well as the differences between the diet segments will make this diet appealing to those who prefer variety or have difficulty sticking with standard diet plans.