The 4-Hour Body / Slow-Carb Diet

mcferg

what does everyone think of Veggie Chips? I was thinking I could use these to dip in my hummus and cottage cheese to make things more interesting, and they're a bit more flavorful than raw veggies....

Depends on what type of veggie chips you're talking about. If there's such a thing as veggie chips made from just veggies, I haven't seen them. Most "veggie chips" are comprised primarily of potatoes and just flavored with vegetables.

mcferg

FYI peanuts are a legume and not a nut. so it technically fits in your serve of legumes

I dunno. While they may technically be legumes, from dietary perspective, they're more like nuts. Ferris also identifies these as a "domino food". That (the domino thing) doesn't make it a no-no, as long as it doesn't send you into a tailspin, but I think it's pretty safe to say that you cannot substitute peanuts for lentils, beans, etc.

After all, potatoes are technically a vegetable, and we know they're not allowed. Tomatoes are a fruit, and we know they are allowed...because in a dietary sense (at least as far as macro-nutrient composition goes) potatoes are more like starches/grains and tomatoes are more like vegetables. Similarly, peanuts are more like nuts.

That being said, I often do have a teaspoon of natural peanut butter as a snack. So far, no issues with this.

cheerbabe080790

heyy all. I had to move up my cheat day because of my fiance's birthday. Has anyone tired this? do you think its going to seriously mess up my diet?

briteyes

what does everyone think of Veggie Chips? I was thinking I could use these to dip in my hummus and cottage cheese to make things more interesting, and they're a bit more flavorful than raw veggies....

Depends on what type of veggie chips you're talking about. If there's such a thing as veggie chips made from just veggies, I haven't seen them. Most "veggie chips" are comprised primarily of potatoes and just flavored with vegetables.

Costco sells real veggie chips - with zuchinni, sweet potatoes, etc...

mcferg

heyy all. I had to move up my cheat day because of my fiance's birthday. Has anyone tired this? do you think its going to seriously mess up my diet?

I wouldn't sweat it, particularly if it's been 5 days since your last day, but even if it is, it will be at worst a minor setback...I think this sort of thing only becomes a problem if it snowballs...and you continually move things up until you're cheating every 2nd or 3rd day.

Costco sells real veggie chips - with zuchinni, sweet potatoes, etc...

Interesting... I haven't seen those. I guess I'd look at the ingredients and decide. Sweet potatoes aren't specifically addressed in the book, but I'd avoid them. Zuccini should be fine. If there are carrots in there, he mentions them as an okay snack...but look at the other ingredients...

briteyes

i could've sworn on his blog post that he said sweet potatoes were ok, not that i eat a lot of them, but maybe 1 meal per week.

eta: ok, it actually was someone commenting on the blog post. i knew i saw it there. my brain registered sweet potatoes as being ok

madijo41

Been following the diet exactly, lost 5 lbs, got down to 204 from 209. Had a small cheat day (onion rings, Momma Burger and a bag of chips). TOM landed on said cheat day. That was 6 days ago and still have not lost the weight. Still around 207. Why? Today is another cheat day. Still have not cheated. Scared to.

mcferg

Well, I'm now on the morning of my 3rd cheat day. I lost 1.5 lbs this week, which is interesting for a couple of reasons. One is that the 3rd week of diets is when my weight loss typically starts to slow down, the other is that I've been sick this week, and unable to exercise. I took the full week off of exercise, and that's the first time I've done that in probably 3 years. I think that, even though I ate whenever I was hungry, it ultimately probably helped (short-term) with the weight loss.

So - I'm looking forward to another guilt-free cheat day today. Championship Sunday, so that means beer and snacks. i won't overdo it, though - learned my lesson the first week.

Rojo40 - I think the cheat day is one of the cornerstones of this diet. There's a lot of other talk around here about making allowances for certain foods that are considered healthy, and all that, but I'm not sure the cheat day falls into that category. Even if you don't buy-in to the suggestion that eating more calories once per week helps keep your metabolism up, it certainly makes it much easier to stick to the plan during the week. And remember - cheat day doesn't mean you have to eat a bunch of junk food - you can cheat on this diet with a day full of healthy grains and fruit - those will boost your calories and give your tastebuds a change of pace as well.

The cheat day weight you gained, I'm sure is just water. What you ate no way would produce a 3 lb actual gain in fat. Take a look at your fluid vs sodium consumption. Maybe that's it.

One of the things I like about this diet is that I pretty well enjoy eating the prescribed foods, so I feel like I don't panic as much if the scale doesn't move. Because I don't feel like I've put that much effort into the diet itself, it's not as disheartening if the weight loss is slow or stalls periodically.

caprica

FYI - Tim has posted a number of clarifications on slow carbing on his blog:

http://www.fourhourworkweek.com

here they are:


Slow-Carb Clarifications

I’m currently getting at least 500-1,000 questions a day via the blog, Twitter, Facebook, etc. about the slow-carb diet. Let me clarify a few things:

Do not eat the following, except for cheat days:
Yams
Sweet potatoes
Quinoa
Dairy (this includes cheese and yogurt of all kinds)

I mention cottage cheese at one point as a last resort. It is low in lactose, which is what you need to avoid. Ghee and cream (for coffee) should not contain any lactose, hence you can use them. The same goes for effectively lactose-free, unflavored whey protein, etc..

SUPPLEMENTS: There is NO need for supplements on the slow-carb diet, besides magnesium, potassium, etc. in “Slow-Carb II.” PAGG is NOT necessary, so if you find it confusing, just omit it.

Post-workout carbs – If your goal is fat loss, and assuming you are not training for endurance competition:
- If you male and not 12% bodyfat or less, no post-workout carbs.
- If you are females and not 20% bodyfat or less, no post-workout carbs.

In the end, the point of 4HB is intelligent and responsible SELF-EXPERIMENTATION. I will not answer all of your questions, precisely because I want you to think for yourselves and figure it out. Hundreds of you have already done. It’s not that hard.

The following will address 99%+ of those who are confused:

- If you have to ask, don’t eat it.
- If you haven’t had blood tests done, I don’t want to hear that the diet doesn’t work.
- If you aren’t measuring inches or haven’t measured bodyfat % with an accurate tool (BodPod, etc. and NOT bodyfat scales), I don’t want to hear that the diet doesn’t work.
- If you’re a woman and taking measurements within 10 days prior to menstruation (which I advise against in the book), I don’t want to hear about the lack of progress.

- On the critical 4-6 week window:
For people over 40 and women (especially after two kids), it’s quite common that the most dramatic fat-loss and weight change comes after 4-6 weeks on the diet. I have explanation for this. Needless to say, if you haven’t done the diet for AT LEAST four weeks, please don’t post a comment about plateauing and panicking. I can’t give you meaningful advice without a ton of other supporting data (blood tests, etc.), and it’s physically impossible for me to respond to each person.

To reiterate: The entire goal of 4HB is to make you a self-sufficient self-experimenter within safe boundaries. Track yourself, follow the rules, and track the changes if you break or bend the rules. Simple as that. That’s what I did to arrive at my conclusions, and that’s what you will do — with a huge head start with the 4HB — to arrive at yours.

Do it for 4 weeks and then troubleshoot if you’re plateauing.

If you post a plea for help anywhere, include at least two FULL days of your meals and snacks so people can actually help you.

Most of those saying they’re “following the diet to the letter” are doing nothing of the sort. Reread “Slow-Carb II” in 4HB.

Last, I’ll repeat the basic approach to the unknown: If you have to ask, don’t eat it

mcferg

Responses to some of the Ferris stuff from his blog...

I mention cottage cheese at one point as a last resort.

Really? Cottage cheese is mentioned 3 times in the book, and "last resort" is never used, and not once does he give any indication other than that it is totally fine. From one quote: "Cottage cheese, my mother's preference, is also a fine addition". Does that sound like a last resort?!

- If you have to ask, don’t eat it.
- If you haven’t had blood tests done, I don’t want to hear that the diet doesn’t work.
- If you aren’t measuring inches or haven’t measured bodyfat % with an accurate tool (BodPod, etc. and NOT bodyfat scales), I don’t want to hear that the diet doesn’t work.
- If you’re a woman and taking measurements within 10 days prior to menstruation (which I advise against in the book), I don’t want to hear about the lack of progress.

Obnoxious. Don't get me wrong - I'm SURE there are lots of people not really following the diet, but claiming to and complaining, but come on - most of us (at least here) do actually know if a diet is working or not. I don't have to measure inches to know if I'm losing them, for example...the fit of my waistband will tell the tale. Of course, you kind of tell that Ferris is kind of obnoxious from the tone of a lot of book, right?

That being said - Caprica, thanks for posting...the list of foods at the top will certainly be useful to many.


- On the critical 4-6 week window:
For people over 40 and women (especially after two kids), it’s quite common that the most dramatic fat-loss and weight change comes after 4-6 weeks on the diet. I have explanation for this. Needless to say, if you haven’t done the diet for AT LEAST four weeks, please don’t post a comment about plateauing and panicking. I can’t give you meaningful advice without a ton of other supporting data (blood tests, etc.), and it’s physically impossible for me to respond to each person.

To reiterate: The entire goal of 4HB is to make you a self-sufficient self-experimenter within safe boundaries. Track yourself, follow the rules, and track the changes if you break or bend the rules. Simple as that. That’s what I did to arrive at my conclusions, and that’s what you will do — with a huge head start with the 4HB — to arrive at yours.

Do it for 4 weeks and then troubleshoot if you’re plateauing.

If you post a plea for help anywhere, include at least two FULL days of your meals and snacks so people can actually help you.

Most of those saying they’re “following the diet to the letter” are doing nothing of the sort. Reread “Slow-Carb II” in 4HB.

Last, I’ll repeat the basic approach to the unknown: If you have to ask, don’t eat it
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walkers345

Hi all,

I have been on the slow carb regimen for two weeks. I had my second cheat day on Saturday where I went completely overboard and gained 4 pounds. It was extremely therapeutic and freeing, but I was very full by the end of the day. The week before, I gained 2.5 pounds after my cheat day, and it took me until thursday to lose most of it. I was still .5 pounds up from my start weight, I didn't lose anymore the rest of the week. So, in total, I was .5 pounds up from my original weight..uugghh.

I have been doing everything right EXCEPT, I have been having about 1--2 cups a day of 40 calorie a cup almond milk with my decaf coffee in the morning. I usually have one cup when I wake up and one cup mid morning. I don't know if almond milk has lactose in it, but I think I may need to cut it out altogether. I run 3-4 times a week and do weight training 2x a week, I have noticed that I definitely have a lot less energy during my workouts. Of course, my post-binge workout is amazing, and I can run for miles. This week, I am going to cut the almond milk and see where that gets me. I usually am around 1200-1600 calories a day, and am a little frustrated with the NO Weight Loss. My sister and brother-in-law have lost 5lbs and 7lbs in the first week!

mcferg

Well...I had my 3rd cheat day today...my food intake looked kind of like this:

9 am: 6 oz grilled chicken breast, 2 cups steam mixed veggies, 1/2 cup refried black beans
12 pm: Medium McDonald's McCafe vanilla milk shake and a few French fries
1-3 pm: 2 light beers
4:30 pm: couple handfulls of potato chips
4:30-8:00 pm: 4 light beers
8:00 pm: 2 hot dogs (Hebrew National 97% fat free on 80 calorie buns mustard and dill relish) and a handful of potato chips
9:00 pm: 2 bowls of light ice cream (I'll say about 2 cups total)

Estimated calories: 2800

This was most reasonable cheat day. I still wish I hadn't had the ice cream right before bed. I was a little uncomfortable this morning. I actually had intended to make this a true cheat day, and take the day off of exercise, but while watching football and having a beer, I looked up the calories in the McDonald's shake - 680! So around 3, I ran 7 miles. Back in the day, McDonald's shakes were low fat and not made with real ice cream....I guess that's changed. In my mind, it was going to be about 400 calories...but oh well...I ran it off.

The best news is that I'm only up 1.4 lbs after my cheat day. So far, my weight loss / cheat day gain looks like this:

Week 1: Lost 1 lb, Gained 6 lbs on cheat day - cheat day weight gone on Thursday
Week 2: Lost 1 lb, Gained 3 lbs on cheat day - cheat day weight gone on Wednesday
Week 3: Lost 1.5 lb, Gained 1.5 lb on cheat day - cheat day weight gone...??

Not sure why I didn't gain more this week, as I ate at least as much as I did last Sunday. I probably didn't consume as much water or something - so there was less to retain. The whole thing is pretty curious to me, though. Usually around the 3rd week of a diet is when my weight loss really starts to slow down. Not only that - but yesterday was the only day I exercised last week at all (I was sick), whereas I typically exercise 6-7 days per week (3-4 runs and 3 strength workouts). I was trying to figure out whether or not I ate less as a result of being sick and not working out, and I'm not sure. I ate just as many meals, and in the same proportions, but I can't say whether I ate smaller amounts. I would say that, if I did, the differences were very small.

Anyway - I expect this to be an anomaly. I anticipate (and will be happy with) a loss this week of only 0.5 lbs, keeping me on a 1 lb per week schedule. If I manage another > 1 lb loss, maybe I'll attribute it to things truly accelerating.

For the record, after three weeks, I'm still loving this diet. I honestly do not know why I didn't consume more beans/legumes all along. I've been on so many diets and read so much about nutrition, that I wonder why it never occurred to me to do that before. As a runner, I cannot eliminate carbs, but I find that beans give me just enough (while also adding protein) to have decent workouts. Of course, it helps that I'm not training for anything. I think if I were doing a typical race-training routine that involved more targeted speed work or the like, I would need additional carbs, but for just getting the mileage in without feeling like I'm going to die - the beans do the job.

I have been doing everything right EXCEPT, I have been having about 1--2 cups a day of 40 calorie a cup almond milk with my decaf coffee in the morning. I usually have one cup when I wake up and one cup mid morning. I don't know if almond milk has lactose in it, but I think I may need to cut it out altogether.

There's no lactose, and there's no sugar. There is tapioca starch, which is probably a no-no, but there's only 2g of carbs per cup, and 1g of that is fiber. Still - I guess it can't hurt to try cutting it. Could just be a bunch of water weight your body is holding onto for some reason.

briteyes

ok, who the heck is having issues meeting their calorie goals each day???

i hadn't been counting my calories, but i decided i needed to, so i logged my foods for yesterday - OMG! 2500 calories!!!!

no wonder things aren't moving - well, i'm not moving in either direction - although my tape measure showed a tiny tiny loss in the legs and waist this morning. can it be that i can eat this many calories and still lose the fat i want to lose? is this how it works?

or should i try to trim down the calories consumed?

keep in mind, i'm also doing two 24 hour fasts each week, so that helps out w/ going over on calories, but not if i'm consistently eating that many, plus add in my cheat day... yikes! i'm going to track my calories this week to see what my total weekly intake ends up at.

walkers345

Thanks Mcferg, I definitely have always gained water weight and retained it easily. I think the sodium could also be an issue. I am going to try to watch it this week. I also really like this way of eating. I will also try to eat within 1/2 hour or waking. I think I have been waiting about 90 minutes because I enjoy my coffee and then eat.

Jennjabbour- what is your reasoning for doing two fasts a week (correct me if that is incorrect). I would imagine that may cause some inconsistencies in your metabolism?

I'm on to week 3, I have lost 1.5 lbs since yesterday(which was the day after my cheat day where I had gained 4 lbs). Hope to lose it all by Wednesday this week.

Cheers:drinker:

mcferg

ok, who the heck is having issues meeting their calorie goals each day???

I don't have a specific calorie goal. If I had to put a target out there, it'd be around 2,000. I average about 500 calories of exercise per day (more than that on running days, less on strength training days). I figure that gives me a deficit of (based on online calorie estimators) about 700 calories per day, which adds up to 4,200 calories per week. On my cheat day, I usually eat more, but I also try to exercise more, which sends my weekly calorie deficit to 3500, or 1 lb.

However, this is just in my head. I'm not counting calories, and I don't intend to unless I'm having issues. However, this is about what my day looks like most days:

Breakfast: 2 eggs, small portion of some meat (~3 oz), 1/2 cup beans, sliced tomatoes
Lunch: Meat (6-8 oz), 2 cups steamed veggies, 1/2 cup beans
Snack: Protein bar or a Slim Jim (I buy them in bulk from Amazon.com)
Dinner: Spinach salad (2 cups w/ light italian low-sugar dressing), Meat (~6 oz), 2 cups steamed veggies, 1/2 cup beans
I also usually have 1-3 glasses of red wine 2-3 days per week...

The meat I eat at breakfast and lunch I try to make lean. At dinner, I might eat something with a little more fat - steak, for example. So, on my heaviest day (if I indulge in 3 glasses of red wine), I probably eat:

Breakfast: 400 calories
Lunch: 400 calories
Snack: 180 calories
Dinner: 550 calories
Wine: 300 calories

1830. Hmmm. I hadn't thought about it. I guess that's a little low, but I'm not feeling hungry and am able to do my workouts, so I'm not inclined to change anything...I mean, on a lighter day, I could see it being closer to 1500, but as long as I'm 1500-2000 I should say I'm good. That being said, it's not HARD to get those calories in. I only eat when I'm hungry, but I could easily eat a little bit more at each meal, OR throw in some calorie-dense food like avocado (which I do, but only every so often).

i hadn't been counting my calories, but i decided i needed to, so i logged my foods for yesterday - OMG! 2500 calories!!!!

What are you eating, exactly? Is it the protein/veggie/bean combo, or are you making other concessions?

no wonder things aren't moving - well, i'm not moving in either direction - although my tape measure showed a tiny tiny loss in the legs and waist this morning. can it be that i can eat this many calories and still lose the fat i want to lose? is this how it works?

Ferris goes on and on about how the scale is only one number, but, for me, I'm not willing to make the effort do more than step on the scale. Between that and my belt, I should know all I need to know. The truth is - my waist is the only relevant measurement. My arms and legs are twigs. Twigs and cheddar - that's me. If you want to have an idea of what my build is...take a block of cheddar cheese and stick some twigs in for arms and legs. Did you see that movie Despicable Me? If the main character is roughly an over-dramatization of my build (except my neck is longer). Actually, that's not true - he has much broader shoulders... anyway - you get my point. If, as a result of my strength workouts, my arms get bigger, or my shoulders broaden, I don't really even care. All I care about is my waist. If I were to lose inches elsewhere, I would consider that a negative.

or should i try to trim down the calories consumed?

If you're only eating allowed foods, and you're not stuffing yourself, I wouldn't eat less. However, if you're allowing yourself to eat unallowed (or not explicitly allowed) foods per Ferris, I would try cutting those foods out first before trying to cut calories. I wouldn't stress too much, though...seems like you don't have much weight left to lose, so, I'd expect fairly slow-going...

keep in mind, i'm also doing two 24 hour fasts each week, so that helps out w/ going over on calories, but not if i'm consistently eating that many, plus add in my cheat day... yikes! i'm going to track my calories this week to see what my total weekly intake ends up at.

I'm not sure if it makes sense to combine the Eat Stop Eat approach with Ferris. I just don't know. There could be reasons why when you combine those two approaches, they work against each other. I recognize that, in the end, it's all calories consumed vs calories burned, but the "calories burned" number is pretty complex and may be affected by a number of different things.

briteyes

mcferg ~ thanks for your detailed response! yeah, i'm not eating until i'm full either, and while i'm not following his suggested combination of foods at each meal, those are the types of foods that i'm eating. i bet i'm throwing in some foods that may not need to be in there... for example here are some foods yesterday that i could've left out, please let me know what you think:

coconut milk (this actually accounted for about 400 calories) added to my coffee, gonna switch to homemade almond milk
agave nectar (it's low in the GI, but never saw much about this) - i need my coffee and i need it sweet, any solutions?
carrot juice
dark chocolate - just a couple small pieces, i know it's low on sugar and it really helps me with any sweet cravings i have
butter - i don't use a lot but i put some on my edamame, i can just use salt from now on, but i cannot eat it plain!
teriyaki beef nuggets

Here's what my meals look like from yesterday

Breakfast:
1 cup raw spinach, 1/2 zuchini, 1 all natural chicken sausage, 3 organic cage-free eggs, 1 tomato, 5 cloves garlic, all cooked in a small amount of olive oil and salt/pepper

Lunch:
1 cup cottage cheese, 3 celery stick dipped in about 2 TBS homemade peanut butter (no oils or sugars added), 1 cup white beans

Dinner: Homemade vegetable soup w/ chicken (no pasta or potatoes in my bowl... i had to pick it out, since the kids and hubs still want the carbs...)


I didn't think about ESE hindering Slow Carb diet, but i will maybe drop it out of the routine this week (although I'm fasting today, i can break early, but i'll need to buy lunch, since i didn't bring any) and see if there is any sort of difference (good or bad)

Also, you're right, i don't think i have a lot left to lose... i'm at 120 lbs... but i estimate that i have 24% body fat, not sure what my goal is there. i still have a few inches to lose off my belly area before i'm happy. i, like you, am mostly concerned with my waistline. i have bigger thighs too but i think those will follow the tummy in inches lost. i would like the area around my belly button to shrink about 3 more inches, this will allow my jeans in the botttom drawer to be buttoned again.

working out is sporadic for me. i know i need to be better about it, but life is crazy - full-time working mom. ah! and the hubs and the 2 yr old have been sick, leaving mom little time to do anything good for herself. and work has required a lot of overtime lately, stealing any freetime i might've had after work. hopefully with everyone getting healthy and work slowing down i can get back into some sort of routine. i'm a runner by nature, but also do the Jillian Michael's DVDs at night.

mcferg

coconut milk (this actually accounted for about 400 calories) added to my coffee, gonna switch to homemade almond milk
agave nectar (it's low in the GI, but never saw much about this) - i need my coffee and i need it sweet, any solutions?
carrot juice
dark chocolate - just a couple small pieces, i know it's low on sugar and it really helps me with any sweet cravings i have
butter - i don't use a lot but i put some on my edamame, i can just use salt from now on, but i cannot eat it plain!
teriyaki beef nuggets

Doh! I'm not here to tell anyone what to eat, but that's a lot of disallowed stuff. I think to say that you're on slow-carb diet is a bit of a stretch. OK, not a bit of a stretch...it's really simply not true. 400 calories on coconut milk in your coffee? How much coffee do you drink!? :happy:

BTW - I wouldn't consider dark chocolate low in sugar. It's lower than milk chocolate and some other candies, but if you're on a diet that focuses on eliminating sugar, I dunno. Also - even though it satisfies your cravings short-term, you may be sabotaging yourself in the long run. I find that the less I eat carbs, particularly high G.I. ones, the more I crave them. It's easier for me to not over-indulge if I eliminate them entirely than if I attempt to eat small quantities. Besides - you have the cheat day. Keep a mental list of the things you are craving, and eat them on that day.


Here's what my meals look like from yesterday

Breakfast:
1 cup raw spinach, 1/2 zuchini, 1 all natural chicken sausage, 3 organic cage-free eggs, 1 tomato, 5 cloves garlic, all cooked in a small amount of olive oil and salt/pepper

Lunch:
1 cup cottage cheese, 3 celery stick dipped in about 2 TBS homemade peanut butter (no oils or sugars added), 1 cup white beans

Dinner: Homemade vegetable soup w/ chicken (no pasta or potatoes in my bowl... i had to pick it out, since the kids and hubs still want the carbs...)

Well, clearly, that's not 2500 calories...right? The one thing I see here, though is that there's no legumes...none....at all (unless you count the PB, which I wouldn't). Again, everyone has to find what works for them, but I find that it works really well to try include all 3 components (veggie+protein+legume) at each meal.

Also, you're right, i don't think i have a lot left to lose... i'm at 120 lbs... but i estimate that i have 24% body fat, not sure what my goal is there. i still have a few inches to lose off my belly area before i'm happy. i, like you, am mostly concerned with my waistline. i have bigger thighs too but i think those will follow the tummy in inches lost. i would like the area around my belly button to shrink about 3 more inches, this will allow my jeans in the botttom drawer to be buttoned again.

How are you estimating it? I have a scale that measures body fat, but it's garbage. I think it told me my body fat was something like 18% when I was about 20 lbs heavier than I am now, and I know that's not true. I'm not willing to goto the trouble of getting it done. If I thought it would help me stick to the diet, I would, but, right now - I'm happy with just going by the fit of my clothes and the scale, simply for convenience. I would look to a legit body fat measurement if felt like I was really sticking to the diet and my typical indicators told me I wasn't making any progress at all.

working out is sporadic for me. i know i need to be better about it, but life is crazy - full-time working mom. ah! and the hubs and the 2 yr old have been sick, leaving mom little time to do anything good for herself. and work has required a lot of overtime lately, stealing any freetime i might've had after work. hopefully with everyone getting healthy and work slowing down i can get back into some sort of routine. i'm a runner by nature, but also do the Jillian Michael's DVDs at night.

The diet doesn't really require you to exercise. Of course, you know it's good for you to exercise, but I had my best week yet this week, and I didn't exercise at all (my wife & 3yr old were sick, so I know how you feel). It's best to get into a routine when you can, but I also think if things are SO crazy at home and work that exercising actually CAUSES you stress, because you struggle to fit it in, it can be a wash, so you might as well skip it. Then again, though, I think most people FEEL like there's no time, but really there is...just because you're busier than usual doesn't mean there's no time - it just becomes harder to use some of the little bit of free time you have to exercise...unless you truly love the exercise you're doing (this is true for running for me, but I HATE strength training).

Here's something my doctor told me last time I was in for a physical:

"Your obesity is in remission. That doesn't mean it doesn't still need to be treated. People exercise and watch what they eat and lose a certain amount of weight, then they act like they're cured and go back to old habits. You're not cured. You need to approach diet and exercise like treatment for a disease that's in remission. It's still there, and the only reason it's not affecting you is because you're treating it. I will never understand why people can't, don't or simply won't treat exercise as something they *have* to do. It's always treated as optional. You wouldn't skip work 3 days in a week just because you're not in the mood. You never even question whether or not you might go to work nearly every day - you just do it. This is how you should approach exercise, because the consequences of not doing it are just as severe."

You have to know my doctor to get the context...it didn't come across as "serious" as it sounds to read it, but what he says is true. Since that appointment, this past week being sick is the first time since that I haven't exercised at least 4 times. Of course, he want me to do 6 hours per week of exercise - 3 of cardio and 3 of strength. I do about 3 hours of running per week now, and about 2 of strength...but that's only since I started this diet...I hate strength training. It's like torture. In fact, one of the reasons I'm rambling on and on and on in this post is to put off the workout. UGH.

Sorry for the rant...

briteyes

Doh! I'm not here to tell anyone what to eat, but that's a lot of disallowed stuff. I think to say that you're on slow-carb diet is a bit of a stretch. OK, not a bit of a stretch...it's really simply not true. 400 calories on coconut milk in your coffee? How much coffee do you drink!? :happy:

i used about 1 cup of Thai Kitchen coconut milk in my 2 shots of espresso. i HATE the taste of coffee but around 2 pm i felt the need for a pick-me-up so i splurged... again, i'm going to switch to Almond milk and actually i only have coffee once or twice a week, usually on the weekend. but the coconut milk from what i'm reading is a slow carb item - it's very low carb actually and is considered a fat, unlike milk.

BTW - I wouldn't consider dark chocolate low in sugar. It's lower than milk chocolate and some other candies, but if you're on a diet that focuses on eliminating sugar, I dunno. Also - even though it satisfies your cravings short-term, you may be sabotaging yourself in the long run. I find that the less I eat carbs, particularly high G.I. ones, the more I crave them. It's easier for me to not over-indulge if I eliminate them entirely than if I attempt to eat small quantities. Besides - you have the cheat day. Keep a mental list of the things you are craving, and eat them on that day.

dully noted

Well, clearly, that's not 2500 calories...right? The one thing I see here, though is that there's no legumes...none....at all (unless you count the PB, which I wouldn't). Again, everyone has to find what works for them, but I find that it works really well to try include all 3 components (veggie+protein+legume) at each meal.

it is if you add the snacks i mentioned (especially the coconut milk!!!) again, i'm going to work on that

How are you estimating it? I have a scale that measures body fat, but it's garbage. I think it told me my body fat was something like 18% when I was about 20 lbs heavier than I am now, and I know that's not true. I'm not willing to goto the trouble of getting it done. If I thought it would help me stick to the diet, I would, but, right now - I'm happy with just going by the fit of my clothes and the scale, simply for convenience. I would look to a legit body fat measurement if felt like I was really sticking to the diet and my typical indicators told me I wasn't making any progress at all.

based off of a stupid unreliable online calculator. every year in February, we have a health fair at work and there is a person w/ the handheld body fat analyzer that i use. i wish i had access to one more regularly, but i don't. i am definitely watching the way my clothes fit and also the definition that is forming around my abs. something i'm doing is working, but maybe not as efficiently as it should be.

The diet doesn't really require you to exercise. Of course, you know it's good for you to exercise, but I had my best week yet this week, and I didn't exercise at all (my wife & 3yr old were sick, so I know how you feel). It's best to get into a routine when you can, but I also think if things are SO crazy at home and work that exercising actually CAUSES you stress, because you struggle to fit it in, it can be a wash, so you might as well skip it. Then again, though, I think most people FEEL like there's no time, but really there is...just because you're busier than usual doesn't mean there's no time - it just becomes harder to use some of the little bit of free time you have to exercise...unless you truly love the exercise you're doing (this is true for running for me, but I HATE strength training).


Here's something my doctor told me last time I was in for a physical:

"Your obesity is in remission. That doesn't mean it doesn't still need to be treated. People exercise and watch what they eat and lose a certain amount of weight, then they act like they're cured and go back to old habits. You're not cured. You need to approach diet and exercise like treatment for a disease that's in remission. It's still there, and the only reason it's not affecting you is because you're treating it. I will never understand why people can't, don't or simply won't treat exercise as something they *have* to do. It's always treated as optional. You wouldn't skip work 3 days in a week just because you're not in the mood. You never even question whether or not you might go to work nearly every day - you just do it. This is how you should approach exercise, because the consequences of not doing it are just as severe."

You have to know my doctor to get the context...it didn't come across as "serious" as it sounds to read it, but what he says is true. Since that appointment, this past week being sick is the first time since that I haven't exercised at least 4 times. Of course, he want me to do 6 hours per week of exercise - 3 of cardio and 3 of strength. I do about 3 hours of running per week now, and about 2 of strength...but that's only since I started this diet...I hate strength training. It's like torture. In fact, one of the reasons I'm rambling on and on and on in this post is to put off the workout. UGH.

Sorry for the rant...

please do not apologize. it's all very helpful. we all need a kick in the butt every once in a while. now, i've never been obese or even "overweight" according to any chart, but i know what looks good on me and what does not. i might be working for vanity lbs, but really, i'm working for total health and fitness. i don't need to be at 15% body fat to be happy, i just want to fit into my size 3 jeans again w/ out having a muffin top. i can finally fit into my size 7s w/ out a muffin top and it feels awesome and i'm sure hubs is pretty happy about it too

also, my 6 year old is watching all of this and realizes that eating healthy is important. he sees mom and dad doing it and knows it's a good thing i can proudly say my kids LOVE fruits and veggies.

mcferg

i used about 1 cup of Thai Kitchen coconut milk in my 2 shots of espresso. i HATE the taste of coffee but around 2 pm i felt the need for a pick-me-up so i splurged... again, i'm going to switch to Almond milk and actually i only have coffee once or twice a week, usually on the weekend. but the coconut milk from what i'm reading is a slow carb item - it's very low carb actually and is considered a fat, unlike milk.

Lol - it seems to me like if you hate the taste of coffee, the simple solution here is to not drink coffee. How about tea?

please do not apologize. it's all very helpful. we all need a kick in the butt every once in a while. now, i've never been obese or even "overweight" according to any chart, but i know what looks good on me and what does not. i might be working for vanity lbs, but really, i'm working for total health and fitness. i don't need to be at 15% body fat to be happy, i just want to fit into my size 3 jeans again w/ out having a muffin top. i can finally fit into my size 7s w/ out a muffin top and it feels awesome and i'm sure hubs is pretty happy about it too

Frankly, I'm not sure where the obesity remark my doctor made came from necessarily. I think the heaviest I've weighed at this particular doctor is 217 lbs (I'm 6'3")...I have a fairly slight frame, so I know that's overweight, but wouldn't have considered it obese...maybe it is. Anyway...I'm with you...I'm closing in on only 10 lbs to lose, and while it may be vanity as well, it's more than that...it really affects how I feel in general, the way I carry myself, and literally puts me in a better mood.

also, my 6 year old is watching all of this and realizes that eating healthy is important. he sees mom and dad doing it and knows it's a good thing i can proudly say my kids LOVE fruits and veggies.

Exactly - you're setting a great example for your kids!

caprica

mcferg wrote:

The best news is that I'm only up 1.4 lbs after my cheat day. So far, my weight loss / cheat day gain looks like this:

Week 1: Lost 1 lb, Gained 6 lbs on cheat day - cheat day weight gone on Thursday
Week 2: Lost 1 lb, Gained 3 lbs on cheat day - cheat day weight gone on Wednesday
Week 3: Lost 1.5 lb, Gained 1.5 lb on cheat day - cheat day weight gone...??

Do you think you will end up loosing the 20 pounds in 1 month that Tim claims in his book?

mcferg

Do you think you will end up loosing the 20 pounds in 1 month that Tim claims in his book?

Hahahahahahaha...if only!

Here's the thing...my goal is only to lose 15 lbs. I'm 6' 3" and that would put me at 175 lbs - a weight I haven't seen since I was 16, and when I was 16 (and 2 inches shorter). I'm 39 now. Also, I'm 3 weeks in and down 3.5 lbs, so I think 5 lbs in a month would be optimistic at this point.

I think, though, based on my experience with other diets (and other starting weights) some people could realistically lose 20 lbs on this plan. I started this diet at 190 lbs...if I had started at, say, 220, I do think I could actually lose 20 lbs in a month. I've lost 20 lbs in a month on other diets starting at that weight, so it doesn't seem that far-fetched.

What's appealing to me about this diet isn't the rate of weight loss - it's that I don't recall enjoying a diet this much ever. At least so far, I don't want to change, because I like it. I don't have many cravings. When I do, I can mentally store them for cheat day (I've already decided that this Sunday I'll be enjoying a turkey bacon club from the local greasy spoon). I Iove the bean, protein veggie combo. I'm eating out less. I'm saving money.

Don't get me wrong. I'm not a disciple here. I think a lot of 4HB is hooey. Also, there's something about the book that also reads a LOT like the book "I Hope They Serve Beer in Hell", which isn't a diet book, but a book written by the world's biggest d-bag. I'm not talking about content, but tone. However, the fundamental meat, veggie, legume with 1 cheat day a week makes sense to me. In fact....it's an awfully long book just to get to that, but I never came to that conclusion on my own, so....

briteyes

funny you ask why i even drink coffee... good question...haha. probably for the caffeine content! and i don't really enjoy tea all that much either, unless it's lipton ice tea, chai tea (which has milk and sugar in it), or green tea w/ sugar in it.... hmmm i like sweet stuff!

i didn't really drink any coffee until hubs got me hooked on the caramel iced coffees from McD's on the way to church each sunday. then we started doing the starbucks thing. he finally broke down and just bought us an espresso machine for the house! lol... at least now i can control what goes into my drink!

i just spent the last hour prepping all the food i will eat tomorrow.... made a stop at the local health food store to pick up more legumes and other veggies. cooked up my breakfast omelette to reheat in the morning (i am no morning person, so for me to cook up an omelette at o'dark thirty w/ a nagging 2 year old at my side just isn't gonna happen).

so tomorrow, my omelette for breakfast, homemade hummus w/ bell peppers and sugarsnap peas to dip in it for a snack, and a yummy leafy salad w/ alfalfa sprouts and salmon for lunch. no legumes in my breakfast but that might be because i cannot fathom adding legumes to my omelette. that's why i will make up for it later w/ the hummus. then for dinner it will probably be the leftover minestrone soup and maybe some edamame for "dessert"

how does all that sound? it's definitely a lot more food prep than i am used to, but i really want to get rid of these final lbs or inches, or whatever they turn out to be.

mmnichol

Is anyone having trouble digesting all the beans and legumes?

cheerbabe080790

it has made sort of a snowball effect. im jst going to have to folloow this diet strictly to the letter if im gonna get back on track with it again. The cheat day in the middle of the week comepletely threw me off and my cravings r workse then before.

briteyes

it has made sort of a snowball effect. im jst going to have to folloow this diet strictly to the letter if im gonna get back on track with it again. The cheat day in the middle of the week comepletely threw me off and my cravings r workse then before.

I'm sorry to hear that. Hopefully you can make this diet work for you.

I really do think every one is different but this diet is somewhat flexible. You just have to remember no white carbs, no fruits, no dairy... and a few other no-nos...

I had a much better day yesterday. Only about 1400 calories and MFP claims I'll be down to 117 in 5 weeks if I eat like that every day. I did skip breakfast yesterday, though, so if I would've eaten my slow carb breakfast I would've been up to 1900 cals. I look at what i'm eating and the majority of the food is vegetables, so I think even though the calories do add up, maybe since they are vegetables, the body is going to even handle the burning/storing of those differently then a Egg McMuffin, right?

I have been thinking a lot about this and why it supposedly works. For the life of my I can't figure out how to keep my calories as low as I was when I was following a calorie restrictive diet. And I think the reason why the calories don't matter AS much is because of the way the body handles slow carbs. By not feeding our body the fast burning carbs / sugars, we are forcing our bodies to burn the stored fat. The slow carbs go into our system and aren't used up right away like a candy bar would be.

And i was thinking about weight watchers and how they allow you to eat all the fruits and vegetables you want and they are considered 0 points for the most part. There must be a reason for that, right? As in they are just so useful for the body that there really are no restrictions on those items.

At least I hope that this is all true :P

I'm trying to be really good this week. Last night was really tough. I had major sweet tooth and i ended up drinking a really unflavorful, unenjoyable chai tea with 2 oz of coconut milk and a small amount of agave nectar and cocoa powder. it at least seemed to satisfy my craving, but it still was not very yummy.

evenings are my toughest - i want sweets and milk.

sarakaufman

I just watched him on DR. oz yesterday and dr. oz even did his own reseach and he said it works if you do everything he saids to a t and no missing steps. I was thinking of trying it.

shirkmac

Any thoughts on pork rinds?

briteyes

Any thoughts on pork rinds?

i don't eat them. they sound gross...LOL, but i would think that even though they are low carb, they would be high in fat - deep fried???

walkers345

mmnichol,

I am having the hardest time processing all the protein. I know this is tmi, but I have had the worst consipation. I decided today that I need to drink TONS of water! It's such a pain, but I am very prone to water retention, and the constipation makes it worse. I've been taking 1000mg of Magnesium and 3000mg of Vitamin C a day(which may make a normal person have diarhea, but not me!)
You may try that if your digestion isn't what it used to be. I think I need something more, and I'm starting with water. Hope to get things moving soon

mmnichol

Sorry, I meant the other issue with beans, i've heard the body adapts. Beans 3x a day doesn become a "social issue"??