Day 34: I did it!

Body Fat: 17%
Total Inches: 134.0
Weight: 144.6 lbs



I did it! My goal was to get down to 145 pounds and although it took me an extra 4 days, I've done it! It feels good - I'm down to my lowest weight in over 14 years. Previous to this 4 hour body challenge I was at my highest at about 165 - 20 pounds higher then when I got married. I suppose that's not really that bad, but it was definitely noticeable. Then Jobina went on her so called "death diet" and I lost about 1o pounds. Fast forward to May where I went on the 4 Hour Body's slow carb diet and now I've lost another 10 pounds for a total of 20 total. Before these two diets I'd never really gone on a diet before so it was quite the new experience for me. Perhaps that's why it worked fairly quickly for me?

Breakfast: 2 eggs, iced water

Lunch: Taco salad

Supper: Pork tenderloin, sauteed veggies, salad

4 Hour Body Weight Loss Eating Plan: Random Impressions

-First of all, this diet isn't the "super diet" that works for everyone. Jobina did it with me and found it wasn't as effective as other eating plans she's tried.
-If you like me are coming from a high carb lifestyle it can be pretty painful (withdrawal) to go off off pasta and cheese.
-Having a cheat day to look forward where you are encouraged to eat anything you wish is a very nice way to handle the temptations. By having a cheat day I was able to stop myself from cheating the other 6 days of the week.
-Psychological effects: Definitely my choice to track my progress was probably the biggest factor in keeping it up, followed by the public nature of this blog. Also, having Jobina do it with me meant I had at home accountability. "Misery loves company" is very true! We both felt that if we cheated we were not only letting ourselves down but the other person as well. This was powerful motivation when one of us was tempted or "whiny."
-Cheating: If you look at the chart at the top, you can see that my weight jump up after a cheat day. Perhaps if I didn't cheat, I wouldn't have experienced these jumps, but I found that the mental pressure release from the cheat day helped me to stick to the diet in the long wrong.
-Scale: Our scale kind of sucked. The body fat analyzer didn't work for me a lot of the time and so tracking this became useless. It was nice to see some total inches lost, but it wasn't as effective a motivator as I thought it would be. I think that for other people this might be different though. As long as you are seeing progress of some time (weight, total inches, body fat) it will help you to keep going.
-Feel: I don't feel much more healthy, even though I dropped the pounds. Part of it is that I have back problems right now, but a lot of is that you don't feel that great after eating lots of meat.
-Cost: This diet ended up costing us a little more then usual due to eating out on cheat days and purchasing extra meat.
-Miscellaneous: I didn't realize how often I reward myself with food (usually bad food). Several times on Friday nights I would feel lost not knowing how to celebrate the end of a week. I'd say it took me 4 full weeks before I weaned myself off this kind of thinking and substituted other things.
-Future: I can see myself going on this diet every now and then (Ferris says to embrace cycling and stop worrying about keeping your body at a constant weight) when needed. I'd like to try experimenting with other parts of the book (building muscle, building strength, etc) but my back situation might stop me. As soon as I do, I'll start posting. In the meantime, I'll slowly add some carbs to my diet but keep tracking my weight to see what happens. I would like to maintain this weight for awhile.

Day 33: Getting There

Body Fat: 17.8%
Total Inches: 134.0
Weight: 145.5 lbs

Good day today with a decent weigh in. Starting to get my weekly carb cravings. Yesterday there was a power outage and we couldn't really prepare food so we went to the nearest restaurant for lunch - which happened to be McDonalds. Don't worry, we ate healthy (salads) but it was hard smelling all the other "bad food" on a non-cheat day. Aside from that not a bad day. My goal is in sight. Will I reach it by Saturday (my next cheat day), that is the question.

Breakfast: 2 eggs, Iced water

Lunch: McDonald's salad, no dressing, no croutons

Supper: Sauteed italian veggies, garlic shrimp (yum), and salad

Day 32: Getting Closer

Body Fat: 17.8%
Total Inches: 134.0
Weight: 145.8 lbs

Cracked 146 so that's good. I feel strangely at peace with eating plan, now that my goal is in sight. I'm not even craving carbs (like I usually am this time of week). Still not sure if I can see myself doing this long term although I know that a very similar diet is used when building muscle or strength so it might be continuing into the next experiment.

Breakfast: 2 eggs, iced water, seasoned ground beef, salso

Lunch: 3 pieces of roast beef, roasted carrots

Supper: Pea soup (2 bowls)

Day 31: The End?

Body Fat: 17.8%
Total Inches: 134.0
Weight: 146.4 lbs

Well today marked the official end of my 4 Hour Body weight reducing diet plan experiment. My goal was to lose 1o pounds but as of my weigh in this morning I was down 7.8 - close but no cigar. Although I'm happy with the results (I'm only 1.4 pounds heavier then I was when I got married), I'd still like to see if I could break 145. Thus, I've decided to keep going with the eating plan until at least Saturday (and possibly as long as two weeks). Jobina has told me she is not continuing with the plan so I'll be on my own - we'll see how this affects my self discipline.

Breakfast: Iced water, 2 eggs (ran out of spinach sadly)

Lunch: Chicpea curry with veggies

Supper: Roast beef, gravy, salad

Day 30: Slight Reductions

Body Fat: 17.8%
Total Inches: 134.0
Weight: 147.8 lbs

Today was a super busy day so I didn't have time for a decent breakfast, but Jobina was kind enough to drop off a taco meat salad for me at work (thanks honey!) which kind of saved me. I sense a sickness coming on so I'll have to see how that affects me tomorrow - I hope it holds off til Thursday morning!

Starting to think about what happens after tomorrow. Do I end the experiment or extend it? Or do I transition to one of the other 4 Hour Body bodyhacks; strength or muscle building. Not sure right now.

Breakfast: spoonful of peanut butter (yah, pretty sad I know)

Lunch: Massive taco salad

Supper:

Day 29: Post Cheat Gaining

Body Fat: 17.8%
Total Inches: 134.0
Weight: 148.5 lbs

2.5 pound increase after cheat day! Oh well, it shocks me less then it used to. This 30 day experiment has been interesting and today I had a new challenge. Jobina made homemade chocolate chip cookies (one of my favorite things) but we couldn't eat them. Then we had some old friends over with their kids so they all ate cookies. But I still stayed strong. Then (horror of horrors!), Jobina decided that eating a cookie (or two) would be OK for her so I was the only one left standing. Huge temptation! But somehow I sipped my tasteless tea and got through it. Social events of any kind seem to be huge when it comes to staying strong.

Breakfast: spoonful of peanut butter (we were late for church), iced water

Lunch: 3 eggs, spinach

Supper: chicken, veggies, water

Day 28: My Cheating Heart

Body Fat: 18.7%
Total Inches: 134.0
Weight: 146 lbs

Today, after much discussion (and pressure from Jobina) we decided to make today our cheat day. I was tentative at first but then I remembered my discipline and proceeded to eat 6 pieces of French toast. Mmmm . . . French toast. From there it all got easier. Down almost a pound this morning it is a bit troubling to realize that it will all come back (with friends) tomorrow. Ah well, today was wonderful!

Breakfast: 6 pieces of French toast, apple juice

Lunch: Chicken noodle soup with lots of crackers

Supper: Tuna fish casserole, OJ

Misc: Frapuccino, many reese's peanut butter cups, chips and salsa,

P.S. Tried to do some air squats (as prescribed by Tim Ferris for binging) after one meal

Day 27: So Close!

Body Fat: 18.7%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 146.9 lbs

1.9 pounds to go! Not sure I can drop that much in 4 days (to reach my second goal) but I will try. Note: By try I mean "stick to the eating plan and hope for the best!" The problem is I have a cheat day either today or tomorrow (still haven't decided which one) which will temporarily make my weight go up again. Yet if I skip the cheat day (and honestly, I don't think I have enough willpower to) then I'm breaking the rules of the eating plan. Probably when I weigh myself tomorrow morning then I'll make my decision . . .

Breakfast: Iced water, 2 eggs, spinach

Lunch: Nothing (work interfered with this and I planned poorly)

Supper: 2 steaks, cooked spinach, stir fried veggies (including mmmmmushrooms), cottage cheese, a little ham

Snack: Tablespoon of natural peanut butter

Day 26: Getting Closer!

Fat: 18.7%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 147.6 lbs

Interesting. There is a real pattern developing. Every week I make some progress, then after my cheat day it takes at least three days to recover. Those three days are kind of discouraging because my weight shoots up no matter what I do. Then mysteriously it begins to inch down and then usually gets a little lower then it was the previous week. If a person can be patient enough to get through the discouraging days, you get to see small but consistent results. Today when I woke up and weighed myself I was only .2 pounds away from last weeks lowest weight. Hopefully I will surpass that tomorrow?

A side effect of doing this diet is increased discipline. I felt good when Jobina told me a story of one of her friends who her and her husband only lasted 2 hours on their new eating plan! Jobina has said that this experiment has helped her to realize she can do anything she puts her mind to. I don't know if I can say that, but I will say that I realized that I can discipline myself more then I thought I could. A very empowering realization.

Breakfast: Iced water, 2 scrambled eggs, spinach

Lunch: Salad?

Supper: Lamb chops, salad, spaghetti squash and marinara sauce

Day 25: Status Quo

Fat: 18.7%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 148.8 lbs

Same as yesterday, nothing to report. Jobina whipped up a big pan of taco seasoned ground beef and I ate a lot of it yesterday right before bed, we'll see how it effects my weight tomorrow.

Breakfast: Eggs, spinach, iced water

Lunch: Taco flavored salad

Supper Taco flavored salad, 2 servings of taco meat/salsa

Day 24: (Sigh)

Fat: 19.1%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 148.8

Slight reductions, ah well.

Breakfast: Iced Water, eggs,

Lunch: McDonald's salad

Supper: Chicken and mixed veggies

Snack: Humus and veggies (humus is apparently not the best for weight gain)

Day 23: Yuck

Fat: 19.1%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 150.1 lbs

Wow, was expecting a slight drop, jumped up a little instead. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

Breakfast: Iced water, eggs, spinach

Lunch: Cottage cheese, pork tenderloin salad

Supper: Mexican chicken salad

Day 22: Post Cheat Gains

Fat: 18.6%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 149.6 lbs

Yikes, jumped up quite a bit after my cheat (almost 2 pounds)! Compensated by doing a 3 hour bike ride today.

Breakfast: Iced water, 2 eggs, spinach

Lunch: Pork tenderloin salad

Supper: Chicken, mixed veggies, salad

Snack: 1/2 tablespoon of natural peanut butter

Day 21: Cheating But Strangely Subdued

Fat: 18.6%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 147.8 lbs

A few points up before cheating (which is slightly deflating) but perhaps it helped me feel a little less crazy on a cheat day. Curiously as this is my third cheat day I did not feel compelled to gorge myself (while I still could!) and didn't get completely sick like the last two times. Instead I ate a lot, but was not gluttonous. Feel better about that, it will be interesting to see if it takes longer to lose the weight as Ferris says that when you cheat, cheat good!

Breakfast: 3 big bowls of honey nut cheerios.

Lunch: Big Mac, fries, Junior Chicken burger, root beer

Supper: 3 pieces of homemade Hawaiian pizza, Dr. Pepper, chips.

Snack: Large Root beer float, 2 reese's peanut butter cups, strawberries

Day 20: Another Drop Before Cheat Day

Fat: 18.6%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 147.4 lbs

One pound drop overnight - not sure why but I'll take it. Hopefully cheat day tomorrow won't undo all that has been accomplished this week! Today I had (for me) an active day - I got out of work early and spent the day doing the lawn, biking, and going for a walk with the family. I was amazed at how easily I get tired and winded. Now I am severely out of shape, but this was worse then even my usual. I think about how heavy on carbs my old "diet" was compared to now - I guess it's understandable. Since beginning this experiment I conservatively estimate that I've cut out 95% of my carbs, 75% of my sugar, and 90% of my dairy. It's crazy when I think about it. Tomorrow I dream of pasta, bread, and chocolate (ah sweet luxuries).

Breakfast: Iced water, 2 scrambled eggs, spinach

Lunch: Pork tenderloin leftovers and spinach

Supper: Mexican vegetarian soup, cottage cheese, lots of water (Jobina makes it spicy!)

Day 19: Keeping on Keeping On

Fat: 18.6%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 148.4 lbs

Not too much to report. I've given up on photo documenting my meals - I'm beyond the point where that would affect my discipline. 24 hours until my next cheat day - and I can't wait. Tried thermal loading again - twice with the cold water in the shower. By the way, I'm doing a max of 60 seconds of cold - something I've slowly worked my way up to. Tim Ferris is right - it wakes you up like a foghorn (although in the evening after the shock has worn off then I think it actually helps me to sleep better). 10 more days and three more pounds to go.

Jobina and I have been doing this together but because she was having some unpleasant symptoms (dizziness and extreme fatigue) she has "tweaked" her diet to include some small amounts of carbs. Logically I support her 100% but a piece of me (the emotive side) feels abandoned to suffer the cruelty of the eating plan alone. I have felt a little dizzy after getting up some times as well and wonder how the lack of carbs is affecting me. Nothing else has been problematic.

Breakfast: Iced water, spinach, 2 scrambled eggs (this is now my go to breakfast)

Lunch: Chicken Teriyaki Salad

Supper: Pork tenderloin (orange glazed), salad, grilled veggies

Evening Snack: A tablespoon of natural peanut butter (yes, it's sad, but it's the closest to desert we have)

Day 18: More losses?

Body Fat: 18.6%
Total Inches: 136.75
Weight: 148.2 lbs

I was pretty shocked to wake up and see I'd lost over a pound - especially as I didn't feel really disciplined yesterday. I'm wondering if my use of cold water during showers (not the whole time, only about a minute) is what's putting me over the edge? Not sure really, but we'll see how things go tomorrow. Here's what I ate today:

Breakfast: Iced water 25 minutes before eating, 2 scrambled eggs, spinach

Lunch: Salsa salad, sliced baloney

Supper: Teriyaki chicken, stir fried veggies (peppers, beans, mushrooms, water chestnuts, etc)

Extras: Did one 60 seconds of thermal loading in the shower, 50 air squats directly after a meal

Day 17: First Goal Achieved

Body Fat: 19%
Total Inches: 136.75
Weight: 149.9 lbs

Well today I reached my first goal, 5 pounds lost at day 17. That leaves less then two weeks to lose the last 5. What do you think my chances are? I'm hoping to do a big bike ride this Saturday (from my house in Winnipeg to Grand Beach (anyone want to come along?) so I'm hoping that I might lose a good pound or two on that, even though it is my cheat day. Today though I celebrate progress!

P.S. Although I've reached my first goal, I expect that my weight may jump again over 150, but I can live with that. Two steps forward, one step back seems to be the way of this eating plan.

Breakfast: Iced water, 2 eggs, spinach

Lunch: Roast beef, brocolli

Supper: Roast beef salad, water

Day 16: Feeling Good

Body Fat: 19%
Total Inches: 136.5
Weight: 151.5 lbs

Today I had a good feeling and woke up renewed in my zeal for this whole 4 hour body experiment. Not sure why, maybe a good night's sleep? Anyway, felt good about my meals and it really helped that Jobina made my lunch for me. Anticipating losses tomorrow, especially since I tried doing some air squats before lunch and had two showers where I tried 60 seconds of cold water (more thermal loading). Yikes, that wakes you up fast!

Breakfast: Iced water, 2 eggs/spinach

Lunch: Salsa salad with spiced lentils and chicken

Supper: Roast beef and brocolli

Day 15: Post Cheat Gains

Body Fat: 20%
Total Inches: 136.75
Weight: 152.7 lbs

Breakfast: Iced water, bowl of lentils/spinach/taco meat/eggs/salsa

Lunch: Taco salad with salsa

Supper: Thai Peanut butter chicken stir fry (very yummy)

Day 14: 2 Week Cheat Day

Body Fat: 19%
Total Inches: 136.75
Weight: 150.1 lbs

Weighing myself this morning I realized that I had lost a mere .1 pounds but today was reserved for cheating (ah sweet cheat day). Here's what it looked like:

Breakfast: 6 pieces of French toast with corn syrup and icing sugar, apple juice
Lunch: Chicken fingers and mashed potatoes at Montana's, 2 glasses of Brisk lemonade
After lunch: one medium frappucino from Starbucks (1/2 price!)
Supper: Burger, chips, hot dog, 2 cokes, ice cream bar, mac and cheese

Day 13: Baby Steps

Body Fat: 19.3%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 150.2 lbs

Last night I lost .3 of a pound which is not much but tantalizingly close to the half point of my goal - 5 pounds off at the 150 pound mark. I will keep on going until I reach 145 or the 30 days is over. Tomorrow is a cheat day so I have no idea what that will do in the long run although I expect a couple pounds put on and then leaving over 48 hours. I spent a fair amount of time this week whining and complaining to Jobina (which I felt was unlike me) and I blame it on the lack of carbs. I miss carbs like my own children. Ah well, I can last. This will definitely not be a long term plan though. Also, I tried freezing cold water in the shower this morning for 30 seconds (thermal loading) and it was not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. I will be doing that again for sure.

Breakfast: Iced water, eggs, taco ground beef, salsa, spinach


Lunch: Taco salad (minus tacos, sour cream, cheese, and anything else really tasty)

Supper: Chicken and veggies a la Jobina (with pizza sauce added)

Surprised by loss

Body Fat: 18.5%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 150.5 lbs

Lost some weight last night! That is mildly encouraging since I'm starting to get sick of not being able to eat carbs. I told Jobina last night that this experiment would be very difficult for me to continue long term as I miss breads, cheese, and pasta too much. Going vegetarian was way easier on me! Two more days til cheat day . . .

Breakfast: Iced water, eggs/ham, lentils, beef

Lunch: Meat/lentils/Salsa salad

Supper:

You may have noticed I'm not taking pics very often. Sadly this is because I keep forgetting!

Day 10: More Of The Same

Body Fat: 18.2%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 153.3 lbs

Little change again today. I've mostly adjusted to the diet now, just tough in the evenings when I get cravings for bread, cheese, etc.

Breakfast: Iced water, eggs/ham, chicken, spinach
Lunch: Spaghetti squash/meat sauce
Supper: Steak, mixed veggies

Day 9: Cheat Day Gains

Body Fat: 18.4%
Total Inches: 136.50
Weight: 153.5 lbs

Well, everything jumped up today except body fat - disconcerting but not unexpected. I expect the weight to go down to where it was previously over the next 24 hours. Jobina made a great fajita bowl today for supper - it was very good. Tried some insulin boosting exercises directly before and 90 minutes after eating. This is supposed to help your body to pass more of the food you eat as waste instead of absorbing it into your system. We'll see!


Breakfast: Iced water, ham and eggs, salsa, lentils


Lunch: Spaghetti meat sauce and spaghetti squash

Supper: Fajita Bowl (sorry no pic)

Day 8: Cheating For Real

Body Fat: 19.5%
Total Inches: 136.25
Weight: 152.2 lbs

Today was great because it was officially cheat day! Unfortunately, because of my unintentioned cheating the day before at the wedding, I gained again overnight which I think skewed my weekly number, but ah well. So, after one week, I lost two pounds, gained (according to my terribly inaccurate scale) 2.5% body weight, and remained about the same in total inches. Not too shabby I suppose.

Breakfast: Apple juice (yes it's in a wine glass with ice cubes - I like to eat fancy), many pieces of French toast with corn syrup and icing sugar
Lunch: Iced cap, sandwich, boston cream doughnut
Supper: Ribs, potato, brocolli casserole (mmmm), blueberry and peach pie, misc drinks and snacks til bedtime.

Day 7: Weddings Not Good For Eating Plans

Body Fat: 17.6%
Total Inches: 136.25
Weight: 150.8 lbs

One down, one number up, one number the same. Got some exercise today which was good. The bad - we went to the wedding and everything was carbs and sugar - ended up starting my cheat earlier then expected! Oh well, perfect adherence isn't possible all the time.

Breakfast: eggs with ham, iced water, spinach
Lunch: Veggie Soup, Salad
Supper: (at wedding) 4 slices of pizza, caesar salad, breadstick,

Day 6: More of the same

Body Fat: 18.8%
Total Inches: 136.25
Weight: 150.4 lbs

Another mostly plateaued day. Had some trouble with my scale this morning; took me a long time to get it to give me a consistent number, even for my weight. I'm going to stick with it though. Cravings dropped another 20% or so today. Tonight I was home by myself babysitting when Jobina was out and since usually I treat myself on such evenings to junk food, I instead concentrated on cleaning the house and doing the dishes. Not nearly as satisfying though.

I'm slowly doing some thermal loading by doing spurts of cold water in the shower in the morning. The colder your core gets, the faster you burn calories. I'm kind of a wimp when it comes to the cold so progress has been slow. One last day before our cheat day (we decided together it would be Mother's Day)!

Breakfast: Iced water 20 minutes before eating, eggs/spinach, lentils, salsa (highly recommended), and seasoned ground beef



Lunch: Vegetable soup, water (sorry no pics)

Supper: Chicken, brocolli, artichokes/tomatoes, water (sorry no pics)

Day 5: Plateau?

Body Fat: 18.6%
Total Inches: 138.00
Weight: 150.4 lbs

Good news: cravings are down about 50% from yesterday. It was a bit disappointing doing my tracking today as my weight remained steady, my body fat was slightly reduced and my inches was back where I started. Tracking is an interesting discipline - it brings out emotions such as joy, annoyance disappointment, shame, guilt, or anger. Of course these emotions depend on what you think of yourself and the process. I think that when heavier emotions are encountered as a result of tracking many people's instinct is to give up. I sense that pull myself (after only one day of plateauing - sad I know!) but I am choosing to ignore it. I figured ahead of time that it will eventually happen and that just means I will have to tweak something to get momentum again. Either I will change my diet, add exercise, add psych strategies, or a few other possibilities. Luckily, thanks to the book, I have further options if progress gets slow. I also know that most people have ups and downs and that is a normal part of the process.

Breakfast: Iced water 20 minutes before eating, ham and eggs, spinach, cottage cheese


Lunch: Pork and beans, sauteed shrimp (yes that's a weird combo)


Supper: A thin veggie soup, mixture of cottage cheese* and ground beef (sorry no pics), water

* In case you are curious, Tim Ferris says that cottage cheese is OK - the only dairy he recommends.

Day 4: Getting Through The Cravings

Body Fat: 19%
Total Inches: 138.37
Weight: 150.4 lbs

Sigh, 2 measurements up, 1 down. I console myself with the fact that at least one important measurement is down (weight). Body fat and measurements are less accurate anyway (I noticed a small error in measuring that might account for the increase I saw today). I really enjoy tracking my progress (or regress), it helps me when I feel weaker in my resolve.

Yesterday I had my first real test - because I had to run to a BCBC board meeting after work I didn't get a chance to eat anything before leaving the city. I knew there would be a snack at the meeting (7:30) so I had to decide - would I indulge? After all, it's not like I'd had anything else to eat in the past seven hours. Also, I had a headache and was extremely tired. I decided ahead of time that I wouldn't eat anything til I got home (which ended up being around 11:30pm) but it was tough. Some of my favorite snack foods were being served and I had to say "nyet" to them. So I had internal (hunger) pressure as well as social pressure. But I did it. The whole ride home I fantasized about stopping for some fast food but I refrained and had a delicious taco salad (without the tacos, cheese, or sour cream) when I got home which killed the cravings perfectly.

I remember when Jobina and I did the "death diet" (imagine that someone said they'd kill you by the end of the month if you didn't drop ___lbs - what would you do differently?) that eventually you have to face your cravings. This intense battle usually lasts for a couple of days and then (if you don't give in) the cravings go mostly away. I have a feeling I'm in that place of battle right now. I hope I don't have to go through a three day cravings battle every week! On this eating plan I can eat any amount of things, as long as they fit with the four rules. I hope this will help me when I get those cravings over the next 48 hours.

Breakfast: Lentils, taco seasoned ground beef, shaved ham, 3 eggs, tall glass of iced water 20 minutes before

Lunch: Taco salad minus the taco/cheese/sour cream/etc, water. Also had an extra plate of lentils/ground beef, a quarter cup of spinach, and a tablespoon of natural peanut butter



Supper: Shrimp, mixed veggies, and lentils (thanks honey!)

Day 3: Baby Steps of Progress

Body Fat: 17%
Total Inches: 136.7
Weight: 152.1 lbs

Still having a difficult time remembering to take pics of my food! Jobina made me an excellent breakfast but I'm not sure what to call it. You can't see it well in my somewhat pathetic pic below, but it is a bowl of 3 eggs, spinach, lentils, and salsa. Today I procrastinated for awhile by looking up recipes for Milkshakes for my cheat day - big mistake! Cravings are strong but I will resist. Yesterday I had no craving and today I wasn't hungry until I thought of milkshakes. Mmmm . . . sweet, creamy milkshakes. I have added this item to my "cheat day" list for this coming weekend.

Speaking of cheat days, we are in a bit of dilemma. We usually pick either Saturday or Sunday, but this weekend Saturday is a wedding and Sunday is Mother's Day. So what's worse - to abstain from delicious food on someone's special day (most likely with amazing deserts) or ruin Jobina's Mother's day? I'm leaning to abstaining at the wedding but we'll see how we do. Of course we are not totally legalistic about everything but tracking your info does not allow you the illusion that the food you eat doesn't affect your goals . . .

Speaking of which, psychology says that managed competition can by your ally when setting health goals. Anyone out there willing to challenge me to a weight/body fat reduction duel? If so, please contact me!

Breakfast: Jobina's lentil/eggs/salsa/spinach power breakfast (thanks honey), iced water 30 minutes before.


Lunch: Leftover stew (1 full bowl), water.

Supper: ?

Day 2: Back In the Saddle

Body Fat: 18%
Total Inches: 138.15
Weight:153.1 lbs

Yesterday was a pretty good cheat day. I felt like I had done a bit of a wimpy job at breakfast but going to McDonald's for lunch brought be back in the game and I definitely felt gorged and ready to diet again for today.

My starting numbers (which I expect to fluctuate quite a bit, especially because we got a new weight/body fat scale and so we aren't comparing apples to apples here) were not too radically changed. Many people say don't weigh/measure yourself every day as it can become demotivating (emotionally painful) but I agree with Ferris (and psychological literature) that says that in depth tracking increases one major thing - awareness - which is crucial to improvement. I plan to handle negative progress (increased weight) by reminding myself of my disciplines and sticking to them. Also, by tracking several different things (body fat, weight, and total inches) I can stay motivated when I see one thing plateau (such as weight) but still see improvements in others (say decreasing my total inches or body fat percentage). I find it tough to remember to photograph my meals - like today - but otherwise I'm keeping up with everything else.

Breakfast: Ice water 30 minutes before eating, 4 ounces of protein (leftover chicken . . . mmmm), cooked beans/carrots (also leftovers), handful of spinach

Lunch: More of the same above

Supper: 1 tall glass of water, two bowls of Jobina's amazing (but sans potatoes) stew

Day 1: Focused Cheating

Body Fat: 17%
Total Inches: 138
Weight:154.2 lbs

Most people don't find it helpful to start their new eating plan by eating as much as you can . . . but that is precisely what I am doing today. Because I have been gearing up for this plan by doing some of the things necessary over the past few weeks, I have been practicing cheat days and it just so happens that my cheat day falls on the first day we are starting. Ah, sweet coincidences.

According to Ferris' understanding, cheat days are not an allowance but an intentional and necessary step to keeping one's metabolic rate high. I've found over the past month that cheat days did not seem to hurt me at all. Aside from a quick boost in weight (which dissipated in a day or two) I was still able to lose weight. Having a cheat day increases adherence - the chances that you will actually stick to your discipline so I'm all for it. Today will be a day of much chocolate I am thinking.

P.S. In case you are wondering, Total inches = measurements of both upper arms (at the biceps), waist (at the navel), hips, and mid thing on both legs. Body fat percentage is measured by using a scale that uses bioimpedance (a small electric current sent through your body) which seemed to be the best balance of cost and accuracy. We bought the scale last night but may have to get another one as right now it will only allow us to weigh one person.

Morning Meal: 4 pieces of toast (mmm . . . sweet white carbs, bowl of frosted flakes, tall glass of AJ


Lunch: 2 chicken burgers, 1 bacon cheese burger, 1 milkshake



Supper: Fettucini Alfredo, salad, water, 3 pieces of easter chocolate

Evening Snack: 2 packs of Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, 2 chocolate eggs

Didn't post pictures because . . . well, I forgot. Still trying to remember all the new disciplines!

And So It Begins Like Most Diets - Tomorrow

As I mentioned previously in my personal blog (in this post) I have been reading through The 4 Hour Body by Tim Ferris. Definitely a fascinating book. As a fan of experimentation, I asked my wife Jobina if she would like to try doing the 4 Hour Body fat burning diet for a month to see how it goes. I actually have been experimenting with parts of it already (between that and the death diet, I have already lost 10-15 pounds) but I want to see if I can lose 5 or 10 more. Essentially I'm curious and I want assist Jobina with her own goals. This plan is actually quite simple:

1. Avoid "white" carbs
2. Eat the same few meals over and over again
3. Don't drink calories
4. Take one day off per week (yes, a cheat day)

Yes, that's it.

This of course is only the beginning, in addition to this I plan to use other powerful techniques the author has tested including:

-daily track my total inches, body fat, and weight
-use thermal loading/cold techniques to quicken my metabolism (ex/ ice water on awaking)
-take a photo of everything I eat and post it on weight loss blog
-use social awareness to increase adherence (public blog charting progress & bets with friends)
-take an unflattering "before" picture and put it in a prominent place
-when I get mid-week cravings, write down the foods I crave and plan/look forward to eating them on my cheat day

Most of the above techniques are psychological and have been proven by research to assist people in their health goals. Tracking your progress is by itself powerful enough enough to help people lose significant weight. I am 100% convinced that if I follow through on my plan I will lose the weight, possibly all within a month or two. I invite you to visit my experiment blog (here) to ask questions, shout slogans at me, tell me I'm out to lunch, or just say you've stopped by. Please do, it will help me out! After I lose the weight, I plan to use Ferris other techniques for gaining strength, adding muscle, and increasing endurance. . .