Four Hour Body: Part Deux

I hit 24.0 lbs lost and a 5% loss in body fat yesterday morning. Exactly five weeks to the day that we started this experiment (Four Hour Body) and with no changes in exercise. So far it is going really well.The cheat days cause plateaus and even small spikes up, but they are the mental break we need. Not eating fruit went out the door after the first week. I can't quit on apples and bananas, but I'm still avoiding white carbs and sugar.

Mainly it has forced me to pay attention to what I eat and how it effects me. We weigh in everyday and track it religiously via a shared spreadsheet. Tracking our stats and competing on them seem to be the best motivators. Even with forging her own diet path Crystal has lost 15 lbs. She started eating cereal for breakfast and taking a tuna sandwich on wheat for lunch three weeks ago. Both major breaks with the diet as written, but it is still working.

The book states "this diet is not meant to be fun, it is meant to be effect" and that does hold true. It is not fun. Modifying it slightly does make it less effective, but in the long run it makes it sustainable. We are heading toward life style change not a month and done trial at this point. Which is just fine with me. I don't want to fall off the wagon completely because I couldn't chomp on a mango.

Our cooking habits have changed understandably. Well, I should say my cooking habits have changed. My wife is brilliant, funny and attractive, but cooking is not a life skill she picked up. So as before the diet and during it I do all of the cooking. I have been keeping our meals to a few core ingredients and mixing it up with cabinet full of spices:

• Meats
• Grilled chicken
• Steaks
• Chicken chili
• Vegetables/Legumes
• Roasted asparagus
• Roasted cauliflower
• Grilled zucchini/squash
• Canned green beans (a Kaden favorite)
• Baked Beans
• Great northern beans (see: chicken chili)
• Fruits
• Apples
• Bananas
• Mangoes
• Grapes
• Grilled pineapples

It requires more planning than going out or making something from the freezer, but a big batch of chicken chili can feed us for three nights and only takes three hours to prepare. Our grocery bill has gone up, but that comes with more fresh produce in our diets and sustainable weight loss. Well worth the few dollars more a month.