If you’re like millions of Americans right now, you indulged over the holidays – and that’s okay and that’s normal. You probably don’t even have to jump on the scales to confirm that you’re heavier. A quick look inmirror says it all: yes, you look bloated.
But hold on. Don’t throw in the towel yet. With the holidays over, you can start again with a clean slate and get your momentum going with my 2-Day Undo Diet. Start it on Monday and continue on Tuesday. It will re-energize you, help flush out salt and processed sugar, leave you feeling full, and prep you for dropping fat pounds. Time is of the essence, so let’s get started!
Here are the basic principles:
Pre-Breakfast Aerobics
When your alarm goes off that morning, start with 16 ounces of pure, fresh water. Then get into your exercise clothes for pre-breakfast aerobics. That’s right, do your aerobics on an empty stomach. Then your glycogen levels are somewhat depleted from your overnight fast and insulin levels are low. This internal situation forces your body to start drawing on your fat reserves for energy. With pre-breakfast aerobics, you’ll start stripping away fat. Do pre-breakfast aerobics Monday and Tuesday mornings – for 30 to 60 minutes each time.
You should do moderate to fairly high intensity aerobics, so that you’re breathing hard and sweating. While it’s true you burn a higher percentage of calories from fat during low intensity aerobics, you will burn more grams of body fat if you perform high intensity aerobics, because you’ll burn so many more total calories. Also, if you do reasonably intense aerobics you will get the added benefits of increased vascular density and enhanced fat burning capacity. Increase the volume of aerobics progressively as you get leaner. If your fat loss plateaus, the first thing to try is to increase the intensity of your aerobics, while increasing your calories to get your metabolism going again.
Mon. & Tues. Weight Training
In addition to aerobics, lift weights 45 to 60 minutes a day on Monday and Tuesday. On this program I would recommend a two-day split, which means you train your upper body on Monday and your lower body on Tuesday. That way, you hit your entire body and all your muscles.
Multiple Meals
Divide your food choices evenly over five or six meals. Most people get better results if they keep food selections relatively simple for this program. You will get good results using egg whites, skinless chicken breast and low-fat tuna for protein sources. Have generous portions of vegetables and salad at each meal. You can have essentially all the vegetables and salad you want. It’s very difficult to eat too many calories from vegetables. I’m talking about things like broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, spinach, green beans, and so on. Refer to the Parrillo Performance Nutrition Manual for a more extensive list, as well as the nutrient breakdown.
Some tips for taste: Use green leaf lettuce with fresh peppers and onions, tomatoes and some fresh cilantro. Balsamic vinegar or lemon juice make tangy dressings with practically no calories. Grill your chicken outside to keep things flavorful. Or have some fresh grilled salmon or swordfish instead of tuna. Add some fresh mushrooms and chopped peppers to the egg whites. It doesn’t take too much effort to make this diet enjoyable. You will enjoy it even more once you see how fast the results come.
Limit Starchy Carbs
Starches are things like potatoes, oatmeal, corn, peas, beans and rice. Treat yourself to a cup of oatmeal in the morning and maybe one other starch during the day. By supplying most of your carbs as vegetables and salad instead of starch, you will find it easier to drop pounds and flush your system of toxins. The bulk will help fill you up, the volume of food will be more satisfying and the vegetables will produce a smaller insulin response.
Eat Breakfast
Another important point is to always eat breakfast – this gets your metabolism going first thing. This is why breakfast is probably your most important meal. You have the whole day to burn off any excess calories you consume at breakfast – any excess calories you consume right before bed are likely to be stored as fat.
Add in CapTri®
Since you’re temporarily reducing starchy carbs to promote fat metabolism, it makes sense to replace those calories with another fuel source, namely CapTri®. CapTri® is a good choice because it is readily burned as fuel and won’t be stored as body fat. CapTri® actually has a higher “thermogenic effect” than carbohydrate, meaning that more of this dietary energy will be lost as body heat with less energy available for storage. This further promotes additional fat loss. Include up to 3 tablespoons of CapTri® daily over the two-day period.
Supplement!
In addition to CapTri®, there are four supplements that really help on this program. First are the Essential
VitaminTM and Mineral-ElectrolyteTM formulas. Since you are avoiding fruit and milk, you will need a vitamin and mineral supplement. It is difficult to supply your body’s requirement for calcium without using a lot of dairy products, unless you use a supplement. Next is Parrillo Creatine MonohydrateTM, which is in a class by itself in terms of supplements. You cannot be your most muscular and lean without using creatine. No matter how good you look, you’ll be better if you add creatine. Last is Optimized Whey ProteinTM. We started with the finest quality whey protein and then fine tuned the amino acid profile by adding extra glycine, glutamine and branched chain amino acids. I would consider this a “must have” supplement while dieting strictly. The high levels of glutamine and BCAAs act to protect muscle tissue during energy restricted diets.
Sleep
Always try to get enough sleep. If you are unable to sleep optimally, your recovery will suffer and you won’t be able to train each muscle group as frequently. During sleep, your body releases growth hormone (GH), a protein hormone made by the pituitary gland, a small secretory gland at the base of the brain that enhances protein synthesis and other functions.
Keep Your Momentum
You probably have a long-term objective of losing a certain number of fat
pounds and gaining muscle. After the two-day diet, keep going! Renew your commitment daily to yourself and to the Parrillo Nutrition Program. Do this, and you’ll guarantee long-term results.
Okay – Get ready to take action! I know you can do it. Here’s the diet:
Monday – Undo Diet
Meal 1
- 5 to 6 scrambled egg whites
- 1 cup oatmeal
- Water or black coffee
Meal 2
- 1 serving Parrillo Optimized Whey Protein PowderTM
Meal 3
- 2 cups mixed-greens salad with 4 to 6 ounces tuna, with balsamic vinegar and 1 – 2 tablespoons CapTri®
• 1 large baked potato
- Water, black coffee or unsweetened tea
Meal 4
- Parrillo Hi-Protein BarTM
Meal 5
- Skinless chicken breasts
- Plenty of steamed fibrous vegetables (broccoli, green beans, cauliflower, summer squash, etc.) with 1 – 2 tablespoons CapTri®
- Parrillo Protein Ice KreemTM – Frozen Protein Dessert or Parrillo PuddingTM (Protein Ice KreemTM is easy to make, just add 4 scoops of mix and 2 cups of water to your Ice Cream Maker and follow the machine’s directions. In only 25-30 minutes your Ice KreemTM is ready to enjoy!)
- Water
Tuesday – Undo Diet
Meal 1
- 5 to 6 scrambled egg whites
- Pancakes (Made with Parrillo Hi-Protein Pancake and Muffin MixTM)
Water or black coffee
Meal 2
- 1 serving Parrillo Optimized Whey Protein PowderTM
Meal 3
- 2 cups mixed-greens salad with
6 ounces skinless chicken breasts, with balsamic vinegar and 1 – 2 tablespoons CapTri®
- 1 large baked sweet potato or yam
- Water, black coffee or unsweetened tea
Meal 4
- Parrillo High Protein BarTM
- Water, black coffee or unsweetened tea
Meal 5
- Baked salmon
- Plenty of steamed fibrous vegetables (broccoli, green beans, cauliflower, summer squash, etc.) with 1 – 2 tablespoons CapTri®
- Parrillo PuddingTM
- Water, black coffee or unsweetened teaView NEW Parrillo Products
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