MYTH: Skinny People Don't Diet. [How I lost 5 lbs in 5 days]

It's almost January 1st, and you know what that means...time to make New Years Resolutions! For those of you who want to lose weight in the new year, I'm going to make this easy for you. FOLLOW THIS LIFESTYLE EATING PLAN. You don't need to join a gym to lose the weight. On this plan, you WILL lose weight...you WILL feel amazing... and your body WILL love you for it. Trust me. Here's my story...

About 8 months ago, a friend recommended that I read a book called "The Obesity Epidemic" by Zoe Harcombe. Thinking nothing of it, I found the book on Amazon and started reading. Let me tell you, this book has opened my eyes and changed the way I think about eating and food in general. So much so, in fact, that I've decided to share my experience with you.

Some stats for you: I am 25 years old, 5'9" tall and before doing this diet, I weighed about 149 pounds. (That's in the normal BMI range.) While following the Harcombe Diet, I lost 4.7 pounds in only 5 days!! How did I do it?

I stopped eating carbohydrates. And yes, sugar is a carb.

Yes, that's it. Instead of my usual sugary breakfast cereal, heaping plates of pasta and Starbucks coffees, I instead had food...REAL food. I switched to a low-carb, high fat diet. Unlike the typical American diet where you're restricted to a couple hundred calories, I could eat as much real food as I wanted! I was not hungry at all. And I ate bacon at almost every meal of the day.

Sounds crazy. How does it work?

The Harcombe Diet works in 3 phases:

• Phase 1: No carbs, including sugar and honey. All fats are accepted so you can eat beef, chicken, fish, turkey, etc. No dairy, though. Sorry Starbucks lovers, but no caffeine during this phase either. But, you can have up to 50g of brown rice/quinoa/oats per day. Complete this phase to jump-start your system and identify any food allergies and addictions. This is a 5-day phase, but you can return to it at any time to lose more weight.
• Phase 2: Alternate between carb meals and fat meals. (e.g. Fats for breakfast, Carbs for lunch, Fats for dinner). Cycling allows your body to get rid of the excess fat while eating 'fat' meals and burns off the carbs easily after eating 'carb' meals. Do this until you reach your goal weight.
• Phase 3: Same as Phase 2 but allows for 'cheating', so you can have the occasional beer, piece of cake, slice of pizza, etc. Just don't overdo it! Keep doing Phase 3 for a complete lifestyle change.

Here's what I ate during one day in my 5 day jump start. [48% fat, 34% protein, 18% carbs]

Breakfast:
2 whole eggs (including yolks)
3 slices of turkey bacon
4 slices of pork bacon

Lunch:
2 cups of bagged salad (no dressing)
1/2 lb Bubba burger with spices (no bun!)

Snack:
15 baby carrots
1 cup of decaffeinated Blueberry herbal tea (no sugar or honey)

Dinner:
2 slices of pork bacon
1 cup of mixed veggies (carrots, corn, green beans, peas, Lima beans)
50g of brown rice
1/2 Grilled cube steak with spices

Dessert:
1 cup of decaffeinated Sleepytime herbal tea (no sugar or honey)

All of this food is 1,494 calories, which is right on-par with the 1,500 calories that I'm "supposed" to be eating while on a traditional diet. Counting calories won't help you lose weight. It's more about the quality of the food that you eat. Foods that contain preservatives, sugars, and other fillers are not good for your body. Your food should come in the rawest form possible, not from a box or a can. If the food has a commercial on TV, DON'T EAT IT!!!


Here are some of the things I've learned from the book...

• Eating fat won't make you fat.
• Sedentary behavior did not cause the obesity epidemic, and exercise will not cure it. 
• Refined sugar contains NO vitamins or minerals. It just tastes good. Unless burned off, your body will convert it to fat.
• Cholesterol is actually GOOD for you. Your body makes its own cholesterol every day. Also, there's no such thing as "good" or "bad" cholesterol. 
• Cholesterol-lowering drugs like Lipitor actually stop your body from producing the cholesterol that it needs. Oh yeah, and Lipitor nets $12 BILLION in sales annually. No wonder the doctors keep prescribing it. This is a part of the scheme to keep people alive, yet feeling "sick". Medicate yourself by eating real food.
• It is impossible to be healthy on a diet. Being healthy means eating healthy, and that requires a lifestyle change. 

Here's my advice: Try Phase 1 of the Harcombe diet. It's only 5 days. You've got nothing to lose but the weight. I'd love to hear about your results. Please email me at bbran07@gmail.com or post a comment below.