Read through each guide
FIRST: Be sure to join the private Facebook group (the link was in your welcome email). I provide a lot of important information in there daily. You will not fully understand the program if you are not in the group; you will get much more out of the program. I also provide a full live video overview and Q&A in every group.
Program Fundamentals
Intermittent Fasting! IF is optional (please read and decide if it is for you). If you want, you can choose an 8-hour eating window and make sure all of your meals fall within that window. A good option is 10 am to 6 pm, or 11 am to 7 pm.
Carb Cycling
Hydration and Supplements
Hormone Balancing Overview
Nutritional Protocol For Hormone Balancing
Meal Plans. Your meal plan to follow was indicated in your welcome email.
Meal Planning - This page contains meal plans and the recommended food substitution list.
More on Macros
Eating Out Guide. This will help you make sensible choices while dining away from home.
Troubleshooting. Make sure to keep this in the back of your mind and refer back to it as needed.
Go grocery shopping, so you have everything you need on hand.
Measure your waist, hips, bust, thigh, and bicep with a fabric measuring tape Write all of this down so you can see your progress.
Take before photos ONLY if YOU want to. You do not need to send them to me.
Weigh yourself BUT, I do not want you jumping on the scale daily. It can be misleading and triggering. In the initial phase you may lose some water weight. The scale is not an accurate representation of your progress. You may gain lean muscle and lose fat without the scale moving too much. It is important to remember that muscle is more dense than fat taking up less space and it gives a tighter, lean appearance. A better measure is to pick an item of clothing and compare how it fits week over week. I rarely weigh myself; I can see progress by the way my clothes fit. Once I gave up reliance on the scale and learned to trust the process of feeding my body the correct foods, it was a game changer.
Remember: food is not your enemy and the scale is not your friend!
What you’re eating 5 Days a Week
50-55% fat
30-35% protein
10-15% carbohydrates
One or two days a week will be regular macro (higher carb) days. On these days, you will be eating approximately 45% carbs, 25% fat, and 30% protein.
Please thoroughly read How To Track Your Macros. Please let me know if you need my assistance. You can follow the meal plans exactly as just substitute where you like. You are also welcome to repeat days that you like.
We are essentially replacing carbohydrates from your diet with fat and keeping your protein intake the same. Your blood sugar is going to stay in a much steadier state, and you're going to experience fewer cravings over time.
Let’s see what that looks like:
A 45 yr old, 5’5”, 150 (lb) woman who has a goal weight of 125 lbs would have the following macro counts on a Regular Macro Day.
1401 - 1496 Calories
Carbohydrates 157-168 g or approx 45% (157-168 g x 4 calories = 628-672 calories)
Protein 105 - 112 g or approx 30% (105-112g x 4 calories = 420-448 calories)
Fat 38 - 41 g or approx 25% (38-41g x 9 calories = 342-369 calories)
On a Lower Carb / Higher Fat day, we are keeping our carbs under 50g. Protein will remain the same at 30% and fat will make up the balance. It will look like this:
1401 - 1496 Calories
Carbohydrates 50 g - approx 13% (50g x 4 calories = 200 calories)
Protein 105-112g - 30% (105-112g x 4 calories = 420-448 calories)
Fat 86-94g - approx 57% (86-94g x 9 calories = 781-848 calories)
SUMMARY of weekly plan
5-6 Days a week - LOW CARB - Higher fat, Moderate protein, Carbs under 50g.
1-2 Days a week - REGULAR MACRO - Based on your My Fitness Pal recommendations (age, activity level etc.) You may wish to only have one Regular Macro Day and have 6 Lower Carb Days.
Outline
Included in this program are macronutrient-balanced meal plans.
You may follow the meal plan, but it is also intended to show you how to plan. For example, if you choose to eat only two meals and a snack, that is fine as long as you meet your macro requirements. You may simply add or subtract foods or change portion sizes to meet YOUR requirements. You can absolutely pick and choose items from the plan to put together your own day. The macros are listed next to all the foods, so you will have a lot to choose from.
For the first week, you may omit carb cycling if you want to jumpstart weight-loss and truly adapt to lower carb (not NO carb) eating. For those who are doing more frequent training, particularly high intensity and resistance training, please incorporate carb cycling right away.
You will see that there are recipes available in the portal. This is good for people who need variety to stay on track. You can decide which recipes work for you and how to incorporate them according to your macro requirements. If you are a creature of habit and choose to eat the same thing everyday on higher fat/lower carb days, that is absolutely fine. Remember, you want make this an easy lifestyle. I suggest adding batch cooking to your weekly routine. I batch cook my protein and always have prepped vegetables. This makes staying on track easy. When it's meal time, I simply grab my protein, my leafy greens and add my fat, such as high quality oil on my greens.
These program utilizes carb cycling in order to replenish glycogen Please note that the higher carb days in the meal plans are for reference only. We will have higher carb / regular macro days on Wednesday (only if needed) and Saturday. The meal plans give you an idea of how to structure a higher carb day in a healthy manner.
A successful tool both for health and weightless is Intermittent Fasting. Please read the Intermittent Fasting section. It is highly recommended that you use this method in your program; it will enhance your results and benefit your health.
At the end of the 8 week program, you should be at the point where you can put together your meals and know the macro counts of foods.
Things you need to know
It's very important to drink more water than usual because carbohydrates are bound to water in your body. When we eat less, we naturally store less water and need to consume more. Aim to keep a large water bottle with you all day and continually drink from it. If you feel tired, get a headache, or otherwise feel unwell make sure you are drinking enough water; these are all symptoms of dehydration.
Remember that this is not all or nothing. If you take in too many carbohydrates in a day, pick yourself up, dust yourself off and get right back on that horse.
It’s no big deal.
The fact that you’re being mindful of your intake and focusing on adding good fats and protein are amazing first steps. You’ll get there.
Your bowels may be slower as your body gets used to fewer carbohydrates. This should remedy itself within a week, but taking magnesium can help constipation if it's a problem. Some people end up with diarrhea instead of constipation (everyone's different). Again, this should normalize within about a week. In this case, DON'T take magnesium.
Be sure to get enough sodium. Do not be afraid to add a little sea salt to your foods. Potassium is also important. Avocados, mushrooms and fatty fish are good sources of potassium.
Drink lots of water either way. Alterations in bowels movements won't last long, and it may not even happen to you. I find it helps to know what COULD happen as you change your current way of eating. For the first week eat whenever you're hungry. It's important to listen to your body. We aren't going for starvation here, we're going for literally CHANGING THE WAY YOUR BODY IS PROCESSING FOOD.
You will slowly lose those carbohydrate cravings, have way more energy and develop a positive relationship with food if you follow the process.
For beverages stick to water, coffee, or tea (without sugar). No juice, pop, beer, coolers, etc.
General Foods to eat all the time
Fats
Avocado
Olive oil
Olives-green
Macadamia nuts
Nut Butter (unsweetened)
Mayo (watch for added sugars) and look for avocado or olive oil mayo.
Coconut oil
Coconut (unsweetened)
Nut oils
Sunflower seeds
Brazil nuts
Almonds
Chia seeds
Pumpkin seeds
Flaxseed
Hemp seeds
Proteins
Lean meats (you may wish to keep red meat to once a week)
Poultry (pasture raised, free run)
Eggs / egg whites (free run)
Protein powder
Fish/seafood (look for wild and sustainable)
Canned tuna/salmon (look for wild and sustainable)
Non-starchy vegetables
Anything leafy and green
Cabbage
Cauliflower
Celery
Onions
Garlic
Mushrooms
Pickles
Radishes
Turnips
Broccoli
Brussels Sprouts
Collard Greens
Chard
Arugula
Romaine, Leaf, Boston lettuce
Other
Broth/Bone broth
Zevia, stevia- sweetened pop/soda alternative (if you need to break a pop addiction)
Nut milk (unsweetened)
Sauerkraut/Kimchi
Seaweed
Olives
Tea/herbal tea (unsweetened)
Coffee (unsweetened)
Xylitol
Stevia
Erythritol
Sea Salt & pepper
Foods to Avoid
Sugar + Sweeteners
Sugar
Aspartame
Anything syrup
Agave
Juice (unless it is a pure pressed juice i.e : green juices).
Grains
Wheat
Buckwheat
Rye
Gluten-free anything
Bread
Pasta
DAIRY
Dairy is inflammatory and should be avoided. Particularly for women looking to balance their hormones. A little milk or cream in your coffee or tea is fine!
Good Carbohydrate Sources
Beans, Starchy Vegetables, Legumes
Corn
Sweet potato
Potatoes
Squashes, butternut, acorn, etc
Chickpeas
Black Beans
Peas
Quinoa
Lentils
Fruit
Apples
Oranges
Pears
Pineapple
Bananas
Mango
Peaches/Plums
Papaya
Strawberries
Raspberries
Blueberries
Blackberries
Essential Pantry Staples
Coconut oil
Olive oil
Avocado Mayonnaise
Nut butter (unsweetened)
Unsweetened cocoa powder
Butter or Ghee
Stevia or Erythritol
Coffee/Tea/Dandy Blend (coffee alternative)
Collagen Powder
How to Get Started
Make sure you've read all of your materials through, and you know exactly what we're doing. If you don't know, ask me!
Read the meal plan and the approved food lists if you wish to substitute. Go out and buy everything you need for your first week. You want to make sure you have lots of food options, so you don't ever feel deprived.
It is important that you have the tools to measure your food. A small kitchen scale and cup and spoon measures. This may seem daunting in the beginning, but it is crucial to your success. Measuring is important as it prevents over and under eating. You will eventually learn to eyeball portion sizes.
If this style of eating is completely new to you and you are someone who is “carb dependent”, you may have an adjustment period with a “flu” like feeling. This will pass!
You may find it very difficult to give up your carbs but make a promise to yourself to stick this out! You can do this, and this will be the ‘diet' that's actually meant for YOUR body (not that friend who can go on a ‘diet' for a week and lose 5lbs of belly fat right away then go back to eating whatever she wants). And by diet I mean a style of eating that makes you healthy, happy, and feeling fantastic. If you find yourself eating the same foods each day because it’s easier for you, that’s just fine! The simpler we can make the transition the better.