MuscleDiet Six-Pack Plan

This is a diet that I’ve used with pro bodybuilders and professional athletes but will work for anyone.

Years of research and experience have taught me that a good diet has to do four things:
1. Be healthy (so you can follow it for as long as you like)
2. Control hunger and cravings (and allow a weekly cheat meal or two)
3. Maximize metabolic rate (so you burn more calories around the clock)
4. Cause fat loss (obviously)

So this diet is the closest thing to making fat loss easy, painless and fool proof as you can possibly get...

Protein
Some people may think that high-protein diets are just a fad like most other diet information but ever since I read the first research study showing that replacing some of the carbs in the diet with protein causes weight loss almost 15 years ago, I’ve been watching the evidence grow and now the facts are inescapable.

Protein has a vast array of advantages over other nutrients. It increases levels of the hormone glucagon (allowing body fat to be used as energy), helps build and retain muscle, requires more energy (calories) to metabolise, and decreases appetite more than fat or carbs. It also doesn’t raise insulin levels significantly like carbs do.

Carbohydrates
Carbohydrates make up a large and increasing majority of most people’s diets. We often hear people say, “Carbohydrates give you energy”. My response is, so do protein, fat and alcohol! The truth is, this statement only applies to people who do long exercise sessions six or seven days a week and want to improve their performance, NOT for people who go to the gym 3 to 5 times per week for an hour and want to lose fat.

Also, ironically, if you eat a meal high in starchy or sugary carbs, you will find that within an hour or so, you will have “less” and not more energy!

Fat
Most people get quite good results just from replacing much of the carbs in their diets with protein but it will further enhance your results if you choose leaner meats and don’t add too much extra fat in your diet. The one exception is fish oil – eat fatty fish at least 3 times per week or take a few fish oil capsules daily. This will benefit both your health and your waistline.

Recommendations:
1) Cut the sugar and starchy carbs (bread, biscuits, pastries, potatoes, rice, pasta, corn, etc) by about half and eat as many green and brightly-coloured veggies as possible and have a few small servings of fruit.
2) Increase your protein intake. Best sources are eggs, fish, chicken breast, meats and protein powders.
3) Weigh yourself once per week, first thing in the morning after using the toilet and if you have lost a pound or more, great, if not, adjust the carbs down.
4) After the first two weeks, allow yourself a cheat meal once or twice per week. This gives you something to look forward to and boosts your metabolism.

So that’s my very brief plan to get you well on your way to a six pack! In my next few articles, I’ll look at specific nutrients and add a little more detail.