….with guacamole too!
We made beef fajitas for dinner. I marinaded the steak overnight and it was more flavorful that way. Flank steak is a good cut for fajitas.
I gave myself another Valentine’s Day gift yesterday (besides loving myself). I ordered another jar of FUDGE!
One for me and one for a friend. I cannot wait to enjoy a little fudge….:) I ate a little too much of the guacamole last night which prevented me from wanting dessert. I know, travesty!
Michael said some really sweet and romantic things last night. (Hugs!)
I chopped up the black olives, fresh tomato (for the fajitas and the guacamole) and cut the red peppers.
Michael chopped the jalapenos, onions and minced the garlic. Then he cooked the streak and veggies while I munched on guacamole. We listened to the John Coltrane station on Pandora and chatted about our days.
I was feeling pretty good; a tad worn out from the day but alright. As the night progressed I started to feel worse: tired, I was coughing a lot more. I just didn’t feel great by the time I went to bed.
I ate one fajita: one small tortilla with all the fixings. I knew that one was enough because of all the chips and guacamole I was eating. Dinner was good and I was stuffed.
By the time I woke up Tuesday morning my cold was firmly sitting in my chest, I’d been up all night coughing and I had completely lost my voice. Not exactly how I wanted to start my day. I called in sick at work and made an appointment with a doctor. If it’s bronchitis I want to get it taken care of asap. I’m back to having ZERO appetite. I slept in until 11am this morning and still haven’t eaten anything other than a few strawberries. Nothing sounds appealing and my stomach is telling me I don’t want food. This sucks.
Michael finished reading the “4-Hour Body” by Timothy Ferriss and asked me to read it. It claims to be an “uncommon guide to rapid fat-loss, incredible sex and becoming superhuman.” I’m trying to read the book with an open mind but it’s really hard for me because it seems gimmicky. It feels like a “lose weight fast” scam to me. The writer isn’t a doctor or nutritionist. He’s just a writer. I also feel like he clogs the book with a bunch of numbers and science but I don’t feel like I can trust any of those numbers or the science behind it because I don’t know who this guy is….?
He also claims that people should be doing the bare minimum of exercise in order to lose a lot of weight. That also rubs me the wrong way. I feel like I’m living proof that hard work WORKS. Michael claims that the book doesn’t diminish what I did but it really does feel like the book does. Maybe I’m just being defensive and overly sensitive?
There are some things in the book that I do agree with. He says to eat more protein and more fiber (good), to stop eating “white” food (bread, rice, potatoes, etc). But then he turns around and says there’s NO REASON to eat fruit at all. That if I missed eating fruit, I could eat some on my “Binge Day” (another thing I didn’t like, calling a Cheat Day a Binge Day) but that I didn’t need to be eating the fruit. I’m sorry but I love fruit and it’s good for me. Sure there might be a lot of sugar in fruit but I believe it is healthy sugar.
Here’s a few chapter titles: “How I Learned to Swim Effortlessly in 10 Days.” (Haven’t read the chapter yet but it makes me mad considering I’m a good swimmer but it took me a few years to build up my stamina and skill.) “Going from 5k to 50K in 12 Weeks.” That sounds like an injury waiting to happen.
One thing that stuck with me after reading the first few chapters was this statement:
“Even if you are predisposed to being overweight, you’re not predestined to be fat.”
I like that. It’s implying personal responsibility to the idea of being overweight. That is very true in my case. My body type, genes and family history does not mean I should just settle with being overweight or fat. For a long time I “settled” and said that I was just destined to be fat. It was in my genes. I’d “tried” everything (I really hadn’t tried at all). I’m proof that that isn’t true at all.
I’m going to continue reading the book to give it a fair try. Once Michael’s back and head cold get better he plans on trying the book’s diet/exercise program. I’ll support him and if there’s positive results I promised him I’d give it a try. Right now it’s just a wait and see thing.
QUESTION: What did you have for dinner last night? Anything special? And have you read this book?
Foodie McBody
I downloaded the e-book and felt the same way. Like, who is this guy? He’s one big anecdote. He may have done research on a subject group of ONE… um… really? Good for him, but I take this with a bucket of salt. I also dislike the “binge day.” COME ON.
Lisa Eirene
Thank you! I just feel so turned off reading this book. And I feel like important parts of the book that ARE good are lost in the “fad diet” avalanche that is in the rest of it…
Beth @ Beth's Journey to Thin
I had a really simple dinner because I did Bikram as my gift to myself. My boyfriend was working for Valentine’s Day (restaurant industry), so I made a beet, mango, arugula, and goat cheese salad to have waiting for me when I got home. It was perfect!
Lisa Eirene
Mmm that salad sounds really yummy!
Naturally Savvy
Good for you for staying curious about what Tim Ferris says in his book. As you know, there is no miracle weight loss plan – hard work and healthy living are what will make it happen. Congrats to you for going the distance!
DefineDiana
I hate when diets tell people not to eat fruit. It is one of my pet peeves. I’m sorry but eating fruit did not make me fat and I love eating it so it is not going to leave my diet. Your review of what you have seen of the book already has me turned off to it also.
Sorry you are sick again. I hope you feel better soon.
Michael
There are a few clarifications.
He didn’t say you SHOULD do the bare minimum, he said that this IS the bare minimum you can do where you will see the benefit.
His point is that most people are unsuccessful at losing weight because the traditional efforts involved are tremendous — counting calories and going to the gym. And he’s right on that. So his point is that here are some small and easy things you can do to generate the results you want.
Numbers and science are facts. You don’t have to like them but since you come from the world of calorie counting, you should at least be able to relate to them.
As for fruit, he makes a significant point that you do not actually need fruit in your diets. It is simply not a necessity.
And finally, you just have to keep it all in perspective. He’s not saying that you shouldn’t ever eat those foods. He’s saying that if you want to lose weight, this is a quick and effective way to do so.
Lisa Eirene
Diana makes a good point…eating fruit didn’t make me 250 pounds. NOT eating fruit and eating junk did.
I haven’t gotten to the part of the book yet about the exercise portion. I think the kettle bell workouts that you told me about are a good idea. I’d like to try that. But for the most part I’m happy with my workouts.
Lori
I have been reading this book. He does have some good points, but some things are little silly, like popping all the supplements or doing air squats before eating a croissant. I also find some inconsistencies in what he does versus what he tells you to do. He says he eats chocolate croissants on his ‘cheat’ day and then later says he eats a slow carb meal for breakfast on his cheat day. Which is it?
I have a huge, and I mean *huge*, problem with the cheat day. I feel that no food is off limits and following a diet that restricts and then rewards with food is playing with fire. It can cause all kinds of weird relationships with food.
Also, he has several different eating plans in the book depending on what you are going for. They are a bit hardcore, but more power to people who do them. It is definitely not a book that you read through from cover to cover, but pick stuff out.
On the exercise front, it is totally true that you can lose weight and keep it off without a lick of exercise or even just small amounts. I know a woman in a wheelchair who did just that – and she lost over 100 pounds. I actually find that I lose easier when I do less exercise and I don’t necessarily exercise to lose weight (although that is what I thought I was doing at first). I exercise for other different reasons now, like regulating blood sugar, helping digestion, stabilizing mood, because it’s fun, and because gaining muscle lets me eat more food on a daily basis. I think part of his point is that you cannot out train a bad diet.
Keep in mind that the mind frame this man has is getting the most results out of the least effort possible. I have read another book by him and it was the same type of thing (not fitness related). So I was curious about how he would approach this subject.
Lisa Eirene
I know several people who have done WW and lost weight–without exercising at all. I know it can be done. For me, I like exercise. I like how it feels, I like how I feel after I work out really hard. It boosts my mood, reduces stress, tones my skin and kept me from having the loose skin that often happens when people lost a lot of weight.
There will always be the type of people that want to lose weight “fast” and do it with minimal effort. This is the type of book for them, I think. Like you said, more power to them.
My problem was with the “Cheat Day” too. I feel like it undoes all the GOOD things people do all week in one fell swoop. I don’t deny myself anything. I eat chocolate, I have wine, I eat chips–sometimes every day depending on what I want–but I don’t eat an ungodly amount and undo everything I just burned off running. Plus I really dislike that he calls it his “Binge Day.” If THAT’S not setting people up for disaster (and eating disorders) I don’t know what is.
julie
I loved his book “The 4 hour work week”. Hubs and I try to follow a lot of his principles in that book. It really changed my life and how I look at work and retirement.
I didn’t realize he had a fitness/nutrition book as well. To be honest, the best shape I’ve ever been in my life, was one with short workouts. 3 days a week of 45 minutes of strength training and 3 days a week of 20min cardio intervals which worked out to 3.25 hours per week of total workout time. I DO believe in that theory, but I too LOVE to work out and 3.25 is just not enough for me mentally…but it did get me to about 12% body fat. Lean and mean 🙂
Kristina @ spabettie
I have not read the book, and wasn’t planning to … but to be fair, I’m not looking for a new plan, workout or diet so I probably shouldn’t chime in.
I LOVE my “diet” and never like when people say you shouldn’t eat fruit. Silly. I love fruit. 😉
also, I have always been turned off by a “get _____ quick” plan, no matter what the _____ is. and anything focusing on the bare minimum? why? I have never had to be active to lose weight… hey, guess what! I just LIKE being active!! 🙂 I’m not trying to do the minimum.
I do applaud you for being open to it – if Jason were reading this book and he wanted me to I would… and a little healthy debate can be good too 🙂
Lisa Eirene
Yes, the “get ___ quick” aspect of the book really turned me off –which I told Michael. I also didn’t like that he threw in the “have better sex” part. What does that have to do with anything? It’s just trying to sell more books! That discounts everything he says within the book, for me.
I’m not looking to change my plan either and simply read it because Michael wanted me to. I like my plan, I like working out and I LOVE FRUIT!!
Katy
You had me at guacamole 🙂
I have been doing 4HB for four weeks, and I have mixed feelings (as you know, I’ve been blogging my reviews).
I’m not seeing the results I’d hoped for, but I AM exercising a lot, and as you said here, that’s a bit of a no-no (at least if you’re following the fat loss track). But it has helped me examine my diet with an eye toward eating more filling protein and fiber, and has been an interesting study on experimenting with my body.
Will I continue it after the end of 4 weeks? Probably not strictly (it’s been very hard to find non-soy, non-dairy vegetarian sources of food) but I do like the idea of having a special treat day, and using it as a carrot to make wise choices during the week. I won’t binge (I hate that he calls it that, too), but I will indulge on that one day. I find that I really look forward to bread, pasta, etc., and once I eat it for a day, I’m OK for the next six.
Lisa Eirene
I sent your reviews of the book and your attempts at the diet to Michael when he first mentioned he wanted to try it. I thought it was interesting that you were doing it (even if it’s nothing something I want to do). The not exercising much part of the book also turned me off. I feel like the routine I’ve got now is working really well (especially since I lost 4 pounds last month, quite the shocker).
I do like the book’s plan of eating protein and fiber and I’d be up for following that. BUT I will eat fruit! And lots of it!
Thanks for weighing in, Katy!
Carbzilla
“Michael said some really sweet and romantic things last night.” <— adorable
I haven't read the book and won't but just a couple of points: while I have lost 16 lbs with very minimal exercise, I know I would have lost it much much faster if I'd ramped up my exercise and I bet I'd also be a smaller size by now. I know that, and I can live with it. 🙂
Re: fruit. There's many an argument that we also don't need dairy but we definitely need calcium so it's one way to get it. I think there's a LOT more to the sugar thing, natural or not, that hasn't been explored. When I wasn't eating much fruit (less than one piece a day) and keeping my overall sugars low, I could eat more calories and still lose weight. I just think it was better for MY body, but I have reactive hypoglycemia and realize that's not everybody's deal.
I'm just glad we can see through the hype and pick out what we think makes sense for us.
Lisa Eirene
Yep Michael is pretty adorable. 😀
I can understand the reactive hypoglycemia thing. Sugar isn’t really a good thing period. But I’d much rather eat my sugar in strawberries and a pint of blueberries than get my sugar from cookies. At least doing that I feel healthier. I noticed that when I don’t eat enough fruit I feel yucky.
Losing weight can happen without exercise but exercise will make you feel better all around (in my opinion).
Amy
I have the book and I’m in the process of reading it. I’ve read and followed the diet portion for a few weeks. My BF has done it for a month and has lost 15+lbs. I have found myself resistant to it but I’m not sure why. (The BF is a huge Tim Ferriss fan while I am not. Tim is kind of obnoxious in my opinion. I saw him on Dr.Oz and The View and it helped a bit with liking him more.) Like you, I believe you get results with hard work and exercise and have lost weight before eating healthy well balanced meals with portion control. I can go awhile with no whole grains, fruits and dairy, but it seems foolish in the long run. What is wrong with whole grains and who wants to live without a little cheese every once in awhile. But then again, this is applies just while the fat burning stage is needed. I have lost some weight and going to give it a shot. The blog says woman in their forties need to give it 4 to 6 weeks to see results. On the upside, what you do eat is very satisfying and the routine easy to get into. I have learned alot about what is important to me on how my “Cheat Day” has evolved in the last few weeks. It is not processed foods that I want but a good piece of whole grain bread with a slice of brie and some fruit. I am interested to hear how others who believe in a healthy lifestyle feel and experience with this book.
Jennifer
I like what you had to say about feeling like you’re “destined” to be fat. I’ve felt that way a lot of times too. Then I started paying attention to some of my thinner friends. They ate less. They exercised more. Sure they indulged in sweets now and then too, but they often didn’t over-indulged. They just enjoyed a modest portion of ice cream or a small brownie. Not an entire pint or pan. It does come down to making conscious choices. It’s not something that’s predetermined.
Lisa Eirene
It was kind of an “aha!” moment (as much as I hate that term)…where I was like… “He’s right. People are DESTINED to be fat just because maybe their parents were fat, or their genetics are working against them…” Sometimes it just means we have to work a little harder.