Saturday, June 19, 2010

Ultra Simple It Is

In a little over a week, I'll be starting the Ultra Simple Diet, by Dr. Mark Hyman
I really like his philosophy as a doctor, and the diet includes several components that I need to be incorporating anyway. This coming week is supposed to be a "preparation week" where you work on gathering supplements, weaning from caffeine, sugar, etc., and mentally preparing.
The diet is about removing toxins and controlling inflammation- a biggie for me. It involves cleaning out the system and only eating foods that are low-allergen and healthful. No sugar, alcohol, caffeine, gluten, etc. But ACK! A return to the horrific vegetable broth from the first diet plan I tried- they got the recipe from Dr. H!
The exercise seems mild- yoga(3x a day!) & walking. So I'll bid adieu to Mr. Horton for at least a week. Shucky-darn:)
I like that the process is very laid out. It tells me what to do & eat throughout the day.
While the plan is technically only 7 days, you are then supposed to spend the 2 weeks after only slowly re-incorporating certain foods. So all told, it's really more a month-long plan, but this preparation week is really nothing big.
I have high hopes for this diet. I actually looked it up originally because there was an article written about it where the author said that her friends were raving about how they felt on it.
I'll check in after I've been on it for a few days to let you know how it's going.

Friday, June 11, 2010

Can I Really Say Goodbye to Tony?


Can it really be the end? Yup, tomorrow marks the last day of the 3-month P90x program for me.
An important thing to remember when reading about my results is that I did NOT follow the P90x diet, but I did follow the exercise plan pretty religiously. What this tells me is that while the exercise plan alone helped me gain strength, it is NOT a weight loss plan in & of itself. In fact, I gained BACK the 3 lbs. I lost on the last diet.

Here are the Vital Stats for P90. And I again want to clarify that my 5-point rating scale for these diets does not represent
worst-> best, but rather least->most. In some cases it will reflect the former as well, but not necessarily :

My impression of the overall healthiness of this plan: 3- I think the exercise plan is certainly healthy, though could cause injury, no matter how much warming up & stretching you do prior to starting the workouts. Plyometrics messed my right knee up every time. This is NOT a program for beginners. In terms of the diet, I have concerns about starting out with so much protein. I really need a more anti-inflammatory diet.

Ease of Implementing: 1- I never did implement the diet. I followed the exercise plan, but is it something someone could reasonably keep up for LIFE? And the sad part is, if I want to keep the mus-kels, I HAVE to keep it up- or at least some facsimile thereof.


Cost of Implementing: 3- The initial investment partly depends on what you already own and whether you are able to find a good deal on the set. I already had hand weights up to 25 lbs., but I did purchase bands(which I didn’t really use) and a chin-up bar(which I DID use- it’s a pretty integral part of P90). I spent less than $100 on the items I needed(including the ripped copies of DVDs), but I could see that if you have nothing and pay full-price for everything you could be looking at 3 times that.

Feeling of Deprivation: ? Whoops-

Energy Level: 3 I don’t believe the exercise contributed either way to my energy levels.

Pounds lost: -3
Yes, NEGATIVE 3. Shut UP.

What's next? I would like to start a new plan in a week. During my "week off" I plan to try some of the P90x workouts that were mysteriously NOT included at any point in the plan. I also plan to go out to eat without having to worry about whether the choices I make are ok with any particular plan. And then...and then. I am really wrestling with which plan to try next. I had decided that I am no longer going to care about weight loss and that if I am eating healthfully, I will be satisfied. But seeing poundage creeping back up made me seriously disgruntled.
So the two plans I am vacillating between:
The UltraSimple Diet by Dr. Mark Hyman- this one would probably be just what the doctor ordered. Anti-inflammatory and very healthy. Basically it cuts out sugar, alcohol, dairy, gluten, etc. He just recommends walking for exercise, and this jumpstart diet is just a 7-day plan. He has another book called UltraMetabolism which I might want to follow with if I feel good on this one...
The Belly Fat Cure, because where did those 3 lbs migrate right back to? In a nutshell, this diet cuts down significantly on sugars & carbs without counting calories. The exercise program relies on the author's patented way of lifting weights that sounds too good to be true...takes significantly less time than the paces Mr. Horton has been putting me through. Can I get the same results or better with less work? The diet is suggested for 2 weeks- a claim of 10 lbs. expected to be lost is made. But the exercise portion is actually a 38-day plan, so in teality I'm looking at over a month on this one.

So what do YOU think? I would love to get your vote!