The 4 hour starting point

I thought it would only be appropriate to start off this first post with a "where it all began" for me.  Up until this time last year, the word dieting for me had only meant a 4-5 day detox/ loose 10lbs in a week plan...and then gain it all back the next!  I would do diets like this once every other month to keep myself feeling 'in-check' but in between I would eat whatever I wanted. And then the day came- one of my friends had been doing Tim Ferris' Four Hour Body Diet and was having great results.  He had been asking Steven and I to give it a try and finally one Saturday in August we made the decision- we were doing it.  We went out, bought the groceries and started the following Monday.  

The starting point of Four Hour Body included a 30-day slow-carb diet.  (Hence, the title of this blog.  Tim Ferris, you inspired me!)  The slow carb diet is a starting point for your body to really test what it can do without carbs.  Trust me, life goes on without chips and bread.  The rules to the diet are pretty simple, and I have summarized below:

Rule #1:  Avoid "White" Carbohydrates- This includes things like bread, rice, potatoes, and fried food.

Rule #2:  Try to eat the same meals repeatedly-  This makes dieting a little easier because you dont have to think about it that much.  You can buy the same groceries from the store each wee.  We typically buy: eggs; chicken; beef; pork; lentils from Trader Joes; and lots and lots of veggies.
Rule #3:  Dont drink calories- Pretty much means, cut out all that beer drinkin!! A good beer replacement is red wine.  Tim Ferris has recommended no more than two glasses a night; he also suggest one diet soda a day is OK.

Rule #4:  No Fruit- This is the most difficult one for me.  The sugars in fruit turn into carbs, so its better to avoid them for weight-loss purposes.  The two 'fruits' you are allowed to eat are tomatoes and avocados!  And boy do we enjoy our avocados on this diet!!

Rule #5:  Cheat one day a week-  Not on your significant other :) but on the diet.  Let yourself loose one day a week and eat everything you craved during the week. Literally, sometimes me and Steven have like five cheat day meals in one day. Pizza, cinnamon rolls, you name it!  There are a couple reasons behind this and you can read the book if you want to learn more, but my favorite reason is this helps get you through the week.  If you are really craving a carb meal on Tuesday and you are losing hope on the diet because you dont want to give up that Philly Cheesesteak for the rest of your life, take note and eat that item on your cheat day.  Saturday works best for us because we are both off work and want to enjoy the weekend with friends who aren't dieting.  It has now become my favorite day of the week

And thats it!  That is how it all began for us.  Over the past year we have been less strict on the diet but still use a lot of the guidelines provided by Tim Ferris' Four Hour Body.  Throughout this blog, we will show you how we have now adapted this plan to our lifestyle and will give you lots of yummy carb-free recipes.

Hope you enjoy!  And please feel free to share with us your low carb recipes.

Carb-free (most of the time),

Sarah