With the Fourth of July holiday almost upon us, I know many of us will have food on our minds. It’s a great day for sharing delicious–if not necessarily nutritious–food with family and friends.
During an interview the other day I received a question that is particularly relevant to this upcoming day of celebration. The question was, “How strict does a person really have to eat to lose weight and get fit… and what I do think about cheat days?”
I enhanced my answer here with my favorite drawing board. If you’ve been developing your Nutritional Freedom, I think you’re going to like my answer here. If not, if you’re still eating more than your eyes can track, well… this may help you make the leap to freedom.
I hope you enjoyed this explanation. Comforting to know that you don’t have to live by the strict hand of a diet for LIFE. Now you get that there is a better way to life–a way of fueling your greatness that is not diet but LIFE-style. Please take 2½ minutes to learn more about “Cravings to Consumption” from Strength for Life–it’ll open your eyes to a whole new way to think about nutrition. Now get out there and enjoy the holiday!!! Until Next Week… Stay Strong, Shawn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Author, innovator and expert in Life Performance for two decades, Shawn Phillips is as respected for his physique as his wisdom. Working with his brother Bill (of Body for LIFE fame) he helped create the performance nutrition giant, EAS. For a "how to" guide to a Lifestyle of Fitness Freedom, check out Shawn's most recently instant best-selling book from Bantam BooksStrength for LIFE, called by Next-Level in Transformational Fitness, Here.
About the Author
In his 40's, a husband and father of two young children, Shawn has shifted his focus to helping busy, high-achieving men enjoy vibrant, energized, amazing lives!
To help more men towards Life @ Full Strength Shawn created the World's First truePremium Nutrition Shake,
the clinically proven Full Strength .
29. June 2009 at 9:03 pm
I’m a long time Full Strength advocate (premium member) and I currently am using it in conjunction with my own transformation to nutritional freedom. I always wondered if free days were the caloric junkyard that was gumming up further progress I could be making. Now I know a little more with this video! It depends on my level of addiction with food. Thanks for the great post.
30. June 2009 at 5:08 pm
Awesome Shawn. The graph explains what i felt intuitively when I did Atkins a few years ago. It felt extreme, but I needed it to beat the sugar craving. Now I effortlessly follow a moderate form of Atkins (higher protein than Carbs)and have plenty of cheat days without guilt or set back.
1. July 2009 at 4:29 pm
Awesome Ian! Great story… kicking the habit the step to Freedom and how good does it feel to have control… to be the one who decides. Talk about confidence!
30. June 2009 at 8:10 pm
Today at the gym, it was Member Appreciation Day. What does that mean? FREE PIZZA for all the members. As I watched person after person walk by the pizza boxes and reach for a slice after wasting their time working out, I thought about Shawn’s video and kept thinking about their relationship with food. My body was craving Full Strength after my excellent workout, I just can’t imagine eating pizza after putting myself through a killer workout. Thanks for your great explanation Shawn!
1. July 2009 at 4:28 pm
Thanks Kevin… amazing example!
S
1. July 2009 at 3:07 pm
Excellent. My diet is my main shortcoming. But I find the older I get the more I tend to be more conscious of nutrition. I still eat plenty of bad foods but I eat a lot of good food too whereas when I was younger I tended to binge eat (I do FAR less of that now) and not really think about the nourishment aspect of food. I’m nowhere close to my “ideal” weight yet but ever so slowly bad habits fall away and I replace them with good habits, so inch by inch (literally and figuratively) I’m moving closer to a healthier body.
1. July 2009 at 4:28 pm
Ryan, thank you for the comment. Yes, “ideal” is relative. I think for many we’ve got to get this is NOT a bodybuilding contest 365 days a year… It’s a LIFE, which is much, much different.
That said, I’m not f’er dieting but in love with helping people Transform their relationship with food. That’s at the heart of it all… a food freedom rehab is what we need not a person with a loaded gun following us around telling us what to eat.
Good for you… trending in the right direction…
Shawn
27. July 2009 at 3:09 pm
Shawn, would you please address plateaus, why they happen, how long do they last, what should be addressed first, diet/calories or workout changes. I need to lose 60lbs. I have lost 19 and for two weeks have kind of spun my wheels. I’ve lowered my calories and that didn’t change anything. I then increased my cardio and so far that hasn’t changed anything. I do see slight changes in my clothes during the two weeks when the scale hasn’t changed, but honestly, it’s very frustrating. What is my next plan of attack?
Cathy
27. July 2009 at 4:28 pm
Cathy,
Ah, yes plateaus… love ‘em. NOT….
I get frustrating and without getting into psychology–and the origin of the emotion (called frustration) which is often the same emotional pattern that got us here in the first place–I’ll first salute you for the progress made.
Without fear of celebrating your progress to the point of losing motivation, I hope you can take a moment and look at all that you’re doing (round of applause) and the results you have had (second round).
We can often get so focused on getting somewhere that we’re not here nor able to see from where we have come. Then, add to this all these damn commercials and messages that make it sound like if we don’t drop 100 lbs in a week we’re absolute failures.
FYI – that’s not helping anyone!
The next thing is I will admit I can not cover all info at this time… I think I have the subject in the upcoming series and if not, I will add it. In Strength for LIFE I have dedicated a good part of one chapter to explaining what you can expect when Transforming your body–how the body will react in waves, what they mean and how to take advantage of them rather than let them control or frustrate you.
It’s important to know that the body is not a math equation–there is not a linear path between this point and that point. You move a little, give a little, flex and alter. Some times in reaction people end up over compensating, cutting calories and sending body off fat loss to starvation or things like that. It’s a balancing act.
The most important tip I can offer is to focus on doing the right things, eating well, taking action… and be resolute in these actions and when you’re not watching the scale but living the life of a fit, lean person you will be surprised by the result.
More to come…
Thanks for asking!
Shawn