Is anyone following Chris Powell's Choose To Lose plan?

[jessica_p]

I bought both the books and just finished reading them. The idea and science behind carb cycling seems to make a lot of sense! I am really excited to get started. 

Just wondering if there is anyone else out there following this eating plan! 🙂

[Walker4Life]

I need to get back on the Carb Cycling program now that I have a FitBit. I tried this last month and lost 7 lbs. in one week. Very easy to follow and do, just lot of pre-planning required. 

[jessica_p]

Have you been doing the exercise plan in the book? That is the most confusing part of the book to me. 

[Mary]

I'm a fan of Chris and I read the book but I think it's too complex to be worth it's trouble, for the majority of dieters.  I feel like he needed a unique angle to market a book and used this.  If you're a competitive bodybuilder, I can see maybe trying it.  

[Walker4Life]

HI Jessica,

No I did not bother with the exercises. I have my own plan with mixes
cardio with strength training.

[steff]

I am carb cycling like Chris Powell recomends.  I thought his explanation was kind pretty hard to follow, but explaining something in a book can be pretty hard.  On Carb Off days, I do my cardio and weight resistance, Carb On days I do cardio and Pilates or Yoga.  Monday, Wednesday and Friday are Carb off days and Tues, Thurs and Sat are Carb on days.  I choose only one carb per meal and try to stay with the lagumes, peas, corn, sweet potato, grits or Oatmeal and irish potato (with skin) and fruit as my carbs.  On Sunday, it's a free day, so I have my pizza or a burger or whatever I am missing, but I have a salad and keep to a reasonable portion size.  See, it IS hard to explain.  I think of it as every other day:  One day carbless and weights, the next is Carbyoga!  (Carbs and yoga),etc then finally Sunday is my one day to mindfully and resonably indulge a craving.

[BG_Kim]

I bought the book as the idea of carb cycling was intriguing to me.  I have been pretty successful on WW but stalled out. When I saw the best results I noticed I was varying my points I was using (which probably equated to carbs) each day and not doing the same thing every day. So I thought the carb cycling might work.  I have not made it all the way through the book yet and I re-started what I was doing on WW a few days ago as it is not easy to learn the concepts and get the hang of it and I needed to get a few of these Christmas pounds off NOW. I would be interested in anyones success and tips about getting going.

[steff]

It's hard to grasp when he uses so many graphs and stuff.  Here is how I think of it:

Monday   - Lean meat and green leafy vegetables     - weight resistance and cardio

Tuesday  - Lean meat, starchy vegetables and Fruit  - Yoga and cardio

Wednesday -  Lean meat and green leafy vegetables - Weight resistance and cardio

Thursday - Lean meat and starchy vegetables - Yoga and cardio

Friday - Lean Meat and green leafy vegetables - weight resistance and cardio

Saturday - Lean Meat and starchy vegetables - Yoga and cardio,  Weigh Day!!!

Sunday - Free day, but avoid Sugar, White Pasta, White Rice, White potatoes without skin, and

                White   flour, eat mindfully and practice portion control

You should be consuming more calories on Starchy days, as much as 400 - 700 calories. 

I keep a sign on my fridge that I just flip over.  One side in red says Carbs and Yoga, the other side is green and says No Carbs and weights.  The hardest part for me was learning that I could have things, but sometimes I just had to wait until tomorrow.  Funny, how if you postpone your desire for a certain thing, you find out you don't really need it.

[Cylver]

I've just started to read the Chris Powell book, "Choose to Lose for Life" on iBooks over the last week (on and off); and yes it does seem very enlightening. Hoping to see how it works once I've finished reading it. Have you started yet?

[steff]

I have been carb cycling for about a month.  I have actually had an 8 lb weight loss in that time.  That's not much, but I am hyprothyroid and I can gain weight having a cookie!  So I am thrilled with the results.  I figure even if only lose a pound a week (which would be amazing in my world), this time next year I will have lost 52 lbs.  And that would be just right.

[jessica_p]

I have! Half way through my 2nd week now. I am down 13 lbs and feeling
great!! Best of luck to you! 🙂

[Islulu]

I just finished the choose more lose more book. I am wanting to do this. I am trying to find a site that shows a sample menu. Does anyone know where one can be found?

[DanPamperin]

I am following the carb cycling plan as well.  It was recommended by the owner of the fitness boot camp I go to.  The results have been great (when I've been able to stick to it, that is).  Pre-planning meals has been key, especially with family obligations throughout the week.  Do you use the Chris Powell app?  I think the reminders to eat on my phone are very helpful when I get busy at work.

[DanPamperin]

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@Walker4Life wrote:

I need to get back on the Carb Cycling program now that I have a FitBit. I tried this last month and lost 7 lbs. in one week. Very easy to follow and do, just lot of pre-planning required. 

---

Did you get back on the program?  7 lbs in a week is awesome -- I hope you started again and have seen even better results!

[dipgal]

A "friend" on another forum was doing it, and one day the book was offered free for the kindle.. She has since stalled after losing about 30 lbs even though she followed it to the letter.  She has about another 60 lbs to go.  I downloaded the book and read it.

I totally believe the concept of mixing things up - both macronutrients, calories and exercise.  The body stalls unless it doesn't know what to expect.  The thing with this plan is, if I am not hungry I will NOT eat. The "six meals a day" concept revving up metabolism has been shown to be false.  And, yes.. it's important to drink water, but the quantity he suggests for a larger person like me is crazy.

So, I do think it's important to mix things up, but some of the "musts" mentioned above are probably not necessary.

[jimmymac1us]

   I just started reading the book on my Kindle and I could not put the thing down, that is untill I needed to eat. I still have a ways to go before I finish it, but I realy liked the part about making promises to yourself. I wrote some of those down and I am promising that:

1. I will believe in myself.  

2. I promis to do 15 push-up, 15 sit-ups, and 15, squats every morning.

3. I will go to the gym every day of the week to excersize.

[Delked]

Just picked up the book, I have watched his tv program for a year now, not sure about it still, and sometimes one needs a bit of help figuring out how to start something.  Since I just got my fitbit flex two months ago I have noticed it am more aware of my activity.  I'm lucky, as I am very self competative.  Lol

Any suggestions on how to go about starting carb cycling? did anyone just ease into it or do you have to start full board?

Leah

[msmack]

I am on my 3rd week of carb cycling and I love it.  Eating every 3 hours is not hard for me and I never feel hungry.  I'm doing the turbo one so I get 1 free day a week.  I do the 9 minute mission exercise in the morning and I try to do at least an hour of some form of exercise a day.  At the end of my 2nd week, I was down 7.4 pounds and 13.5 inches all over.

[MikeShear]

http://mikescarbcyclejourney.blogspot.com/

I have been studying up on this and decided to attempt a blog.  I am trying to use that forum as a discussion, but also as a way to help keep track of what I have been doing so it can be seen what is working and not working on the plan.  I do not feel that you need to be a body builder for this plan to be effective.  I figured out my caloric intake for both high and low carb days.  I have been developing an exercise plan.  Let's see how it goes.