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Our Reviewer Says ...
"The Best Life Diet has become highly regarded among nutritionists because of its motivating tone and and honest approach to nutrition and exercise."
At a Glance
Bob Greene's Best Life Diet isn't your typical weight-loss plan that asks you to follow a special formula to drop pounds -- it's about slowly incorporating positive eating and exercise habits that you can maintain for the rest of your life. The plan is divided into three phases: Phase One focuses on adopting healthy habits, from drinking more water to taking a multi-vitamin to eating at least three times a day and avoiding food right before bedtime. Dieters are instructed to begin some form of aerobic exercise for a minimum of three days a week for 30 minutes a session. Those who already exercise are expected to work out for even longer amounts of time (from upwards of 40 to 60 minutes each session), as well as increase how many days per week they exercise. After four weeks, you'll weigh yourself again -- if you continue to drop a pound or more each week, you're advised to stay with Phase One for several more weeks. Otherwise, you'll move onto the next phase. In Phase Two fried foods, soft drinks, white bread, regular pasta and high-fat dairy products are eliminated in favor of whole-grain products, olive oil, skim milk, vegetables and fruits. Dieters are also encouraged to examine the psychology behind their eating behavior and identify overeating triggers. This phase continues until you're 20 pounds shy of your goal when you move onto Phase Three, which reintroduces previously banned foods and sets you up for a lifetime of healthy eating and exercise habits.
Checklist
- Cost: Average. Expect to spend the same amount you're already spending on food. However, if you choose to join his Best Life Program -- which gives you access to nutritional information, a community of experts and other dieters -- that costs an additional $4.50 a week.
- Meals Provided: None.
- Diet Duration: Ongoing. Phase One is a minimum of four weeks or more. Phase Two is a four-week cycle that you repeat every four weeks until you've reached your goal weight. Phase three is a lifetime commitment.
- Fitness Requirements: Yes. Exercise plays a major role in the diet. Greene helps you determine your current activity level, then encourages you to slowly and safely progress to what he calls Level Five (6 days of aerobic exercise for a total of 360 minutes and three days of strength training.)
- Time Commitment: Moderate. Food prep is the easy part; because this diet is strict about exercise, you can expect to devote a minimum of 90 minutes per week to physical activity on top of your -- and that number will increase as you progress.
- Eating Out: Absolutely. You can easily apply the eating behaviors the book teaches and make healthy choices when dining out.
- Alcohol: It's entirely forbidden during Phase One, but is allowed in later phases in limited moderation.
- Vegetarian-Friendly: Yes. There are quite a number of veggie-based recipes and you can easily substitute everything from soymilk, peanut butter, protein bars and shakes, bean, nuts and a variety of other vegan high-protein foods in place of meat.
- Strict/Flexible Eating Plan: Flexible. The most effort you need to exert on the diet side is eating the right amount of meals, keeping your portion sizes reasonable, avoiding certain types of bad foods and putting the fork down once you feel satisfied. You can even eat extra calories if you exercise more.
Online:
The Best Life Diet
Books:
The Best Life Diet
The Best Life Diet Daily Journal
Fitness expert Myatt Murphy is the author of the best-selling books, The Body You Want in the Time You Have, Ultimate Dumbbell Guide and The Men's Health Gym Bible.
