The 17 Day Diet – Day 1

The war on carbs has been declared!

Let me just say that I am not the dieting type! I don’t believe in diets. Diet should be a swear word as far as I’m concerned! But, just like swear words, there is a time and a place where they come in handy – and that time is now! My goal is to lose 40 kilos and I could really do with a kick start!

So what’s it all about? Well the 17 day diet was formulated by Dr Moreno, a GP in the States. You may have seen it on Dr Phil or The Doctors. Basically there are 4 – 17 day cycles: Accelerate, Activate, Achieve and Arrive.

The first one, Accelerate, is where I’m starting. It seems quite radical, but you are required to cut out all carbs (save 2 fruit a day) for the entire 17 day period. Drastic? Well maybe, but Dr Moreno promises a good kick start to your weight loss (+/- 12 Pounds over 17 days) and then you may return (albeit gradually) to most of those carbs you have grown to love – in moderation of course.

You may be thinking: “Without carbs, what is there??” The answer – quite a lot actually. Everyday you are allowed unlimited “free” veggies and lean proteins (see lists below). On top of that, you should have 8 glasses of water and 2 probiotic servings (like fat free yoghurt) a day, as well as 2 fruit servings before 2 PM. The reason for this is that it gives your body time to metabolize the sugar in the fruit instead of storing it as fat while you sleep.

Lean proteins include:

Fish:

Salmon (canned or fresh), Flounder, Catfish, Sole, Tilapia, Tinned tuna

Poultry:

Chicken breasts, Turkey breasts, Ground turkey, lean, Eggs (although you may have unlimited egg whites, you should limit yourself to 2 egg yolks a week for cholesterol reasons).

Cleansing vegetables include:

Artichoke, Artichoke hearts, Asparagus, Bell peppers, Broccoli, Brussels sprouts, Cabbage, Carrots, Cauliflower, Celery, Cucumbers, Egg plant, Garlic, Green beans, Green leafy vegetables, Kale, Leeks, Lettuce, Mushrooms, Okra, Onions, Parsley, Scallions, Spinach, Tomatoes, Watercress

Low sugar fruit:

Apples, Berries, Grapefruit, Oranges, Peaches, Pears, Plums, Prickly pears, Prunes, Red grapes

This seems possible! I’ll let you know how it goes.

If you’re trying this too, please let me know how you’re finding it and if you have any ideas you’d like to share!

For more information on the 17 Day Diet, you can check out Dr Moreno’s book, which is available on Kindle at Amazon here.