21 Days to a Flatter Stomach?

21-Day Tummy
Diet Book

In a previous post, I talked about my annual physical and walking for exercise.  In it I mention I was told to watch what I eat, I knew that would require some determination and strict guidelines.   I do not eat a lot, but obviously I was eating the wrong things.  I found a book titled 21-day Tummy and thought I’d give the diet a try for three weeks.  The book explains what will happen over 3 weeks and suggests shopping and cooking over the weekend and starting the diet on a Monday.  The book also has examples from several testers, some who did better than me and others who did not lose as much. 

Below are my results, followed by my diet/exercise notes and revisions to their plan.

GOAL to lose 15 pounds total

Pre-diet* (5 days before start) – Lost 5 pounds and 0 inches

Week 1 = Lost 2 pounds plus 2 inches around waist

Week 2 = Lost 3 pounds plus 0 inches around waist

Week 3 = Lost 2 pounds plus 1.5 inches around waist

*NOTE: For pre-diet I tried the smoothies to make sure I would like them well enough to replace breakfast with their version on the diet.  I was not following the rest of the diet, just the smoothies as breakfast.  I was already doing basic walking so I had not added in their daily exercises for pre-diet. Of course on most diets you lose a lot of water the first week, which may be what I did these 5 days. 

*BONUS – after losing the first 5 pounds of weight and keeping up the walking, my knee pain seemed to go away.

The book only requires you to walk for 25-45 minutes each day working your time up 10 minutes each week.  I was already walking an hour so all I needed to do was change the first part of the walk to their suggested interval walking and then walking leisurely for final 10-15 minutes.  It was not fun to have to watch the time for the minutes the book suggested, because checking time seems to make the minutes move slower.  Instead, I decided to use my MP3 player to walk fast for one song and slower on the next. 

There are other exercises to do for about 10-15 minutes each day as well.  Half of the exercises in the book were the same as I was doing from back surgeon, so I just needed to increase repetitions and add the others to match their recommendations. 

The 21-day Tummy book above is geared more towards controlling gastronomical issues rather than major weight loss, which is not my problem.  So I felt it was ok for me to make a few revisions in some of their recipes as long as I kept fairly close to the diet otherwise.   I was already doing smoothies occasionally for breakfast, so switching to their Belly Soother Smoothie daily was no big deal (smoothie making tips). My favorite flavors were the red grape and pineapple versions.   However, I did not like the stronger taste of Greek Yogurt, so I halved the amount as they suggested if you had problems with the basic recipe.  Otherwise eating mostly fish, chicken, salad, or soup for lunch and dinner was also not a stretch for me, since I like all those things.  I like my baked or broiled fish plain, so I did not embellish with flavorings or toppings that were in their recipes. Also, I made a list of vegetables I would eat from the acceptable list in the book so I would know what to shop for and substitute with if I ate out.

At the end of the 21-day program, I was 3 pounds short of my goal.  Now I need to move onto a second phase to get rid of that at a slower weight loss pace.

Always consult a doctor before starting a diet or exercise program!