This week we’re going to give you some diet hacks for your transformation fat loss program. I hope your 2011 is off to an amazing start, and I also hope that you’ll join the 10th TT Transformation Contest.

=> Click here for the details on how you can win $1000 just by losing belly fat

The last day to enter the 12-week contest is Saturday, Jan 15th. Can’t wait to see your results. And we’ve got a lot of great tips in this week’s 7-day fat burning guide.

Click here to listen to the call

Now let’s get started with…

Monday – Jan 10th

Transformation Tip of the Week:

“People will do almost anything to stay in their comfort zones. If you want to accomplish anything, get out of your comfort zone.” – Kekich Credo #1

To help you get out of your comfort zone, set deadlines for behavioral change and results, with consequences for not meeting those deadlines. This has worked for me and many others.

For anything in life, if you want advanced results, you have to take advanced measures. Its not enough to give an ordinary effort if you want extraordinary results.

Training Tips from the latest issue of Men’s Health Magazine:

The latest issue is filled with conditioning methods, many of which can replace traditional interval training.

Method #1: “The Jump-Press Shuttle”: Jump over bench, do a pushup, get up, jump back over the bench, do a pushup, repeat. 40 seconds on, 20 seconds rest, repeat 6x

Method #2: Barbell Complex: DL, row, hang clean, front squat, push press, good morning, back squat. Do 6 reps per exercise without rest between exercises.

Method #3: A “Smoker Set”: Do the following for 5-minutes: Alternate between a lower and upper body exercise, using your 8-Rep Max for each. Do ONLY 4 reps per set. Continue to alternate back and forth until 5 minutes is up. Then rest 1 minute and repeat the 5-minute bout again.

Method #4: The “10-1 Countdown Ladders”: Doing this will give you 55 reps per exercise. Choose 2 exercises, such as KB Swings and Pushups. Do 10 reps of swings, then 10 reps of pushups. Without rest, do 9 swings and 9 pushups. Continue until you are down to 1 rep each.

Tuesday
•    Get 30 minutes of fun activity – now grab a Green Tea and do this week’s research review.

Reference:
Am J Clin Nutrition. The Mediterranean and Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension (DASH) diets and colorectal cancer

American researchers examined the diets of 87,256 women and 45,490 men (age 30–55 y for women and 40–75 y for men at baseline) for ~26 years!

They looked at two diet patterns:

a) The Mediterranean diet
b) The DASH Diet (Dietary Approaches to Stop Hypertension)

There was no effect of the Mediterranean diet on colon cancer, but they did find that people who ate according to the DASH diet had a lower risk of colorectal cancer (DASH diet consists of whole grains, fruit, and vegetables; moderate amounts of low-fat dairy; and lower amounts of red or processed meats, desserts, and sweetened beverages).

Bottom line: Despite so many nutrition guru’s giving grains a bad name, study after study continues to show health benefits when including them in your diet. This is simple nutrition at its best.

Reference #2:
Adherence to the Mediterranean diet, long-term weight change, and incident overweight or obesity: the Seguimiento Universidad de Navarra (SUN) cohort

Spanish researchers looked at the Mediterranean diet as a weight loss strategy in 10,376 Spanish men and women who were university graduates (mean age = 38 y) and were followed for over 5 years.

Subjects who did not stick with the Mediterranean diet had the highest yearly weight gain. Subjects who stuck to the diet the best had the lowest weight gain.

Conclusions: The Mediterranean diet can be recommended to slow down age-related weight gain.

BUT…still, it wasn’t weight loss, it was just less weight gain. To get fat loss, there needs to be dietary restriction and exercise.

Wednesday Workout Tip

Men’s Health featured abdominal tips that are worth repeating.

1. Abs are designed to resist motion, not create it. Therefore, avoid bending/twisting your spine. Eliminate crunches, situps, and russian twists.
2. During almost every exercise, such as pushups, you should brace your abs as if you were preparing to get punched in the stomach.
3. Finally, Dr. Stuart McGill recommended these two ab exercises:

a) Stability Ball “Stir the Pot” – A regular stability ball plank, with the addition of your arms moving in a circular motion on the ball. Keep your torso straight. Do 6 reps in each direction to start.
b) Rolling planks – Start with 10 seconds in a side plank. Slowly roll your body into a regular plank, while keeping your body in a straight line. Hold for 10 seconds. Then roll your body – as a unit – into a side plank on the opposite side. That’s 1 rep, do 6.

Trainer Thursday
•    Do 30 minutes of fun activity…

I wanted to share this thought with all the trainers who are out there and doing a great job…

“Over the holidays, your training clients were asked by their family “what have you been doing to get back in shape?” …and your client then told them – and everyone – about how YOU have changed their life…and how much they love YOU and how wonderful you are, and how they tell everyone they know about YOU.

That happened all over the world…in kitchens, living rooms, churches, malls, and everywhere that your client went.

So take a few moments and think about that, and let that be some inspiration to you to know that you are making a massive, LIFE-CHANGING difference in the lives of your clients! That’s pretty cool. And you deserve to feel amazing about that, because of the amazing help that you are giving these folks.

And just think that next year, there will be 2 times, 10 times, or even 100 times more people having those conversations. Congratulations on helping so many people in 2010, and I’m looking forward to your success in 2011.

Facebook Friday

Q: I imagine that interval training would have quite a high probability for injury especially for untrained individuals. Wouldn’t mixing it up with longer type cardio be the best option? – Colin

Answer:
Hi Colin. The injury risk is less with intervals, and in my opinion, greater with cardio because of overuse (too many repetitions in a workout). As you’ll see in almost every interval training study, the subjects are complete beginners – and no injuries are reported. There is less exercise done in an interval workout, and therefore less risk of overuse injury.

Q: If I can only work out on M,T,W & Th, do I alternate upper and lower body or do I do 2 days weights and 2 days BW??? – Kendra

Answer:
Hi Kendra, just train 3 days per week, M – upper, T-lower, Th-Total body.

Social Support Saturday!
•    30 minutes of fun activity…

It doesn’t matter how “good” jealousy feels, negativity does not serve you. Get over it, get on with your life, and start acting and thinking productively and positively.

Sunday – Plan, Shop & Prepare
•    30 minutes activity and plan, shop, & prepare

And now for our 5 Diet Hacks, including tips from Tim Ferriss, Joel Marion, John Berardi, and John Romaniello.

Diet Hack #1 – Use “Ritual Eating” for fat loss

I first heard this idea from John Romaniello, and it simply means eating the same meal every day for 6 days per week during your 12-week transformation. Our friend Joel Marion just sent me this email about his 2011 fat loss diet.

“I’ve mapped out daily diet where i’m eating the same thing every day (this is how I did the BFL contest), and even if I’m traveling or out to eat, every meal is something I could order at a restaurant.”

Breakfast:  16 oz organic skim milk, Full Strength shake, 1 banana (same shake every day)
Snack: 12 oz Plain Greek Yogurt + 10 oz mixed berries (same every day)
Lunch:  6 oz Chicken, 2 oz Cheddar, ton of Green Veggies (same every day)
Snack:  2 oz Mixed Almonds, Pistachios, Cashews (same every day)
Dinner: One of 3 options for dinner (4 egg omelet w/ veggies OR 8 oz filet w/ veggies or 6 oz Grilled Chicken w/ salad)

Diet Hack #2 – Don’t drink ANY calories

Eliminate all juice, all soda, all alcohol, and any other liquid calories from your diet for the next 12 weeks. You’d be surprised how many calories sneak into your diet on a weekly basis through drinking.

Diet Hack #3 – Create a deferred cheat day list

This is a mental tip to help you get through the week until your reward meal or cheat day (whichever you choose). In my interview with Tim Ferriss, he recommended keeping a list of all your cravings, and promising yourself that you can have those foods on your cheat day. Knowing that you have something to look forward to is a great mindset tip. It will keep you going through the tough days during the week.

Diet Hack #4 – Fish Oil – 1g per 1% body fat

This tip comes from Dr. John Berardi, who said: “The first habit is to start off with one gram of fish oil per one percent body fat.  When people are new to the program that’s the number one thing they start with. We do that up to about 30 grams, so if someone is 20 percent body fat, they take 20 grams of fish oil a day. If they’re 30 percent, they take 30 grams a day.”

Click here for the rest of my interview with Dr. John Berardi

Diet Hack #5 – Slow down and chew each bite of food 20 times

This tip comes from a “turn of the century” fitness expert, Bernar McFadden. I read a book about him called, “Mr. America”, and he recommended that his clients chew their food 30-50 times!

At your next meal, count how many times you chew each bite of food. I bet it is 5 or less.

When you slow down and chew your food longer, you’ll eat less before your brain registers it is full. There’s no need to eat a medium pizza in 5 minutes. You won’t get attacked by another caveman who is going to steal your meal.

So slow down, and I know that will help you control your portions.

Let me know if you have any diet hacks to add to our list.

And make sure to tell me about how they help your Transformation.

Until next week, make sure you get in the 10th TT Transformation Contest here.

Next week!

•    Training Tips – More MH Workout Tips
•    Research Review – Interval training
•    Nutrition – Arginine Supplementation

So you asked, and here it is…What Craig Ballantyne Eats.

At your request, I’ve put together my current daily diet. As you’ll see, I eat more fruits and vegetables in a day than the average American eats all week. And then some.

It’s become a game to me…how many fruits and vegetables can I eat? Is there a new fruit or vegetable I can try and add to my diet?

To be honest, I might be going overboard…but I enjoy it. And I certainly notice the lack of green vegetables when traveling and I fail to make adequate preparations. By the time I’ve been gone 2 days, I’m already looking forward to getting home and having a big greens-based blender drink.

In my fridge, to the right, I have it filled with vegetables, eggs, and hummus on the top row, and cut up vegetables on the middle row, then almond milk and Garden of Life protein on the bottom row. The crisper is filled with apples, and I have a store-full of salsa, spaghetti sauce, and nut butters in the door compartments.

By eating more raw foods in your drinks and as salads, you’ll extend your lifespan and lower your bodyweight.

And one strategy I recommend is to always be experimenting with new ingredients in your foods.

Just this year I started adding garlic to my salads, quinoa, and chili. Combined with the broccoli, red peppers, spinach, and mushrooms that go into my salad at lunch, I know I’m eating for a long, lean life. Now here’s the daily plan…

5:30am – wake up

6:00am – dog walk

7:00am – Apple (eaten while catching up on your emails to me)

8:00am – Blender Drink #1

I recently changed my blender drink methods, and you can read about those Nutrition Drinks changes here.

I start my day with this Greens-based drink.

Green Drink: Almond Milk (2 cups), Garden of Life Raw protein powder, spinach, ½ banana, blueberries (small amount, optional), cinnamon (needed for taste!), cacao nibs, chia seeds, teaspoon of Spirulina powder, and a teaspoon of Athletic Greens powder.

I also eat 2 oz of raw almonds and up to 6 raw dates at this time.

9:00am – Workout (read about my workouts on my training blog here)

10:00am – I have the following drink right after training:

Almond milk (2 cups), Prograde whey protein, raspberries or strawberries, and 1 banana (optional: pecans or peanut butter).

NOTE: I don’t usually use whey protein, but a friend convinced me to try it again…and if you’re going to use Whey Protein, I recommend the company I’ve partnered with, Prograde.

I also use the Prograde Essential Fatty Acid supplement at lunch…although I recently tried a similar product called “Flame-Out” from Biotest, and I might switch over to that one. The only other supplement I use on a regular basis is Vitamin C.

By the way, this is a picture of one of my cupboard drawers…filled with almonds, cacao nibs, a couple of jugs of whey protein, Vitamin C pills, Spirulina, Athletic Greens, and a 6-pack of Heineken (for some strange reason).

12:00pm – Lunch

From Monday to Thursday, when I’m in Toronto, I have a large amount of vegetables with either black beans, kidney beans, or 4 organic eggs (yolks included). The vegetables include: spinach, red onion, broccoli, red pepper, and mushrooms. I also have 1/2 an avocado most days. Sometimes the vegetables are cooked, most days the vegetables are raw.

On Fridays, I go to Freshii for lunch, and have a veggie burrito or two, and  I get a bowl of chicken for Bally the Dog.

2:00pm - Raw nuts & dates OR apple plus 1 scoop of Prograde Protein in Almond milk.

4:30pm – Raw vegetables with hummus (broccoli, carrots, red peppers) and an apple

NOTE: Nutrition Program Recommendations

By the way, if this “multiple small meals” approach appeals to you, then  you’ll like Isabel De Los Rios’ “Diet Solution Program“.

If not, then you are better off with a more relaxed approach, like Brad Pilon’s “Eat Stop Eat” program. It’s unique, but TT members love it.

6:00pm - Dog walk (might have a few handfuls of cashews at this point too, maybe even a banana)

8:00-9:00pm - Dinner (I eat late…mostly due to social reasons, but also because I prefer to eat late rather than eat early and snack all night)

Monday Dinner – Giant bowl of quinoa, vegetables, olive oil, avocado, spaghetti sauce

On Mondays, I work about 12 hours in the day, and so I just relax at home at night, making this giant bowl of food at about 9pm while watching sports and “WW II in HD” on the History Channel.

Tuesday Dinner (50% of the time at home, 50% of the time out) – If out, I have steak, vegetables (usually broccoli or asparagus), whole-wheat bread (if at a restaurant), and 1-2 glasses of red wine. If at home, I have ground beef, spinach, onions, and Amy’s organic chili all mixed together, plus 1 beer.

On days when I eat meat at night, I tend to eat black beans or kidney beans at lunch. On days when I have grains at night, I have eggs at lunch.

Wednesday Dinner – I’ve been trying alternative grains, including Barley and Millet. So I have the same giant bowl of grains plus vegetables (from Monday) if I’m just chilling at home. If I’m dragged out, then I’ll have a similar meal to Tuesday, but with a different meat (i.e. chicken or wild salmon).

Thursday Dinner – Same as Tuesday. I’m out 80% of the time on Thursday nights for dinner.

Friday Dinner – I’m usually traveling…80% of the time…so it’s a restaurant meal…and usually a big meal. One of my “cheat” meals, as they say.

Cheat Meals - Currently I have 3-4 cheat meals each week. In the New Year, I’m going to try a full “Cheat Day”. I’ve never really done this before, using the Cheat Day style recommended by Joel Marion, John Romaniello, and others. We’ll see if it results in any differences. My current cheat meals include large meals at steakhouses, entire pizzas, or home-cooked meals at my Mom’s house with large desserts.

Weekends - The schedule varies, but the food doesn’t change that much.

If you want to see what I eat while I’m traveling, check out my free Fat Loss Travel Report here. You’ll also discover the Top 10 Rules for Losing Fat While On the Road. And as a guy who flew almost 25,000 miles this year, I know how to lose fat while traveling.

It’s not really that hard. Even “in the middle of nowhere in Eastern Europe”. Download the free report and you’ll see.

After 10 days on the road I decided to head home to my parent’s place for a few days and get out of the big city. I also wanted to hang out with some high school buddies, and check out a few houses because I’m pretty sure I’m going to move out of Toronto soon.

The #1 reason? Cigarette smoke. Everywhere I go in Toronto someone is smoking and I’m getting smoke in my face. I just can’t escape it. It drives me nuts…but that’s another story for another email.

Today, I want to share the 3 diet mistakes I found in my mom’s fridge when I visited on the weekend…

Now before I list those, I’ve got to give credit where credit is due.

My mom has made HUGE improvements in her nutrition and overall healthy lifestyle in the last few years. But there are still some major issues…and you might be making the same mistakes.

Mistake #1 – Too much junk in the house.

Like many shoppers, my mom LOVES a good bargain. So when a case of soda goes on sale, she just has to buy it. Now it doesn’t matter that there are already 3 cases of soda in the basement…what matters is that she got a good deal.

Sound familiar? I’m sure you know “someone” in your family who just can’t resist a deal on junk food.

But as you know, the #1 diet mistake that we all make – including myself – is having junk in the house in the first place.

Listen, if it’s in your house, you’re going to eat it. I know it, because if there is any Halloween candy in my mom’s house the next time I visit, it will only be a few minutes before I’m cramming mini-snickers down my throat.

Junk in the house = Us eating the junk. Period. (And YES, that includes ME.)

So get it out of the house.

By the way, it is called “junk food” for a reason…because it belongs in the garbage.

Don’t feel bad for tossing it…because it doesn’t belong in your body.

Mistake #2 – Not stopping sneaky sugar & refined flour attacks

So I went through everything in the fridge and the cupboards, and I found that her tomato sauce and peanut butter had added sugar, AND that her cupboards were loaded with pretzels (my downfall!), white pasta, refined bread, and crackers.

Sugar = increased calories
Sugar = makes you want to eat more than you need
Sugar = makes you feel tired and hungry even though you should be full

Three strikes and you’re out, Mr. Sugar. I don’t care how sweet you are, you’re no good for anyone who wants to lose belly fat.

Listen, read the labels on the food you buy. If it lists sugar, or any of the crazy sugar variations (like high-fructose corn syrup or even “organic cane juice”), do NOT buy these items.

Mistake #3 – Risking your health big-time with processed meats

Scientific fact: Eating processed meats is associated with an increased risk of colon cancer.

There’s nothing redeeming about processed sausage, hot dogs, and other low-quality meats. Get them out of your house.

You want to have a hot dog at a family BBQ, that’s fine. Once or twice a summer…but these foods do not belong in your weekly dinner rotation. Go meatless a few nights per week or cut back on the amount of meat each night and only buy the best meat you can afford.

Now, on the BRIGHT SIDE…

As I mentioned, my mom is doing a lot of things right.

1) She drinks her Green tea (not magical for fat loss, but it’s good for her health).

2) She cooks oatmeal from scratch (and adds fruit) or has hard boiled eggs for breakfast every morning.

3) She snacks on an ounce of almonds per day (shown to help with fat loss and improving cholesterol levels).

4) She grows her own vegetables (always has, of course) and so she has farm-fresh vegetables every night at dinner. (Although I’m trying to get her to eat more fruits and vegetables at lunch, and less bread and cheese.)

5) She picks massive amounts of fruit every summer, so in the winter she has bags of strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries. Plus, she always has apples and bananas on the counter, and plums, peaches, and melon in-season.

Of course, having all those fruits and vegetables is no good if she doesn’t eat them…but like I said, she’s eating more and more every time I go home.

In fact, she recently started making her own blender drinks, just like I do here at TT Headquarters.

So listen…

…if she can do it, YOU can do it.

I believe in you. My MOM believes in you.

And we look forward to reading your Transformation story.

Please keep us up to date on your success,

Craig Ballantyne, CSCS, MS
Author, Turbulence Training

A lot of folks have been asking about my diet. So I’m going to outline what I eat when I’m at home…As you’ll see, I eat a lot of raw food, very few animal products, and a lot of fruits and vegetables.

Oh, and I eat a LOT of carbohydrates too. I think the carb-phobia the diet world has is overblown. If you get your carbohydrates from raw fruits, raw vegetables, raw nuts, and whole grains, you’ll have a simple time losing fat.