Body for Life
based on 2 reviews
Be aware: this is only the goal of this diet, not necessarily its outcome. Results vary from person to person. Consult your doctor or dietician before starting this (or any other) diet.
The Body for Life Diet was created by Bill Phillips. The goal of the diet is to lose weight and become stronger. It is a fairly heavy diet that takes 12 weeks.
On the homepage you can compare this diet with other diets.
When following the Body for Life diet you eat six meals a day. These mainly consist of lean protein products and healthy carbohydrates. You eat a fist-sized portion of each (so one fist of protein and one fist of carbohydrates). You also drink 10 glasses of water a day and eat at least two portions of vegetables with your six meals.
Every week you are allowed to take one day off from your diet. On this day you can eat anything you want.
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In addition to six meals a day, you will exercise a lot on this diet. Every week you do 3 days of power training (45 min. per day) and 3 days of cardio (20 min. per day).
Several books were written on Body for life. We've listed a selection of ad links from Amazon, Apple and Ebooks of such books for you:
The first two books are also available as audiobook. You can listen to the preview of Body for life and Body for life for Women below:
This page has been checked, and warnings have been added by, Jolande, dietician. Read more here.
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Three days of strength training (45 min per day) and three days of cardio (20 min per day) per week.
This Body for Life diet sounds very solid. The ancient concept of six meals a day ensures a good spread of nutrients throughout the day. This is more pleasant for your digestive system and good for the balance in your blood sugar level (as well as pleasant for people without diabetes). Eliminating processed foods and other foods that contain more fats, salt and sugars than necessary is also a well-known way to a healthier body. These things, more people should do, and preferably longer than 12 weeks! One can question whether the diet is a bit short-sighted (by eating what fits in a fist), because all foods have different density and people have different needs. On the other hand, there will be plenty of people who find 'a fist' easier than weighing/calculating everything. If you already eat six meals a day, which are not as large as described here and you just start eating larger meals, then there is suddenly a lot of pressure on that exercise. I therefore hope that the ladies who follow this diet actually have smaller fists than the men of similar weight, age and height. So if it seems a bit much for you personally, maybe it is! Furthermore, the diet has a 'cheat day', on which you may (unintentionally) take in more calories than you would like. So even when you have this day, still try to reason rationally to avoid going crazy. Fortunately, you can think for yourself and you can occasionally weigh and look in the mirror to keep an eye on your process. In summary, there are a few minor considerations, but this diet is very suitable. I would recommend this diet to people who really want to exercise (so much) and to people who are not yet used to a regular diet. Especially because then there really is a change for the body. You will see and feel that for sure!
Especially intended if you want to get 'in shape' with sports. It will help athletes perform well with workouts and possibly lose some weight as well. If you want to follow the traditional advice, among others given by the Nutrition Center, then this is suitable. It is not a lifestyle change, as this is a 12 week program. Also not necessarily suitable for losing weight, although I do not rule out that result, especially for younger people. If your goal is mainly to lose weight, then this is not suitable. Sports coaches themselves indicate that weight loss is 20% training and 80% change in diet. 6 meals a day is traditional with the idea that your blood sugar level remains stable. In reality, your body can do that on its own and you normally have to do something for it. Divided food throughout the day is suitable for people who tend to binge eat or eat emo. This method encourages eating unprocessed foods. But in part, fats necessary for the body are banned. Healthy carbohydrates are allowed, but there are not many healthy carbohydrates. The vast majority of carbohydrates in our diet are in processed products such as low-fat dairy.
With the professional help of a dietitian it should be easier to reach your goals. Please contact a dietician in your area or talk to a doctor before starting any diet.
Please take note that most diets do not have a scientific basis.
Consult your doctor or dietician before starting a diet, especially if you have a chronic condition like diabetes, cardiovascular disease, lung disease or kidney disease.
If you think you might have an eating disorder (like anorexia or bulimia), it is important to look for professional help. Contact your (house) doctor or find help elsewhere. Here you can find a list of several websites that can provide (online) help. These sites also provide information for people that know someone with an eating disorder.