Described as an ‘uncommon guide to rapid fat-loss, incredible sex and becoming superhuman’, author Tim Ferriss’ book Four Hour Body outlines a diet plan for the time-poor modern man. Much more than just a diet, the book has tips to sort out every inch of your life – including how to sleep better and be better in the sack.
The secret to losing weight the Four Hour Body way is the Slow Carb method, which is based on consuming low-GI food and eliminates starchy food and sweet things, including fruit. Instead, you eat mainly lean protein, vegetables and legumes. Ferriss says that he lost 25lbs in six weeks eating this way without doing any exercise.
Typical daily menu
Breakfast: Scrambled egg whites with spinach.
Lunch: Grilled chicken breast with lentils and salad
2nd Lunch: White bean tortilla
Dinner: Homemade Thai salmon fishcakes with asparagus
Pros
It’s simple. There are just five rules to explain the diet.
Everything you need is in one book. You can pick up a copy of Four Hour Body quite from Amazon and once you’ve got it you’ve got information that you can use at every stage of your weight loss journey.
You can eat whatever you like once a week. One of the main reasons why dieters following the Four Hour Body method are successful is because they get one day a week where no food is off-limits. Ferriss himself says he goes out of his way to binge on ice cream and Snickers on Saturdays, going as far as to eat so much that he feels sick. Spiking your calorie intake on one day like this is said to boost your metabolism and lead to fat loss in the long-term.
Cons
Although Ferriss draws upon the collective wisdom of many people, including elite athletes, his advice is mainly taken from his own experiences.
It will get pretty boring. Ferriss recommends finding a few meals you enjoy and eating them over and over again. He states that this is a habit that the most successful dieters follow, but if you’re a food lover and enjoy experiencing different cuisines, textures and flavours then this will be difficult.
If you struggle with binge eating, this isn’t the diet for you. Following the diet plan means cutting out a lot of food – there’s no carbs (white or wholemeal), no fruit, no dairy apart from cottage cheese and no drinks apart from water and the odd glass of wine. In short, prepare to feel very restricted. This is supposed to be countered by a weekly cheat day where you can eat whatever you want, but this can be a slippery slope for some.
Further Information
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Read about other popular diets in our guide to diet plans for men