The 4 Hour body Diet + Swing minimalism
As recommended By Timothy Ferriss
Diet and Information based on the book by Timothy Ferriss ' The 4 - Hour Body '
The slow carb diet ( overview and recommendations)
The Slow Carb Diet consists of the following 5 rules:
What is a Slow Carb?
Slow carbs are foods that digest slowly, they are low glycemic food that releases slowly, and do not cause your blood sugar to spike rapidly.
Carbohydrates have gotten a bad reputation, due to the low fat craze – a lot of people are replacing fat with simple sugars and simple carbohydrates. There is much speculation that due to this low-carb diet plan, we have created a generation that is being lead to to the epidemic of diabetes and heart disease. The good news is that all carbohydrates are not bad, and actually they are very important for weight loss and maintaining a lean body. The key is knowing how to choose the right quality and quantity of carbs. Many people may be surprised to know that all fruits and vegetables are categorized as carbohydrates. Surprise – carbs are not just cookies, bagels and pasta! Knowing how to chose the right carbs is the key to maintain a healthy energy and sugar balance in the body.
When we eat simple carbs, also known as carbs with a high glycemic index, such as a muffin or a bagel, most breakfast cereal, pasta, or white rice, – they rapidly increase the amount of sugar in our blood. This blood increase triggers our pancreas to release a large amount of hormone insulin in a short amount of time. Insulin is produced to convert the sugar into usable energy, which is known as the increase in spike. Next, your blood sugar is rapidly dropped back down, and many people experience this as the “sugar crash”, or the “3:00 slump”. This reduction in blood sugar signals to the body a need for energy, which the body often corresponds to eating more carbs (the simplest and most accessible form of energy). This cycle leads to rollercoaster blood sugar levels.
The key to long term weight loss and the avoidance of metabolic syndrome and diabetes, is keeping your blood sugar levels constant. Complex carbs (or slow carbs) are an important part of blood sugar and energy maintenance, when eating the proper carbs in the right portion size in the right time of day, you can optimize your weight loss, and maintain your energy and blood sugar levels all day.
Slow carbs, or low glycemic carbs, break down much slower and therefore provide a slow release of sugar into your blood. This allows for a constant and more steady release of insulin, instead of a large spike. Keeping a slow steady burn throughout the day, helps to manage our hunger, reduces our mood swings, and provides a steady fuel for our energy. When we are rapidly increasing our blood sugar and releasing insulin, over a long period of time, this can lead to insulin resistance which is the precursor to diabetes (our body no longer knows how to convert sugar into energy appropriately).
You should work to build a diet of low glycemic foods at every meal, and eat every 3 hours. By doing this, you will keep your blood sugar burning steady and avoid binge eating and bad eating choices
Some handy fat loss tips:
Don’t eat (almost) anything white (cauliflower is okay!) – Tim Ferriss’ Rule # 1
If you are going to eat a carb, eat something in its most natural form (least process)
Higher the fiber, lower the glycemic index
When eating fruits, always mix it with a nut or protein (as fruits, although healthy, do have a lot of sugar, and can also lead to spiking blood levels) *
The slow carb diet ( overview and recommendations)
The Slow Carb Diet consists of the following 5 rules:
- Avoid “White” Carbohydrates
- Eat the same few meals over and over again
- Don’t drink calories
- Don’t eat fruit
- Take one day off per week
What is a Slow Carb?
Slow carbs are foods that digest slowly, they are low glycemic food that releases slowly, and do not cause your blood sugar to spike rapidly.
Carbohydrates have gotten a bad reputation, due to the low fat craze – a lot of people are replacing fat with simple sugars and simple carbohydrates. There is much speculation that due to this low-carb diet plan, we have created a generation that is being lead to to the epidemic of diabetes and heart disease. The good news is that all carbohydrates are not bad, and actually they are very important for weight loss and maintaining a lean body. The key is knowing how to choose the right quality and quantity of carbs. Many people may be surprised to know that all fruits and vegetables are categorized as carbohydrates. Surprise – carbs are not just cookies, bagels and pasta! Knowing how to chose the right carbs is the key to maintain a healthy energy and sugar balance in the body.
When we eat simple carbs, also known as carbs with a high glycemic index, such as a muffin or a bagel, most breakfast cereal, pasta, or white rice, – they rapidly increase the amount of sugar in our blood. This blood increase triggers our pancreas to release a large amount of hormone insulin in a short amount of time. Insulin is produced to convert the sugar into usable energy, which is known as the increase in spike. Next, your blood sugar is rapidly dropped back down, and many people experience this as the “sugar crash”, or the “3:00 slump”. This reduction in blood sugar signals to the body a need for energy, which the body often corresponds to eating more carbs (the simplest and most accessible form of energy). This cycle leads to rollercoaster blood sugar levels.
The key to long term weight loss and the avoidance of metabolic syndrome and diabetes, is keeping your blood sugar levels constant. Complex carbs (or slow carbs) are an important part of blood sugar and energy maintenance, when eating the proper carbs in the right portion size in the right time of day, you can optimize your weight loss, and maintain your energy and blood sugar levels all day.
Slow carbs, or low glycemic carbs, break down much slower and therefore provide a slow release of sugar into your blood. This allows for a constant and more steady release of insulin, instead of a large spike. Keeping a slow steady burn throughout the day, helps to manage our hunger, reduces our mood swings, and provides a steady fuel for our energy. When we are rapidly increasing our blood sugar and releasing insulin, over a long period of time, this can lead to insulin resistance which is the precursor to diabetes (our body no longer knows how to convert sugar into energy appropriately).
You should work to build a diet of low glycemic foods at every meal, and eat every 3 hours. By doing this, you will keep your blood sugar burning steady and avoid binge eating and bad eating choices
Some handy fat loss tips:
Don’t eat (almost) anything white (cauliflower is okay!) – Tim Ferriss’ Rule # 1
If you are going to eat a carb, eat something in its most natural form (least process)
Higher the fiber, lower the glycemic index
When eating fruits, always mix it with a nut or protein (as fruits, although healthy, do have a lot of sugar, and can also lead to spiking blood levels) *
Swing Minimalism
Tim,s thrice weekly workout schedule
Monday
Although Tim used a 53 lb ( 24 kg kettlebell for his workouts , I don't recommend that every male should start with that weight , a 35 lb ( 16 kg is a better option for a male with limited exercise background or even less if they have lower back or hip problems . An 8 kg should be sufficient for females with some exercise experience .
This type of minimal workout is perfect for those individuals
If you have 1 kettlebell do these 4 exercise
Try these exercises for the next 3 months and see how you feel , total exercise time would be no more than 2 and half hours per week or 10 hours per month , and I think that is achievable for any individual , push your self hard every session , don't waste time chatting or any other distractions during your session , don't forget to warm up with some dynamic stretching and cool down with some static stretching .
Timothy Ferris has given us a wonderful tool to help us in our pursuit for a more productive and interesting life , please read his two books .
Monday
- High rep kettlebell swings ( with a goal of 75 reps , he did multiple sets of lower reps until he reached his goal ( eventually reaching 150 reps in a single set with a 53 pound /24 kilogram kettlebell.
- Slow myotatic crunch ( weighted for 10 to 15 reps)
- Iso - lateral dumbbell incline bench press , 3 sets of 5 reps 2 minutes rest alternated with
- Yates Row ( bent over rows , supinated grip , 20 to 30 degree bend at the waist . 3 sets of 5 reps .
- Reverse drag Curls ( using a thick bar or fat grips to make 2 x standard thickness of Olympic bar. 2 sets of 6 reps.
- High rep kettlebell swings to minimum 75 reps .
- Slow myotatic crunch ( weighted for 12 to 15 reps)
- Every other week : single arm kettlebell swings to 25 reps per arm.
Although Tim used a 53 lb ( 24 kg kettlebell for his workouts , I don't recommend that every male should start with that weight , a 35 lb ( 16 kg is a better option for a male with limited exercise background or even less if they have lower back or hip problems . An 8 kg should be sufficient for females with some exercise experience .
This type of minimal workout is perfect for those individuals
- That are pushed for time due to work or family commitments
- Hate spending long hours in the gym ( or dislike going to gyms )
- Not afraid of hard work ( these are intense hard workouts albeit brief )
If you have 1 kettlebell do these 4 exercise
- The 2 handed Kettlebell swing ( with a goal of 75 reps in 1 set )
- The renegade row ( this can be done with 1 or 2 kettlebells ) 3 sets of 5 reps alternated with the kettlebell floor press 2 minutes rest between sets .
- The kettlebell Floor press
- The kettlebell Crush curl
- The 2 handed Kettlebell swing ( with a goal of 75 reps in 1 set )
- Resistance band standing row ( use a resistance that will let you achieve 5 or 6 reps ) and alternate with resistance band standing chest press , 2 minutes break between sets .
- Resistance band standing chest press
- Kettlebell Turkish get up ( 5 sets of 3 reps )
- The 2 handed Kettlebell swing ( with a goal of 75 reps in 1 set )
- TRX Atomic push up ( 3 sets of 5 reps , alternate with TRX Rows , 2 minutes rest between sets .
- TRX row
- TRX situp
Try these exercises for the next 3 months and see how you feel , total exercise time would be no more than 2 and half hours per week or 10 hours per month , and I think that is achievable for any individual , push your self hard every session , don't waste time chatting or any other distractions during your session , don't forget to warm up with some dynamic stretching and cool down with some static stretching .
Timothy Ferris has given us a wonderful tool to help us in our pursuit for a more productive and interesting life , please read his two books .
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