The 10/60 Diet: How to Lose 10% of Your Body Weight in 60 Days.

The 10/60 Diet

By Phil Torcivia

Please consult your physician before changing your diet and exercise routines.

Copyright ©2011 Phil Torcivia

All rights reserved.

The 10/60 Diet

I finally found a diet that works. Here’s the best part: I trimmed the fat from the average dieter’s handbook and found I can tell you all you need to know
in under 20 pages
. Amazing, huh? I understand if you’re skeptical. Read on.

First, you need to know my qualifications. I’m just shy of 50 years old and six feet tall. I am not a doctor, dietician, or nutritionist. I never struggled considerably with my weight, but I have been occasionally overweight. Here’s my qualification (I am confident that it’s the most important one): I tried this diet for sixty days (January 28, 2011 to March 28, 2011) and went from 194 lbs. to 172 lbs. I didn’t starve myself. I didn’t do any extreme workouts and, in fact, didn’t change my normal gym routines. I didn’t take any drugs or fancy supplements other than over-the-counter vitamins.

I lost weight by changing
what
I ate.

I don’t care how old you are, what gender you are, and how overweight you are. If you change what you eat—following the guidelines below—
you will lose weight
. How much weight? That depends on how strict and how overweight you are. Without excessive cheating, I predict you’ll
lose ten percent of your current weight in sixty days
.

You won’t need to go on some crazy exercise regimen. Naturally, the more you exercise (cardio especially) the more weight you should lose but, honestly, it’s all about the food. This doesn’t imply you should eat right and lie on the couch all night. Stay active!

Don’t worry; I’m also not about to ask you to become vegan or vegetarian.

Who do you think is healthier: an obese vegetarian or slim carnivore? I contend the slim carnivore is. Now, I’m not criticizing the vegetarian lifestyle. I admire it. I avoided meat products (except for fish) for ten years. I felt good, but didn’t get thinner. The reason is that I replaced meat with pasta, bread, and rice. Even the whole grain stuff is
high-carb
and
no bueno
.

It’s true what you keep hearing:
Refined carbohydrates and sugars make us fat
but damn it, they taste so good. What’s a food lover supposed to do?

Compromise.

For six days a week, worry less about
how much
you eat and concentrate on
what
you eat. On the seventh day, eat anything you desire. (OK, not a tub of lard, please.)

What about fat? I contend that fat from plant sources isn’t bad for you, within reason. Some examples are avocados, almonds, and coconuts. I ate those throughout my diet and had no issues. Animal fat isn’t great, that’s why you want to look for lean choices.

So, why don’t you give it a shot? You’ll know within one week whether this diet will work for you or not. That’s not much of an investment with a potentially huge (weight loss) return (to health).

Before you get started, I want you to do four things.

· 
Buy a digital scale.
You’ll be weighing yourself daily right after you awaken, before breakfast. Why digital? Because, it’s more accurate and you can’t cheat. Make sure you have your scale on a flat, solid surface. Write the date and your weight on a notepad. You’ll refer to this later.

· 
Sign up for MyNetDiary.com
or something similar. (There’s an iPhone app too.) At minimum, use this site to track your daily weight. Doing so will remind and encourage you. If you also enter your daily food intake, you’ll get some great insight as to what you’re eating and how you’re progressing. I found it difficult to remember everything I ate and drank, so I approximated. It was interesting to see how many calories were coming from each meal and item.

· 
Take a daily multivitamin.
Chances are most of the ingredients will be peed away, but if you’re low in anything, the vitamins will fill the gap and make you healthier. Since I’m recommending you lay off fruit during the week, it’s a good idea to take a vitamin C supplement as well.

· 
“Like” The 10/60 Diet Facebook page
(
http://facebook.com/tensixtydiet
). Here’s where you’ll meet other people who are on the same diet. You’ll get to brag about your progress and swap thoughts and tips about ways to improve the diet.

Some people obsess about measurements. I suggest you not worry about them during this 60-day trip. You’ll notice clothing fitting more loosely. Your friends will say
you look thinner
. They will notice it before you do because they see you intermittently whereas you see yourself constantly and can’t detect the gradual change.

Consider everything you ingest those first six days and, if you’re not sure, check the label. High protein and low carbohydrate is where you want to be. You’re not eliminating carbs; you’re limiting them.

Breakfast

Before you have anything,
weigh yourself and write it down
. When you go online later, make an entry on The 10/60 Diet Facebook page in the form:

“Down 0.8 pounds today, 3.3 pounds since 4/15.”

Do not skip breakfast.
If anything, you should eat more often. If you stop eating, your body will react by slowing its metabolism. That’s the opposite of what you want, right?

Good stuff:

· Egg whites - They come in milk cartons now, so it’s simple. Toss in one whole egg if you need flavor along with veggies, salsa, avocado, and bacon pieces. No cheese.

· Unsweetened oatmeal – Sprinkle in protein powder for flavor and to help fill you up.

· Coffee or tea – If possible, don’t use creamer. Use cinnamon for flavor and a low-calorie sweetener like Splenda. You should consider Stevia as it is a great, natural sweetener.

Bad stuff (don’t eat this):

· Cereal, fruit, milk (even skim, soy, or almond), cheese, yogurt, toast, bagels, potatoes, muffins, granola, jelly, and honey. This is all bad stuff because it is high in carbohydrates and sugars.

TIP: Brush your teeth right after you eat. This isn’t just to make your dentist poor, it’s to remove the aftertaste from your meal. I found aftertastes gave me cravings for something sweet. Brushing my teeth right after eating curbed my desire. Pick up an extra toothbrush and bring it to work. Even your coworkers will appreciate your minty fresh mouth.

Mid-Morning Snack

Probably two to three hours after you eat breakfast, your stomach is going to begin grumbling for more food. No problem. This is a great time for a protein shake. Find one you like that is low-carb, such as one of the Quattro Pro varieties. If a shake isn’t practical, have some high-protein bars on hand. Myoplex makes some good ones. Another is Pure Protein. Just make sure they are on the low-carb end. (Start reading labels.) Seeds and nuts also make excellent snacks.
Avoid chestnuts, cashews, and nut butters.
I love almonds and Blue Diamond makes a variety of tasty ones (6g of protein, 5g of carbohydrates with three of those grams being
dietary fiber
—good stuff).

Lunch

Try to eat as many veggies and much protein as possible. You can have a salad with olive oil and vinaigrette. No croutons, raisins, or cheese, please. Mix in chicken, turkey, or tuna. Canned products like veggies (especially spinach) and fish are fine. Again, no bread.
Bad, bad, bad!
Not even pita bread or tortillas. No chips either. This is a great place for beans of any kind. There really is no bad bean unless it is in a pool of sugary syrup (so, no baked beans).

Mid-Afternoon Snack

Depending on the size of your lunch, you’ll probably crave something two to three hours afterward. Insert any of the mid-morning snacks here and have an afternoon coffee or tea, if you so desire. Just keep it as black (or green for tea) as possible.

Dinner

I’ll keep this simple: Don’t eat bread, rice, and potatoes (not even brown or orange ones). Craving a burger? No problem. If you can find a turkey burger, that’s your best option (the leaner, the better), but a beef burger is fine without the bun, cheese, and special sauces. Ketchup and honey are bad condiments because they are high-carb. Good options include mustard, ginger, and red wine vinegar. Learn to
leave the bun
behind. Again, eat all the veggies you want and skip the fruit, especially dried fruit. That means no applesauce either. Go have sushi, just get the kind without rice (sashimi). I found fish to be one of the best protein options.

Drinks

Naturally, drink plenty of water or you will find yourself dehydrated and constipated. It also helps flush sodium from your body. Don’t force yourself, though. (If your pee is really orange and ammonia smelling, you need to drink more water.) Instead of dealing with bottled water and the plastic pollution it creates, I picked up a water dispenser (PUR DS-1800Z, around $30 on Amazon) and a Thermos stainless steel bottle (around $22). The dispenser fits nicely in the refrigerator and it converts my tap water into great-tasting water. I’ve gotten into the habit of carrying my thermos to the gym. As a bonus, it keeps the water cold, even in the sauna. It’s nice not having plastic bottles rolling around the floor of my Jeep.

Again, coffee and tea are fine. Yerba Mate tea is good for you and I find it gives me a natural energy boost. Don’t drink milk (not even soy or almond), juice, or regular soda (one diet soda a day is OK). Unsweetened iced tea is great choice, but try to skip the lemon juice.

For alcoholic beverages, don’t drink beer, not even light beer. Your best choice there is vodka with club soda and lime or rum and diet cola. You can have a glass or two of wine and not kill the diet. Try to drink an ice water with every alcoholic beverage you have. It helps.

Nighttime Snack

Be careful here, especially when you get closer to bedtime. You don’t want something lingering in your belly while your body enters sleep mode. Again, this is a good time for nuts or a protein bar, if you must. Another snack I keep around is jerky (beef or turkey). Sound crazy? Check out the package … lots of protein and very few carbs. That’s good stuff right there. Be careful with the sodium, though. Too much of that will bloat you.

And, on the seventh day …

Eat anything you want! Eat your breads, cookies, rice, desserts, potatoes, and fruit.

The reason you’re doing this is two-fold: You probably have been craving some of it all week and you deserve a reward for your discipline; also, you don’t want your metabolism to slow down. Don’t be alarmed, because you’re probably going to gain back a couple pounds. It will be long gone two days hence. You want your descent on the weight chart to resemble
steps, not a ramp
. One day I packed on three pounds. No biggie. Three days later, they were gone.

Concerns I had when beginning the diet (you may too):

1. 
Won’t I feel sluggish by limiting my carbs?
No. I didn’t feel sluggish at all.

2. 
Isn’t fruit supposed to be good for me?
It is, within reason. The problem is that it is very high in sugar, which makes it difficult to cut weight.

3. 
What will happen after I hit my goal?Will I need to stay on the diet to maintain it and avoid yo-yoing right back to my beginning weight?
Once I hit my weight, I gradually added some daily carbs in without going overboard. I still pig out once a week, but not as much as I did during the diet. My weight has stayed flat; I weighed 173.6 when I wrote this on April 29, 2011.

4. 
Are there side effects?
It’s a good idea to consult your physician and stop if you have any adverse reaction. I’ve had none other than looser fitting jeans—a wonderful side effect.

5. 
Will this diet raise my cholesterol to dangerous levels?
It shouldn’t, as long as you don’t go overboard by replacing carbohydrates with animal fats. If you’ve struggled with high cholesterol you should consult your doctor and measure your levels as you proceed to be sure you’re not endangering yourself.