Comments and observations based on day 1

First of all congrats on making it through day #1... it is clear that everyone is making a real effort. I need many of you to re-read (or read for the first time) the papers I handed out as well as the following text. There are a bunch of questions that are very clearly addressed in those 6 pages... so PLEASE read them carefully.

I want to address some commonly asked questions / misconceptions / and general confusion on certain things:
1) Three 9.5 ounce containers of protein = about 200 grams of protein because each container will contain about 65-67 grams of protein. So if you count a scoop of protein powder (usually 20 grams of protein) as one of your 3 containers of protein then you are missing about 46 grams of protein at the end of the day. I told you that when you are not packing food into the containers then you MUST read the label.... especially for your fat intake.
2) You MUST spread your protein throughout the day. You do not need to eat an entire container all is one sitting. Eat 1/2 at 9 a.m. and the other 1/2 at 11 a.m. then move onto container #2 around 2:00 and eat 1/2 of that etc.
3) Your carbs should be: fruit in the morning (one serving for ladies and two for the men)... after than you will use your containers (2 for women and 3 for men). Ideal carbs include: sweet potatoes, organic long grain brown rice, lentils... I did not want to go into this for phase one but lots of people are eating oatmeal which is fine. Oatmeal is very dense compared to the other carbs I listed so please only fill your container about 2/3 of the way for your oatmeal; especially if it is the steal cut oatmeal.
4) For many of you what we have listed may seem like a lot of food; however, the women are only eating about 2000 calories per day and the men about 2300-2400. This seems like a lot of food because IF YOU ARE DOING IT RIGHT you are eating a lot of protein and a lot of fiber from your complex carbs and veggies as well as a lot of water which is very filling. I DO NOT care if you gain or lose weight in the first 2 weeks... this is not a "sprint" to see how fast you can lose weight. If you gain weight then your metabolism is simply slow as hell and you did your body a big favor by speeding it up with nutritious foods... after 2 weeks we will look at what happened to each of you and adjust from there for the next 14 weeks. Understand that my before and after photos on the right was done in less than 13 weeks. In total I lost about 26 pounds of fat during that time. So be patient and just do EXACTLY what we are asking you to do for these next 2 weeks and we will adjust from there.
5) A few tips:
a) It is a good idea to consume a fat along with your fruit in the morning... you can also add some protein if you wish. This is why I like to have my fruit as soon as I wake up in a protein shake with some nuts.
b) Other than eating more food, another great way to speed up your metabolism is so simply be more active and there are lots of ways to do this (starting with standing more than sitting). Grabbing extra workouts here or there is huge and most important to do the HIT cardio the way I described on Sunday. Everyone should be doing SOMETHING 6 days a week (cardio or strength training).
c) The 5 P's are : PROPER PREPARATION PREVENTS POOR PERFORMANCE. If you are failing to plan then you are planning to fail. You must get into the habit of packing food and having food prepared. Most of you are doing a great job with this.
d) As far as cooking... all you need to do is boil 4 big pots of water while you are watching your favorite TV show (American Idol, 24, NBA playoffs, House, Lost, Survivor, etc.) at commercial break #1 the water should be boiling - at this time add your long grain brown rice to pot #1, your steel cut oats to pot #2, your sweet potatoes to pot #3 and your lentils to pot #4. At each commercial break stir the pots... by the end of the show everything will be cooked (most of that stuff takes 40-45 minutes to cook). Take 15 minutes to drain and put everything into Tupperware... put in fridge and now you are set for the entire week. Do the same for your proteins. Its all about finding a way. YOU ALL WATCH T.V. what I just described is called multi-tasking. Get into the habit of creating time because you will not "find time."

Like I said, this is a learning process.... make mistakes, then adjust, make mistakes, then adjust. The goal is to get better and better over time.