The 17 Day Diet- Carb Cycling

The 17 Day Diet surged to popularity after it was featured on The Doctors talk show in December of 2010.

Although the title may allude to the diet only lasting 17 days, it actually is a little more complex than that. The 17 Day Diet involves a series of 17 day cycles in which the dieter adjusts the way that they consume carbohydrates, known as "carb cycling".

The goal of this way of eating is to reset the metabolism and keep the body from entering a preservation mode that often can happen during calorie resricted diets.

The 17 Day Diet Overview

This program involves four 17 day cycles.

• Accelerate: During this initial phase, the dieter is on a very low carbohydrate diet and also it involves a cleansing aspect.
• Activate: In this stage the dieter cycles their carbohydrate consumption in order to keep their metabolism active and prevent weight loss plateaus.
• Achieve: This 17 Day Diet cycle teaches the dieter to eat previously restricted foods in a healthy and responsible way.
• Arrive: This cycle is actually meant to be longer than 17 days as it is the maintenance stage of the diet. However, if goal weight isn't achieved the dieter can start the whole process over again.

One of the aspects that has made the 17 Day Diet popular is the rapid weight loss some experience using the program. Since many people are always looking for a "quick fix" , the promise of 10 to 12 pounds in the first 17 days is very appealing. Dr. Mike Moreno, the books author, uses a recent study published in the Journal of Behavioral Medicine to support his notion that rapid weight loss can be healthy.

17 Day Diet Foods

Dr. Moreno recommends whole foods on his plan and advises dieters to avoid precessed food and refined carbs, but instead choose foods such as lean protein, low sugar fruits, vegetables, natural yogurt and green tea. The 17 Day Diet includes meal plans and easy recipes to assist the dieter in sticking to the plan.

Exercise

Moreno is a big advocate of exercise and stresses that dieters should engage in at least 17 minutes of exercise 6 days a week. The 17 Day Diet has an exercise DVD available to also assist dieters.

17 Day Diet Expenses

The 17 Day Diet retails for $25.00. Dieters may also experience higher food costs as whole foods are usually more expensive than processed.

Click here to order a discounted copy of the book.

Conclusions

Searching around the internet I found a lot of "buzz" surrounding the 17 Day Diet and the majority of the comments are very positive. It's important for anyone wishing to try The 17 Day Diet, that realistic expectations should be maintained along with the understanding that if they want results, they will have to work hard at adhering to the program guidelines.

This diet promotes healthy foods, calorie restriction, portion control, and exercise which are generally the recipe for weight loss success. The 17 Day Diet doesn't address the concept of "emotional eating" which could be a stumbling block for some dieters on the program, but overall we recommend The 17 Day Diet.