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Michael Thurmond: Six Day Body Makeover
The 6 Day Body Makeover is from personal trainer Michael Thurmond who is best known for his appearances on the television show Extreme Makeover.
He is responsible for getting the participants into shape and putting the finishing touches on their physiques once the cosmetic surgery is completed.
In 6 Day Body Makeover: Drop One Whole Dress or Pant Size in Just 6 Days – And Keep it Off, Thurmond promises dieters that they can lose up to ten pounds in only six days by following his program.
Six Day Body Makeover Diet Basics
Thurmond’s approach involves frequent small meals which he says help to stoke the metabolic fire. Dieters are instructed to eat six small meals a day, each of which includes protein.
The eating plan is basically a high protein, low fat and low carbohydrate diet that restricts calorie intake to less than 1200 calories daily.
He combines this approach to eating with low-intensity exercises such as walking or slow jogging to put the body into fat-burning mode. Thurmond also advises dieters to breathe deeply into the abdomen because he claims that this will cause more fat to be burned.
A unique aspect of the program is that it is customized to suit the individual. Dieters answer a questionnaire in order to determine what type of metabolism they have and what foods are probable weight gain triggers.
Dieters are then designated as one of five different body types and a separate program is included for each of the various body types.
For the duration of the six-day program, dieters are instructed to eliminate condiments such as ketchup and mustard from the diet because they are high in sugar and salt which will interfere with weight loss. Dairy products and processed foods are also eliminated.
Recommended Foods
Chicken breast, turkey breast, egg whites, tuna, lean beef, whole grains, sweet potato, legumes, fruit and vegetables, especially leafy greens.
Dieters are also advised to drink 12 glasses of water every day
Sample Meal Plan
The following meal plan is for Body Type B.
| Breakfast
3 egg whites |
| Morning Snack
3 oz turkey breast |
| Lunch
2 oz chicken breast |
| Afternoon Snack
3 oz fresh tuna |
| Dinner
2 oz chicken breast |
| Evening Snack (optional)
½ cup mixed berries |
Exercise 60 Minutes a Day
Thurmond advises dieters to exercise at a slow pace for up to 60 minutes at least five days of a week.
Costs and Expenses
6 Day Body Makeover: Drop One Whole Dress or Pant Size in Just 6 Days – And Keep it Off retails at $14.95.
Available from Amazon →
Pros
- Rapid results can increase motivation for dieters to stick with a long-term weight management plan.
- Eating small frequent meals that are high in protein can help to control appetite.
- Includes customized meal plans and 45 recipes.
- Includes a maintenance plan.
- Encourages exercise.
Cons
- Very low-calorie diet that is likely to lead to rebound weight gain.
- Calorie intake is on the limit of that recommended by authorities for healthy weight loss.
- Diet is restrictive and may be difficult to follow.
- Meal plans are lacking in variety and recipes are uninteresting.
- Encourages a quick fix approach rather than a healthy sustainable weight loss.
- Abdominal breathing is not proven to increase fat burning.
- Encourages the use of artificial sweeteners.
- No evidence that different body types require a different meal plan in order to lose weight.
- Monitoring heart rate while exercising is required.
- Exercise recommendations are outdated.
A Highly Restrictive Diet
There is not really a great deal of variation between the eating plans for the different body types. As such it seems much more likely that weight loss will be related to the very low-calorie intake of the diet plans.
Due to the highly restrictive nature of the meal plans and the reduced intake of sodium it is likely that dieters will lose weight on this plan, however, a large proportion of this will be fluid.
While this may help some dieters to increase their motivation, others may respond to such a dramatic dietary change with rebound weight gain when normal eating patterns are resumed.
Available from Amazon →
References
- Gaesser, G. A., & Rich, R. G. (1984). Effects of high and low-intensity exercise training on aerobic capacity and blood lipids. Medicine and science in sports and exercise, 16(3), 269-274. link
- Weigle, D. S., Breen, P. A., Matthys, C. C., Callahan, H. S., Meeuws, K. E., Burden, V. R., & Purnell, J. Q. (2005). A high-protein diet induces sustained reductions in appetite, ad libitum caloric intake, and body weight despite compensatory changes in diurnal plasma leptin and ghrelin concentrations. The American journal of clinical nutrition, 82(1), 41-48. link
- Goodpaster, B. H., Kelley, D. E., Wing, R. R., Meier, A., & Thaete, F. L. (1999). Effects of weight loss on regional fat distribution and insulin sensitivity in obesity. Diabetes, 48(4), 839-847. link
I did this a number of years ago and lost 85# in 5 months. Then my dad died and i fell back into old habits. If you take the time to make some condiments (or buy – just need to read labels) and understand flavors the food does not have to be boring. Lemon/Lime (acid) really help with the lack of salt. I also like heat so use peppers to help spice things up. Fortunately I could eat mexican food every day so I often had turkey taco salad and would have my carb (rice/quinoa) mixed in with my salad. I was also able to convert many of my own recipes and a number of Weight watcher recipes. I just restarted after carrying way to many pounds and have a little different approach this time. I am sticking mainly to the strict diet, however there are some things I will occassionally use that are not on plan. I.e. Parmesan cheese – you can find it super low sodium and low fat. It has lots of flavor so you only need a few. I add to a egg/potato/veggie scramble. I love that you can have free veggies so you can make sure you are full at each meal. I also found out I could eat more protein as long as properly prepared so I ditched the A/B protein classifications and tried to eat approx 2 oz at each meal. one thing I have decided is I am going to try to only eat natural whole foods as best i can. That means no artificial sweeteners full of chemicals. I am going to use honey as a main source (in very limited amounts) when baking and/or unsweetened apple sauce. There are some products you can purchase. Some mustards, hot sauces, salsa, tomato products, canned veggies. I even found some frozen meals that were real food and very low sodium and calorie with no salt or sugar added. Organic and gluten free. Unfortunately now i can’t found any locally. I used oat flour I bought – did not grind myself. This really can be much tastier and flexible.
I lost over 100 lbs on this diet in less than 7 months. I do still struggle to keep off weight. and Need to recommit.
I would recommend this diet. Unlike other diets – you are eating real healthy food.
The most difficult part is actually you need to write everything down you eat. It works though.
Your energy level will go through the roof.
If you are body type B you can have all foods on B and A
If you are body type C you can have all foods on C B and A and so on.
Best diet EVER! The only diet That worked for me. I never gained the weight back. I was never hungry, and the workouts weren’t miserable bc they were just walking. It was never that hard to muster up the energy to go for a walk.
In the menu planner “ vegetables” are only listed for A body type. Does that mean other body types should not have vegetables or everyone can?
I find that example meal ideas, list things like potato forbB but does not have potatoes as a carb for B. Anyone able to help??
I think the diet worked when I used it. I dropped 60 pounds without being troubled by any of the complaints the author of this piece makes against the menus. There’s variations that take into consideration people who are hypotensive and/or tend towards hyperglycemia….so some salt is allowed and there’s a tweak in the type of foods to keep the blood sugar levels stable. It was one of the only diets that seemed to be teaching what a balanced diet was as you transitioned into the maintenance phase. I pre-cooked many things that I used and could use small cans of tuna, salmon, and chicken so I did not spend all my time cooking as some other have complained. It’s all in how you approach it. And I believe there is no one right way for everyone.
This diet really works!! Lost 40 pounds in 2 months..
Can anyone share with me the 6 day mini makeover menu
I lost 100 pounds on this diet and kepted it off for over 5 years then got in to a accident and gained it all back slowly so i bought it again and plan to start over because it was the only thing that worked for me. I love his customized plans. And I’m so sorry to hear he passed away he was so brilliant and i really appreciate the work he put in to his books and cds.
I purchased the Michael Thurmond 6-week body makeover and got off it lost the book I found the book none of the DVDs that came with my program ever played her work so I have never been able to use the DVDs and over time I’ve lost the workout bands and apparatus that goes in the door so I’m looking for a way to replace the things that I no longer have with this
I did his plan right after having my 2nd child – 15 years ago. I lost 22 pounds in 6 weeks. 9 pounds the first week, 7 pounds the second week, and then it was slow steady loss. I kept it off for a long time (eating healthy but normally) and it only came back on when I had a great deal of stress and ate poorly. I am back on it as of today because I’d like to take off 10 pounds quickly and then maintain through normal healthy eating.
do you know what are considered proteins a or b?
It’s 6 weeks not days
There is a 6 day and a 6 week version
You can do 6 days it’s a mini makeover
I loved this diet i did this over 10 years ago. I lost 36 pounds in 6 weeks. The first 9 pounds was water weight. It is very strick but I packed a lot of weight on taking a birth control. Shot. Depo. 345 pounds I was packing around I felt so bad I had acid reflux so bad. Any way I read everything he had to say and yes it gets expensive eatting 6 meals a day. I did only eat 4 meals a day and still lost weight. He gave me everything I needed to know to get health. I needed strick to get better. He told me what I needed, what to cook with, and being prepared, and I ended up losing over eighty pds and felt great and haven’t gain any of that weight back. Well worth it and going to do it again. I’m a type A. I am having health problem because of diabetes and medication so I’m going back to it to get reed of more weight. Well worth it. You have to read all of it he tells you everything you need to know. Cutting out the fat, the salt, but you can use all kinds of seasonings, get a good none stick pan , cooking and being prepared is the trick.
My mother and I followed this diet a few years ago and it definitely worked. The meals were low in calories but filling. I would eat tuna fish, steak, and chicken breast for my proteins. Fish would work too. It doesn’t have to be restrictive. I’m going to try it again!
I did Michael’s diet for the first time about 6 years ago, and although I was already slim by most people’s standards and a pretty healthy eater already – it DID work – but not in 6 days – more like 4-5 weeks. It was A LOT of work, especially because I had 3 small kids and was trying to cook separately for them/me. BUT – I got thin…VERY thin on this. I stayed on it for a couple of years and slowly relaxed on some principles, but in essence kept with the overall philosophy.
Now I need to renew my strictness and start again…not sure if I will get the same results as last time though…being 6 years older…?
Same here. It’s been a few years, before motherhood. It worked, so I need to try again.
Sweetners such as stevia are safe so the con on using sweetner is null. There are a ton of recipes you can make. If yours are boring, then you are boring and not creative. Exercise recommendations are all over the place. What’s to say this one is outdated? I think it’s solid info. If you follow the maintenance program, you shouldn’t rebound. You gotta be smarter than the food you eat. He has so much info to educate yourself. If you fail to get it, then you didn’t read it. Anything worth doing is worth learning about. This program is wonderful!!!
This program works and is being negatively reviewed to discourage new users from not spending money with competition… And if someone calculated the calories from the unlimited vegetables you can eat then it would be naturally a low calorie diet. The important idea here is to rid your body of the toxins added by manufactures to make you addicted to food and make you fat. I had all the salt I wanted and gluten free/high fructose corn syrup free salad dressings and still lost weight, 30 pounds in 9 weeks and kept it off for 2 1/2 yrs. Stress and adrenal fatigue got me and I gained 18 pounds back…
First lets stop the bickering people – just because someone disagrees with your point of view, does not mean they are a hater. Lets stick to assessing the diet. I have done this diet twice in the last 12 or 15 years. First time I went from 235 to 200lbs in 6 weeks. Second time (5 or 6 years later) I went from 240 to 201lbs in 8 weeks. (I missed my goal by a pound). My wife did this with me and she is not a very big women to begin with so she lost only about 5lbs total both times we did the diet.The first week or so I lost about 15-25lbs which I think was water weight, then a couple of pounds each week after. You cut out all (all) salt. So not being a chef I followed the recipes. They are very bland and tasteless. I found myself spending all weekend cooking because, I don’t have time to cook 6 meals a day. At first I didn’t realize how much salad we eat a day so every couple of days I found myself at the grocery store buying vegetables. My wife and I are 2 different body types (Me a B/C, her an E) so in reality we were making 72-84 different meals a week. There are no prepackaged foods that I know of so we were doing all the prepping, cooking and preparing all the meals ourselves. Look at the meal plan above – eat that every day for a week – its tough. That’s what you end up eating. After trying the recipes you will ask yourself why am I wasting my weekend making tasteless bland food. This diet is not for people who like food. It is very hard to stick to. This brings us to today (leap day 2016 – Feb 29) I now weigh 243lbs, I am pretty sure I can get below 200lbs by Jun 1st. I am not so sure I want to use the Michael Thurmond diet. Maybe I will eat like above for a week and get most of the water off then switch to something else. Even if it takes twice as long to reach my goal weight. I feel I have a better chance sticking to healthier habits with better tasting food.
It seems like his diet works but it isn’t teaching you to keep it off for good. It’s creating a yo-yo effect for you. I would recommend that you take a look at flexible dieting. This diet is way more sustainable long-term. All the best!
You are a hater! Who cares what he used to be! Look where he is now and he never denied that. How would he be able to help someone else if he didn’t help himself first! I bet he doesn’t even tolerate you anymore that’s why you are leaving this message. Go get some business! HATER!!
The dirty little secret about Michael is he can’t even stay on his own diet. When I met with him many years ago he was obese, sweaty and wearing clothes stained with food. Needless to say I didn’t buy into the diet.
I was on this diet about three years ago. I went from 187 to 150 and maintained that (going up to 155) for three years. Yes, it is restrictive, but; it gets results. I am getting ready to try it again as I moved in with my son and his family and deep fried is the going meals for them. I have put on 20 pounds and I will start this over in about a month. I expect to feel better and to keep it as my lifestyle
I myself used it for over a year, ten years ago. I lost 120 lbs. I am now 55 and have gained more than I would like back. I want to use this plan again, because it works. I also have hypothyroidism and am menapausal. My only problem is I no longer know how to reach the support line and I have lost my meal planner for type A.
Sue,
I’m not sure the #800 work any more or that the forums that use to exist are out there to be found. If they are I’d like to know but anyway I can share the Type A card with you… By the way did anyone create thier own collection of recipes? Willing to share?
I’m back on the diet because it worked for me.. I can do it to drop some weight and then move on to healthy responsable eating..
I have tried this diet before too and lost 31 lbs in 6 weeks. I too, need to lose it agaijn and would like to be able to find recipes for a type B