“Two Meals a Day” by Mark Sisson with Brad Kearns promises to be a “simple, sustainable strategy to lose fat, reverse aging, and break free from diet frustration forever”.
I’ve tried it all Paleo, Whole 30, Keto, No-Sugar, low-carb, and my favorite diet, eat whatever the hell I want. Just a disclaimer, I am not overweight, and not seeking a diet to lose a lot of weight. Of course I wouldn’t mind a few pounds of fat to melt off, but I’m really searching for something to help me feel mentally and physically healthy. I have not tried intermittent fasting (IF), which brings me to this book. I have read “Primal Blueprint” also by Mark Sisson, so I am a little familiar with the author. He doesn’t come across as a diet dictator that makes you feel like a failure if you indulge during the holidays.
This book seems to offer not only IF, but couples it with a “primal (or paleo)” style of eating. Although Paleo does allow for natural sweeteners, such as honey, agave syrup, but this is strongly discouraged in “Two Meals a Day”. The gist of the diet is as follows:
-Avoid the “Big Three”: sugar, grains and industrial seed oils.
-Intermittent Eating (or Fasting) – hence the name of the book “Two Meals a Day”. Most common way is skipping breakfast, but depends on your preference and lifestyle.
-Yes to working out (although nothing crazy intense). He mentions calculating your maximum aerobic function (MAF) heart rate (180 minus age) and not exceeding that heart rate in your workouts. I have actually done this during runs, using a smartwatch, prior to reading this book and it really does make you slow it down. For more information look up Phil Maffetone.
-Yes to mindfulness, keeping gratitude journals and regular daily journals.
-Yes to cold exposure and active leisure activities
A few things that I have found a little annoying about the book (and it may or may not be bothersome to you) is some items he mentions might not be in your budget. For example, it is hard for me to purchase all grass-fed beef, organic chicken, a chest heart-rate monitor and the wine he recommended from Dry Farm Wines. Granted he did try to list budget friendly items, but eating real food is already expensive enough. If you are limited on funds and want to eat right, just try to the best you can. Purchase what you can afford, might not be all organic, grass-fed, free-range, free-trade, and that is okay.
In the book, there is the 12 day turbocharge to help your body acclimate to Intermittent Fasting. You do not want to start fasting off the bat, especially if you are eating the Standard American Diet (SAD).
I plan on starting the 12 day turbocharge on Monday, I plan on writing about each day as well. I have read what the 12 day turbocharge entails and can say I will not be doing the 24 hour fast on day 12. Or at least I’m giving myself an out because I am still nursing my 1 year old. More to come, please follow if you want to read about my progress.
Writings from behind the Pine Curtain 