Shred: The Revolutionary Diet: 6 Weeks 4 Inches 2 Sizes Read online

  The author and publisher have provided this e-book to you for your personal use only. You may not make this e-book publicly available in any way. Copyright infringement is against the law. If you believe the copy of this e-book you are reading infringes on the author’s copyright, please notify the publisher at: us.macmillanusa.com/piracy.

  I dedicate this book to my grandfather, Robert S. Cherry, Sr. Even in his ninth decade of life, he continues to love, inspire, motivate, educate, and humble me. I love you, Pops. You have been the always reliable foundation of my very existence.

  Note to the Reader

  This book is for informational purposes only. The author has endeavored to make sure it contains reliable and accurate information. However, research on diet and nutrition is evolving and subject to interpretation, and the conclusions presented here may differ from those found in other sources. As each individual’s experience may vary, readers, especially those with existing health problems, should consult their physician or healthcare professional before adopting any nutritional changes based on information contained in this book. Individual readers are solely responsible for their own healthcare decisions, and the author and the publisher do not accept responsibility for any adverse effects individuals may claim to experience, whether directly or indirectly, based on information contained herein.

  Acknowledgments

  Any author will tell you that while his or her name is on the cover of a book, there are many people’s names that don’t make it but who deserve special recognition, as their contributions are superbly integral to the entire process. Most likely you will not recognize the following names, but all are extremely significant to me and the book you are about to read. They are listed in no particular order other than the whimsy of my recalling them. This final product in different ways is a testament to each of them: Tristé Smith, Dashiell Smith, Declan Smith, Dana Smith, Liza Rodriguez, Rena Cherry, Jonathan Cardi, Ron Mitchell, Michael Strahan, Rebecca Casey, Maritza Villalobos, Elizabeth Beier, Michelle Richter, Steve Cohen, Matthew Shear, Sally Richardson, John Karle, John Murphy, Michael Storrings, Kerri Resnick, Pam El, Don Arbuckle, Ojinika Obiekwe, Edgar Quijano. A special thanks to all of the SHREDDERs who are part of SHREDDER Nation (www.facebook.com/ShredderNation) and who gave me their feedback on the diet early in the process, losing lots of weight, and making many useful suggestions that I have incorporated in this final version of the plan.

  Contents

  TITLE PAGE

  COPYRIGHT NOTICE

  DEDICATION

  NOTE TO THE READER

  ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

  INTRODUCTION

  CHAPTER 1: The SHRED Concept

  CHAPTER 2: How SHRED Works

  CHAPTER 3: Week 1: Prime

  CHAPTER 4: Week 2: Challenge

  CHAPTER 5: Week 3: Transformation

  CHAPTER 6: Week 4: Ascend

  CHAPTER 7: Week 5: Cleanse

  CHAPTER 8: Week 6: Explode

  CHAPTER 9: SHRED Snacks

  CHAPTER 10: SHRED Smoothie Recipes

  CHAPTER 11: SHRED Protein Shake Recipes

  CHAPTER 12: SHRED Soup and Stew Recipes

  INDEX

  ALSO BY IAN K. SMITH, M.D.

  ABOUT THE AUTHOR

  COPYRIGHT

  Introduction

  This book came about by accident, and like many great things in life that arrive in this manner, it was destiny not to be denied. I was working with a friend who I had helped lose weight in the past. She had dropped nearly 30 percent of her body weight in approximately eighteen months. She looked great, felt great, and was doing things physically that she hadn’t been able to do since she was in high school. However, she started to become frustrated because she couldn’t drop the last twenty pounds that would take her to her ultimate goal. Dejected, she called me and asked me if there was anything I could do to help.

  My first instinct was that there was nothing left to do except for her to work harder, exercise more, maybe take in fewer calories—standard weight-loss stuff. You know it. I know it. We all know it. But then I looked back at some of her food and exercise journals as well as my previous books, which I’d given her and which had brought her tremendous success. Sitting at my desk and looking through it all sparked several thoughts. She was in need of something different and out of the box. Her body had become accustomed to all of the good habits she had developed. Her success, ironically, was keeping her from more success. So I got the idea to create a program that used all that I knew about strategic dieting and combined it in one plan. It would be like taking your best players on a team and putting them out on the field at once to maximize your chance of winning a game. I immediately went to work and over the next couple of weeks formulated the foundation of a plan that I thought would kick-start her metabolism and help her break through this frustrating plateau. I also decided to give the plan a name that would be demonstrative of what she would be doing, an action word so that every time she looked at it or heard it, her mind would visualize what was going on internally as she followed the program: SHRED. This was all about SHREDDING that stubborn fat.

  She did great on the plan. She was able to break through the plateau and get on the path to ultimate success. I’m always trying to learn, so I asked her for detailed feedback and criticisms of the program—what was too difficult, what she liked, what would make it better, etc. Over the next year I kept working on SHRED, and as various friends came to me and asked for help that could take them beyond the advice in my other diet books, which they had already tried successfully, I’d dust off the latest version of SHRED and send it to them. Each time the results were the same. They lost weight immediately and the dreaded plateau was in their rearview mirror. SHRED had become my secret weapon.

  Realizing that there were millions out there struggling with those pockets of stubborn fat, I decided to start a challenge on Twitter. I would tweet daily diet tips from SHRED to my followers (my Twitter handle is @doctoriansmith). It wasn’t easy doing this in just 140 characters, but I truncated and abbreviated and found a way to get the messages across. The results practically knocked me off my feet. My followers were losing significant amounts of weight in a short period of time, some as much as 10 pounds in just one week; before I knew it, thousands of people were on the program and they were SHREDDING fat like they never had before on any other program. They told me this was the first plan that brought them consistent and at times dramatic weight loss, and they still felt as though they had enough to eat. In some cases, I even heard complaints that SHREDDING involved too much food. What a problem to have!

  These first SHREDDERs not only found success on the scale, but the program was life altering for them in many other ways. They sent me e-mails saying that they were more confident and determined and had energy levels they hadn’t had in years. They felt like new people. Life was suddenly a new adventure for them. Most telling was that all of them who wrote me were determined never to return to the old life and habits they had left behind. This new way of living was so much more fun and promising. It felt great!

  SHREDDERs have sprouted up across the country and as far away as the United Kingdom. Hearing their successes and gratitude for the plan has been the biggest reward for me. No diet is perfect and there’s no one program that will work for everyone. But I truly believe that whether it’s weight lost, inches eliminated, or sizes dropped, everyone can benefit from SHREDDING. It’s not a diet—it’s a way of life! Welcome to SHREDDER Nation. Believe! Work hard! Have fun!

  For free weight-loss and other health tips, follow Dr. Ian on Twitter: @doctoriansmith;

  or
on his Web site: www.doctoriansmith.com;

  or on his Facebook page: www.facebook.com/ShredderNation

  CHAPTER 1

  The SHRED Concept

  SHRED is a revolutionary diet plan that combines several different strategies in an effort to help users lose weight, increase confidence, and improve overall wellness. Unlike many other programs that simply focus on how many pounds are lost on the scale, SHRED also improves other health factors, such as reducing risk for high blood pressure, decreasing the risk for diabetes, and improving energy levels. With so many programs available it is reasonable to ask why one would choose SHRED over another popular diet. The answer is simple. SHRED allows you to eat normal food that’s inexpensive. It is extremely simple to understand, and it does not require perfection for you to find success. Another important aspect that many SHREDDERs have liked is that the diet can be customized based on the results you’re looking for or any dietary preferences you might have. You will find that making substitutions while SHREDDING is not only allowed but encouraged, as it will not impede your success in any way.

  There are many programs that can help you lose weight, but there are few that combine the appropriate balance of challenging you while at the same time not making it too difficult to follow for the long term. One major problem with many diet plans is that while they can help users lose weight, they are so extreme, difficult, or uncomfortable that dieters are unable to follow the guidelines for an extended period of time. The second you stop following the plan, the pounds that were lost pile back on with a vengeance, and often, then some. This is not the case with SHRED. The vast majority of those surveyed who tried the early versions of the program repeatedly commented that unlike other plans they had tried, SHRED was one they could see themselves following forever.

  There are many principles at work in SHRED that lead to the tremendous success that so many experience. Ease of use is at the top of the list: each day is thoughtfully planned out so that your need to think about what works and what doesn’t is kept to a minimum. Ironically, many who have been asked about programs that give them the greatest level of flexibility in choosing the foods they can eat say that too much flexibility can actually make the diet more difficult. It’s a struggle to have so many choices in front of them. SHRED spells out in detail each meal you will consume for six weeks, but it also gives you plenty of room to make substitutions so that you can swap out meals if you like.

  SHRED is a six-week program. You may well stay on SHRED for more than six weeks, but each six weeks is considered to be a cycle. Based on the hundreds of SHREDDERs who have tried the program and provided feedback, the average weight loss for a cycle is between 18 and 25 pounds. Results, as with any diet program, will vary from person to person for various reasons, but more than with any diet I’ve developed or been aware of, what has been amazingly satisfying is how consistent the weight loss has been. Ninety-three percent of the people who have been on the program have lost weight each week of the cycle. Even better, many who had been using other diet plans and had hit a plateau found that just a week on SHRED got them losing weight again.

  In general, those who are closer to their target weight will definitely lose weight but tend to lose weight a little more slowly. This is to be expected, so if you fall into this category, don’t be disappointed if you don’t see the numbers on the scale drop quickly or significantly at first. Look for any progress, whether it be increased energy or losing inches. However, those who have more than 30 pounds to lose will typically start seeing results right away. The average results on SHRED are 6-4-2. In six weeks most people who closely follow the program lose four inches and two sizes.

  Once you have completed an initial six-week cycle, if you still have more weight to lose, the program is designed for you to cycle again. After the first cycle, you can reorder the weeks of a new cycle in any fashion that works best for you. This is only one way in which SHRED can be customized to fit your needs. I recognize that there’s no such thing as “one size fits all” when it comes to diet plans, but SHRED comes close.

  SHRED CYCLES

  Each week of SHRED is designed to stand on its own and to be different from the weeks before. Each of the six weeks has a name that reflects the theme for that week. The weeks are Prime, Challenge, Transformation, Ascend, Cleanse, and Explode. While each week represents a leg in your journey, it also builds on those that precede it. The program teaches you how to make smarter choices and has specific strategies embedded in the daily meal and exercise plans: sometimes you will recognize them and other times you will not. The overall effect, however, is that you will continuously SHRED fat. You will see the declining numbers on the scale and a reduction in inches wherever you need to lose them: whether it be in your waist, thighs, or hips.

  It has been my experience that programs that start out asking followers to make extreme changes in their dietary and/or exercise habits are least effective over the long term. Users either can never fully engage the program, because it’s asking too much of them, or they are able to do some of the program but not all of it, leading them to become discouraged and drop out altogether. SHRED acknowledges some very basic facts. First, losing weight is not easy and quite often is extremely frustrating. Second, no one is a perfect eater or exerciser and expecting someone—anyone—to be perfect and not have bad days is completely unrealistic. Third, success comes from following a program that one can ease into, rather than a program that starts out too aggressively rigorous and restrictive. People don’t always want to feel like they’re on a diet!

  Prime. These seven days prime you for the rest of the plan. This week is an induction into SHREDDER Nation. You’ll learn about the importance of meal spacing, proper snacking techniques, and suppressing hunger without consuming too many calories. The average weight loss this week will be 3.5 pounds. This could be less if you’re within 20 pounds of your goal weight. The further you are away from your target weight and the worse your habits have been prior to starting the program, the more weight you will lose. Many who fit this description have lost as much as 8 to 10 pounds during Prime. One hundred percent of the people who have been on the program—regardless of how much weight they needed to lose—answered in their survey that they had enough to eat, some going so far as to say that there was so much food they couldn’t manage to eat everything on the daily menus.

  Challenge is a week that asks you to demand more of yourself. It asks you to release some of your bad habits and adopt some new behaviors that you will have for the rest of your life. This week says that you can do better: you’ll learn after a couple of days that despite early doubts you might have about yourself, you actually can rise to the challenge. This week is a confidence booster, because it shows many dieters that despite their failures in the past or what they have previously perceived to be difficult, they actually have what it takes to succeed. At the end of the Challenge you will be motivated more than ever to truly make a commitment to a healthier lifestyle and to reach the goals you have set forth prior to starting your SHRED.

  Transformation week is a critical seven days where most SHREDDERs start truly noticing a difference. Not only will the scale reflect your hard work, but many realize for the first time at the end of this week that they have dropped a clothing size, their energy levels are much greater, and their outlook about their success on the program heightens dramatically. Transformation is designed to be the toughest week of the program. You will be challenged the most during this week, but it’s nothing you can’t handle. Knowing this week is the toughest is half the battle. The other half is putting your head down and getting through it. If you focus, this week will be your best friend. Every day visualize the fat being SHREDDED and your body’s appearance changing.

  Ascend is an important turnaround week. Imagine that for the last three weeks you have been descending into a pit. Last week you finally reached the bottom and started to regain strength so that you can climb your way out. The seven days of Ascend have been spe
cifically constructed so that you are now exiting the darkness and ascending toward the light. You have already completed the toughest week of the program, so Ascend will come as a relief. You will continue to work hard, but the work will not feel as strenuous as it did the week before. Reinvigorated after three weeks on the program, you are now energized to finish the rest of the cycle at full speed.

  Cleanse is a week that pays special attention to enhancing your liver’s ability to detoxify your blood. All of us—even those who eat as healthfully as possible—accumulate some level of toxins in our bodies. We want to eliminate these toxins as efficiently as possible. Sometimes livers can be overwhelmed, so occasionally it’s beneficial to give them a little boost in carrying out their jobs. Certain foods can provide this boost by activating special enzymes in the liver that facilitate the cleansing process. There are also foods that work to increase the activity of the gastrointestinal tract. This creates a physical cleanse. This week you will do both. Not only will you improve your physical health this week, but you will continue your weight loss: some will lose their largest amounts during these seven days.

  Explode is the last week of the cycle. It’s meant to help you end the cycle with a bang. For some, this week will be their last and they will have reached their goal. For others, Explode is a launching pad into the next cycle. At this point in the program SHREDDERs will have gone through the toughest as well as the easiest portions of the cycle and now are using all they have learned to explode into a new lifestyle that will serve them well for the rest of their lives. The purpose of SHRED is not only to get rid of excess weight and the bad habits that have contributed to the problem, but to position you so that you no longer have to be on a diet. No longer will you need to read the plan or follow the meal plans to the letter; you will now be eating, drinking, and exercising in a manner that you can do for the rest of your life.