“I am the metabolism whisperer.” So begins the best-selling book, The Fast Metabolism Diet: Eat More Food and Lose More Weight. Author Haylie Pomroy describes herself as a body mechanic or a personal trainer for your metabolism, and she aims to revolutionize the way people feel about and use food.
The Fast Metabolism Diet
At first glance, the eating program sounds awfully complicated. You only eat certain types of foods on certain days, and there are lots of NOs. No dairy, no potatoes, no whole grains (other than sprouted bread), no coffee (yikes!) and, you guessed it, no alcohol! Obviously, there are provisions for cheating, but you are eliminating some big categories of food. Well, what can I eat, you ask?
The Metabolism Whisperer Plan
There are three phases in the eating plan. Each phase only lasts two to three days, and you are to follow this three-phase rotation for four weeks. The first phase is designed to take your food and turn it into energy. The second is designed to release fat, and the third, to turn newly released stored fat into energy. Here is the breakdown:
Phase I – Unwind
Pomroy describes this phase as a time to unwind the stress in the body and calm the adrenal glands. For two days, you will eat only high-glycemic, moderate-protein, low-fat foods. You enjoy lots of fruit during this phase, as well as oatmeal, sprouted bread, and low-fat protein. In addition, you are encouraged to do at least one session of cardio during this two-day period.
Phase II – Unlock
This phase is designed to unlock stored fat and build muscle. You now reverse your eating by selecting high protein, high vegetables, low carbohydrates, and low-fat foods. For two days, you will eliminate all the fruit and any carbs other than low glycemic vegetables and eat lots of low-fat protein. You should also do one day of strength training.
Phase III – Unleash
The final phase that lasts one day longer than phases I and II is supposed to unleash the burn – hormones, heart, and heat. The last phase is also the longest at three days and the easiest to follow. The eating plan includes healthy fats, moderate carbohydrates, moderate proteins, and low glycemic fruits. In other words, very Mediterranean diet-like, other than no potatoes or dairy.
There are loads of diet plans out there and seemingly new ones coming along every year, so the real question is, has the metabolism whisperer come up with a plan that works? According to a very small sample size, the eating program absolutely does work. If you follow it, you will lose weight.
Tale of Three Sisters
When sister one, Amy, lost 50 pounds, her other two sisters (who were also overweight) wanted to know how she did it. So when she told them about The Fast Metabolism Diet, the other two sisters decided to follow the program, as well. Their results were equally remarkable. Below are their stories and reviews of the diet.
Jenny’s Story
“I started on May 7th and lost about 52 pounds. I have to say, I have never felt better; I’m even walking and hiking without knee pain. The first 8 weeks were very hard to get used to the different foods. I work, so it was necessary to pack lunches and snacks every day. Finding the Ezekiel sprouted grain bread wasn’t easy. It’s sold in the freezer section of most grocery stores, I now know. I also didn’t work out as they suggested because I was too fat. Now, I do yoga twice a week. I feel the eating plan has now become a habit for me. I don’t feel that I crave the sweets like I used to.
Before I started on this eating plan, sometimes, at night, I would make a batch of cookies and eat them all for dinner. I have now completely changed my eating habits. Before, I was an absolutely intense coffee drinker. I would be anxious in a foreign place, not sure where I would get my coffee. I gave it up for the first six weeks and now drink decaf organic because I love coffee. One last thing, I was not hungry on this diet… at all; it was really great. I did sometimes (on Thursday evening, phase II) really want another type of food, but I was not hungry. The metabolism whisperer and The Fast Metabolism Diet has definitely worked for me.”
Mary’s Story
“I’ve been on the diet for 7 to 8 months now and have lost 26 pounds. I initially dropped three more pounds, but 119 was too thin for me and I lost muscle tone, so I slowly added the weight and muscle back to my frame. The weight loss was sporadic. One week I would lose 2 pounds, none the next, and then, I would suddenly drop 5 pounds. For me, the diet was EASY! I’m NOT a dieter or someone who spends a lot of time on personal health/beauty. Luckily, I had two wonderful sisters who had already been on the diet before me so I had the benefit of their experience. The book was a lot for me to read, but it made sense as I consulted with them. I didn’t wait to finish reading before I started the diet. I shopped from the master lists provided in the back of the book and made a few recipes as I was reading it. VERY EASY. I’m a grazer anyway, so packing up little baggies of snacks and meals ‘to go’ was simple.
My sisters recommended making a copy of the master food groups to keep in my wallet so when I shopped I could remember what to buy and when. I saved a ton of money shopping for meal prep instead of “whatever.” What I liked most about the diet – I love to eat. My problem was that I never woke up hungry, wouldn’t eat, then got busy and starved until about 3 p.m. After that, I would eat 3 full meals before bed. When I was hungry I would have a bowl of Cheez-It and a few diet Dr. Peppers while sitting at my computer. Not such a great plan.
The diet mapped out an eating schedule and what to eat. This sounds oversimplified and like the obvious nature of all diets. I simply have no other way to describe how it worked so well for me. My favorite thing to discover, something I will never forget, was that a single serving of the day 1 dinner chili was THREE CUPS! So satisfying and I felt so full. I always felt like I was able to eat a lot on the diet. Likewise, I didn’t have to make any decisions. It was a bit of a ‘relief’ to say no to the candy in the checkout lane – it just wasn’t ‘on the plan’ – so I would go to what was.
Another aspect of the metabolism whisperer diet that was huge for me was that nothing was completely and totally off-limits forever. We’re all going to have ‘cheats’ unless we’re superhuman and the diet provides an ‘antidote’ for those. The expectation is that life occasionally requires a little vino or apple pie. The metabolism whisperer provides the tools to deal with them. That alone alleviated quite a bit of pressure for me. I don’t drink, but I have a huge sweet tooth.
Yet another treat I loved about this diet – SWEET POTATOES! What did I like least? Wednesdays and Thursdays! The ‘protein and green veggie only’ days! Just torture for me. I loved the steel-cut oats and fruit and nuts so much that going without on those two days was real drudgery. But those Friday morning breakfasts were cause for celebration. My sisters and I would absolutely high five via email every Friday morning.
I don’t drink alcohol but drank an entire pot of coffee daily before the diet. With about a half cup of the fake powdered coffee mate or other fake creamer FULL OF CHEMICALS AND FAT. I totally switched to decaf and drink several cups in the morning with half and half. Don’t miss regular coffee a bit.
Since many of the recipes are crockpot meals, the prep is very easy. I froze quite a bit of food, especially in single serving, re-heatable Tupperware and Pyrex. By buying all the fruit and veggies for a phase, I could clean, prep, and store in the fridge so it would be right there when I was hungry. I would also grill batches of meat and refrigerate. Very simple, not very time-consuming, and the prep saved me a lot of money because I wasted little or no food. Prepping your snacks to go is VERY IMPORTANT. I always have something in my purse or car.
I felt totally satisfied after the initial shock of eliminating caffeine, candy/sweets and a lot of fats/carbs. At times I felt so full I wondered how it could possibly be working, but the proof is in the size of my clothing and energy level. If a dieter can make it to week 2-3, the rest is a cake walk! The food combinations and quantities truly kept me feeling satisfied.”
If you are interested in the book by the metabolism whisperer, The Fast Metabolism Diet: Eat More Food and Lose More Weight, you can find it here.
This article is for informational purposes only, is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease, and is not a substitute for medical advice, nor are the three women’s results considered “typical.”
Want to give intermittent fasting a try? Take a look at Prime Women’s PLATE program. Now available in an app on Apple or Android with reminders to keep you on track.
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