Fat Flush Plan/Detoxing?
 

Has anyone tried the Fat FLush Plan by Ann Louise Gittleman? Or have you tried detoxing? I checked out this book from the library, and I wanted to hear others' success/dislike stories before I tried it. Thanks!

Aside from severely restricting your calories intake in the first phase of the plan (from what I've read, you only have about 1100 calories in the first phase), I don't see how this is much different from soooo many other plans. It focuses on good carbs instead of white flour and sugar, fruits, veggies, and lean meats. Aside from demanding that you use certain oils or whatever, I don't see the difference between this and South Beach (or Sonoma or whatever name it's going by this week :dizzy: ).

Of course, this is my own personal opinion. I wouldn't do it simply because she tries to sell so much through her website, so it's clear to me that she's primarily in it for the money (including a "parasite test kit" and a "tissue mineral analysis" kit?? :?: ). Your body (unless you have a medical condition) rids itself of toxins without additional supplements or test kits or whatever. Drinking cranberry juice is good for you, but it isn't magically going to make you thinner or rid your body of cellulite (the only things that can really remove cellulite are weight loss, inherited genes, and plastic surgery!).

I'm not saying it won't work--like I said, it's pretty much the same as lots of plans out there, so I'm sure you would lose weight, but if you could still lose weight while eating the foods YOU choose, then why follow a book? ;)

Exactly!!!! :yes:

Fat Flush is the SMART way to shed weight
 

Because it teaches you how to eat a healthy diet. ;) I tried and failed at so many other diet plans, that when I read the magazine headline (check-out lines - gotta love 'em!) "Flush away your Fat!", I did the eyeroll thing and said "riiiiiiiiight!"

On the other hand, my daughter had just announced her plans to wed within 5 months and she wanted us all in sundresses. :eek: (I'm sure I would have been arrested for exposing that much cellulite in public). Anyhoo, I figured I had nothing to lose (except 60 pounds and thunder-thighs) so I gave it a whirl. Wahooooooooooooo! :cp: It worked. And it worked on so many levels!

Was it easy?
h*** no! What diet is "easy" ?? I mean if it were easy to lose weight, any idiot could do it! ;) On the other hand, I'm never hungry, I don't have to count points or calories or carbs, and I'm healthier in my 50's than I've ever been in my life.

Fat Flush is a three phase plan and it pre-dates all the others. Phase 1 (the detox phase) is the most restrictive and the shortest (two weeks - you can do ANYTHING for two weeks, right?). Similar to some classic elimination diets, it removes the "whites" (white flour, white rice, white sugar, dairy, caffeine). Um...I'm going to quibble with this. Fat Flush doesn't pretend that unsweetened cranberry juice is magic. However, among other things, it DOES strengthen connective tissue and helps reduce the appearance of cellulite. After living my entire adult life as Queen of cellulite (from a long line of cellulite-prone women) I'm happy to say that my cellulite is gone AND my thighs no longer make that "swish-swish" rubbing sound when I walk. :carrot: Here's one web definition of cellulite: By shedding the extra fat AND toxins, you can really significantly reduce the appearance of cellulite. In my case, it's simply no longer visible. :D whether that counts as cure or not, who cares? I'll take it! :carrot:
What Fat Flush does in Phase one is a) speed up the metabolism and b) support the liver so that it can flush away toxins more efficiently. And if you don't believe that's what the liver does, I suggest you google "what does the liver do?" Here's a partial list I found by doing so:So if your liver is busy breaking down OTC medications, environmental toxins, pesticide residue on your foods, etc., it can become inefficient and can even begin to store fat (ever hear of "fatty liver" condition?). So keeping your liver happy and efficient is key to flushing fat.
Phase 2 is the weightloss phase. It lasts as long as it takes to get to goal. In Phase 2, you start adding back "healthy" carbs such as sweet potato, yam, parsnip, peas, sprouted grain bread and tortillas, etc. in a carefully regulated protocol so that you learn which foods your body does well on and which it doesn't. It may come as no surprise to you that many MANY times, the food our body does NOT want is bread and wheat derivatives. This is because veddy VEDDY many of us have hidden gluten sensitivities. I turned out to be one and if you'd asked me pre-FFP if I there were any foods I couldn't eat, I would have said, "No!" :o Just goes to show you how little some of us know our own bodies. :^:
Phase 3 is the lifestyle/maintenance phase (I've been in P3 for 2.5 years! ;)). many long defered faves return in healthier forms: whole grains, honey, maple syrup, beans, brown rice, dark chocolate, yogurt, even wine. First off, name one diet plan author who wrote their book purely for posterity. Secondly, as a PhD nutritionist with years of practice, it's only natural that Gittleman would offer supplements for particular situations especially if she perceived a need. Personally, I did the first two months of FFP without any of the recommended supplements and I lost weight. Then I went out and gathered the supplements she recommended from my local health food stores. (talk about penny wise and pound foolish! For all my bargain hunting, I still ended up putting together more bottles at higher $ than simply buying the supplements from ALG's website). We COULD get into a looooooong discussion here just on supplements. But I'll spare you and simply say this: If advocating a high quality multivitamin, GLA (an essential fatty acid that the body CANNOT make on it's own and must obtain from dietary sources WHICH are unfortunately less and less able to deliver it thanks to our modern farming practices), and liver support seems out of line to some folks, all I can say is they're living in cloud-land if they think they're getting everything they need from their food. It simply is no longer true and studies in JAMA no less, now acknowledge that among other things, some chronic diseases are tied to long term lack of adequate dietary vitamins/minerals.
Babe, most of us got fat by eating the foods WE chose. ;) Let's face it, eating LESS of bad food choices is a lousy longterm weightloss strategy. It's pretty clear that we don't get UNfat unless we eat something else AND find an exercise regimen we can live with. Ultimately, it's our lifestyle (pre-diet eating PLUS exercise or lack thereof) that put us in the obese category in the first place.
You can say that all you need to do to lose weight is eat less and exercise more - but most of us find it's not that simple - Simply because most of us don't really know how to eat a healthy diet. :?:
My advice is - before you judge a diet, read the book.
My OTHER advice is - shop the perimeter of your grocery store. NEVER go down the aisles. Processed foods, box dinners, fast food, frozen dinners are the super highway to Fatdom. Been there. Got the fat clothes to prove it.

Fat Flush is a lovely eating plan. It's not for everyone (I only wish it were!), but then, no diet is. Been there, tried a half bazillion or so, never lost a pound and often gained.

Does Fat Flush work? boy howdy, I hope to shout. :yes: I'm never going to eat another way. ;)

Thanks for the advice! I didn't realize only 1100 calories was the average. For me, that's completely unreasonable!

for two weeks on P1, the calories average 1100-1200. In P2, 1500-1600, in P3 1800-2000. ;)

My doctor told me not to go under 1800 for my height and size. Sounds super high but guess what... when I follow it and eat healthful foods and exercise... it works! And I feel great and am never hungry.