I haven’t written lately about my favorite eating and exercise program the 6 Week Body Makeover Plan by Michael Thurmond and I thought I’d take this opportunity to answer some reader questions from the comments section of my 6WBMO post.

These are some great comments/questions and I’m answering them  here together  so that you can also  benefit from the information in case you aren’t subscribed to the comments on my 6-Week Body Makeover post.

First let’s look at this comment that was left by Kelly:

Hi there. I am 18 years old and since I was in elementary school, I’ve had a weight problem. I’ve always been told I was too young to diet, and went on just about every diet with my mom. She is also overweight and we just can’t seem to shed any of our unwanted pounds. We have seen this infomercial time and time again, and have talked about ordering it quite a bit. It’s tough because we’ve had such poor results with all of the other expensive diets that we’ve tried. I have read lots of positive feedback, but I worry about the food. My mom and I are at work and school 6 days a week, so it is hard to prepare meals. We have tried diet plans that required very obscure foods and lots of preparation. I was hoping you could give me a bit of insight on to the best foods to make and eat. We have struggled with the bland taste of foods in previous diets, and I worry that I will find the food on this plan too bland to stay commited to. Thanks for your time and patience with these comments, and I look forward to hearing from you soon!

-Kelly

And here’s a great question from Emily:

I’ve been on the 6 week body makeover for 10 days. I lost 6 lbs the first 5 days but have not lost any more weight. I am 5ft 2 inches tall and weigh 127. I just had a baby 6 months ago. My “normal/goal” weight is 112. Any advice. Thanks!

And Lisa asked:

So tomorrow will be one week for me. I am a 29 year old female Type B. I have always had a weight problem and started last Tuesday tipping the scales at 181. I was expecting great results and thus far I have onle lost 2.2lbs. Is this normal? Am I doing something wrong? I have been eating Boars Head chicken breast everyday. Could that be it? I read all of the posts and it seems as though that might be the culprit. I am a little discouraged right now.

 
The first thing that I need to point out is that the  6WBMO plan is not recommended for teenagers however you can take it to your doctor (which is always  recommended) and if they give you the go-ahead then that’s awesome.

When You Plan to Succeed…

In order to succeed with the 6WBMO plan you really need to follow it to the letter, meaning that if you read your black book, follow the guidelines, and plan in advance you will  do just fine.

You will  need to read  all ingredient labels if there is any packaged (as opposed to whole foods) that you buy. One item that I buy that comes in a can is no salt added (NSA) tomato paste and diced tomatoes.  Be sure to read  the listing of “ingredients”. As long as the only ingredient is tomatoes then you’re all set however when you read the “nutrition” panel you might see sodium listed. Sodium is naturally present in tomatoes as well as in many other foods but you only need to verify that salt is not listed in the ingredients.

This is true for all foods and when purchasing lean chicken breasts I only buy fresh not frozen. 99% of the time frozen chicken breasts are injected with chicken broth, which contains sodium. If you see chicken broth listed in the ingredients of chicken breast do not use that, look for the kind that has nothing added to it. The added sodium will stall your weight loss progress and may discourage you when you see others losing much quicker than you are. Hidden sodium is a common culprit in stalled weight loss with the 6WBMO but when you follow the guidelines of the plan you will have nothing to worry about.

My Food Tastes Awesome, and Hot!

My food tastes awesome  because I  use spices and herbs to cook with. I made 2 batches of  cabbage soup last weekend and it turned out hot, spicy, and “tomatoey” (I added NSA tomato sauce to it) – very very tasty!  There’s a ton of recipes in the free recipe exchange – I suggest checking those out and making the ones that sound good to you.

You will need to invest in spices and herbs if you don’t have the ones the recipes call for but they aren’t something that you will need to purchase every month. They  will be  essential in your cooking though because they are what will give your food awesome flavor while still keeping your metabolism burning red hot (because you won’t be using the ingredients found in processed food).

Planning & Preparation = Success

The main thing that must be taken into consideration with the 6-Week Body Makeover is that it does require planning and preparation and as long as you do that then you will succeed. I prefer to cook in bulk on the weekends, which gives me enough meals to eat through the week. This works great for me instead of cooking every night and/or day.

Also, when I was in college as an adult student as well as working a full-time job I simply packed a little soft-sided cooler with all of my food for the day and took my water along with me.    I would pack my cooler each night for the next day so that I’d be all ready to go in the morning. Zip loc baggies and containers will be your best friend and if you plan and prepare in advance you will do just fine.

One Last Thing…

One thing  to keep in mind  is that even when you do everything right as is outlined for you in your 6WBMO black book you will have some weeks when you do not lose weight. This is simply because your body will go through periods of “leveling out” or plateauing, but this won’t last.

It’s really important to not only weigh yourself once a week but also to take your measurements at the same time. You will often find that those weeks that you do not lose weight you will lose inches, and it’s those inches that really count anyway.

Please remember this: the most important thing I can impart to you is that you stay focused and aware  in your present moment. The 6-Week Body Makeover is a wonderful plan –  it taught me how to eat and cook healthy foods, lose fat, and build muscle tone with regular exercise. Even so my outlook is no longer focused on an end goal of weight loss but on being happy in my present moment. Weight loss can be easy and fun when you are living in joy and in the moment – something for you to remember while you enjoy the journey!