Choose to Lose by Chris Powell (2012): What to eat and foods to avoid

Choose to Lose: The 7-Day Carb Cycle Solution (2012) is a weight loss book written by trainer and transformation specialist Chris Powell –

• Carb cycling – eat a high-carbohydrate diet one day followed by a low-carbohydrate the next
• “Slingshot” weeks where you rest to restart your metabolism and avoid plateauing
• Eat 5 times a day
• Portion control method based on your hand size
• Eat a diet high in protein and low in processed foods; eat low-sodium, whole foods.

Below on this page is a description of the food recommendations in the diet. Summary  |  What to eat  |  Foods to avoid. There’s a lot more in the book.

See reviews and get a copy of the Choose to Lose book or Kindle edition at Amazon.

Also see Chris Powell’s sequel diet book, Choose More, Lose More for Life. In Choose More, Lose More for Life there are 4 different patterns you can use for carb cycling, depending on how quickly you want to lose weight, how much you exercise, and how easily you follow diets.

The reasoning behind Choose to Lose

The 7-day Carb Cycle boosts your metabolism so your body can burn fat rapidly. Your metabolic rate can slow down if you don’t eat enough calories or carbohydrates, so every other day is a high-carb day, where you are in an anabolic state and nutrients are being transferred to your cells so you build up. On the alternate low-carb/low-calorie days, your body is in a catabolic state so most of the fuel burned by your body comes from your fat cells. If you stay on this cycle indefinitely, your weight loss can plateau because your body adapts to the nutrition (and exercise) program. To stop this from happening, the Slingshot Technique allows you to relax, reset, and release to re-start your metabolism so you can lose more weight.

Choose to Lose diet plan – food list

What to eat  – general  |  High carb days – eat  |  Low carb days – eat  |  Cheat meals  |  Slingshot weeks – eat  |  Lifetime diet  |  Foods to avoid – general  |  High carb days – avoid  |  Low carb days – avoid  |  Slingshot weeks – avoid

This nutrition and exercise program works in 90-day phases. Each month in a phase consists of three 7-day Carb Cycles plus one Slingshot week, and from one month to the next you increase the intensity of your workouts.

Foods to eat in Choose to Lose

Suggested foods:

The author says that while you’re getting used to your new diet, it’s best to eat only the foods he suggests. The books says there are more suggestions at www.chrispowell.com, however at the time of writing these could not be found.

• Proteins
  • Portion size – approximately the size and thickness of the palm of your hand
  • Dairy – cottage cheese, egg substitutes, egg whites, nonfat plain Greek yogurt
  • Poultry – lean chicken breast, chicken thighs, ostrich breast, duck breast, turkey breast (not deli), deli low-sodium turkey, lean ground turkey
  • Powders – egg, legume, soy, whey (whey protein is the author’s most highly recommended protein for convenience and to avoid feeling over-full – it should be very low in fat with less than five grams of carbohydrate per serving)
  • Red meat – ground buffalo, extra-lean ground beef, low-sodium roast beef, cube steak, flank steak, round steak, venison, elk
  • Seafood – salmon canned in water, salmon fillet, shellfish including clams, crab, lobster, mussels, scallops, shrimp; tuna canned in water, tuna fillet, white-fleshed fish
  • Vegetable protein – tempeh, textured vegetable protein (TVP), tofu

• Carbohydrates (including fruit and starchy vegetables)
  • Portion size – approximately the size of your clenched fist
  • Bread – whole grain bread, Ezekiel® bread, Ezekiel® English muffins, brown rice tortillas, corn tortillas, Ezekiel® tortillas
  • Breakfast cereal – All Bran, Fiber One, low-fat granola, Kashi® GOLEAN®, Kashi® Good Friends®, Kashi® Heart to Heart®, old-fashioned or steel-cut oatmeal
  • Fruit – apples, apricots, bananas, berries, grapes, kiwi, melons, oranges/tangarines, peaches/nectarines, pears, pineapple, plums. Try to eat only fruit with skin on it. Fruits that you must peel before eating, such as bananas, melons, and pineapple, still have a decent amount of fiber but are not quite as weight-loss friendly. Preferably eat fruit in the morning
  • Grain – amaranth, barley, buckwheat, couscous, popcorn, quinoa, long-grain brown rice, wild rice, spelt
  • Pasta – brown rice pasta, whole-grain pasta
  • Root vegetables – small potatoes (1 ½” diameter), small sweet potatoes/yams (2” diameter, 4” long)
  • Starchy vegetables – peas, corn
  • Legumes – beans (boiled or low-sodium canned), lentils (boiled or low-sodium canned)

• Vegetables
  • Portion size – approximately the size of two of your clenched fists, but you can have more if you’d like
  • Asparagus, beets, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, carrots, celery, collard greens, cucumber, eggplant, green beans, lettuce, mixed greens, mushrooms, onions, peppers, spinach, sprouts, squash, tomatoes, turnips, zucchini

•  Fats
  • Portion size – approximately the size of your thumb from the base to the tip
  • Dairy – low-fat cheese, egg yolk, feta cheese, heavy cream, low-fat mozzarella cheese
  • Dressings – balsamic vinaigrette, regular mayonnaise, low-fat creamy salad dressing
  • Fruit – avocado, large olives
  • Nuts & seeds – almond butter with salt, raw whole almonds, natural peanut butter with salt, peanuts, raw chopped pecans, pumpkin seeds, sesame butter/tahini, sunflower seeds, raw chopped walnuts
  • Oils – canola oil, fish oil, flaxseed oil, olive oil

• Flavorings
  • Portion size – no larger than the size of two fingers
  • Dressings (watch out, these are fats – also listed above; don’t include them in high-carb days) – balsamic vinaigrette, regular mayonnaise, low-fat creamy salad dressing
  • Herbs, spices & seasonings – basin, cayenne pepper, chili powder, cinnamon, cloves, cocoa powder, curry, garlic, ginger, horseradish, Mrs. Dash® blends, nutmeg, oregano, parsley, paprika, pepper, rosemary, sage, sea salt, tarragon, thyme, turmeric
  • Liquids – butter spray, low-sodium chicken broth, chili sauce, lemon juice, lime juice, low-sodium soy sauce, Tabasco
  • Tomato products – marinara sauce, salsa, tomato paste, tomato sauce
  • Pastes – chili paste, hummus, mustard
  • Sweeteners – stevia, xylitol

• Drinks
  • Water, unsweetened almond milk, coffee, tea
  • Drink 8 or more tall glasses of water per day – almost a gallon. You may need more if the weather’s hot and dry or if you exercise strenuously

• If you’re not losing weight after a few weeks, you may want to try reducing your portions by about 1/4 from current portions, and seeing if that helps with weight loss. Women should never eat less than 1,200 calories a day, and men should never eat less than 1,500 calories.

• Note that milk isn’t included on the list of approved foods, as it is high in both carbs and fat

• To avoid food cravings, drink lots of water, chew mint-flavored gum, eat high-fiber foods early in the day, or (only on low-carb days) eat one tablespoon of your favorite healthy fat

• Always eat your protein first, before the carbs, fats, or veggies

Carb Cycles – High-carb/high-calorie days, eat:

• Eat within 30 minutes of waking up, then eat every 3 hours – 5 meals a day
• For breakfast, eat protein and fruit or protein and starchy carbohydrates included in the list above
• For all other meals, eat protein and complex carbohydrates included in the list above
• Include non-starchy vegetables in every meal

If you’re really, truly following the program but still don’t see results – Suggested tweak for high-carb days to kick-start your weight loss:

• Include carbs and protein in your first three meals of the day
• Remove carbs from your last two meals
• Eat protein, vegetables, and fat for your last two meals

Carb Cycles – Low-carb/low-calorie days, eat:

• Eat within 30 minutes of waking up, then eat every 3 hours – 5 meals a day
• For breakfast, eat protein and fruit or protein and starchy carbohydrates included in the list above
• For all other meals, eat protein, vegetables, and a moderate amount of the fats included in the list above
• It’s recommended to include vegetables in every meal (except the root and starchy vegetables listed in the carbohydrate category), but not mandatory on low-carb days

Cheat meals / free days, eat:

You can EITHER take a free day once a week when you can eat anything you like, OR have one cheat meal (not dinner) of your favorite foods three days a week. These must take place on high-carb days.

• Anything you want, from pizza to potato chips. Make sure you only have one alcoholic drink a week
• Only eat cheat meals outside your house, and keep the food out of your house

Slingshot weeks, eat:

Follow this diet for one week after 3 weeks of high carb/low carb alternate days carb cycling

• Every day is a high-carb day, as above
• Eat within 30 minutes of waking up, then eat every 3 hours. Drink a gallon of water daily.
• Eat 5 meals every day, from the list of approved foods, with the correct portion sizes. At all five of your daily meals, include one portion of carbs and one portion of protein; vegetables are highly recommended

Lifetime diet, eat:

Follow this diet (with exercise) to maintain your goal weight and shape

• Eat 5 meals every day, within 30 minutes of waking up, then eat every 3 hours
• Eat a wide variety of foods from the acceptable foods list above
• Eat a balanced diet, without carb cycling
• Don’t exceed your Carb-Cycle Solution portion sizes
• Reward yourself once a day
• Drink lots of water

Foods to avoid or limit with Choose to Lose

At all times, or until you have overcome binge behavior, avoid:

• Foods that trigger you to binge

At all times, don’t have these in the house (although you can eat them on cheat meals / free days):

• Sugary foods: Candy, chocolate, cookies, ice cream, soda, energy drinks, foods containing brown sugar, corn syrup, honey, maple syrup, raw sugar, white sugar

• Fruit juice

• Processed foods: Baked goods, chips, conventional white and wheat breads, crackers, frozen meals, foods containing hydrogenated oils, white flour, white rice

• Foods high in salt

• Salted, smokehouse, and other flavored nuts

• Fried foods

• Alcohol: beer, wine, hard alcohol (you can drink once a week during a cheat meal; don’t have a mixed drink)

• Artificial sweeteners including sucralose, aspartame, and saccharin (prefer stevia and xylitol)

• Limit yourself to one diet soda or diet energy drink a day – only if you must

Carb Cycles – High-carb/high-calorie days, avoid or limit:

• Fat

Carb Cycles – Low-carb/low-calorie days, avoid or limit:

• Carbs (except at breakfast)
• Excessively large amounts of fat

Slingshot weeks, avoid or limit:

• Don’t exceed the recommended portion sizes

Health benefits claimed in Choose to Lose

The diet in this book claims to reduce the risks for: overweight and obesity

Consult your doctor before starting a new diet. This page describes what the authors of the diet recommend – Chewfo is describing the diet only, and does not endorse it.

For more information on how to change your attitude, the exercise program, supplementation suggestions, and details of the diet recommendations, see Choose to Lose book and Choose to Lose Kindle Edition.

Buy a copy of Choose to Lose to get the full details, recipes, and exercise recommendations.

How has this diet helped you? Please add a comment below.