Easy Diet Plans That Will Help Get You Started
Updated 28.11.2011
Easy Diet Plans
When starting out on a fat loss program, some easy diet plans are just what you need.
It can be difficult enough to re-arrange your whole life, and a habit is a powerful thing, I understand.
As far as diet plans there can be a huge difference between simple and easy:
Eat less.That’s simple. But maybe not so easy.
So what are the easiest ways to drop weight, the best methods to help you change your diet and lifestyle habits?
Here are the two most effective–and easiest– diet methods I know
I’ve come up with two truly easy diet plans, and if there’s anything better then I have not heard of it yet. If you know of something, please let me know.
In the meantime, try these:
1. Smart Carbs
The Smart Carb Approach is the very first step in the first Level of my fitness and fat loss product, the TS Method. It’s really quite easy, and simple too: You replace all carbohydrates in your diet with what I call Smart Carbs: Cruciferous Vegetables and Legumes.
Here is a short list on each.
Cruciferous Veggies
Legumes
These Smart Carbs can taste absolutely great, and you simply use them to replace other, fattening carbohydrates:
out with the potatoes, in with the cauliflower. Out with the pasta, have low sugar baked beans instead. Switch white rice for brown or green lentils, etc.
That’s all! It’s easy, and it works. 
2. Short Term Fasting
I only started to make true progress into the sub 10% body fat levels when I integrated short term fasting into my diet plan. Brad Pilon is a guy from Canada who studied intermittent fasting as a graduate at Guelph University in Ontario. He actually based all his work on real scientific research, and he came up with a rather unusual approach to losing weight: short-term fasting.
His book, Eat Stop Eat has made some waves in the diet world, mainly I guess because it works.
| The idea is to not eat any calories for something like 18-24 hours at a stretch, every other day, or just twice per week, with at least one day in between fasts. So it’s more about a weekly calorie deficit than a daily one. |
I’m using a different technique at the moment, but I have used this one –eat stop eat style– for a long time very successfully. It’s really easy, much easier than it seems. I guess one reason is because once you’re carb depleted, you don’t really feel hungry at all.
I have to admit that the short term fasts were a bit difficult to begin with!
I must say in the beginning it sure took some getting used to!
This is probably more out of habit than anything else. But after a while you start to appreciate the increased energy and clarity resulting from short fasts. Not to speak of the rapid fat loss.
Intermittent Fasting has a lot of other benefits apart from accelerated Fat Burning
Sounds obvious, but think about it: you’re trained to eat from early childhood, every day and all the time. So now you realize it doesn’t have to be that way.
Meals start to actually taste way better than in a long time, and you really learn to be grateful for your food. At least that’s how it was for me.
There’s tons of other benefits of intermittent fasting, HGH production gets a boost, detoxification is increased, aging is slowed. All in all, definitely something worth considering.
Here is a video where the guy explains how fasting is quite similar to exercise in many ways
So for a truly easy diet plan, as a first step try just having a bunch of cruciferous vegetables instead of refined carbohydrates. Another thing these veggies do is stuff you up like nobody’s business! It’s hard to have a binge-attack if you’re just plain too full to eat, not even a morsel? Forget it! 
And when you’re ready for the big leagues, try no food until dinner. That’s usually a 20+ hours fast depending when you had your last calories the day before.
Enjoy! 
Mark
P.S.
For more info on how to integrate the right foods and training into your life, you can check out my free course here.
8 Comments
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I like the idea of replacing carbs with veggies…never really thought about it but that’s what I do when I want to get really lean. I’ve been a big fan of intermittent fasting for a while as well.
Hey Dave, welcome back man!
Yeah it works like a charm man, both the fasting as well as the veggies: I do that at the mo: just a heck of a lot of green beans and co, tastes great, stuffs you up, is healthy.
Mark
Hi Mark, I am also trying to cut off the Carb, I find it not difficult as I have imagined, my body get used to it quickly, meanwhile, I stayed as a vegeterian for a few weeks and I did lose some weight!
Heya Sun,
— and yeah it can help with dropping weight and all kinds of other health parameters.
awesome good to hear, I’m a vegetarian as well –full time
But honestly I’m vegetarian out of ethical reasons first and foremost.
Mark
Heya mark,
?
Well I have added vegetable salad as a my main dish on my dinner. 2 cruciferous veggies mixed with legumes. Then I will have steamed chicken, and I should say, they are very filling. Since they are low cal I can eat as much and still lose fat. Thanks to your amazing suggestions, now they are a part of my diet. I also drink some olive oil and eat fruits regularly. Hope its good too. Never had anything for fiber, thoughts fruits will do? Suggestions mann
Heya Sameer, glad to hear it man!
Yeah fiber is plenty in fruit and especially the cruciferous and other veggies…
For extra I use for instance psyllium husk, apple and citrus pectin, etc.
Mark
Mark I read somewhere where you describe the value of eating a coconut each day. Trying to work this in has caused me some confusion. I am figuring a coconut [small one] is around 500-600 calories and probably should be eaten in the morning. Now following the 4/3 plan plus sticking to around 1800 calories per day I would eat the coconut for breakfast, using the calorie amount of about 600 calories for the morning meal. Going back to my figuring on the coconut and wanting a little more protein what would be the best course of action for me and still eat the coconut? I can think up alternatives but would like to get your take on it considering I may be off my nut, so to speak, not being as experienced at this as you.
Heya Mike thanks for the comment!
Yeah the coconut is just one example of a super healthy filler food, but maybe not the very best choice when restricting calories, as you found out.
I love coconuts and coconut oil is the smartest fat in town, imo.
BUT there’s a big difference in calorie cost between fresh, or young, coconuts and mature ones, the fresh ones being more available in places where they grow, like Brazil, for example. (The lucky bastards!
)
So I’d say: careful, better use something else for fillers.
Here, I will give you a great low cal alternative (though this one is maybe not too suited for the AM)
1 slicing (big salad) cucumber, 2 cloves of garlic, some sea salt, garlic powder and onion powder as well as cayenne powder, apple cyder vinegar.
Chop up the cucumber, add spices and vinegar, mix, let sit for 5, enjoy. You can add a boiled egg and some mustard for variation. Without the egg? about 30-50 calories, and BOY does it stuff you up?
Talking eggs, for extra protein when I’m restricting calories I simply use egg whites: about 18 cals per each.
Sure, normally whole, omega 3 free range eggs are the way to go, but when on a deficit? Egg whites is the word.:-)
Please keep me updated, it’s good to hear other’s experiences as well!
Mark