I think the thing that I am asked MOST about P90X is “Do I HAVE to follow the diet?”
My answer is always the same: “No, you don’t HAVE to, but it will help speed up the results you want to see.”
See, the diet portion of the P90X cycle is EASILY one of the hardest things to follow and, I think, one of the things that people fear the most. I have noticed that just hearing the word DIET makes people second guess trying the P90X program out. It just scares people away! People go:
“Oh, uh, diet? Yeah, well … uh … I go to the gym .. and, uh …. I lift weights and shit, so I’m good …. I don’t need no stinking diet …”
People think that just because you are on a “diet” it means that you have to survive on celery sticks and water for the full 90 days. That could not be further from the truth.
Now, PERSONALLY, I didn’t follow the diet to a “T” but I tried to stick to the ideals and the suggestions as much as possible. My own experience was that it was very rewarding. I lost about 35lbs in 90 days and completely eliminated the upset stomachs and the mood swings I had (something I attribute to my sugar intake).
The P90X diet consists of 4 basic principles that you have to observe at all times to see results:
1. Watch your Carbohydrate intake - You need to hit a “sweet spot” of carbs ingested to carbs burned at the end of the day. There are a ton of great websites out there that can help you figure this out, if you are willing to invest the time and energy into this. This means a lot of label reading and addition, for the math dummies out there.
2. Eat High Protein Foods – This will help rebuild muscle tissue that is torn from workouts (that’s how you build muscle), it will help with muscle recovery between workouts AND it will help increase your energy level during the P90X cycle – and trust me, you’ll need ALL the energy you can get.
3. Eliminate (not reduce) intake of foods high in Sodium, Refined Sugars, Fat, Caffeine and cholesterol - This includes 95% of canned foods, all soda pops, confections (pies, cakes, cookies, etc), candies, chips, donuts, coffee and every other typical unhealthy food you can think of. This helps your body detox and get rid of excess chemicals and toxins a lot faster when on the P90X program. This is EASILY the hardest part of the diet as most people are prisoners to junk food. Hey, I’m one of them, man.
4. Increase intake of water, veggies and fruit - For obvious reasons, eating a carrot or an apple is healthier than a can of coke. But more than this, eating fruits will help replenish the sugars you are used to intaking as well as adding antioxidants and vitamins to your diet. Most adults don’t get enough vitamins as it is, so this influx of fruits and veggies can ONLY be a good thing. As for veggies, they can give you everything from Vitamin A (carrots) to Vitamin C (green peppers), Calcium (Kale and Green Peppers) to anything else your body needs to stay energetic and active. Personally, I noticed a HUGE difference once I started to drink more water and eat more fruits. I suffered from upset stomachs a lot less, felt more vibrant and happier and found that foods tasted better in general. Eventually I got so that I did not MISS the junk food and noticed how unhealthy those foods made me feel when I DID eat them!
Now, if you DON’T follow the diet as specified in the book, but you follow the 4 points above, you will see and feel some change. But if you follow the diet as it is outlined, your changes will be shown threefold! See, the diet has been designed with 3 specific stages in mind. Each stage helps you reach a new level of physical performance and output which is crucial to the P90X routine.
These 3 phases are:
1. Fat Shredder - You eat foods high in protein to build muscle and lose fat and eliminate most carbs from your diet. This is easily the hardest part as you will find that you will be hungry most of the time and you will basically go into sugar or caffeine shock as you have to cut out all your favourite foods, cold turkey.
2. Energy Booster - You eat a combination of carbohydrates and protein with low-fat foods to increase your energy level. This stage allows you to start feeling a little more human as you are FULL more and you are given more energy by the foods you eat.
3. Endurance Maximizer - You consume complex carbohydrates, lean proteins, and low calorie fats to provide you with the stamina necessary to push through the final 30 days of your workouts and maximize results.
Now let’s get to the MOST IMPORTANT thing about the diet which is … THE FOOD! I mean, really, if the food choices you are allowed to ingest are constricting (or limited), then no one will follow the diet. Fortunately, the Diet requirements are nothing more than watching what you eat. I have been able to eat everything from beef to pasta, with the only stipulation being portion control.
So WHAT is Portion Control?
Portion Control is understanding how much a serving size is and how many calories a serving contains. Portion control is important for weight management as any weight gain is determined by the total calorie intake minus the total calories burned. IN a nutshell, it is eating a healthy balance of varied foods in controlled amounts.
Now, the amount of food we eat is affected (subconsciously) by emotional and stress related factors. If you’ve ever gone to the fridge to get some ice cream or cookies when you feel stressed out or upset about something, that is what I am talking about. Or if you happen to LOVE buffets and eat like you were going into hibernation, then yeah …. you suffer from poor portion control habits. But we’re all susceptible to that. Part of it is a survival mechanism, but unlike a thousand years ago, we’ll never see famine or any type of nomadic journey that requires us to ingest an ungodly amount of food for the sake of our very existence. I think recently it has more to do with the fact that we’ve been trained to drown our sorrows in food and to gorge whenever we get the chance. It’s easy … and more than that, it lines the pockets of food companies.
SIDE STORY TIME!
Ever noticed HOW MANY ads there are on TV for pizza, burgers and food in general? It’s mind blowing! And then they follow that up with ads for fitness, weight loss, and artificial beauty enhancers (makeup, hair colouring, clothing, cosmetic surgery)!
Eat to your heart’s content! Order a pizza! And then after you’ve made a complete pig of yourself, go work out or spend some money and get pretty, because you’re not good enough the way you are!
It is astounding the way that we are marketed to nowadays. And the thing is that it works on most people!
Free your minds!
If you want to learn what you can do about Portion Control, have a look at Fitbomb’s Guide to Portion Control. I agree with what he has written and it is easier for me to link to it than write (or plagiarize) the whole thing.
If you can master Portion Control, watch your carbs, eat more fruit, veggies, protein and eliminate the junk food, then your battle is about 60% done. The other 40% is mustering and maintaining the willpower to stick to this routine for 90 days – and maybe afterwards too. Cuz really, the 3 phases of the P90X diet are combinations of the 4 diet principles I have listed above, so they are easy in and of themselves once you wrap your head around the principles.
Do it big, people! It’s not as hard as it seems and the reward is definitely worth the sacrifice!
