I wanted to lay out my plan for the first week of the snake diet in detail. Today is Friday April 20th, 2018 and I'm 5 days into my snake diet routine. So far it is going amazing and I think I know why. Here are my top reasons as to why this diet will be successful for anyone.

1. Your initial 48 hour fast breaks your food addictions. This is key to remove cravings and make it easier to stick to.
2. The more you fast the easier it gets. You really don't feel hungry because are getting fed. Your body is just eating the food that is on you instead of what you put into it.
3. You see rapid results. This motivates you to keep going.
4. You feel better than you image you will. Mental clarity is sharper than ever.
5. Once you have fasted for a while it is SO much easier to eat smaller meals. You just aren't as hungry and those cravings are gone!
6. Your body's preferred state is burning its own fat. Fasting triggers chemical reactions in your body that facilitate this.
7. It's free. In fact, you save money. Eating way less food means lower grocery bills.

The biggest mistake anyone could make, in my opinion, is to skip the initial 48 hour fast. It makes all the difference. I know this because I have tried it so many other ways, so many other times and the cravings were ALWAYS there. Your first 48 hour fast resets your body. It resets your immune system. It can be a little hard, but power through it and the results will come.

I'm back! I look like shit. I'm a fatty!

Why? Because I stopped caring about my health and fitness. I went back and forth and at my best I got down to 207 lbs. At my worst (many years ago) I was pushing 245. Currently I'm around 220ish. When i was down to 207, I felt good and then life happened. I started eating poorly again and not paying attention. Excuses, holidays, laziness and addiction. Mad addiction. Sugar is so addictive. More addictive that cocaine many experts believe.

I decided it was time to make a HUGE change. In the past several months, I have been experimenting with intermittent fasting. I have had great results and saw a ton of potential, but it was not enough. After reading and watching lots of You tube videos, I stumbled across the Snake Diet by Cole Robinson from Canada. I have started my journey and am now about 4 days in and am feeling great. It's not easy at all and not for the faint of heart.

Starting weight was 223 (4/16/18-pics below). Goal weight is 185-190. I will post pics and updates weekly for accountability.

Damn! That is what I look like from behind? What a fatty. Those love handles are going away! I am motivated.

What is it?

The Snake Diet was named this because of the way many animals in the wild eat, including snakes. They pound a big meal and then often don't eat again for days. The snake diet is actually a lifestyle more than a diet. It is a plan focused on the benefits of fasting. Like any "diet" it has to become a way of life to be successful. Most people hear the term "diet" and think things like Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers. Yes these are diet plans, but "diet" broken down to it's simplest form is what we eat everyday and more importantly when we eat it.

How Does it Work?

The basis of the snake diet is fasting. Fasting as long as you can. Days, weeks or even months. Sounds nuts, right? Maybe it is. Maybe you need to go a bit crazy to achieve your goals. That fat gut you have been carrying around for 20 years isn't magically going to disappear without effort. Fasting is the most effective way to burn 100% body fat. Plain and simple. There are lots of opinions on the topic and many would see this as a huge health risk and a very unhealthy way to lose weight. But you got fat from being unhealthy. You are already unhealthy. Right now as you read this, you are unhealthy. Fasting has loads of health benefits that many people don't know about.

I'll admit it. I am a slacker when it comes to this blog, but I am kicking ass at other stuff. I started week 3 of the 21 day fix and it is going great. I really like this program. My biggest beef? Starting week three I was only down 5 lbs overall. That is not to say its not working. It sure is. It is changing my body and I feel much more fit and look leaner. I plan to adjust my food intake this week for maximum results crossing the finish line. I will follow the 3 day quick fix. It is actually perfect for me. I love fish and sweet potatoes.

If you are considering adding something to your Reboot, the 21 day fix might be a good fit. It is hard, but not too hard and it teaches you how to eat. In my opinion, I am eating too much, but I know my body. You just need to make sure it gets the right amount of fuel and the RIGHT fuel. More fruits and vegetables are never a bad thing. I will likely continue and do the workouts after I complete round 1. The workouts are only 30 mins and they are effective. Before and Afters coming soon!

Today is Friday and I am on day 5 of my second reboot. I have only been to yoga 2 times this week. I got some tattoo work done on my arm on Wednesday and it has been really sore! My weigh in on Monday did not go well. :( I weighed in at 226 lbs. No pre-diet this time, but I do know that some of this was "weekend weight" from much beer drinking and bloating. I decided not to weigh myself again until the following Monday but was too tempted this morning not to do it. Today I am at 220. Not bad for 5 days! Although my "real" starting weight was likely 224 after my body normalized.

This week I did not do anything too special. But I think that is the key here. We want to be able to maintain this lifestyle long term so going crazy and being extreme will not work in the long run. Slow and steady wins the race. My main goal was to begin to train my body and mind (mostly my mind) to avoid snacking and late night eating. Also to avoid (as much as possible) items high in sugar. I did have several dum dums and a tootsie pop but overall I was successful and did not snack at night and did not eat after 7 p.m. I also drank a bit more water than normal. My diet this week was very good. I ate a lot of lean protein such as chicken, tuna, hard boiled eggs and salmon. Each day I started with a chocolate banana smoothie and a hard boiled egg. I use Atkins Dark Chocolate protein shakes. I cant say enough how much I like these. They have 15g of protein, 4g of fiber and only 1g of sugar but they taste amazing! I mix a half of a shake with one banana, and a 3/4 of a cup of ice and blend for a satisfying start to my day. Trying hard to stick to a routine seems to help me stay on track.

So I am back at it again. The journey to find physical balance continues. I have not reached my ideal weight yet. More than that I am not as comfortable with my shirt off as I wish I was but I am about to change it. From the other posts on the site, you know its been a process. I have been at it for months losing, gaining, losing, gaining, but I am about the take it to the next level. In my pursuit of fitness I stated by using my cousin Jonathan as an inspiration. He died almost 2 years ago and I still miss him often. He was as cool as they get. One of the best human spirits I have ever witnessed. As many will tell you.

I started my journey at about 240 lbs. After my "pre-diet", I started my 31 Day physical reboot (Reboots can be whatever YOU want. Physical, emotional, spiritual) on August 1, 2016 at 237 lbs. This was perfect as Jonathan died on Aug 31st. My reboot would end on the one year anniversary. I had a great month. I ate really well and trained my body to not crave things like sugar and beer. I went to yoga 5 days a week for the entire month and when the final day came I was down 17 lbs!  I was feeling great and looking great. With my ideal weight of 205 lbs looking probable, I kept moving forward. In the next month I was down to 212 lbs. My lowest point in 3 years. Things were looking good! But the next few months, life happened, as it always does. Holidays..Thanksgiving....oh boy.....Christmas cookies? I'm in trouble. Down 5 lbs this week! Yes! Next week, I gained 4?? WTF! Hey, I am at least down 1 lb still right? The cycle continued.

So I let life get in the way of keeping up on this blog. If you are curious of the final results, they were very good. I lost 17 lbs in 31 days. I did post on facebook on August 31st but not on the blog. Here is my facebook post:

"This ones for you, Jon. I know today is a tough day for everyone. My love goes out to all of you who loved this great man. At the Boulder ceremony we wrote down what we wanted to accomplish in honor of JGreens. My goal was to get fit again. I started a 31 day reboot on Aug 1. Today is the last day. My goal was to lose 4-5 pounds per week. I did it! I lost 17 pounds. To help me stay motivated, I looked at my new tattoo. It reminds me everyday to crush life. For myself, Jonathan and all of you."

I also had some technical difficulties as my phone with my "after" pics died on me and I lost the only one I had with my shirt off. The pictures here are from October, 2016. In these picture I weigh approx 218 lbs. 

As I begin my third week I am down 12 pounds. That is even after going to Arizona and going off my diet a bit. As I was eating and drinking this past weekend I thought a lot about my relationship with food and how it has effected my overall health over the past decade. I am a bored snacker, an emotional eater and I love sweets! Was I in for it or what? Couple that with getting older and a slowing of my metabolism and extra pounds cam and stayed. As I have been eating more whole foods and making better choices I have been feeling so much cleaner and my brighter. And after changing your habits a bit, the cravings go away. In fact, I craved a pint of water instead of sweet tea and I wanted an apple rather than a cookie. Anyone who knows me knows that is a HUGE feat. I love cookies. So much so it was my first word as a baby. No joke.

So I went to the store after returning home from Arizona. This was what I bought for the week. Maybe this will help you decide on some healthy choices:

• Apples
• oranges
• lettuce
• cauliflower
• broccoli
• bell peppers
• zucchini
• mushrooms
• onions
• yogurt
• sweet potatoes
• hot peppers
• strawberries
• blueberries
• mixed nuts
• tuna
• unsweetened soy milk
• plums
• protein shakes

A Quick Zucchini Boat Recipe:

I am in Phoenix with my college buddy Brian and his wife Nina. Nina is a wildlife biologist at Liberty Wildlife and part of her job is to rehabilitate birds and release them back into the wild. Today, I had the pleasure of doing this with a rockstar! Rick is the bass player for one of my all time favorite bands Jimmy Eat World. Jimmy Eat World is from Phoenix and over the past few years Nina and Brian have got to know Rick and I had the pleasure of releasing a barn owl with Rick. It was a truly magical day.

On the reboot note, things have been going OK. Just OK while here in Phoenix. I am sort of on vacation, so I have went off my diet a bit, but plan to kick my own ass when I return to PA. Life is good. Good times with good friends. We all know that life is full of struggles and that we can't be perfect all the time. Just keep going. I know I will succeed and I won't give up till I get there. No matter how long it takes and how many reboots I do, I will never give up. Ever. I will be fit. Soon!