28 - day foundations of a transformation guidelines

FOT
The idea behind this protocol is maximising fat loss whilst improving health to ensure we are also
laying the foundations for sustained improvements after this protocol. We can be in a calorie deficit
without being nutrient deficient and when done properly being in a slight calorie deficit should also
actually improve health! Bit different to what you may have previously experienced ah. The problem
I commonly see with people who start ‘fat loss’ phases is they want results rapidly and that’s ok,
don’t we all!? However, they fail because:

: They don’t educate themselves on the basics of behavioural change and nutrition.
: There’s no follow up plan in place to transition themselves into a more sustainable approach.
: They don’t have a clear understanding of how fat loss works and therefore don’t understand why
they are following X diet.
: There’s no accountability to sticking with the more restrictive/ effective approach causing binges
which worsen the situation in the first place.
: The focus is on weight loss not fat loss and it certainly isn’t aimed at improving health, in fact it
often worsens health causing the body to fight back against you.

This protocol aims to break down each of those above points, giving you all the tools to win long
term whilst ensuring you stay motivated for the short term by still delivering results. The main pillars
this protocol is built on are as follows:

Eliciting fat loss by creating a calorie deficit.

Improving gut health and therefore increase nutrient absorption.

Increasing cardiovascular health helping to maximise fat oxidation.

Reducing inflammation.

Nourishing the body with the full spectrum of vitamins and minerals it requires.

Supporting our natural detoxification pathways. Toxins are stored in fat tissue so when we start a
dieting phase we often start feeling run down, lack of energy and even get sick. This is because those
toxins have now been released from the fat tissue and moved into the bloodstream. It’s therefor
incredibly important to support our kidneys, liver lungs and skin deal with this load but focusing on
health as well as fat loss. By support I mean support what they are perfectly designed to do. Not start
a detox which is supposed to magically detox all our toxins.

Managing and improving both chronic and acute stressors.

Building a healthy relationship with good wholesome food.

Accountability to taking the action required to regain control of your health and weight.

Everything listed below are just guidelines as opposed to hard set rules. Those of you that have
followed me for a while know I will always stand behind an approach which compliments your
lifestyle not detracts from it. However, to maximise your results adhere to this program as best you
can for the full 28 days before re introducing certain foods and transitioning into the sustainable
approach.

For many people trying to implement to many new strategies and remove to many things can be
overwhelming and set them up to fail. They think screw it and just give up completely. I want to
make it clear that whilst executing this perfectly as laid out below would be ideal, we don’t live in an
ideal world and doing 80-90% of this as best you can will still lead to great results. Sometimes moving
forwards isn’t possible but we don’t have to make backwards.

Ok so let’s look at the specifics of this 28-day protocol.

Number 1:
The first thing we are going to do is remove all foods you eat every single day and swap them for a
similar substitute. I want you to write a list of all these foods, it normally works out at 10-15 different
foods in total. For example, if you eat chicken one day for breakfast as chicken sausages then the
next day at dinner you have chicken thigh etc then chicken would go on the list as you eat it everyday
in some way. In this case you might swap the chicken for turkey or tuna steak. You might swap
chicken eggs for duck eggs, carrots for pumpkin. Yogurt for coconut yogurt. You get the idea.

This is a great way of improving gut health via removing common intolerances we build up because
of lack of variety in the diet. Doing this also ensures we are getting a greater variety of nutrients into
our diets which again are always lacking. I understand this can be a big commitment but it’s
incredibly effective. Take a few days removing what you can as you get through foods you’ve already
got in the fridge etc just aim to eliminate your whole list within 5 days of starting. If you are round
someone’s house and they have cooked using some ingredients you are meant to be avoiding, then
don’t stress. Sticking with this 90% will still do wonders for your gut health.

Number 2:
Use the calculator to work out your starting calorie target. Make sure you stick with this 7 days a
week. You might think you’ve just had 1 day off plan but it’s very easy to over eat in just 1 day what
you’ve undereaten by 6 days cancelling out the calorie deficit for that week and resulting in no fat
loss. Don’t over think the exact goal macronutrient targets just try to be within 10%. Download the
free app My Fitness Pal and enter in these goal numbers. Try to plan your days in advance as it can be
shocking how many calories are in your favourite drinks, snacks and meals. Planning in advance
allows you to properly accommodate for this. Use the example meal plans to help you visualise/ plan
your days.
Number 3:

Start the day right to build momentum and good habits. Start everyday with the following drink
regardless if your having breakfast or not. You might find this is filling enough, removing the need for
additional calories from breakfast. This is great as it gives you more food later in the day.

: Half a serving of greens powder. I recommend amazing greens chocolate flavour. P.S it still doesn’t
taste quite like chocolate.
:1 serving protein powder. I like Awesome supps vegan protein powder for people who have
intolerances to diary. Or a good quality whey protein isolate.
:Half teaspoon organic cinnamon.
:A small chunk grated ginger.
:A teaspoon psyllium husk powder.
:Handful fresh or frozen spinach.
:50g fresh or frozen berries.
:Half fresh lime.
:1 teaspoon stevia.
:300-500ml almond milk, coconut milk, hemp milk, coconut water as preferred.

Also, first thing AM drink 500ml water.

Number 4:

Digestion is so important here are some little tips that will massively improve how full you feel as
well as how many nutrients you can absorb from food. Commit to these for the next 21 days and see
how much better you feel.

Digestion starts in the brain so the state you’re in when eating makes a big difference to your stress
levels. Try avoiding eating when in a stressed state. Take a few seconds to breath and relax before
eating.

Be present in the meal so you can enjoy the food and be able to listen to the body telling you when
its full.

Chew every bite until it’s completely liquid. Try putting your fork down between bites.

Stopwatch how long it takes you to eat your next lunch, try to make it last longer than 10-15 mins
depending on the size of the meal.
Number 5:

Pre bed routine. Everything starts with a good night sleep, especially optimal health and fat loss so
let’s perfect your pre bed routine. The below sounds silly but again commit to it for the next 21 days
and tell me how much better your sleeping.

Try to turn electronics off at least 30 mins before you go to bed to reduce blue light entering your
eyes.

Write a brain dump/ to do list. Put down everything your thinking about, stressing over, need to get
done the next day on paper then physically put the notepad away. This will allow you to switch off
knowing it will still all be there tomorrow.

Keep a gratitude journal. Write down a few things in general and a few things specifically from the
day you’re grateful for. This will help you to de stress, put any above problems from the brain dump
into perspective and prepare for a good night’s sleep. You can use the free app sleep cycle to monitor
the quality of your sleep.

Number 6:
Restrictions and limitations. To maximise your results from this protocol we want to minimise or
ideally cut out completely alcohol, stimulants and processed foods. Again, there will be a fine line
between what is realistic and won’t cause a re bound vs what is optimal. Don’t stress if you can’t
adhere to this completely just do your best to ensure they are included and factored into your
weekly calorie/ macronutrient budget. If you aren’t currently taking many stimulants, coffee, energy
drinks, pre workout etc then you may not need to remove them but for most people cutting down or
ideally completely removing stimulants for a couple of weeks will massive for reducing stress and
giving the adrenal glands a rest. No food is directly bad for you or will stop fat loss happening. It
always comes down to creating a calorie deficit. However food choices will affect how we feel,
perform and recovery which are all important indirectly for fat loss to occur,
Number 7:

Inclusions. Whilst no one single food or food group will be magical for your progress there is several
nutritional areas that the standard western diet really misses out on. Without affecting point number
1 I’d like you to try and include the following on a frequent basis.

- WILD Alaskan or Scottish salmon. This will help to balance out the poor ratio of omega 3-6
we have in our traditional western diets. Try to consume 2-3 portions weekly or similar wild
fatty fish such as trout.

- Free range organic steak or steak mince as it’s easier on the digestive system. Don’t believe
the health scares around good quality organic red meat. In fact, good quality steak contains
many vital minerals we are deficient in such as vitamin b12, iron, and zinc and selenium. Try
to consume 2-3 portions weekly.

- Free range organic eggs or duck eggs if eggs where already part of your daily diet. This will
help to balance out our poor ratio of HDL- LDL as well as providing us will the full spectrum
of amino acids. Try to include them frequently in your diet.

- Brazil nuts. These are a great source of selenium, selenium is a vital nutrient in the
conversion of T4- T3 the active form of thyroid. Our thyroid if often working sub optimally
due to yo-yo dieting and chronic stress. Try to add just 2 brazil nuts daily into your diet. Other
high sources of selenium mentioned below.

- Citrus fruits such as oranges, lemons, limes. These are high in myo-inositol another crucial
player in thyroid production. Start everyday with half a fresh lemon or lime squeezed into
water and incorporate oranges as snacks where possible. More foods high in myo-inositol
listed below.

- Beetroot, carrots, leafy greens, ginger, turmeric, apples, pears. These all provide a massive
range of micronutrients and have strong anti-inflammatory properties but most importantly
blending them together makes a great juice. Try this and other juice/ smoothie recipes from
my cookbooks and try to include them at least 3 time per week.

- Herbal teas such as green, mint, peppermint, camomile etc. These are great substitutions for
coffee and can benefit digestion and reduce stress. Try to opt for lose tea leaves where
possible.

Other honourable mentions for selenium content, sardines, halibut, fennel, grapes, thyme.

Myo-inositol, Cantaloupe, citrus fruits, blackberry, kiwi, cherries, pears, watermelon, apple, brussels
sprouts, lime beans, green beans, artichoke, eggplant, asparagus, squash, tomato, courgette.
Try to consume at least 2 of these daily, this should give us more than enough Myo-Inositol.
Number 8:
Fasting to give the gut a rest from breaking down food. At least 1 day per week try to fast for at least
16 hours. I like to do this from my last meal on Saturday night to Sunday afternoon. You can drink
water in this period only.

Number 9:
Daily steps. The amount you move daily will have a massive impact on your calorie output and
therefore results. It’s common for people to have a range of daily steps from as low as just 2000 to
above 10,000. Doing more daily steps will not only massively increase calories burnt but also regulate
your blood glucose levels better leading to improved energy, mood, cravings and hunger. Aim for at
least 10,000 steps daily or 70,000 weekly. Ideally enjoy doing them outside as part of your lifestyle
but separate from any specific cardio you can do 5 mins here and there on the treadmill to increase
step count. Make sure when doing specific cardio, you don’t include this within your step target.
Iphones have a built in step tracker or you can download free apps.

Number 10:

Training. Be consistent and get the workouts in, whilst managing your lifestyle and nutrition is very
important despite what you might have heard it’s not 80/20 its 100% consistency to both! Training is
just as important. Do your best to execute the program to the best of your ability but at the same
time remember if you’ve gone from not training properly to following this program. Just trying is
going to still make a good difference. The weight-based training program is laid out in a PDF as it
changes weekly. The cardio stays the same but with weekly progressions so that’s laid out in a
spreadsheet. Try and add in both cardio workouts weekly, on rest days or as a second workout on the
same day as a weights workout. Treat the cardio like weights, log everything and beat it the next time
around!
 Great- let’s get everything started!
I understand there is quite a lot of information here so take your time to break everything down.
Refer back to it, make notes and ask questions in the Facebook group.

Before you get started do your best to get everything you need in order ready to get started but
again, I want to make it very clear that just hitting 90% of this will still lead to good results as long as
you are within your calorie deficit.

Make sure we have some things to measure your progress against throughout the 3 weeks.

Grab-
: Photos, front, side and back standing relaxed against a wall with good lighting. To win any of the
prizes you’ll need to be happy for us to use your photos. We can blur the face.
: Measurements, at least just a waist or hip measurement. Make sure you keep these consistent.
: Scale weight, this doesn’t tell the whole picture so make sure you also use the above. If you have
access to a body analysis machine, then use this instead of the scale.

Make sure you are in the private Facebook group and turn on post notifications so you can
easily keep up to date with all the content.

Everyday as part of your pre-bed routine I want you to write down how many of the above
10 guidelines you have achieved that day. This will help keep you honest and accountable.
On training days, we want to see all 10 being executed with all 9/9 applicable guidelines
being achieved on rest days. Any questions don’t hesitate to ask in the Facebook group.