V-Diet vs. Cheat to Lose

Seeing both Chris Shugart and Joel Marion online, and sitting here on the first day of my second run on the V-Diet, I can’t help but wonder if I’m making the right choice here. Here is one guy who expects me to go from 20% BF to single digit, without a single cheat meal, and another who has made up a whole diet revolving around a weekly cheatmeal. Now, pardon my french, but why the hell am I choosing the V-Diet? :slight_smile:

I mean, if it’s really possible to lose weight with a weekly cheat day, why would anyone go low-carb, low-calorie for weeks on end… Personally, I didn’t experience any taste changes on the V-Diet the first time, I enjoyed fish, meat and veggies before the diet, and still do. I also like to indulge in something sugary once in a while. I doubt that will ever change. Shugart would like people to never cheat at all, it seems. Does anybody here actually eat that clean?

Now, being a FFB myself, I feel more inclined to listen to Chris Shugart, who has been there and done that… but If Cheat to Lose actually works… well, it seems far more enjoyable.

Has anyone here experience with both these approaches to fatloss?

I haven’t done both diets, but it seems obvious to me that the V-Diet is a relatively short-term approach to drop fat quickly, whereas the Cheat to Lose will not promote fat loss as quickly and is designed to be used for longer periods.

If I had a lot of fat to lose, I’d start with the V-Diet and transition to Cheat to Lose at it’s completion.

I have dropped from 230 lbs to 184, and now I’m at 175 lbs after doing a V-Diet run 6 weeks ago. Not all that much fat left to lose, but I want to get it done finally.

you lost 46 lbs in 6 weeks? Damn! got any pics?

[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
you lost 46 lbs in 6 weeks? Damn! got any pics?[/quote]

Yeah seriously.

I think Cheat to Lose is a superior program simply because it (a) is not a starvation diet, and (b) is sustainable.

That said, one of the posters above me I think nailed it. Stick with the V-Diet as long as you possibly can (I think in all honesty it’s going to be difficult to last a full month, but try), and then transition to CTL.

I don’t have any personal experience with either, but I know my parents purchased the Cheat to Lose book, and they have had great success in following the plan and losing weight at a reasonable rate (not V-Diet fast, not super slow either). For them, this also comes without any real additional exercise, outside of what yard work and daily chores they do around the house.

Both of my parents are the type that love their food for the taste, not just the fuel, and enjoy desserts. I know they struggle with sticking to it at times, but they are able to sustain it, and I think that says a great deal about the quality of the diet, because it can become more of a lifestyle than just a diet.

I would have to say I agree with the above as well, if you can tough out the V-Diet for the 28 days, and then move on to the Cheat to Lose plan, that will be a solid formula for quality weight loss.

Depends on how your body tolerates carbs/junk food, I think. I’m a FFB as well (used to be 255 and now hover around 195-200).

I’ve done both twice and was much more successful with the V-Diet vs Cheat to Lose.

With CtL, I lost about 10 lbs during the low carb/low GI weeks, then the high GI week and later the weekly cheat meal erased my progress. What I found out was I can get away with an occasional cheat meal, but not on a regular basis. I also became burned out from doing the cardio protocol Marion called for.

The taste changes from the V-Diet didn’t last long for me either, but I know the price of eating bad food on a regular basis, so that’s enough to keep me from porking out.

CtL does have some great recipes, though. I use it as another cookbook, but don’t plan on ever using CtL again.

[quote]jehovasfitness wrote:
you lost 46 lbs in 6 weeks? Damn! got any pics?[/quote]

Uhm, no. I should have been clearer. I dropped a lot of fat a couple of years ago, and got down to around 185. Then I lost 16 lbs in 4 weeks on the V-Diet.

[quote]Tech9 wrote:
Depends on how your body tolerates carbs/junk food, I think. I’m a FFB as well (used to be 255 and now hover around 195-200).

I’ve done both twice and was much more successful with the V-Diet vs Cheat to Lose.

With CtL, I lost about 10 lbs during the low carb/low GI weeks, then the high GI week and later the weekly cheat meal erased my progress. What I found out was I can get away with an occasional cheat meal, but not on a regular basis. I also became burned out from doing the cardio protocol Marion called for.

The taste changes from the V-Diet didn’t last long for me either, but I know the price of eating bad food on a regular basis, so that’s enough to keep me from porking out.

CtL does have some great recipes, though. I use it as another cookbook, but don’t plan on ever using CtL again.[/quote]

It does seem a little to good to be true that I could have a full on cheat day once a week. I can see CtL working for people who are very overweight and lead a sedentary lifestyle, but anything works when you are really heavy.

I’ll stick to the V-Diet, and transition into a Berardi way of eating. I’ve ordered Precision Nutrition.