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Body For Life (Eating For Life)
Bill Phillips’ Body for Life is an inspiring book that outlines a comprehensive diet and fitness program. The book continues to be a top seller worldwide, and has sparked a number of copy-cat programs.
Body for life is about losing fat and gaining muscle – and having a diet that doesn’t leave you feeling tired or fatigued.
The author Bill Phillips is inspired, passionate, motivational, and sincere regarding the program. He has recently added a new book Eating for Life – this primarily focuses on nutrition. This book has the basics of the Body for Life program along with a full color glossy cookbook full of meals and recipes that will fit the Body-for-Life style.
Body For Life Basics
The typical BFL diet consists of 5-6 meals per day. Portion size is emphasized rather than calorie counts. A typical meal might consist of one portion of protein, and one portion of carbohydrate. For one day each week you are allowed to ‘cheat’ and eat your favorite foods. The book provides lists of foods and sample meal plans – but you will need to plan carefully to follow the diet.
The exercise program is essential to Body for Life. This includes 20 minutes 3 times per week of aerobic exercise, and lifting weights for 3 times a week (45 minutes per session).
Transformation Possible?
Bill Phillips has brought different elements together and combined them into a single program. He has delivered these in a truly inspiring and motivational fashion. Body for Life has been the catalyst for thousands of people to finally get fit and healthy, and there is always a Body for Life challenge going on somewhere in the world.
Recommended Program
The Body for Life program is sensible in all aspects. It is not a very low calorie plan, and has a substantial exercise component. Yes you will need to restructure your life to follow this (maybe that’s why its called Body for Life!). You will need to have considerable motivation to succeed, be prepared to work hard, and fat loss would be in the region of 1-2 pounds per week (if you are currently overweight).
Despite the book being adorned with before and after photos of people becoming muscular, it takes a lot of discipline to not only lose fat but to build defined muscle mass.
These exercises can be used with the Body for Life program.
Supplements
Following the diet (6 meals per day) can be difficult, and the author suggests (plugs?) supplements. This is not surprising as Bill Phillips was once the owner of EAS supplements (he subsequently sold the company on). EAS is reputed to be one of the superior supplement makers in the industry.
Protein shakes (such as Myoplex) certainly have their place (particularly in a regime with 3-6 meals per day). Shakes, bars, and Ready-to-Drinks are a convenient way to supply your body with the nutrients – but are never a replacement for real food.
Sample Meal Plan
This is a typical 1,700 calorie meal plan from the Eating For Life program.
BREAKFAST
3/4 cup scrambled Egg Beaters™
1 piece multi-grain toast with 1teaspoon natural peanut butter
1 small apple
1 small banana
SNACK
Myoplex Lite Ready-to-Drink
LUNCH
2 ounces of fresh deli cut turkey breast
1 tablespoon regular mayonnaise
2 slices of multi-grain bread
1 cup fresh baby carrots
1/2 cup low-fat cottage cheese
MID-AFTERNOON SNACK
DINNER
1 medium roasted, skinless chicken breast
1 cup lentil soup
2 celery sticks with non-fat cream cheese
More low Calorie healthy recipes can be found here.
See Also
Official site – The official site for Body-for-life products.
Alternatives
Body for life is similar to – The Abs Diet, Burn the Fat – Feed the Muscle, and the 3 hour diet.
***correction for purists: you can actually eat more than one serving of low-carb vegetables!
I am doing BFL now, and I do LOVE it (already seeing results and feeling better). But the meal plan listed above is NOT BFL. You pick ONE protein, ONE carb, and ONE vegetable for two meals, and ONE protein and ONE carb for the rest. No mayo or extra fats are recommended. The meal plan above is just so far off base, it’s not even recognizable as Body For Life. Where did they get it?
I followed this program in the lead up to my 40th birthday and I lost 20 pounds, but more important, I looked as strong and as fit as a 20 year old. I got CARDED at the bar in Vegas when we went to celebrate (I chose my birthday as my free day!). The free day makes the rest of the week so easy to do. I could sit at Friday’s with my kids and husband while they chowed and say “on my free day, I am going to have a pile of that!” and be perfectly satisfied. Turns out, you really can’t do that much damage on free day, because you get full FAST! I highly recommend this and am, in fact, starting my next 12 week challenge on Sunday (I like a Saturday free day over the recommended Sunday free day, just a personal preference). Good luck!!!
My wife and I did this program 10 years ago with amazing results. I lost 32lbs of fat, and gained 8lbs of muscle. We both felt great,and got in the best shape of our lives. I still use the basics of the plan today @ 50yrs old, and have a 6 pack to show for it. I believe it to be the best common sense fitness plan, and plan to follow its guidelines FOR-LIFE!
read body for life.looking for tips or suggestions on healthier eating.
My caretaker and I are on the eating for life diet program and we were talking about what liquids we can drink, as she said it didn’t say anything in the book about that except for the nutriontion shakes. So are we allowed to drink coffee, or iced tea, or crystal light,and what about water????
Body for life WORKS!!!
If you enjoy eating different foods, the program is even more enjoyable. When I started, the exciting part was doing groceries! I’ve been on it for the past 8 years. I don’t follow it strictly anymore but I’ve maintained its principles and therefore the same level of fitness and weight in all this time (and have had a baby too). Remember that food contributes a larger percentage in maintaining a good body, than exercise alone.
i have done body for life and it really works! i am trying to get motivated to get back into it after having 2 kids and being out of shape– you do have to have dicipline but it works!
One more comment: You need to be in a state of mind where you can discipline yourself to eat several small meals a day. As for many people obesity is connected to psychological difficulties or trauma that lead them to self-medicate with food, this part of the program needs to be approached with caution. However, even if you are not able to adhere completely to the diet at first, learning to do the exercise program will bring results, and this will help motivate you to follow that diet more faithfully.
The first time I tried this I couldn’t follow the diet better than about 75%, still I lost 15 pounds in the first two weeks. This is a superb program for those of us who have never done any weight training, the benefits of which become apparent very rapidly. It’s not a program for seasoned bodybuilders, but for people who want to make a change from an unhealthy lifestyle.
This diet really transformed my body for the better. However, looking back, I wouldn’t drink the protein shakes. Anything like that, or that you buy at GNC is just a glass-full of chemicals. Stick to whole foods.
Hi, I have just started the 12 week program and so far so good. Coming from South Africa not all of our food is the same as yours. I would like to know if there is a list of foods I get get over here to follow.
i need a 6 meal a day recipe
If you do not work out as hard as they want you too in the book will you still lose weight?
I HAVEN’T BEEN ON BUT A WEEK AND ALREADY I HAVE LOST 10LBS, AND STARTING OUT AT 5’2 AND 290, IAM LOOKING FORWARD AT WHAT THE FUTURE IS…
This diet is great! I use it a few years ago and had great results and gained confidence and a love for exercising. I went from 187 to 145 and was incredibly fit, I even had a six pack!! The only problem was that I enjoyed exercising so much that I became a little obsessed with it and all of the benefits with this program stopped and I was unable to lose more and that made me quit altogether. If you follow his plan you only exercise about 45 minutes a day and that is ALL YOU NEED! The food is great because its not processed, you can get creative with it and you start to enjoy whole grains and lean meats as well as veggies, and even crave them! Another good note is that you get a free day once a week.
I am on my 11th week and have never felt so amazing in my whole entire life. At 5ft 9in I was 148 to start and am now 140 and am developing a 6 pack abs for the first time ever. People tell me I look elegant, slender and graceful and can now actually do press ups. My clothes are all hanging off me, and I don’t feel guilty when I eat now like before – always, no matter whether it was healthy or not. Plus I know I am getting the optimum nutritional balance of everything without having to work it all out. On cheat days, I really cheat – I look forward to hand made chocolate truffles all week and know it’s allowed… but back on the plan, I know, with confidence, that what I am eating will contribute to my healthier and sexier body! I get up at 5am everyday with my boyfriend and we do the body for life together – then we sit and eat at the dinner table three times a day and have stability, know exactly where the next meal is coming from and look forward to our lives together as people in control of our bodies! Please give it a go…
pessoal.gostaria de saber se alguem pode me falar se da pra ficar com 8% de gordura utilizando o programa body for life.thank you
Did you click on the links to shopzilla? You should be able to order it from a supplier there.
hey i was wondering where can you buy the vanilla protein powder? please e-mail me back and tell me.
thankyou very much
Neva McGregor
I totally agree! I have lost 38 pounds on this diet. It is great. After awhile you get a little tired of the food like always, but it is well worth it…
I loved this program! It made me feel so good and healthy. It took planning since there were 5 – 6 meals per day but well worth the effort. I received compliments from both men and women because I looked so fit (not skinny). The greatest part was having 1 “cheat” day a week. However, you must stay strict on the other 6 days or it doesn’t work. There is also a book called Eating for Life filled with great recipes.
This is the only thing out there that will actually work if you are trying to lose weight. I was a depressed, tired mom that was 5’1″ and weighing in at 170lbs. I was squeezing into size 14′s and completely mortified when one of my husbands employees asked who was the woman in our wedding picture! It was me before 3 kids destroyed my body….I read body for life and followed the food plan, which is not a diet, i ate more that I ever did. I also used weights in my home and walked a trail with my double stroller everyday, Only 4 months later I weighed in at 115 lbs and was wearing a size 5. I am now 107lbs and I wear a size 1. This book is well worth it. I look better now than I did before I had my kids. SOOOOO Worth It.
THIS WORKS!This is the most well balanced and logical lifestyle change (because it needs to be more than a diet to work). It will change your body. But more important is how you exercise with this eating. It is amazing, the results. Not a fast, but amazing transformation program. I highly recommend it.