The Sirt Diet Cookbook. Jacqueline Whitehart

my cravings for unhealthy food are at their highest. I get through them knowing that I can feed my cravings guilt-free with dark chocolate on other days.

      It is likely that you will need to keep track of your calories on a jump-start day, especially the first few times you do it. Although it is extremely important to eat plenty of SIRT foods, making sure you don’t exceed 800 calories on your jump-start days is the most sure-fire way to lose weight quickly. If you need to take in more SIRTs, try adding green tea, which is calorie free, or add red grapes or other berries, which come in at under 50 calories per portion.

      Jump-start breakfast suggestions include: SIRT fruits and yogurt, oat-based cereal + grapes and omelette with green vegetables. All breakfasts should include a cup of green tea.

      Jump-start lunch suggestions include: miso soup (either home-made or take-away), young kale salad with chicken or beans, savoy cabbage and bacon soup.

      A jump-start dinner should include: protein such as chicken, salmon or prawns, a good source of carbohydrates – think basmati rice, new potatoes in their skin – and plenty of leafy green vegetables and other healthy SIRTs.

      Example jump-start day

      As a rough guide, you should aim to consume up to 200 calories for breakfast, 200 for lunch and 400 for dinner.

      EXAMPLE JUMP-START DAY MENU

       Breakfast:

      200 calories • 3 portions of SIRTS

      Cup of green tea

      Fresh SIRT fruit or smoothie

       Mid-morning:

      Cup of green tea

       Lunch:

      200 calories • 3 portions of SIRTS

      Leafy green salad or miso soup

       Dinner:

      400 calories •3 portions of SIRTS

      Lean meat such as chicken or fish or tofu/beans

      A small portion of good carbs such as brown rice or new potatoes Plenty of green vegetables

       SIRT DIET DAYS

      1500 CALORIES PER DAY WITH SIRT FOODS

      Your primary concern on a ‘normal’ SIRT diet day is to make sure you get lots and lots of lovely SIRTs.

      By now you should know what to choose and what to expect. Add in a few red berries, have a delicious chocolate snack, enjoy a glass of red wine in the evening. Is this the perfect diet? I certainly think so.

      There are a few simple rules to follow:

      • Avoid empty calories from, for example, white bread, excessive carbs, sugary and refined treats.

      • Make sure you get a good balance of protein, carbohydrate and fat in every meal. The meal planners and recipes will help with this if needed.

      • Only have SIRT-rich snacks and get most of your energy requirements from your regular meals.

      WHAT ABOUT CALORIE COUNTING?

      This is up to you. The 1500 calories per day is a guideline daily amount for a woman. A man could eat up to 2000 calories per day and still see similar results. Likewise, if you are currently severely overweight you should cut back to 1800 calories (woman) or 2300 calories (man). Why? Because this calorie restriction will still result in steady and strong weight-loss and will be easier to follow. If a diet is too extreme for your body, then the likelihood of breaking the diet or falling off the wagon is much higher.

      If you can manage to accurately calorie count each day, then this is a very good way to follow the diet. It means you are most likely to follow the diet and not tip over into excessive calorie consumption. It’s not that hard to count your calories, particularly if you eat similar foods each day and/or use some of the recipes in the book (which are calorie counted per serving). You will quickly find that you know the calorie counts for all regular SIRT foods.

      Even if you don’t calorie count each day, then it’s a good idea to count calories for the first few days so you get a good idea of the amount you should be eating. Now I’m used to the diet, I genuinely find that as long as I resist stupid snacks and stick to three main meals, I easily stay under the target figure.

      One of the huge (and I mean huge) advantages of eating SIRT foods is that they indisputably curb your appetite, making it much easier to resist snacking between meals.

      THE DIET THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE TO FAIL …

      It’s true. You don’t ‘fail’ a diet day if you eat a few too many calories; just get straight back on track the next day. We all know that sometimes we find the cravings impossible to resist. I’m thinking impossible hormones or sharing a bottle of wine with a good friend. Don’t let it happen too often and you will be fine.

      By far the most important part of the SIRT Diet is eating SIRT foods. Not eaten enough SIRTs today? Then take a look at the list of SIRT boosters and add a few extras in. It’s better to have a few extra calories, if they are good SIRT-filled calories, than it is to end the day lacking in SIRTs.

      EXAMPLE SIRT DIET DAY

      As a rough guide, you should aim to consume up to 300 calories for breakfast, 400 for lunch and 500 for dinner. This leaves 300 calories for snacks, drinks and miscellaneous.

      EXAMPLE SIRT DIET DAY MENU

       Breakfast:

      300 calories • 3 portions of SIRTS

      Cup of green tea

      Fresh SIRT fruit or smoothie Healthy cereal or omelette

       Mid-morning:

      Cup of green tea

       Lunch:

      400 calories • 3 portions of SIRTS

      Salad or soup or lunchbox containing greens and other SIRT-rich vegetables, onions and olive oil

       Mid-afternoon:

      optional 100 calorie snack • 1 portion of SIRTS

      Dark chocolate or apple

       Dinner:

      500 calories • 3 portions of SIRTS

      Lean meat such as chicken or fish or tofu/beans

      Good carbs such as brown rice or new potatoes Plenty of green vegetables

       Evening:

      optional 100 calorie snack • 1 portion of SIRTS

      Small glass of red wine or red grapes or dark chocolate

       LIVING THE DIET

      The SIRT Diet is one of the easiest diets to follow. Adjust your mind-set to seek out and enjoy SIRT-rich foods, stock up on your favourites and you are ready to go. An awareness of the best foods to eat, portion size and a dash of willpower are all you need to start losing weight and feel revitalised.

      Jump-start days are great for dropping the pounds quickly, but if they don’t work for you then just follow the standard SIRT diet (1500 calories) days. You won’t lose weight quite as quickly, but you will still lose weight steadily and feel great too!

      CHANGE THREE THINGS

      The best advice I can give you is to change the way you approach food in just three different ways. By adjusting your mind-set and letting the extra SIRT foods curb your appetite,