Read The Hungry Girl Diet: Big Portions. Big Results. Drop 10 Pounds in 4 Weeks Online
Authors: Lisa Lillien
The Hungry Girl Diet: Big Portions. Big Results. Drop 10 Pounds in 4 Weeks (4 page)
DINNER
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
HG-ified Fish or Chicken with Hot Veggies and Salad
*
Chicken Hungry Girlfredo Bowl
SNACKS
Choose any THREE snacks from the following:
Have each with 8 ounces room-temp or cold water.
HG Reminder: Don’t forget to have two additional 8-ounce glasses of water throughout the day!
Measure Up!
It’s very important to weigh and measure your ingredients. Weight loss is largely based on calories in versus calories out. And if you’re not properly weighing and measuring your food, you could be taking in more calories than you think.
Need-to-Know Info: Mega Meal Mania!
This plan includes HUGE and filling meals, super-sized with lots of vegetables. If you feel full before finishing a meal, save the rest for later in the day. It’ll be there if you get hungry and keep you from turning to unplanned snacks. You can even split a meal into two mini meals. I do, however, encourage you to eat all of each day’s food at some point during that day.
Food Cues: Breakfast Edition
Pay attention to how satisfied you feel after having each of the different breakfasts this week. Everyone reacts differently to food. Do you feel full for a long time after eating one breakfast but get hungry quickly after eating another? Jot down these discoveries, and then make morning meal choices based on that valuable info.
* WEEK 1 *
DAY 2
BREAKFAST
8 ounces hot, room-temp, or cold water
Choose one of the following:
LUNCH
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
Ginormous Salad with Chicken, Turkey, or Tuna
*
Super-Sized Sandwich Platter with Tuna, Turkey, or Chicken
*
Veggie ’n Bean Bowl with Side of Greek Yogurt
DINNER
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
HG-ified Fish or Chicken with Hot Veggies and Salad
*
Chicken Hungry Girlfredo Bowl
SNACKS
Choose any THREE snacks from the following:
Have each with 8 ounces room-temp or cold water.
HG FYI: That Girlfredo Bowl can be made with tofu shirataki noodles OR bagged broccoli cole slaw. Try both, and see which you like more!
Quick Tricks for Dining-Out Success
While preparing your own food is the best way to guarantee weight loss on this plan, dining out is a part of life, and you’re going to do it once in a while. Use this week to really memorize what common portions on the plan look like. This way, you’ll be able to enjoy diet-friendly meals while you’re out.
Check restaurant websites before you go. Then decide what you’re going to have ahead of time. That way you’ll avoid making on-the-spot selections when you’re already there and hungry. So simple, and REALLY smart!
For a full-on guide to dining out on The Hungry Girl Diet plan, click
here
!
Need-to-Know Info: Eat
Everything
on the Plan
The diet is specially balanced to keep you fully nourished and satisfied, so everything counts: veggies, protein, fruit, healthy fats like nuts and olive oil … All important. Follow the meals closely, and don’t leave anything out. Remember, you can always save leftovers for later in the day.
Wondering About Workouts?
Exercising—even a little bit—can really speed up your weight loss. Check out the
exercise guide
for ideas and motivation!
* WEEK 1 *
DAY 3
BREAKFAST
8 ounces hot, room-temp, or cold water
Choose one of the following:
LUNCH
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
Ginormous Salad with Chicken, Turkey, or Tuna
*
Super-Sized Sandwich Platter with Tuna, Turkey, or Chicken
*
Veggie ’n Bean Bowl with Side of Greek Yogurt
DINNER
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
HG-ified Fish or Chicken with Hot Veggies and Salad
*
Chicken Hungry Girlfredo Bowl
SNACKS
Choose any THREE snacks from the following:
Have each with 8 ounces room-temp or cold water.
Time-Saving Shortcuts!
If a meal calls for high-fiber vegetables …
Look for frozen and canned varieties—no cutting or cooking needed! Check the labels to make sure no other ingredients have been added. (Look for salt-free varieties.) If frozen, thaw overnight in the fridge or just pop them in the microwave.
Canned high-fiber veggies: tomatoes, green beans, carrots
Frozen high-fiber veggies (individual or mixed): bell peppers, onions, green beans, sugar snap peas, snow peas, bean sprouts, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, carrots
Packaged finds! Bagged broccoli cole slaw, which is mainly shredded broccoli stems and carrots. You can also often find fresh stir-fry mixes of onions and bell peppers.
If a meal calls for high-volume veggies …
You can go with frozen or canned versions here as well. Again, check the ingredients to make sure nothing’s been added. (No-salt options are best.) Thaw or nuke the frozen veggies, and they’ll be ready to use.
Canned high-volume veggies: mushrooms, asparagus
Frozen high-volume veggies (individual or mixed): mushrooms, zucchini, yellow squash, asparagus, cauliflower, kale
Packaged finds! Bagged cole slaw mix, a.k.a. shredded cabbage. Also common? Bags of ready-to-use chopped kale and spinach. Yum!
If a meal calls for raw chicken …
Buy precooked kinds—the less sodium the better. Look for fresh or frozen strips, cutlets, and chopped chicken. Or cook up a bunch of chicken in advance (see
here
), and use it for days. Here’s a handy conversion chart …
If it calls for … | | Use this … |
4 ounces raw | | 3 ounces cooked |
6 ounces raw | | 5 ounces cooked |
* WEEK 1 *
DAY 4
BREAKFAST
8 ounces hot, room-temp, or cold water
Choose one of the following:
LUNCH
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
Ginormous Salad with Chicken, Turkey, or Tuna
*
Super-Sized Sandwich Platter with Tuna, Turkey, or Chicken
*
Veggie ’n Bean Bowl with Side of Greek Yogurt
DINNER
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
HG-ified Fish or Chicken with Hot Veggies and Salad
*
Chicken Hungry Girlfredo Bowl
SNACKS
Choose any THREE snacks from the following:
Have each with 8 ounces room-temp or cold water.
More Time-Saving Shortcuts!
If a meal calls for chopped romaine or iceberg lettuce …
Use a bagged salad mix of pre-chopped greens. Extra veggies like carrots are perfectly fine, but make sure there are no fancy extras, like nuts or tortilla strips. If you’re really in a hurry, hit a supermarket salad bar to assemble all the veggies for your salad!
If a meal calls for hard-boiled egg whites …
Make a whole batch of eggs at once, so you’ll be able to just grab what you need when you need it. See
here
for specific tips.
Or scramble them up instead. A serving of two large egg whites is equal to ¼ cup egg whites or fat-free liquid egg substitute. In a microwave-safe mug sprayed with nonstick spray, microwave egg whites/substitute for 1 minute. Stir and microwave for 30 seconds, or until set. Or just scramble in a skillet sprayed with nonstick spray. Season with spices like garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper.
Hot Tip! Snack Before Breakfast …
Don’t want a big meal first thing in the a.m.? Start your day with one of your snacks, like 100 calories’ worth of fruit or a light string cheese with ¼ ounce of nuts. Then enjoy your breakfast midmorning. This could help you feel fuller throughout the day, too. It’s what I typically do, and it works like a charm.
Food Cues: The Truth About Bread
I generally don’t eat a lot of bread, because bread (any kind!) is a trigger food for me—it makes me crave MORE starchy foods. If this isn’t the case for you, enjoy bread regularly while on the plan. Some people find a giant sandwich at lunch or a bun with butter at breakfast
very
satisfying. I bring this up in case you aren’t even aware that bread (and other starchy carbs) MIGHT make you hungrier. Now that you know, pay attention, and see how it affects you. Then make your food decisions accordingly.
* WEEK 1 *
DAY 5
BREAKFAST
8 ounces hot, room-temp, or cold water
Choose one of the following:
LUNCH
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
Ginormous Salad with Chicken, Turkey, or Tuna
*
Super-Sized Sandwich Platter with Tuna, Turkey, or Chicken
*
Veggie ’n Bean Bowl with Side of Greek Yogurt
DINNER
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
HG-ified Fish or Chicken with Hot Veggies and Salad
*
Chicken Hungry Girlfredo Bowl
SNACKS
Choose any THREE snacks from the following:
Have each with 8 ounces room-temp or cold water.
Extra, Extra! (Coffee Creamer, Ketchup & More)
You may be wondering how to factor in those little extras you just can’t live without: milk in your coffee, ketchup on your eggs, a few hard candies … whatever it may be. Here’s the deal. Since weight loss is all about calories in versus calories out, you can’t
not
count them. So if you know you’re going to have them, set a 50-calorie limit for the entire day. Then
halve
one of your three daily snacks. So instead of 2 cups halved strawberries for a snack, have 1 cup. Or instead of a whole 100-calorie bag of 94% fat-free microwave popcorn, have half a bag. And be extra-vigilant about measuring and counting those extras.
Lunch & Dinner Swap-a-rama!
Want to pack a Chicken Hungry Girlfredo Bowl to reheat on your lunch break and enjoy a Ginormous Salad for dinner? Feel like having HG-ified Chicken with Hot Veggies and Salad in the afternoon and then digging into a Super-Sized Sandwich Platter after work? Go for it! You can switch up lunch and dinner any day of the week.
Download The Hungry Girl Diet App to create custom shopping lists and track your food! Visit
hungry-girl.com/diet
for details.
* WEEK 1 *
DAY 6
BREAKFAST
8 ounces hot, room-temp, or cold water
Choose one of the following:
LUNCH
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following:
*
Ginormous Salad with Chicken, Turkey, or Tuna
*
Super-Sized Sandwich Platter with Tuna, Turkey, or Chicken
*
Veggie ’n Bean Bowl with Side of Greek Yogurt
DINNER
8 ounces room-temp or cold water
Choose one of the following: