How Did Rob Gronkowski Lose Weight? His Approach Explained.

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Rob Gronkowski did an impressive job losing weight, so much so that we decided to explore the method/plan he used. And that is what we’ll be going over today.

Here you have a guy that is huge and is faced with serious health problems without making some major changes and changes he did make!

Let’s get started and see what this is all about!

On March 29th, 2019, Rob Gronkowski tweeted that he was done playing football and would be retiring from the New England Patriots, a team he had played for his whole career after being drafted by them with the teams 42nd pick of the 2010 NFL draft.

He is a champion three times over in the Superbowl and has been to five pro bowls as a tight end.

To say he was the best at what he did would not be an exaggeration by any means as The Gronk (his nickname) was a very driven football player.

Well, this has bled over into his after football life as he has done some amazing things since his retirement as far as weight loss and making the transition from full-time football player to full-time retirement from the game.

Major Changes

The Gronk of old was at a playing weight of roughly 270 pounds and easy one of it not the most dominant tight end in football sand his lifestyle was a bit on the fun side as he would revel at hosting booze cruises and the likes but that has all changed since his retirement.

Rob has dropped down to a slim looking 245 pounds and is shedding what he calls the “crap weight” he needed to carry when being an active football player.

He is now starting to look ripped and his entire career he always wondered why even though he was exercising and working out daily he never had that ripped look.

Well, he does now and how he did it is a classic story!

After the Superbowl win…

When Rob woke up after his last Superbowl win he was in severe pain to the point of tears and he just could not take any more abuse that the game of football delivered on a daily basis.

He was swollen and in so much pain it took over 3 weeks to be able to walk any distances at all and he could not do any workouts at all and so in March of this year, he decided it was time to give up the game he loved so much.

The Change

He realized that in order to slim down and get the results he was really looking for with his workouts, that ripped look, he would need a complete lifestyle change starting with the foods he was eating.

When playing football, he needed carbs, carbs and more carbs to maintain his weight and strength, but without all that physical activity he would need to start eating differently.

Gone would be all of the cheeseburgers, rich foods, and fatty foods. No more subs and extra sauce laden plates of pasta.

He was quoted as saying that one of the hardest dishes to give up was his favorite, Chicken Parmesan.

He soon found himself experimenting with fasting and hitting the organic foods heavily. He used shakes and cut out sugars unless they were organic cane sugar, and he was heavy on eating plant-based foods.

He ended up using bits and pieces of several diets including the Atkins, The Keto, and the 16/8 fasting diet to name a few. Some of the other more popular diets that would do what Rob was out to accomplish are The South Beach and The Paleo, along with the Noom diet.

While there were different plans involved, when you look at the core of each plan, they have a lot of similarities.

This was an excellent start to dropping and keeping off the extra playing weight he was carrying when he started this adventure but this was only half of what he was looking for, he also wanted to be working out the right way to get that ripped look that he could not obtain training for football.

He went back to the basics and started more light lifts and balancing exercises which include medicine balls and core exercises.

Now will all football players take this route when they leave the game, probably not, but a good many of them are thinking differently about their health than they did in the past.

Former Colts quarterback Andrew Luck is a perfect example of someone leaving the game in their prime siting future health issues they would love to avoid!

Our view

Here is a guy who made a living out of being big and being the best at what he did and this took mega work and mega discipline along with eating the not so healthy foods required to maintain his weight and strength, but when the time came to make the change he did exactly that.

He went on low carb high protein plant-based organic foods and adjusted his daily workouts to reflect his lifestyle change and the results are one very ripped looking body that is in excellent shape.

We should all use Rob as an example of how to make the lifestyle change and start eating healthy and being a more rounded person.

In closing, while The Gronk does not rule out a return to football anytime soon if ever, and if he does go back he does realize he would have to go back to his old way of eating to bulk back up, he now knows what it will take to take it back off!

He is enjoying his newfound ripped look and is feeling better than he has in years and he can thank a good diet and workout program for these results and his approach will work for anyone who is really serious about a lifestyle change, and that is really what it boils down to, changing your lifestyle!

We give The Gronk two big thumbs up and wish him nothing but sweet success in his future endeavors!

We hope you enjoyed our article on The Gronk and hopefully, we can use his story as inspiration for our own healthy lifestyle changes!

The Difference Between Low Carb Dieting And Keto Dieting.

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Today’s article will be taking a look at the difference between low carb dieting and keto dieting.

With so many different kinds of diets on the market, it can get very confusing trying to find out what works for you and we hope doing a comparison between low carb and keto dieting will help you understand each process and how they work.

Many people are of the understanding that low carb is just that, low carb and diets like Atkins, Keto, and the likes are all pretty much the same but the opposite could not be truer so let’s take a look at the differences between low carb and the keto diet but before we do that let us get a good reliable definition of what a low carb diet is.

What is a low carb diet?

We researched the mayo clinics information for their definition of a low carb diet and we found a good definition of the low carb diet.

According to Mayo, a low carb diet reduces the intake of carbohydrates and increases the intake of foods that are high in fats and proteins.

Each individual diet has its own guidelines in what carbs and fats are allowed and how much of these you can eat but they all follow the same principals.

These diets are used for weight loss but other health benefits come along with them including lower sugar levels and better heart health.

You can expect to lose weight using these diets and sometimes rather quickly depending on how determined you are in your dieting.

The fewer carbs mean the faster you will lose weight and with less hunger pains as carbs will make you feel hungry all the time and really do the opposite of what you are trying to accomplish as they will always be burned first instead of fat, thus eliminating them starts the fat burning process which is where you want to be.

A very well rounded low barb, high fat and protein program will have a selection of foods that include:

  • Meat
  • Poultry
  • Eggs
  • Fish
  • Nonstarchy vegetables
  • Whole grains (unprocessed)
  • Nuts
  • Milk
  • Seeds
  • Poultry
  • Fruits

You can expect to lose weight and depending on how many carbs you actually cut out of your daily intake will determine how fast this process will take to reach your target weight.

The fewer carbs you eat the more your body will convert from burning carbs for energy and staring the unused carbs as fat to burning fat directly, which is what you are trying to accomplish with this type of program.

Many people also see health benefits from this type of program including diabetes, lower sugar levels, high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, blood cholesterol and improved levels of HDL.

As with any lifestyle change, there are some temporary body reactions that could be uncomfortable including skin rash, bad breath, rashes, muscle cramps, headaches, weakness, diarrhea, and constipation but these symptoms usually clear up in a couple of weeks.

It is also recommended to be on a vitamin program along with this diet to be sure you are replacing the vitamins taken away by reducing carb intake.

Doctors do not recommend this type of program for children or high school students as they need the carbs for growing bodies and minds.

So there you have what a basic low carb high fat and protein diet consists of and what to expect from it so now let’s take a look at how this compares to a true Keto diet.

Keto and Ketosis…

In order for us to understand what a Keto diet is and how it works, we must first understand what the process of Ketosis is and how it affects our bodies.

The simple definition of Ketosis is when the body does not have enough glucose to burn for energy, it will then put the body into a state called Ketosis where the body will start burning stored fat for energy instead of the glucose produced by the carb intake.

This process works and it works well and it can be a fairly quick way fo obtaining weight loss that happens without hunger pains. In order for us to achieve this state in the body, you must eliminate pretty much all carb intake.

Remember what we learned above, carbs make you hungry and dropping carbs will drop your hunger pains, so this makes the Keto diet a very tempting way to achieve your target weight rather quickly.

This process of Ketosis is hard to maintain for many and it does come along with a few risks that need to be mentioned.

Constipation can occur from the lack of fibers allowed and the high-fat aspect of this program does come with elevated saturated fats, which can be a bit hard on your heart.

Another concern is the lack of vitamins normally received from carbohydrates but if a person uses this state to quickly get to their desired weight and then switches over to a more suitable low carb program for maintenance all should be fine.

Our take on The differences between these programs…

We feel that both work well and are great ways to change your lifestyle, become more healthy and reach your targeted weight you are trying to get to.

We give both of these a big thumbs up and recommend either one to anyone needing to improve their health and lose weight.

We feel both of these are great choices and the only real difference is the quickness of the process and the number of carbs each one allows and this leaves it up to the person deciding which way to go.

Giving up large amounts of carbs is always the stumbling block and some people have a much easier time with this process than others so it depends on your commitment level.

We hope this article has helped you understand the similarities and the difference in low carb dieting and Keto dieting and we hope it helps get you where you want to be in both your health and your weight!

Happy dieting!

Keto Diet vs Atkins Diet. Which Plan is Safer? Differences Explained.

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Today’s article will look at the Keto diet vs Atkins diet. Which is better and safer? We shall do our best in comparing these two diets and trey to answer that question to the best of our ability.

These are two of the most popular diets on the market today and we were very curious not only how they stacked up against each other but if one was safer than the other. We recently wrote up an article on the keto diet here, and explain it well, but today, we’ll compare it to a seemingly similar plan: The Atkins diet.

So, in this article, we will look at what each diet is, how they compare to each other and the safety of both.

What is the Keto diet?

This diet is designed as high fat, low carb, and we mean very low carb. This diet is based on the Atkins diet.

When you eliminate carbs and replace them with good fat you create a metabolic state in the body called ketosis.

Once your body reaches the state of ketosis it becomes incredibly efficient at burning fat and using that fat for energy.

It also turns fat into ketones in your liver and this is what is called brain food as it supplies energy directly to the brain!

Another wonderful health benefit from this diet is lowered insulin and blood sugar levels, which can create great results in combating type 2 diabetes.

Four basic choices with this diet

  • SKD or STandard Keto Diet
  • CDK or Cyclical Keto Diet:
  • TKD or Targeted keto Diet
  • High Protein Keto Diet

While the choices are awesome only the standard and high protein diets are commonly used by most people and they have had extensive research with interesting results. The others are used basically by athletes and bodybuilders.

Health benefits of the Keto diet

Studies have proved that you will lose weight more quickly with fewer health risks than the low carb programs on the market today, and not only will your health risks be lower, you will see improvements in your health as doctors are now using this diet to treat:

Heart disease, Alzheimer’s disease, epilepsy, cancer, brain injuries, Parkinson’s disease, polycystic ovary syndrome, and even acne!

Losing weight on the Keto diet

Numerous studies have concluded that with this program you can lose up to 3 time the amount of weight in the same time period as other low carb programs and 2,2 times the amount of low-calorie diets without any calorie counting or food tracking.

There are also health benefits that include lowered sugar levels, increased Keytone levels and even improved insulin sensitivity.

Summary

This program surely has many benefits and though numerous studies have proven it is not only low-risk health-wise it will improve your overall health and is the choice of many doctors for numerous health issues!

Now let’s take a look at the Atkins Diet and then we will conclude by seeing how they compare!

What is the Atkins Diet

Doctor Robert C. Atkins created this diet and wrote a book introducing it to the world in 1972.

It is a low carb high-fat diet that lets you eat just about anything that falls into those categories and when first introduced it was deemed unhealthy due to the intake of high fat to lose weight.

After more than 20 controlled studies involving low carb high-fat programs, it is now considered if not the best way to lose and maintain weight loss it surely is at the top of the list.

While most people will not see any raised levels of bad LDL there are some people who will be affected by this so it is wise with any weight loss program to monitor your results.

How Atkins works

This is broken into 4 different phases

  • Phase One: this is limited to 20 carbs a day and is what they call the kick start and consists of low carb veggies and high protein meats
  • Phase Two: This phase slowly introduces some fruits and nuts and more low carb veggies.
  • Phase Three: You can now see the results you are looking for and as you approach your target weight you can add more carbs until you level out.
  • Phase Four: Here you can eat pretty much anything as long as you monitor your weight and if you start to put it back on you can go back to previous phases for maintenance.

Many people have modified this with great results as it can get pretty complicated keeping track of all the different phases.

Others stay in phase one indefinitely and this is called the Keto Diet.

Foods To Eat

Healthy fats such as avocados, coconut oil, extra virgin olive oil. Low carb veggies such as broccoli, spinach, asparagus and Kale

Meats such as pork, beef, chicken, bacon, and lamb. Eggs, nuts, and seeds, salmon, sardines, and trout are also recommended.

Food to avoid

As with any program, the really good tasting things that got us where we are today are not going to be allowed on these programs such as sugars, vegetable oils, diet, and low-fat foods.

Also not allowed are high carb fruits and vegetables, starches, trans fats, and grains.

As you can see with this diet many different foods are allowed and that is a good thing in our book but there are also many things we are used to eating that just are not allowed and it can get confusing at first.

Summary

This program does work, it backed by many different studies, and has a proven track record and is a great way to both lose and maintain weight loss in a healthy way that also benefits your health with most of the same claims as to the Keto diet.

Our Take

Both The Keto and the Atkins diets are healthy ways to lose and maintain weight loss and it is hard to say which one is better.

breaking it down it all depends on how much work you want to put in and how much food you want to give up.

The food choices are much wider with the Atkins but the health claims are better with the Keo and we are going to leave the final decision in your hands by giving both of these programs a huge thumbs up!

Thanks for checking out our article and happy dieting!

Is The Keto Diet Safe For You? Let’s Find Out.

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We will be exploring the question is the keto diet safe in this article. This is a big question that many experts have brought forward simply because of the low carb high-fat requirements.

In the past high fat intake was considered a great way to an early heart attack but as more and more studies have been completed this thinking has changed and it pays to take a goods look into this if you are thinking of starting a Keto Diet.

Ketosis is a process that must be understood to make any kind of decision on weather it will be good or bad for a person so let’s take a look at this process.

What is Ketosis.

ketosis is a process of breaking down fat and turning it into energy. In a normal diet, the body will break down carbohydrates such as pasta, grains, starch, fruits, and vegetables into glucose which the body then burns for energy.

When the body has too many carbs to burn as energy it turns into fat and is stored.

This process can happen due to many different reasons, for example:

  • Age: As the body ages it tends to burn calories much slower than in younger years.
  • Lifestyles: As we become less active and more sedimentary we will require fewer carbs to burn for energy
  • Overeating: With today’s choices of so many carb-filled foods that taste awesome we tend to overeat and thus we have excess fat build-up.

By putting the body in Ketoses you will then be burning fat as energy instead of carbohydrates, thus your body starts burning fat and you can then use this process to lose weight.

This process is achieved by removing virtually all carbs thus driving the body into Ketosis. By doing this we accelerate the fat burning process and weight loss then begins.

Now that we understand how ketosis works let’s take a look at the effects this can have on the body.

What to expect from a diet using Ketosis

If a person is thinking about starting this or any other weight loss program it pays to enter with as much knowledge as possible.

There have been many studies involving this diet and the finding are interesting.

The best way to figure out if this diet is safe is to look at what these studies have determined so let’s take a look.

Increased Energy

The first thing that happens when going on this program is what is called “The keto flu” In other words the body feels off and sluggish and your energy levels will be low as you adjust to Ketosis.

This usually lasts for anywhere from one to two weeks as the body adjusts then the process is reversed.

Energy levels not only increase but people experience even higher energy levels than before they started this program and their energy level will be steady and consistent because you will not be experiencing sugar highs or sugar crashes.

Bad breath

Elevated Keytones in the body tend to create what is called “acetone breath” This is a fruity-smelling breath that can not be taken care of by brushing alone.

Many people have found they like the smell and those who do not have used sugar-free gum. This is only a temporary situation that lasts around a couple of weeks.

High Keytone blood levels

These levels are nothing to worry about in themselves but when these levels are elevated they tend to lower blood sugar levels and this will need to be monitored if dealing with diabetes or pre-diabetes. it would be wise to work with your doctor if this describes your situation.

Increased ability to stay focused

Many people have reported that once they get through the first two weeks of this program they start experiencing the ability to focus much better than previously.

Doctors are prescribing this diet to people who are dealing with dementia and Alzheimer’s diseases and studies are ongoing as to the long term effects might be obtained. Stay tuned on this.

A decrease in exercise stamina

The first few weeks the body changes and as ketosis starts happening the body loses glycogen stores in our muscles. People see a slow down in their ability to maintain there pre-diet levels of exercise but this is only temporary.

Something worth noting is many athletes find after going on the Keto diet they have better results with this than preloading carbs before a performance.

Changes can cause digestive issues

People have reported diarrhea and constipation the first few weeks after switching to low carb high-fat foods and this makes sense as the body needs time to change from one type of nutrient like carbs to another like high fat.

This will pass and is only temporary.

Reduction in appetite

This is a major selling point in this diet as studies claim that not only do Keytones reduce the appetite, the lack of carbs plays the same roll so you get a double whammy and we all know less appetite means less intake of food which of course means weight loss!

People have reported experiencing insomnia

Just like many of the other symptoms when starting this diet this will be temporary and usually clears up within two to three weeks.

melatonin can help but it is advised to consult your doctor before treating this symptom as it is natural for the body to become restless as these changes occur.

Our View

After reviewing medical studies and weighing the good versus the bad when using this program we have to give this one a huge thumbs up.

While there are some things to be concerned about especially if you are dealing with disease, the general results point to this diet not only being safe to use but the health benefits are huge!

As always what works for one person may not work for another when dealing with health issues, but the overall consensus is this diet works and is good for you.

Thanks for checking out our article and happy dieting!

My own personal experience with keto dieting explained.

I didn’t exactly try the most traditional way of doing the keto diet, but in my case, what I did was, I cut sugar consumption and made sure to go to sleep hungry.

I also increase the amount of healthy fats I ate. This combination of ways of losing weight did trigger my body at times to enter a ketogenic state and this did indeed help me lose weight. Although in my personal experience, having a cheat day is important because for me personally, maintaining a ketogenic lifestyle was extremely difficult.

Grain Brain Review. Lose Weight by Nourishing The Mind?

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grain brain review

I read Grain Brain and in this review, I’m going to explain exactly what it teaches about grains and what to eat if you want to improve health.

Grain Brain is not just another diet plan which demonizes wheat and grains as being harmful and eliminating them to lose weight, but it also gives a lot of science to suggest that when you correctly feed the mind with proper foods, you will improve mental health and at the same time burn calories and this review will explain which foods you need to eat and avoid.

Why this plan focuses on the mind more than on weight loss:

The biggest goal in the book is to help readers see how important it is to take care of your brain health because it is the tool which can lead to a longer life.

David Pulmutter, the author makes a very strong case for this by explaining how most people do not even think about their mind as being something they need to take care of.

Their bodies yes, but he mentions that the mind is one of the most important organs to help flourish because many problems such as obesity, heart disease also greatly increase chances of deadly, deteriorating diseases like Alzheimer’s and other neurological disorders which usually strike elderly people.

But what about weight loss? Here’s how Grain Brain helps achieve that…

If you can properly take care of your mind, you won’t just reduce the risk for having neurological problems, but because they are connected with general problems such as being overweight, you will also be able to treat that.

In this diet plan, the same foods and lifestyle changes that are suggested feed the brain and also help get rid of fat. However, I never saw any average results listed however, you can lose a lot of weight by following this plan.

How does the Grain Brain diet specifically work?

If any food, drink or lifestyle you have harms the brain, you need to eliminate that from your life right away. They may be causing your brain to become damaged which can cause headaches and if not handled, more major problems.

And the same things that damage the brain also damage the body, making it more fat and unhealthy. So obviously treating the brain also treats the body.

The diet approach is eating high fat, VERY low carb foods but that comes from putting a few other diet plans together:

Paleo. This plan is very close to a paleo style in that you eat a lot of vegetables and proteins from eggs. However, where paleo would endorse eating any kinds of fruits, Grain Brain does not allow for a lot of them because they can contain a lot of carbs.

Carbs and grains are basically the enemy of brain health if you consume too many of them.

In the book, David points to the paleolithic age people and shows a picture where most of their diet was eating fat and some protein, while the least was carbs since it was difficult to find. 

He also showed a picture of people today whose diet is very different from that and their main consumption is carbs. He draws the connection that because we eat so many carbs, that this has led to increases in weight and diseases.

Eat Fat!?

High fat doesn’t mean saturated fats. There are very healthy fats which do not ironically make you gain weight and you will get a list of them. Another diet (2 Week Diet) also proves you can lose weight doing this. And another GREAT book on fat eating is Eat Fat, Get Thin.

Gluten free. There are a lot foods that contain wheat and grain and many of them also have gluten, which David Pulmutter is also a major enemy of having a healthy mind.

There are a lot of stories David talks about where he helped patients (A child, middle aged people and elderly peopl) get rid of huge issues like ADHD, insomnia, ED, irritability, headaches, and more by just making these people change their diet. The diet helped get rid of the problems.

He often mentions the term “gluten sensitivity” which he recommends people get a test for if they have a number of symptoms which the book will list. If you have those symptoms, you may have sensitivity to gluten in which case you need to eat foods free of that ingredient (gluten free diet).

Ketogenic diet. David recommends calorie restriction and sometimes fasting as a means to help the body get into a ketogenic state where it will burn fat that will help brain health improve.

David makes cholesterol sound like a good thing!

Throughout the book, the theory of cholesterol being a horrible thing and it leading to blood clots and heart diseases is shut down by David. He says that a quarter of all cholesterol in the body is taken by the brain so cholesterol is important to consume if you’re going to have a healthy mind.

And the theory that it leads to diseases is actually refuted and he says that other things people do such as smoking, drinking, eating unhealthy carbs and inflammation in the body is what can lead to those things, not cholesterol.

He does talk about LDL and HDL but really says that eating fat such as from eggs is very important.

I have also been eating much less grains (no cereals, no bread). The only wheat I eat is organic wheat seeds but I do believe eating less grains makes you healthier.

The 30 day plan (called the 4 week plan):

Week 1: You stop eating any non approved grains/wheat and start eating a lot of foods with fat, protein and vegetables. You are allowed to only have up to 40 grams of carbs a day. 

Supplements are also recommended included DHA which is omega 3. You can get them as pills, but you can also get them from fish. 

Week 2: David recommends you have some kind of exercise routine where you work out the majority of the week. Even walking is good for brain health.

Week 3: You have to set a sleeping pattern which you follow all the time and get 7-8 hours at least. A good sleep is also very important for the health of the mind.

Week 4: Everything you did for the 3 weeks are now added together and week 4 basically is a sample of the way you should live life after you end this week. Every week before added to the previous one and this one connects everything.

Also there is a preparation before you start your plan where you are recommended to get a blood test and compare it after you finish the 4 weeks.

A sample of the food list you get with Grain Brain:

Foods and oils with fats you can eat: Sesame oil, coconut oil and coconut, avocado, flax seed, chia seeds.

Proteins: Poultry, eggs, oysters, sardines, clams, salmon, shrimp.

Fruits (Low sugar only): lemons, eggplant, avocado. You can eat berries, but a sample menu recommends a small portion a day.

Vegetables: Kale, garlic, spinach, ginger, bok choy, mushrooms.

The sample menu in the book recommends eating 4 times a day. There was no number of calories allowed, but the sample look like it was under 2,000 calories a day. I think anyone who does this diet should follow the rules, but not torture themselves by being very restrictive. Eat based on BMR.

In addition to this sample, there are many also recipes. 

Grain Brain diet score:

grainbrainscore

3 stars out of 5.

Great plan for the brain and health! 

Conclusions on the Grain Brain:

The Grain Brain is a plan that may suit 40 and above people better than it does younger people. If you are elderly or if you have ANY sensitivity to gluten and/or neurological problems, the Grain Brain may be exactly the best diet plan for you. I think this book and it’s recommendations are perfect for elderly people. 

If you’re young and just want to diet, this plan may be too radical and you should try the 3 week plan, a different diet that is excellent for weight loss and flexibility in eating, but you should also try to completely eliminate most grains out of your diet, even whole grains.