While the 21 Day Fix Works very well and reviews from people who try it are generally good, I want to compare it to another plan that is similar to it but works twice as good, a plan known as the 2 week diet, which while being a week shorter (14 days) in length will give you the same or more weight loss results (just faster).
How is it that one weight loss plan can be shorter in length but work faster? I’ll explain exactly why.
First I will explain how the 21 Day Fix works so you know what to expect and then I will explain the 2 week diet, how that works and why it’s faster acting.
Contents
First, let me explain what the 21 day fix is:
Here’s how it works (3 parts):
Part 1) You eat 5 meals every day, 3 main ones and 2 snacks in between the main ones.
When it comes to the dieting part, you get containers which are colored and sized differently to represent different food groups you’ll be eating DAILY. This includes vegetables, proteins, carbs, healthy fats, ect…
There are 7 containers in total and before you start your day, everyday you plan your meals, prepare them, put them in each container accordingly and eat them throughout the day.
You eat things like shakes, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, basically healthy stuff.
Part 2) You also determine how many calories you will consume daily through a formula developed by this program.
Basically, it’s your weight (when you start out) times 11, then you add several hundred calories, then subtract from it to get your goal. In my case, weighing 175, and following this formula, I determined I needed to consume 1,575 calories daily to lose weight.
Now there are different formulas on this program and in the following case, that formula is for people who wish to lose weight. There is a calorie deficit you’ll be going through.
Part 3) Now each day you will also be completing one of six workouts that is provided by this program. The programs aren’t too difficult, there is some weight lifting involved and calisthenics exercises, stuff that burns fat basically.
Cost: About $50-$70 for the whole program (you get the containers, DVDs for the workouts and booklets to follow the plan and can choose to buy it in payments or for a 1 time charge).
Pros:
- This is a solid program for weight loss and getting into better shape.
- People do report good results with the plan, 5-10 pounds being the average.
- There’s good, healthy foods to choose from.
- The plan is doable for most people.
- You can adjust the amount you eat based on how much you weigh, meaning portions are flexible.
- There’s a 100+ foods to choose from (the approved 21 day fix list) so there is variety.
Cons:
- Honestly, the price is the only real con, the rest is pretty positive.
- If you seek faster results, keep reading, I’ve got a better plan to show you…
Now let me explain the diet that works 2x as fast: The 2 Week Diet:
In many ways, this plan is similar to the other one (there’s a big food list to choose from, you get an exercise plan too, and it’s fundamentally a solid plan too), but the biggest differences are:
-It’s cheaper in price (costs 2x LESS).
-Results are faster in the 2 weeks you do this plan. Average is about 6 to 12 pounds in 2 weeks. With the 21 Day Fix, you get around those results, but in 3 weeks, so it’s faster here.
-The way you eat on this plan is different (you mix up the eating habits every few days to keep your metabolism guessing and that speeds up results).
-You can actually eat more food in calories, but still lose more weight. For example, in my case, I could eat up to 2,000 calories a day, almost 500 more than on the 21 day fix and still lose a lot more weight.
-It’s less restrictive. The last 9 days, you eat WHATEVER you like. Even though it’s a form of “Cheating”, you will still lose weight during that time because of the way this plan works (read on).
Here’s how it works:
Part 1) For the first 5 days, it’s simple: You eat proteins and vegetables, drink a lot of water (tea and coffee is allowed) and this causes about 5 pounds of weight loss right there, something that the 21 day fix achieves in about 2-3 weeks. There is no calorie counting, but you are eating 4 meals a day (eat until you’re full).
Now proteins and vegetables sound boring, but there’s at least 30 different options to choose from. There is a lot of flexibility.
Part 2) Next is that you don’t eat for just 1 day. Now this is important because as you’re already losing weight, the body, just as it’s about to get used to your eating habits (which will cause it slow down metabolism) gets confused by this change and this makes it continue to burn more fat.
Part 3) For 2 days only, you diet via eating healthy fats. It’s about 1,500-2,000 calories each day, but this is another change up to your eating habits that tricks the body and helps it continue to burn fat and drop weight.
Part 4) And then there’s the last part I mentioned above where you eat whatever you like for 6 days straight. But the key to making these last 6 days work (in that you keep losing weight) is that you get a simple formula: Eat under your daily BMR, which is another term for eating less than you need a day.
If my BMR is 2,000 calories, and I eat 1,500 a day, I produce a 500 calorie deficit daily, and this will cause me to keep losing weight, in spite of eating anything I like.
So that’s pretty flexible and if you need to lose more, just eat less to make a bigger calorie deficit.
Pros:
- Extremely fast weight loss. 2x the speed of the 21 day fix.
- This plan also provides healthy foods and meals to help you get results.
- Very doable exercise plan.
- Flexible meal plans.
- The way it mixes up how you eat actually works in your favor by making you lose more weight as a result.
- General weight loss results are 6-12+ pounds in 2 weeks.
- 2x as cheap as the 21 day fix.
- A solid plan that attacks fat across the whole body. Expect to have a smaller stomach, love handle, cellulite reduction and more.
Cons:
- Not really, it’s a solid plan.
Overall conclusions on both plans:
These are 2 solid plans worth trying out, but depending on the price you prefer and the results you want to get will depend on which one you choose.
The 2 week diet gets the bigger recommendation because it works faster and is cheaper.