THE IFC DIET

Many of our clients have heard us talk of the IFC diet and how successful it has made those clients who are willing to try it. At first glance, the diet seems daunting because it requires our clients to be eating all the time. However, the reality is that due to the size of each meal and the fact that, if necessary, you may combine two meals at a time, it may actually take less time out of your day to consume the recommended foods than to eat in a more traditional manner (breakfast, lunch and dinner).

The key to this diet is its simplicity. Because similar foods are consumed each day, each can be prepared as far as a week in advance. Not only does this cut down the time it takes to shop and prepare for up to seven meals a day, it also reduces the need to cheat because the meals are always in arms reach and the diet itself encourages constant food consumption. However, when meals are combined, only four are required each day.

Two of the main features of this particular eating plan are the lack of complex carbohydrates (potatoes, pasta, rice) in the evening and the requirement of one gallon (16 - 8 oz. glasses) of water each day. The lack of complex carbohydrates after 6:00 PM is due to the fact that most of your energy expenditure occurs between 8:00 AM and 6:00 PM, so there is no need for this type of food after 6. Eating the majority of the complex carbohydrates during the time when our bodies will use them minimizes the bodies desire to store them as fat. The one gallon of water arises from the fact that, if the body does not consume enough water each day, it will go into a “dehydration reflex” and hold on to as much as it can. In addition to that, drinking water aids the kidney’s ability to excrete the protein substrates produced through digestion.

The idea of multiple smaller meals (grazing) will allow ones metabolism to become elevated and remain elevated for a greater portion of the day. Smaller meals don’t load the digestive system down and cause the food to be poorly digested. Better digestion leads to better food utilization, which allows the body, as a whole, to function more efficiently.

----- Bob Dempsey