Engine 2 Diet

Engine 2 Diet Background

The Engine 2 diet was the idea of a man named Rip Esselstyn, whose background as a professional athlete and firefighter helped him create a unique, vegetable-based diet. The realization that several of his colleagues in his volunteer firefighter program suffered from dangerously high cholesterol levels was one of the key motivators in Esselstyn’s development of the Engine 2 diet, which helps improve the cholesterol levels as well as the weight of the person engaged into following his fitness program.

As a trained firefighter, Esselstyn was trained to respond to emergencies, and the cholesterol conundrums his colleagues faced were no different in his eyes. To respond to this health emergency, he developed the backbone of this Engine 2 diet, which consists of vegetables, fruits, and other cholesterol-regulating foods that are both tasty as well as beneficial to health. Esselstyn’s work with the Engine 2 diet also won him a partnership with the Whole Foods Market as a Healthy Eating Partner in 2009.

Engine 2 Diet Basics

he basics behind the Engine 2 Diet are designed to lower your cholesterol levels as well as help you manage weight when this diet is taken along with a particular exercise regimen. Much of the diet revolves around eliminating cholesterol-packed foods, while aiming to promote the prevention of heart diseases, diabetes, and medical conditions such as hypertension.

The Engine 2 diet spans 28 days and consists of mostly vegetables and sugar-free products. The author, Rip Esselstyn, includes various and detailed recipes for each of these 28 days, including vegetarian recipes and foods that are low in fat. The integration of these foods into a diet plan offers a huge nutritional improvement, and is a culmination of Esselstyn’s experiences as both a professional firefighter and athlete.

Nutritional balance which comes in the form of healthy amounts of nutrients is what this diet plan mainly provides. The diet includes the intake of protein, calcium and other nutrients. Fat, salt, and cholesterol are effectively reduced from a person’s food intake when nutrient-rich food items are introduced into a person’s daily meal plan. Soy, yogurt and meat substitutes are still acceptable according to the Engine 2 list of foods, and while a sugar-free diet is recommended, Esselstyn does not rule out the use of natural sweeteners or unrefined sugars.

People who have no prior experience in trying out a diet program, or are apprehensive about jumping into one right away, are given another choice in the Engine 2 diet book: The Fire Cadet Plan. This incarnation of the Engine 2 diet is designed for a slower, yet still effective, transition period for first-time dieters by slowly eliminating meats, dairy foods, artificial ingredients and other refined foods from a person’s diet week after week.

The healthy meals and recipes included in the book not only include ways on how to create them, but how to plan them as well. Bulk and produce sections included in the book allow you to go past the recipes included in the Engine 2 Diet. This enables dieters to customize the recipes to your own liking, allowing for your culinary creativity to flourish without straying from the path to a cholesterol-free life set by the book.

Exercise Recommendations

Coming from a professional athlete, Rip Esselstyn also includes a list of recommended exercises in the Engine 2 diet book. Some of these exercises are also inspired through his experiences as a volunteer firefighter, and are basic as well as easy enough to perform at home. Usually, a diet is designed to supplement a regular exercise regimen anyway, so the inclusion of an exercise program may be useful to people clueless about such.

Aerobic exercise is considered to be the default exercise regimen to induce weight loss. The Engine 2 Diet book does include tips and recommendations for basic kinds of aerobic exercises for the beginner, allowing the person dieting to supplement the Engine 2 diet with an adequate fitness program. Aerobics promotes the faster shedding of pounds. Exercise activity such as brisk walking for 30 to 45 minutes is one aerobic exercise recommended by this book.

Abdominal exercises such as sit-ups and squats are also recommended exercises included in the Engine 2 diet book. Coming from a long line of relatives who specialize in health and nutrition-related fields, Esselstyn recognizes that many daily activities both basic and strenuous involve the abdomen in some way, so basic exercises which develop this part of the body in particular is included in the book.

Recommended Foods

Nutritional yeast, brown rice, raw nuts and seeds, vegetarian sausage, agave, tofu, fresh vegetables, avocado, salsa, oats, soy yogurt, fruit, flaxseed meal, sorbet, boca burgers, whole grain bread, cocoa, garbanzo beans, quinoa, nondairy ice cream and black beans.

Engine 2 Diet Sample Meal Plan

Breakfast

Spelt Blueberry Pancakes

Lunch

Anns Panini with Hummus, Mushrooms and Spinach.

Dinner

Roasted Bell Peppers, Baked Sweet Potatoes, and Galloping Greens with Cashew Sauce

Costs and Expenses

The Engine 2 Diet: The Texas Firefighter’s 28-Day Save-Your-Life Plan that Lowers Cholesterol and Burns Away the Pounds By Rip Esselstyn is available in paperback at Amazon.com for $14.37.

Click here to purchase the book at a discounted price.

Pros

• Expert advice coming from former professional athlete and volunteer firefighter, Rip Esselstyn, who also came from a long line of healthcare and nutrition professionals.
• An included exercise plan makes supplementing this diet a more complete experience.
• Extensive meal plans, as well as choices from a variety of recipes make thsi 28-day meal plan less-strict and more attractive to dieters.
• A practically non-existent limit to portion sizes is part of every recipe and meal plan.
• Designed to improve cholesterol and blood pressure levels.
• Fresh produce as well as foods high in fiber and low in fat are encouraged.

Cons

• Mileage may vary; not every person may respond well if at all to a low-fat diet.
• Eating out may be kept to a minimum with some of the diet plans.
• Keeping close tabs on calorie and fat levels may be required when losing weight is your primary goal.
• Requires more tedious meal preparation and planning.
• Getting into the Engine 2 diet may be hard for some people to do, especially when the person has no previous experience with diets.

Conclusion

You don’t need to be a volunteer firefighter or professional athlete in order to reap the benefits of the Engine 2 diet. While not explicitly stated as a vegetarian or vegan diet, the vegetable-based diet is great for people looking to lower cholesterol and fat levels from their diets. With the recommended exercises, it can be even more beneficial to your health and general lifestyle. If you have no qualms about going cold turkey for the vegetable-based Engine 2 diet, then shedding off those excess pounds will come as no challenge. Click here to start the Engine 2 diet.