Protein Power Lifeplan diet

This high-protein, low-carbohydrate diet claims to help you lose weight, lower cholesterol and blood pressure levels, feel fitter, and restore your health - all in just a few weeks.

How the Protein Power Lifeplan claims to work

The authors believe that eating more protein than is normally recommended will help balance the body's hormonal response to other foods. The plan is more detailed than the Atkins Diet and somewhat more difficult to follow, since protein requirements must be calculated and daily protein intake divided among your meals and snacks. There are no food groups to avoid, so you have to make more decisions.

The Protein Power Lifeplan regimen

Carbohydrates are restricted to between 30-55g per day, which is slightly more than allowed during the middle phases of the Atkins Diet. This is low enough to induce ketosis. However, this plan does not allow an unlimited intake of fat, and the authors do advise slimmers to seek their doctor's advice before they begin the programme. The plan focuses on a high protein intake, including eggs, cottage cheese, tofu, lean meat, poultry, pork, and seafood. It recommends three meals a day with regular snacks in order to avoid hunger. Carbohydrates are permitted at every meal. In addition to recommending lots of exercise, the plan also suggests taking vitamin and mineral supplements.

Is the Protein Power Lifeplan healthy?

While this diet plan does a better job of explaining the low-carbohydrate approach than the Atkins Diet, it creates the same potential problem of calcium excretion due to excessive intake of protein. It also requires more work by the liver and the kidneys, which is not advisable for those with liver or kidney problems (see Disorders of the Urinary System).

The authors of this plan claim that the body has no need for carbohydrate, but if that were true then muscle would store only fat and not glycogen. Glycogen is required for the generation of energy in muscles. If there is no carbohydrate in the diet, the authors claim energy will come from protein.

As yet, no studies have been carried out on the long-term effects of this diet, which may be high in saturated fat and low in many vitamins and in calcium. Recent research has demonstrated that people are more likely to lose weight when their intake of protein is higher than normal, but there is no reason to eliminate carbohydrates in order to do this. While it is true that insulin promotes fat storage, insulin production can be limited by eating complex carbohydrates and by eating balanced meals and snacks.

Jargon buster

Aerobic exercise

Any repetitive exercise, such as jogging, in which the body uses oxygen to burn fat. To be effective, it needs to be sustained for at least 15 minutes while you maintain 65-85 per cent of your maximum heart rate.

Anaerobic exercise

Any vigorous, short-burst exercise that causes your muscles to work without oxygen. Glycogen is burnt for energy. This type of exercise can cause fatigue, but if you exercise regularly your anaerobic fitness will improve.

Lisa Hark, PhD RD & Dr Darwin Deen

Nutrition for Life Copyright © 2005 Dorling Kindersley Text copyright © 2005 Lisa Hark and Darwin Deen

Posted 30.06.2010

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