Back in 2015, I hit my leanest point ever.
I remember 90% of what I was doing.
I just wanted to see if there was any small detail I forgot.
So I studied EVERY single thing I did back then…
Every program, article, video and Google doc, etc.
Turns out, the biggest difference was that I was hardcore about intermittent fasting and keeping my calories f*ckn dialed.
I was laser-focused on hitting the deficit.
I hit a target of 2100-2200 calories each and every day.
Here’s how I accomplished that…
*First, I’d wake up and wait 2-3 hours before drinking black coffee.
This would blunt my hunger more effectively than drinking coffee first thing in the morning because coffee is an appetite suppressant.
So it’s best to drink coffee when hunger kicks in.
Coffee also works better at least 90 mins after waking as cortisol levels come down, better energy and appetite suppression.
I’d have two Americanos, 150mg caffeine each.
My approach was to sip these slowly over the course of 2-3 hours, so by the time I was done with the coffee, it was almost time for my afternoon snack.
*Second, I’d have a strategic fruit snack in the afternoon.
The goal was to go into dinner with minimal calories.
This is hard to do but I found 1-2 Fuji apples made it easier.
I chose apples because pectin has a filling effect. The pectin expands in your stomach when you drink water with it.
I found that having it with sparkling water even magnified this effect.
I’d have my fruit snack at around 3 to 4 pm and found that would hold me until dinner.
It wasn’t like I was full off of the fruit.
It just made it easier to hold out until dinner.
And sipping on sparkling water throughout the day, helped me feel a little less hungry as well.
*Big dinner (1,300-1,400 calories) at 6-7 PM.
The whole reason I wanted minimal calories leading up to dinner is I like big feasts.
My go-to meal was big portions of steak, a baked potato, and broccoli.
This way of eating also gave me wiggle room to go out to eat with friends at night and still get lean.
It’s honestly one of the best ways of eating if you want to be lean while having an active social life.
*550 calorie Green and Black Chocolate Almond Bar for dessert every night at 10 PM.
I put my chocolate bar in the freezer and froze it before eating it.
More satisfying that way.
The reward for fasting during the day and keeping the calories minimal is an awesome dinner and a delicious dessert.
I had dessert each and every night while being able to get this lean.
It worked extremely well.
The results were undeniable.
Hitting the deficit is a non-negotiable to getting lean.
And I like this approach because I found that if I ate a regular-sized lunch, like most people, I’d end up wanting to graze the rest of the day.
This approach was a simple way (but not easy) to hit the deficit.
A couple weeks back, I tried that diet again for a few days.
I have to be honest with you… it’s a pretty rough.
I was ravenous by the time dinner hit, so I still felt hungry after eating a 1,200 calorie dinner.
That’s not ideal if you want to stick with something long-term.
The hardcore Intermittent Fasting approach definitely works, it just takes a lot of willpower.
I do have to give myself credit because this approach is brutal, lmao.
It’s very hard to do!
Eventually you adapt and get into this intense state.
But it’s too aggressive and not really sustainable.
I find there is a sweet spot that works perfectly.
That’s the Greek yogurt collagen bowl with chopped bananas and a rice crispy square for your first meal.
AKA, “The Shred Bowl”.
*Shred Bowl = Kino Collagen Protein + Greek Yogurt + Sliced Banana.
I like to eat a rice crispy square with this.
It brings the total calories to 500-600 calories.
This is kind of the sweet spot for an aggressive cut. If you want to go a little less aggressive, 600-700 calories is fine too.
I’ve been doing this for 10 days, and I’m in the zone.
Visibly leaner each day, and I just feel good.
It’s not as difficult as it was back in 2015, because the Shred Bowl keeps me satisfied until dinner.
One of the incredible benefits of collagen protein is that it increases GLP-1.
GLP-1 is a hormone released by the gut that signals fullness to the brain, slows stomach emptying, and helps control blood glucose.
The research shows that collagen protein is great for increasing GLP-1 release:
- One study[1] found that collagen triggered a massive 33x increase in GLP-1.
- Another study[2] showed that taking 15g of collagen immediately post-workout reduced calorie intake by 10% at their next meal.
When GLP-1 is high, it’s so much easier to stick to your diet.
The drugs Wegovy and Ozempic are an extreme version of this.
I wouldn’t mess with those drugs.
Instead, try the Shred Bowl for lunch for the next 30 days.
A year ago, I was doing the Shred Bowl lunch and almost hit my 2015 levels of leanness.
This is the most effortless it ever felt to get ripped.
I was slightly leaner in 2015, but all I really have to do is just stick with the Shred Bowl a little bit longer to hit that level of leaness.
I can’t recommend it enough…
- Mix 1 scoop of collagen protein into a bowl with 1 cup 2% plain Greek Yogurt.
- Chop up some bananas or frozen bananas.
- Eat a 200-calorie rice crispy square along with it. So 500-600 total calories for lunch.
- Then eat 1,000-1,300 calories for dinner.
- And before bed, chocolate or cookies or some other sensible 400-600 calorie desert.
- Adjust calories based on your weight (13 X GOAL body weight in pounds).
Do this for the next 30 days and report back to me.
This approach simply works!
Talk Soon,
Greg O’Gallagher
P.S.
I still recommend fasting the first 4-5 hours of the day.
Here’s the simple morning routine that is working really well for me right now.
- Wake up, drink water, get some morning steps in.
- Drink a cup of coffee 1-2 hours after waking up.
- Wait another hour or so and then take a serving of Kino Shred.
- Then, about 4-5 hours after waking up, have your Shred Bowl.
Kino Shred amplifies the fat-burning effects of the fasted state while crushing any lingering hunger.
By the time you have your Shred Bowl 4-5 hours after waking, you’ve already torched a bit of body fat without suffering through brutal hunger.