By Maris Callahan at DietsInReview.com

If you’re wistfully tuned in to The Biggest Loser this season, it’s easy to follow along with your favorite contestants from your own home to help reach your weight loss goals.

The Biggest Loser Diet, which was co-created and is monitored by registered dietitian Cheryl Forberg, is a modified low-carbohydrate diet. On the plan, 45% of the calories you eat will come from carbohydrates (mostly fruit, vegetables and whole grains), 30% of calories from protein, and 25% of calories from healthy fats or oils (seeds, nuts, avocado, olive oil).

“Eat protein with every meal and snack because it keeps your blood sugar levels steady and will keep you fuller longer,” said Courtney Crozier, fan favorite contestant from The Biggest Loser, Season 11 and current Biggest Loser Correspondent at DietsInReview. “We loved eating egg white omelets on the ranch. We’d load it with veggies because the fiber and protein kept us full and ready to burn more calories as the day went on.”

The diet also eliminates “white stuff” such as flour and refined sugar, while following a “4-3-2-1” rule, where you eat 4 cups minimum of fruits and vegetables, 3 servings of healthy proteins, 2 servings of whole grains and 1 serving of healthy fat.  There is room for one optional treat per day.

“Making quick and easy meals is so crucial to weight loss,” said Crozier. “It is so easy to go through a fast food restaurant drive through because it’s quick and simple and so many people think it’s quicker than cooking at home. Try simple, healthy salads and sandwiches. Once you have a few favorite recipes, you will see that great tasting, healthy food can be quick, too.

Participants are encouraged to track calories consumed and keep a diet and exercise journal to help monitor progress. As with any diet, it is important to talk to your doctor or health care provider before you begin.

Monday:

Breakfast: Courtney Crozier’s Egg White Veggie Omelet (recipe below); tomato slices; 1 orange.

Egg White Veggie Omelet

• 4-5 egg whites
• 1 cup of spinach
• 1/4 cup chopped onion
• 1/4 cup chopped zucchini
• 1/4 cup green/red/yellow bell pepper
• 1/8 cup chopped jalapenos (optional)
• 1 clove of garlic or minced garlic
• 1 wedge of Laughing Cow cheese, chopped (any flavor)
• 2 tablespoons of picante sauce (optional)
• Mrs. Dash Onion & Herb seasoning

1. Spray a medium nonstick skillet with olive oil spray. Set over medium heat. Add the onion, zucchini, bell peppers, jalapenos, and garlic. Cook, stirring occasionally, for 4 to 5 minutes until the onion is almost tender. Add the spinach and cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until wilted. Remove the vegetables to a plate. Cover and set aside to keep warm.
2. In a bowl, whisk the egg whites, Mrs. Dash, Laughing Cow cheese and hot sauce until the egg whites bubble lightly. Coat the pan with olive oil spray. Set over medium heat. Pour the egg white mixture into the pan. Cook, lifting the edges with a spatula as they start to set and tipping the pan for uncooked egg whites to run underneath, for 2 to 3 minutes, or until almost set. Flip the omelet. Spoon the vegetables over the egg-white mixture. Cover and cook for 1 to 2 minutes or until the cheese is melted. Fold the omelet in half. Plate it and serve with more hot sauce on top if desired.

Lunch: Andrea’s Turkey Wrap; 1 apple; ½ cup low-fat Greek yogurt.

Dinner: Pork & Vegetable Stir Fry with Peanut & Orange Sauce; ½ cup brown rice; ½ cup steamed green vegetables.

Snacks: 100-Calorie pack of Wholly Guacamole with Baby Carrots; Pumpkin Walnut Snack Muffin; Apple with 1 Tablespoon Peanut Butter.

Tuesday:

Breakfast: Banana and Oat Muffin; 1 glass skim milk; 1 cup grapes.

Lunch:  Courtney Crozier’s Turkey & Avocado Sandwich: 2 slices 35-calorie high fiber bread, 1 slice low-fat cheese, 3 ounces of low-sodium turkey breast and ¼ of an avocado; 1 apple.

Dinner: Dave’s Teriyaki Tofu; Papaya Salad with Peanut and Grilled Shrimp.

Snacks: Greek Yogurt Parfait; banana with 1 Tablespoon almond butter; Apricot-Oatmeal Granola Bar.

Wednesday:

Breakfast: Turkey Sausage & Egg Breakfast Wrap; 1 cup fresh melon slices.

Lunch: Mango Grilled Chicken Salad; apple; 2-ounce whole-wheat roll.

Dinner: Grilled Tuna with Tapenade and Succotash; Roasted Cauliflower.

Snacks: Light String Cheese; Banana Berry Muffin; 24 almonds.

Thursday:

Breakfast: ¾ cup fat-free Greek Yogurt with 2 tablespoons Nut & Raisin Granola and one cup blueberries or strawberries.

Lunch: Barbecue Pork Sandwich; Curried Baby Carrots.

Dinner: Shrimp Stir-Fry; Asian Chopped Salad; 1 orange.

Snacks: Protein Energy Bar; 2 tablespoons Kalamata Olive Hummus with 15 baby carrots; ½ cup Biggest Loser Mint Chocolate Chip Frozen Yogurt.

Friday:

Breakfast: Not So McMuffin; 2 slices turkey bacon, 1 cup sliced melon.

Lunch: Biggest Loser White House Salad, BBQ Chicken Mini Pizzas,

Dinner: Angel Hair with Rockin’ Red Clam Sauce, 2 cups mixed green salad with 2 tablespoons fat-free salad dressing, 5-ounce glass red wine.

Snacks: Jillian Michaels Cranberry Diet Drink; celery with 2 tablespoons peanut or almond butter; Nectarine & Raspberry Sundae.

Saturday:

Breakfast: 4 scrambled egg whites, with 1 cup baby spinach and ½ cup red bell peppers; Biggest Loser Breakfast Sausage; ½ cup pineapple.

Lunch: Southwestern Turkey Salad Wraps; 1 ½ cup grapes; 1 light string cheese.

Dinner: Beef Burgers and Sweet Potato Fries; 1/2 cup naturally sugar-free applesauce; Creamy But Not Creamed Spinach.

Snacks: Tiramisu Custard,

Sunday:

Breakfast: Pete’s Low Calorie Breakfast omelet, 1 cup fruit salad, 2 slices turkey bacon.

Lunch: Turkey & Black Bean Chili with ¼ cup low-fat shredded cheddar cheese, apple slices.

Dinner: Lemon Yogurt Chicken (use fat-free yogurt); Chopped Broccoli with Pine Nuts.

Snacks: ¾ cup fat-free Greek yogurt with 2 packets Truvia, 1 tablespoon almond butter and 1 teaspoon vanilla extract; ¼ cup Adam Hurtado’s Guacamole with baby carrots.

This guest post is adapted from the new book The Happy Body by Aniela and Jerzy Gregorek.

Want to increase your metabolic rate so you burn more fat, and burn it up faster? Here are five ways to do it.

Make every third hour a fat-burning hour. Time your meals so that you eat every three hours, but only enough to give you energy for two hours. At the end of two hours, you will feel slightly hungry. If you are calm, your body will get energy by burning fat for an hour. At the end of the third hour, you must eat again or your body will stop eating fat as a protection against famine.

Don’t stretch your stomach. Stop eating before you are full. Otherwise, your stomach will expand beyond its normal size, thereby slowing digestion, slowing metabolism, and making you sluggish. Plus, as soon as the stomach shrinks back to its normal size, it sends a message to your brain that you are hungry–even though you still have food inside your body. That’s why people are very hungry the day after a big party or feast. When you under eat, your digestion speeds up and raises your metabolic rate.

Eat nutritionally complete foods. Each meal or snack should contain protein, fat, carbohydrates, fiber, minerals, and vitamins in healthy proportions. If you eat foods that lack essential nutrients, your body has to take missing components from itself, thus slowing down your metabolism and depleting your energy.

Get off the treadmill. When you do repetitive endurance exercise–such as jogging on a treadmill or stationary biking–you end up burning muscle for energy and wear out your joints. Instead, do wind sprints, fast pedaling, or speed lifting–making use of quick, explosive movements. Such power workouts ramp up your metabolism and burn fat instead of muscle.

Relax your mind and body. Learn a basic meditation and practice it once a day. Also, develop good sleep and rest habits. Meditation has been proven to speed up metabolism. When the body and mind are either exhausted (as after a power workout) or relaxed, the body burns the most fat.

* * * * *

Aniela and Jerzy Gregorek are founders and head coaches of the UCLA weightlifting team, and own a successful personal coaching and athletic training practice in LA. Aniela is a five-time World Weightlifting Champion who holds six world records, and Jerzy is a four-time World Weightlifting Champion with one world record. They have devoted the last 30 years to researching and designing The Happy Body Program, and now share that program in a new book, The Happy Body (www.thehappybody.com).

SparkPeople is more of a personalized website for you to either set a realistic weight loss goal or to maintain your healthy weight. You can log in for free to personalize your settings and set fitness or dieting goals. SparkPeople promotes their SparkDiet, which is a really realistic plan for weight loss. It admits that most diets don’t work, but instead promotes a regular fitness and healthy eating plan that succeeds by tracking your calorie count and progress.

I actually registered to try it out and I really like it so far! It’s kind of addicting actually because you can set goals for things you actually might do! Cutting out all of my desserts is probably not a likely goal, but I can definitely drink 8 glasses of water a day or try to exercise in front of the TV.

You can have access to everything you need to stay healthy, from recipe ideas to fitness plans. You can even add your daily meals to the online calorie counter. It doesn’t include every possible choice, but this method is very fast and easy.

Try out SparkPeople and let me know what you think!

LIVESTRONG has partnered with The Daily Plate to bring you the ultimate dieting and wellness site. This one is my personal favorite because it has…well, everything. You can learn about diseases and conditions, get ideas for fitness and how to have a healthier lifestyle. Plus, there are a LOT of nutrition tips.

The site includes diet and weight loss ideas with some cool videos with healthy eating tips. Not to mention that LIVESTRONG’s partnership with The Daily Plate allows users to create a profile for free to log their food and exercise for each day. Cool, huh?

Everything you need is really in one place, and it is simple and easy to use. The only downside is that certain features are limited to Gold members, or those who want to cough up $29.95 for a six month membership. I guess it isn’t a bad deal since you’re saving money on a nutritionist, right?

Do you LIVESTRONG? What do you think about dieting websites that charge for their features? Share your favorite sites with me because I’m always looking for more!

We’ve got six great dieting websites for you and we’re going to unveil one every week! First up is Calorie King, and it offers a HUGE database of nutritional information on calories and nutritional facts for every product from your favorite treat at DQ to your go-to Pizza Hut pasta. You can search for pretty much any food or drink, and you even find out how long it takes to burn off the calories from the meal when doing different exercises. How smart is that?

The website also includes health articles, recipes and allows you to download software to your computer or phone to stay on your dieting schedule. It can’t get any easier to stay healthy when you can watch what you eat out!

What health or dieting websites do you use? Would you use Calorie King? Let me know!