Congratulations on deciding to empower yourself and improve yourself by taking on our 30-Day REBOOT Nutrition Challenge! Now that you have been given a bit of background information on why we created the REBOOT and our reasoning behind it, you can move on to getting started and making use of the resources that we have put together to make this even easier.

1) Check Yourself:

• Have you read the Overview?
• Have you read the additional information on the Learn More page?
• Have you joined the REBOOT Facebook Support Group?
• Have you taken a look at some of our tools and resources?

2) Pick  Your Approach:

Now you need to decide if you are ready to jump right into the REBOOT, or need to transition more slowly.

Getting started very often is the hardest part. Honestly for many it can be a huge mental challenge that needs to be overcome – but with the right preparation and strategies this process will become effortless and you will be well on your way to optimal health and vitality.

Cold-Turkey Approach
You may be someone who prefers to make a big change by taking a cold-turkey approach and just go charging in full-steam ahead. Embracing the excitement found in the heat of the moment to make the process of change easy and even enjoyable.

If this is you then that is fantastic. Go for it. After all action, not intention, is what creates results.

However, keep in mind that there may be downsides to this approach too. For a start, it is common to end up making mistakes and not doing everything correctly the first time around. Your understanding of the process might not be as clear as it should be, or you might not be as prepared as you thought you were.

Also, if you are used to consuming a diet very rich in added sugars and a high amount of carbohydrates (cereals, breads, pasta, fruit, soft drinks, alcohol, desserts, biscuits, chips, etc) then jumping right in cold-turkey can lead to some mild flu-like symptoms (know as carb flu). This is your body needing to adapt to a lower-carbohydrate diet by re-adjusting various mechanisms in the body involving glucose, insulin, neurotransmitters, electrolytes, and so on. You can mitigate or avoid this by making a slower transition into the REBOOT over several days or even weeks.

Slower Transition
On the other end of the spectrum, you might find yourself feeling overwhelmed and would rather spend some more time getting your mind-set right, planning, and slowly adjusting to this new lifestyle. If this is the case, then a slower transition would be better for you.

This is an okay approach to take too, in fact for most people this is probably the better path. However you must make sure that you aren’t just looking for an excuse to delay or searching for that “perfect moment” to begin (Hint: It doesn’t exist! There is no time like the present).

“The best time to plant a tree is 20 years ago. The second best time is now.” – Chinese Proverb.

If your diet has previously been very different to what the REBOOT guidelines recommend (mainly with regards to your usual consumption of sugar and carbohydrates), then we would highly suggest a transition phase of a week or two where you start making gradual changes to help ease yourself into the program before starting it officially.

Our bodies are great at adapting to change, but if too much happens too quickly then the first couple of days may be quite uncomfortable and difficult. It’s always a better strategy to work with your body instead of fighting it at every turn.

• Step 1: Add good things in [Days 1-3] Cutting all unhealthy food out of your diet in one go can be extremely hard and very frustrating, especially if it’s that one thing like bread or yogurt that you treasure so much and can’t imagine living without. Rather, we suggest that you focus on adding in more good foods into your daily diet first. Naturally the more good food you eat, the less bad food you will eat, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. A good way to get going is to start with getting breakfast sorted and then work your way up to each main meal. Alternatively you could try first just switching out the unhealthy snacks for some fresh veggies and a handful of nuts before trying to take on bigger tasks like breakfast, lunch, and dinner.

• Step 2: Substitute as much as possible [Days 4-6] As you add more and more good foods into your diet, we want you to make a greater effort to replace as many of your less healthy choices as possible. Pick your battles wisely, perhaps it’s not worth stressing over the tiny dash of milk in your coffee that really makes your morning if you are still eating chocolate bars and energy drinks every lunch break or eating ice cream every night before bed. Once again, you will need to decide which approach feels right for you, because on the otherhand sometimes making the smallest changes possible first helps to build up momentum and makes the bigger changes easier to tackle.

• Step 3: Clean it up [Day 7] Finally, it’s time to prepare to officially start your REBOOT. Once you have added in healthy food and substituted out as much of the bad food as possible, you need to fine tune your diet and clean up any remaining consumption of foods that are on the avoid eating list for the REBOOT. If in doubt, fill their empty slots in your meals with more veggies, a small handful of nuts, or half an avocado seasoned with some salt and pepper or other spices that you fancy.

3) Refresh Your Memory:

• Allowed – Meat, fish and seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, healthy oils, non-dairy milks, spices, herbs, salts, etc.
• Not Allowed – Sugar, industrial seed and vegetable oils, grains, dairy products, legumes, alcohol, highly processed foods.
• Exceptions – Starchy veg, certain legumes, butter and ghee, dates, dried fruit, vinegars, non-dairy milks, pseudo-junk foods, cheating.

4) GET STARTED, WOOHOO!

To start your 30-Day REBOOT Nutrition Challenge CLICK HERE TO SIGN YOUR NAME and become an official Sleekgeek REBOOT-er.