Whether you're looking to lose weight or not, the idea of doing a "reset" or starting fresh with your diet can be really appealing, especially if you've been struggling to eat healthy lately. If that's the case, an eating plan called the Body Reset Diet could be right up your alley.
It's a program that helped Jessica Simpson drop 100 pounds (!) after giving birth to her third baby in 2019, under the guidance of her trainer and the program developer, Harley Pasternak. (She also built up her postpartum exercise routine, starting out with walking 6,000 steps a day and working her way up to 14,000 steps.)
The Body Reset Diet is a smoothie-involving eating plan that may boost metabolism and yield dramatic results for some people. But is this diet a healthy and sustainable way to eat nutritiously, feel better, and possibly lose weight? We tapped nutritionists to find out.
First: What is the Body Reset Diet?
This diet program is not exactly new: Celebrity trainer Harley Pasternak developed the Body Reset Diet back in 2013. But it's a diet plan that holds strong and garners the attention of many celebs. “The inspiration behind the diet [seems to be] to bring together great food in moderation, while encouraging plenty of active movement and water intake throughout the day,” says Vanessa Rissetto MS, RD, CDN, co-founder of Culina Health.
The diet involves a lot of liquid meals, though it’s not completely liquid. And there are different phases, some of which involve pairing other types of simple meals with the Body Reset Diet smoothies at other points during the day.
How does the Body Reset Diet work?
It’s not actually a very long program at all. “Body Reset is divided into three five-day phases,” Rissetto explains. During each phase there is a focus on different meal formats, but regardless, it’s a lot of drinking smoothies. That way, you can incorporate a variety of micronutrients, including fiber, protein, and healthy fats, in one glass.
A smoothie may not be the most filling option for a meal, but it’s definitely convenient to toss ingredients in a blender, pour them out, and take them on the go—an the objective of Pasternak’s plan, says Rissetto.
The first phase involves three smoothies per day as meals. Phase two involves having two smoothie meals plus one “S” meal, which stands for “single dish”; you can have solid foods in the form of a scramble, salad, soup, stir fry, or sandwich, Rissetto explains. “The purpose of sticking to a one-item meal is to refrain from overeating,” says Rissetto. Plus, one-item meals are simple to prepare, like the smoothies.
During the third phase, two of your meals can be “S” meals, and you have just one is a smoothie. And in between meals, especially if those involve smoothies, the program allows you two “crunchy snacks” to keep you satiated—those will be full of fiber, protein, and healthy fats (for example: an apple, almonds, or edamame).
What foods can you eat on the Body Reset Diet—and what types do you avoid?
Rodale Press The Body Reset Diet: Power Your Metabolism, Blast Fat, and Shed Pounds in Just 15 Days
Rodale Press The Body Reset Diet: Power Your Metabolism, Blast Fat, and Shed Pounds in Just 15 Days
Because this is a lower-calorie diet, there’s a huge emphasis on fiber intake to keep you full, and to keep your digestion and metabolism healthy. That’s why many of the smoothies contain high-fiber fruits like apples and peaches. The second two phases emphasize lean protein (think: lots of chicken and eggs) as well as healthy fats like avocado.
During the smoothie phase (a.k.a. phase one), you can have three different types of smoothies for meals: white, red, and green. The white smoothie, or breakfast smoothie, has a Greek yogurt base—you can add apples or peaches, banana, almonds, and non-fat milk to it.
For lunch, there’s the red smoothie, which has a red berry base; it also includes whey protein powder and an orange. The green (dinner) smoothie can be customized with your choice of greens, such as spinach or kale, and can include avocado and Greek yogurt, too. Once you get into the second and third phases, you can introduce more creative recipes for your solid meals, like breakfast burritos, chicken flatbreads, and pumpkin soup. You can find recipes for all the smoothies, “S” meals, and snack options in Pasternak’s Body Reset cookbook.
The foods to stay away from on the Body Reset are anything high in fat or calories—takeout is off-limits, as is fried food, processed meats, and refined grains. You’ll have to skip soda, alcohol, candy, and junk food, too. When it comes to fruit, a huge component of the diet, Pasternak promotes higher-fiber fruits in the smoothies, like pears, as opposed to fruits like watermelon or honeydew, which are lower in fiber.
Will the Body Reset Diet help you lose weight?
If you’re drinking most of your food, at least at the beginning of the Body Reset Diet, you’re likely to lose weight, says Rissetto, especially because you’re eating mostly fruit and vegetables and slashing your calorie intake.
One thing to note is that the Body Reset Diet is a short-term program, so you might lose weight initially, but if you stopped the diet immediately after completing the three phases and began eating as you were previously right away, you might gain those pounds back, Rissetto suspects.
It also might not have a long-term effect on your metabolism, especially if you’re not upping your workouts that much along with it, she says. Rissetto also adds that it may not the best plan for anyone who’s diabetic, since the smoothies will increase your sugar intake quite a bit.
But even the name of the plan clarifies that this is a reset, so to speak. So it may help you regroup and restart some healthy eating habits, even when you finish the plan.
Can I exercise on the Body Reset Diet?
Pasternak advises skipping a Spin or boot camp class in the beginning of the diet and just walking—10,000 steps a day—along with doing regular resistance training.
Rissetto advises keeping your exercise low-impact, to workouts like yoga, Pilates, and walking. “I think the low amount of calories in phases one and two would likely adversely affect you if you had any intense workouts,” Rissetto says.
32 High-Fiber Snacks To Fuel Your Day, According To Nutritionists
What are the pros and cons of the Body Reset Diet?
If you’re looking for a quick way to shed some weight, the Body Reset Diet may be the ticket. “Small, frequent meals for many people can help prevent one from eating too much or too little and may help the body more efficiently use energy and enhance metabolic processes,” says Sheena Batura, MS, RDN, LD, registered dietitian at Everlywell. Plus, you’re loading up your diet with fruits and veggies, lean protein, and healthy fats, Batura says. The emphasis on fiber is good for gut health and regular digestion, may reduce your cholesterol, and keeps you full for longer, Batura adds.
While you won’t be running marathons on this diet, you’re still moving and strengthening your body with resistance training, which Batura points out is beneficial for your heart health. In addition, you may save money weekly at the grocery store because you’re eating less, Rissetto says, especially in the beginning. You also won’t be spending a ton on the fruit and veggies.
On the flip side, your food intake, though chock full of fruits and veggies, is primarily liquid for 10 days out of the whole program. “A restrictive diet, for many, is hard to stick to—especially for those who are social beings who may feel limited at social events or see this as a quick way to lose weight without a true intrinsic motivator for a lifestyle change,” Batura says. Also, she adds, you might feel less satiated because you’re not chewing your food as much when digesting it.
The other issue is that the program isn’t exactly sustainable. To keep off a significant amount of weight, Batura says, you’d need to continuously lose two to five pounds every week. “Short-term weight loss often doesn't equal lifestyle change," Batura says. "Evidence suggests long-term changes make the biggest impact on overall health—and we see this when it comes to how sustained weight loss can positively impact heart health, diabetes, and more."
Ultimately, it might take overhauling your diet (and exercise regimen) beyond the 15-day Body Reset Diet to build toward true lifestyle change, but you may experience some initial weight loss on the plan. You can also continue using the healthy recipes beyond the "reset" to continue your healthy lifestyle.
The bottom line: The Body Reset Diet focuses on smoothies and high-fiber, single-item meals. It may help you lose weight initially, but you should always talk to your doctor before trying a new eating plan to make sure it's right for you.
