What is Flexible Dieting?
Flexible Dieting combines the love of food with the science of fat loss. Yes, you can have both! Calories are made up of macronutrients— “macros” as you’ll read in the cool, hipster part of the nutrition world. That breakdown of calories into grams of protein, carbohydrate, and fat matters. We need different amounts of each based on our gender, age, activity level, goals, and even genetics.
If you’re trying to lose body fat, you can shoot from the hip by just reducing food and hope you’ll see results. You can follow a rigid diet that can’t be maintained for long. You can buy into a gimmicky fad diet and potentially harm yourself.
Or…
You can utilize an appropriate breakdown of macros that helps you achieve your goals faster, healthier, and more sustainably while eating the foods you like. You can eat carbs! You can eat in restaurants!
If you’re trying to lose body fat, you can shoot from the hip by just reducing food and hope you’ll see results. You can follow a rigid diet that can’t be maintained for long. You can buy into a gimmicky fad diet and potentially harm yourself.
Or…
You can utilize an appropriate breakdown of macros that helps you achieve your goals faster, healthier, and more sustainably while eating the foods you like. You can eat carbs! You can eat in restaurants!
Why has Flexible Dieting gone mainstream?
I was an allied health/pre-med college student when my work in physique sport got serious. I grew up as a chubby adolescent, began playing sports, started lifting weights, and decided to change the direction of my physical life. I subscribed to muscle magazines as an early teen but following the plans of people nothing at all like me didn’t get me anywhere.
By the time I was in college, I competed in a bodybuilding contest, but again, there just wasn’t any consistency to what I could achieve through nutrition. I hired a personal trainer who gave me copies of meal plans from the magazines I already read—back to square one. But this time I did something that changed the entire course of the nutrition industry. I began breaking the meals down by calories and grams of protein, carbs, and fat. I wanted to look for patterns and see if I could connect some dots.
I was so intrigued by the research of macronutrients—finally discovering there was a field of science from which I could draw—that I ended up earning a doctorate in nutrition. I know, a little extreme to find a few answers, but you’ll see that’s just kinda who I am.
I’m going to skip ahead and give you the punchline now. After I learned how to control my own nutrition with the precision of macros, I won bodybuilding contests, became a professional competitor, climbed through the pro ranks in international events, and began writing nutrition articles for top fitness magazines. I became known as the “Godfather of Flexible Dieting.” I started coaching physique sport competitors and helped clients win almost 500 pro cards, 150 pro titles, and 50 world championships. The organic growth of my earliest articles and success as a coach led to the proliferation of an entire nutrition coaching industry. It’s crazy to consider those humble beginnings, but an amazing amount of great work is now being done in the exercise science and nutrition research world. All because a chubby little kid wanted to be leaner and healthier but still eat normal food.
By the time I was in college, I competed in a bodybuilding contest, but again, there just wasn’t any consistency to what I could achieve through nutrition. I hired a personal trainer who gave me copies of meal plans from the magazines I already read—back to square one. But this time I did something that changed the entire course of the nutrition industry. I began breaking the meals down by calories and grams of protein, carbs, and fat. I wanted to look for patterns and see if I could connect some dots.
I was so intrigued by the research of macronutrients—finally discovering there was a field of science from which I could draw—that I ended up earning a doctorate in nutrition. I know, a little extreme to find a few answers, but you’ll see that’s just kinda who I am.
I’m going to skip ahead and give you the punchline now. After I learned how to control my own nutrition with the precision of macros, I won bodybuilding contests, became a professional competitor, climbed through the pro ranks in international events, and began writing nutrition articles for top fitness magazines. I became known as the “Godfather of Flexible Dieting.” I started coaching physique sport competitors and helped clients win almost 500 pro cards, 150 pro titles, and 50 world championships. The organic growth of my earliest articles and success as a coach led to the proliferation of an entire nutrition coaching industry. It’s crazy to consider those humble beginnings, but an amazing amount of great work is now being done in the exercise science and nutrition research world. All because a chubby little kid wanted to be leaner and healthier but still eat normal food.
How does it work?
My first nutrition notebook included a list of the foods I liked with columns of protein, carbs, and fat values for each food source. Some foods are so high in protein that we classify them as protein sources—same with carbs and fat—but most foods have a combination of all three macronutrients. Now it was just a matter of simple math.
If you can add and subtract, you can diet flexibly. You can pick foods you like, break them up into the amounts you need, and you can control your fat loss predictably and consistently.
If you can add and subtract, you can diet flexibly. You can pick foods you like, break them up into the amounts you need, and you can control your fat loss predictably and consistently.
Will I lose fast?
We all burn specific amounts of calories every day based on our genetics and activity levels. Think of it like a budget. The more food you take out of your diet, the faster you’ll lose, right?
Well, actually, only to an extent. If you push too hard, you can suppress your metabolism and actually stall your fat loss. There’s a sweet spot of maximum fat loss that still sustains your metabolic capacity. You can lose body fat pretty fast, but speed isn’t as important as consistency, sustainability, and long-term metabolic health.
I’ll introduce you to plenty of people who have lost 30, 50, 80, and even 135 pounds. Their stories are amazing!
Well, actually, only to an extent. If you push too hard, you can suppress your metabolism and actually stall your fat loss. There’s a sweet spot of maximum fat loss that still sustains your metabolic capacity. You can lose body fat pretty fast, but speed isn’t as important as consistency, sustainability, and long-term metabolic health.
I’ll introduce you to plenty of people who have lost 30, 50, 80, and even 135 pounds. Their stories are amazing!
Will I keep it off?
YES! With an unapologetic caveat. Sustaining body fat loss has a horrendous track record in Western modern culture. Most estimates show that up to 95% of people regain lost weight within just a year or two. Remember the shoot-from-the-hip approach and the fads and gimmicks I mentioned? If you don’t learn anything new, you can’t sustain your progress. If you unduly suppress your metabolism, even just temporarily, your chances of regain are very high. But if you learn the language of nutrition—macros—and you achieve your goals by already eating the foods you like and living a normal life, that’s the game changer!
I wish I could promise you’ll magically be able to eat a large pizza and bag of Doritos every day and keep fat off, but you know better. You’re not here for a fairytale. I think you’re here to learn the ropes, enjoy food, improve your health, reach your goals, and then maintain the physique you want much more easily.
I wish I could promise you’ll magically be able to eat a large pizza and bag of Doritos every day and keep fat off, but you know better. You’re not here for a fairytale. I think you’re here to learn the ropes, enjoy food, improve your health, reach your goals, and then maintain the physique you want much more easily.
How can I learn more?
Download the 30-minute “Flexible Dieting & Metabolic Positioning” video below to learn how powerfully you can optimize your metabolism and body fat loss process. The physiology is critical and I break it down in a way you can apply instantly!
You can also email me directly and we’ll set up a time to go through a free orientation with no obligation—just a way to see if it’s right for you.
And, you can also just dive in and start losing body fat!
You can also email me directly and we’ll set up a time to go through a free orientation with no obligation—just a way to see if it’s right for you.
And, you can also just dive in and start losing body fat!
Download “Flexible Dieting & Metabolic Positioning” Lecture
How does the Flexible Dieting Institute Personal Coaching Work?
It’s going to seem obvious when I say it, but after 25 years of helping thousands of clients, it comes down to personal connection. Plenty of coaches and companies will try to “scale” you into impersonal automated programs or “AI” algorithms, or they’ll pawn you off to unqualified meal plan jockeys while they get rich and you stay frustrated. I started The Diet Doc, LLC, as a company to license qualified nutrition consultants, I mentor nutrition coaches personally, and I have written and manage curriculum to certify coaches all to help more people regain their personal health. But the nutrition coaching world has felt some growing pains.
I feel like I owe it to the industry I helped create to show how much progress people can make if they just have the personal, professional guidance they need. So, I’m diving back in. I want to personally help as many clients as I can and I’m going to prove that maximum support is the secret sauce. I created the Flexible Dieting Institute to be the simplest process imaginable—no fluff or complicated things to get in the way of your immediate success. My Director of Client Awesomeness is Dr. Kevin Brunacini, DNP—a long-time veteran of our company and a guy who lost and has kept off 120 pounds for more than a decade! Kevin and I will create custom programming for you and then we’ll help you with your journey every single day. I will personally answer questions through group video conferencing multiple times per week and we’ll still conduct full weekly one-on-one progress reviews and programming updates.
This is real-time support, information, and nonstop motivation! It’s personal coaching x 1,000! Nothing can replace an accountability partner like that. I’ve been in the trenches with clients for almost three decades. I know what works and what doesn’t. You’ll have my guidance, the best clinical support in the world, and a team of peers all charging forward to our common goals.
I feel like I owe it to the industry I helped create to show how much progress people can make if they just have the personal, professional guidance they need. So, I’m diving back in. I want to personally help as many clients as I can and I’m going to prove that maximum support is the secret sauce. I created the Flexible Dieting Institute to be the simplest process imaginable—no fluff or complicated things to get in the way of your immediate success. My Director of Client Awesomeness is Dr. Kevin Brunacini, DNP—a long-time veteran of our company and a guy who lost and has kept off 120 pounds for more than a decade! Kevin and I will create custom programming for you and then we’ll help you with your journey every single day. I will personally answer questions through group video conferencing multiple times per week and we’ll still conduct full weekly one-on-one progress reviews and programming updates.
This is real-time support, information, and nonstop motivation! It’s personal coaching x 1,000! Nothing can replace an accountability partner like that. I’ve been in the trenches with clients for almost three decades. I know what works and what doesn’t. You’ll have my guidance, the best clinical support in the world, and a team of peers all charging forward to our common goals.
How can I get started!
One click and we’re rolling. You pay for what you need and nothing more.
Our Metabolic Map Program is customized to your exact progress. Zero obligation—you can change service levels or cancel any time:
Metabolic Map Program
To celebrate the launch of the Flexible Dieting Institute we're offering 50%-off your first month and waiving the $100 Program Fee so you pay only $99 per month for personal coaching from one of our elite licensed nutrition coaches! If you have been referred by a Flexible Dieting Institute Coach, please type their name in the "Coach" box inside the cart. We'll be in touch shortly to help you begin your custom journey!
Your Flexible Dieting Institute Metabolic Map Active Coaching includes:
- Your Metabolic Map: a personal nutrition profile
- Your Flex-Meal System: a customized meal plan
- Integration and facilitation in your private coaching group for guidance, support, and progress monitoring
- Daily instructional and application videos delivered to your inbox
- Access to the entire Diet Doc Online Resource Library
- Premium content, including daily live trainings and collaborative Q&A sessions with Dr. Joe and guest experts
- Access to The Diet Doc Life Athlete Community Facebook support group.
Coaching Progression:
$100 one-time programming fee, plus
To celebrate the launch of the Flexible Dieting Institute we're offering 50%-off your first month and waiving the $100 Program Fee so you pay only $99 per month for personal coaching from one of our elite licensed nutrition coaches!
$99 monthly active coaching membership
[for personal programming and support]
No contract, no obligation, any time you can cancel or switch your active coaching membership to
$49 monthly maintenance coaching membership [for personal support, transitioning to maintenance], or
$19 monthly community coaching membership [I’m livin’ the dream but I want to stay!]