28 Day Plan

28 Day Plan tracker

Tick off your daily actions and see your progress build.

Your 7-day review

Everything you write is saved as you type. Keep your progress safe each week:

Your why

Imagine it’s 3 months from now, and it’s working

What will you notice that’s better? Tap any that fit.

Phase 1 · Commit

Change my daily actions

Change, remove or add actions.

    Print my progress

    Choose what to include. Your printer can also save it as a PDF.

    Share my week

    Your message. You can change it before sending.

    Email it

    Nothing is sent until you choose. Your notes and your why stay private unless you add them.

    Save my progress

    Your progress is only kept on this phone or computer. If it is lost, replaced or cleared, your progress goes with it.

    1. Tap the blue button.
    2. Choose Email, or a message app you use.
    3. Send it to yourself. That’s it: it’s saved.

    The message holds a link with your progress inside it. Nothing is sent to Health Shelf. Keep it private, like a page of your diary.

    Other ways (a file, or a code)

    For people who prefer to keep a file, or to paste a code into a note.

    Change start date

    For correcting a mistake. Your ticks move with the date, so day 1 stays day 1.

    Start again

    Whenever you need a boost, you can simply return to do another Commit Phase with the 28-Day Rapid Results Plan. This starts a fresh 28 days from today.

    Add a daily reminder

    This adds a reminder to your calendar, every day for the rest of your plan.

    Which calendar do you use?

    Most Android phones use Google Calendar. iPhones, Macs, Outlook and Samsung Calendar use the second choice.

    From the resource pack

    Side effects and solutions

    Sudden dietary change, especially cutting carbohydrate, can cause mild, temporary side effects in the first couple of weeks. Many of these side effects are caused by the kidneys excreting excessive salt and water until the body adapts. So, most of the side effects can be eased by increasing more salt and water intake. By week three side effects are usually settling, when many people feel fitter than they have in years.

    Listen to your body: if something doesn’t feel right it is fine to stop, and seek attention from a healthcare professional for any concern.

    Fatigue

    May develop after two or three days and affects about one in two people. It usually resolves within two weeks, and by week three many people report more energy than they have had in years. It largely reflects the body switching from burning sugar to burning fat, which takes one to two weeks.

    Solutions

    • Ease back on strenuous exercise. Keep doing your press-ups, squats and cardio, but in a relaxed, enjoyable way.
    • Where you can, reduce other demands; most people have more energy by week three.

    You should not feel genuinely unwell. If you do, don’t assume it’s the diet: seek medical attention.

    Headache

    A small number of people get a mild headache in the forehead, usually lasting only a few days. The cause isn’t fully understood: possibly a sudden drop in sugar, or the loss of salt and water. Encouragingly, many long-term migraine sufferers find their migraines improve.

    Solutions

    • Drink enough water.
    • Have some salt in your food.

    Important: a mild headache is expected; a severe headache is not. Seek medical attention if needed.

    Light-headedness

    Blood pressure often improves markedly in the first week or two, which can cause light-headedness, especially in people taking blood pressure medication.

    Solutions

    • Drink enough water and have some salt in your food.
    • If you take blood pressure medication, monitor your blood pressure and review your doses with a healthcare professional.
    Constipation

    Any change in diet can alter bowel habit, usually settling within a week or two. Moving to a higher-protein, lower-carbohydrate diet can cause constipation for the first fortnight, partly from the loss of salt and water.

    Solutions

    • Drink enough water and have some salt in your food.
    • Take the magnesium supplement. This often helps significantly.
    • Some people find more fibrous vegetables helpful.

    Important: altered bowel habit lasting six weeks or more should be checked by a healthcare professional.

    Leg and muscle cramps

    Cramping, especially in the legs at rest, can occur in the first couple of weeks, linked to shifts in the body’s salts: sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium. New press-ups and squats can also cause normal muscle soreness (DOMS).

    Solutions

    • Drink enough water and have some salt in your food.
    • Take the magnesium supplement. It usually helps within 3–10 days.

    Important: significant leg pain, especially with a change in skin colour or temperature, needs urgent medical attention, as it can have causes unrelated to diet or exercise.

    Hunger

    Some people feel hungry in the first week, usually because they aren’t eating enough. By week two or three the body becomes a ‘fat burner’, appetite settles, and some people naturally skip meals.

    Solutions

    • Eat more of the ‘Enjoy’ foods on the High-Protein Diet Food Lists.
    • Eat enough to satisfy your appetite.
    Cravings

    Changing what you eat can be hard, and cravings, especially for sugar, bread and other ultra-processed foods, are common. Being prepared makes them easier to handle.

    Solutions

    • Eat more of the ‘Enjoy’ foods, and eat enough to satisfy your appetite.
    • Don’t judge yourself.
    • Shape your home: if sugary foods aren’t in the house, they’re easier to resist.
    • Cravings reduce over time. The plan is only 28 days, and every day is a new day.

    This is the Side Effects and Solutions page of the 28 Day Plan resource pack (PDF).

    Your wins

    Earlier plans