How did the Four Day Win come to be?
I interviewed people who had lost large amount of weight, at least a hundred pounds, and they’d say they tried for years. When I asked them how they turned it around, I thought they’d tell me they had some enlightenment or experience. Over and over, it was something that changed their routine for four days.

It was never a diet, but something that caused them to eat differently for four days – whether it was a trip, having their wisdom teeth taken out of any other event. Four days kept coming up and I did research about the brain and the number four. What I found is that if you can disrupt a pattern of behavior and sustain it for four days, you’re on the way to a new behavior. It may be quitting smoking, uncluttering your house or losing weight. It worked magically with weight loss.

Why the Four Day Win?
It puts your feet on the road and starts them moving. The first little bit is much harder. If you can hold on the first four days and view your program as a series of four day wins you’re tremendously improving the likelihood of long-term success.

This is doable. For four days you can do this. On the fifth day, the expectations of the body and the brain have been changed. Four days is the magic number.

Is this an all-or-nothing approach?
The one thing I caution people is to not assault your body with drastic changes all at once. Make one change in the right direction. Sustain it. Then ramp up and make another change. Sustain it for four days. Always do a change that’s manageable. After four days, do another change that’s manageable. It will get easier and easier.