The Two Day Core Pattern from Joel Greene's Immunity Code Book

A book self-published in 2020 by a man named Joel Greene has made a substantial ripple in the world of nutrition, fitness, and biohacking.

The Immunity Code is bold, new, and eye-opening.

Greene begins by laying out a specific protocol for resetting the gut by altering the particular strains of bacteria.

He tells readers to begin by eating an increasing amount of apple peels each day and then slowly begin consuming HMO powder (Human Milk Oligosaccharide). 

Right off the bat — Greene introduces the reader to a hyper-specific actionable protocol involving both practices (eating apple peels and not the whole apple) and substances (HMO) that most readers have never heard of or considered before.

However, the book has been highly celebrated by the community of "health nuts" that Greene has attracted with his unusual yet thoroughly researched set of health-amplification protocols.

Greene gained much of his following after he appeared on an episode of The Ben Greenfield podcast in mid-2020 to discuss his protocols and book details.

Greenfield invited Greene back onto the podcast twice more to answer follow-up questions from listeners and go more in-depth on several topics. Greenfield said the decision to bring Greene back was due to the high popularity of the original episode.

The "2-Day Core Pattern" is arguably the most crucial protocol that is outlined in the book. It is something that multiple people have lost weight by following — at least according to testimonials Greene has shared on his Instagram feed that appear to have been sent to him via Direct Message.

Greene promises the power to "hack into peak human health, eat whatever and offset it, and to do it all on the go with no meal prep."

It's a lofty goal and something that might strike many people as being impossible to achieve.

Greene has not run any clinical studies on his 2-Day Core Pattern diet protocol, but he has used it in conjunction with corporate fitness and nutrition training that he conducted as part of his VEEP system. For example, Greene has worked with the YMCA, some municipalities, and a healthcare system to present his ideas and methods.

In Chapter 25 of The Immunity Code, Greene delves into the "Blueprint for the 2 Day Core" plan. The blueprint is presented on page 305 after Greene has alluded to the method multiple times in prior portions of the book.

If you're familiar with Greene's "Daisy Cutter Protocol," then you already know to expect a pretty unusual and relatively radical set of food prescriptions for the short diet period.

On Day 1 of the 2 Day Core, Greene suggests a breakfast of dark fruits (like blackberries, raspberries, blueberries, pomegranate seeds, cranberry juice, strawberries, dark grapes, black currants, or acai) and some walnuts. Next, he suggests a small fatty meal 30 minutes before lunch, such as an avocado. For lunch, he wants you to eat cold beans with a protein source, such as chicken. Next, Greene advocates having another small fatty meal 30 minutes before dinner and then advises you to eat raw crunchy vegetables (like green beans, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus, steamed Brussel sprouts, or cabbage) for dinner along with a lean protein source (such as chicken, turkey, or egg whites).

That is day one.

Greene tries to stress the sequencing just as he stresses the actual types of foods he wants you to eat. He clarifies that there are numerous iterations or types of foods that fit the parameters of the two-day core, but he does provide some critical foods as examples.

Preferred pre-load options are walnuts, avocados, macadamia nuts, olive oil, cheese, olive tapenade, whey protein, plant protein, and other nuts.

Here are some Day 1 examples Greene lays out in The Immunity Code: 

• Breakfast — ¾ plate of blackberries + 3 oz. of macadamia nuts

• Snack — 5 oz. walnuts

• Lunch — cold black beans, onions and salsa, chicken, peppers, cheese

• Snack — 100 calories worth of avocado

• Dinner — Cabbage wraps with garbanzo beans, chicken, and asparagus

Not too bad, right? Seems possible.

• Breakfast — two scoops of whey protein + ½ to ¾ plate of blueberries + 2 oz. walnuts

• Snack — Starbucks avocado cup

• Lunch — baked potato cooked, then cooled down, with cheese

• Snack — two cheese sticks

• Dinner — Lean steak with raw green beans

Kind of strange — but again — pretty manageable for most people.

• Breakfast — Two semi-green bananas and ½ a grapefruit

• Snack — Cheese Stick

• Lunch — Chipotle Bowl with cold black beans, onions, salsa, chicken, peppers, cheese

• Snack — Two Starbucks avocado cups

• Dinner — Chicken breast with asparagus

On Day 2 of the 2 Day Core, Greene prescribes four small fatty meals with a 2.5-hour gap between each meal.

For the first three meals, examples of what to eat include eggs, a cheese stick, nuts, to-go guacamole pack, hard-boiled eggs, peanut butter, whey protein with flax oil, lean turkey, and cheese, Starbucks egg bites, avocado, protein-heavy burger.

The dinner on Day 2 should include a fatty protein with cabbage or roasted vegetables.

Here are some Day 2 examples Greene lays out in The Immunity Code:

• Breakfast — Two Omega-3 enriched eggs

• Snack — Avocado

• Lunch — Smoked Salmon

• Snack — Walnuts

• Dinner — Salmon and Cabbage

• Breakfast — Half an avocado

• Snack — Olives

• Lunch — Sunflower seeds

• Snack — Walnuts

• Dinner — Soy Chorizo with Garbanzo Beans and Salsa

You probably noticed that Day 2 is pretty meager rations — but that is very intentional. The idea is to mimic a fasted state — which Greene calls "amplified fasting" — because he believes it's even better for your overall health than the traditional form of fasting.

Greene stresses that food provides the actual horsepower behind his 2 Day Core Pattern diet, but he also recommends some supplementation.

Here are the supplements Green recommends: 

• Vitamin D

• Melatonin

• Chelated Minerals

• Rutin

• High EPA Omega-3 Oil

• Exogenous Ketones

• Pterostilbene

• Apigenin

• Niacin

• Berberine

• Molecular Hydrogen

• Nicotinamide Riboside or Nicotinamide Mononucleotide

The 2 Day Core Pattern is wildly simple to follow, although it can be confusing. The confusion arises as Greene talks about a lot of different "modules" that can be subbed in or out within the 2 Day Core pattern, such as the "Evening Pre-Bed Module" and the "Feast Module." So, it's reasonable that even someone who owns The Immunity Code could become a bit disoriented. In addition, the modules are laid out throughout the book, but there is no index. Therefore, it can be challenging to remember what each module includes or does not include and the exact order to follow the modules. 

For example, to "spin down inflammation," Greene advises you to follow the 2 Day Core pattern and to insert the following modules as well for four days:

• Evening Pre-Bed Module

• Inflammation Small Molecule Module

• Cold Induction Module

• Omega Centric Meals

• Feast Module

He also mentions the Fiber Module and Evening Heat protocol in this sequence.

One key consideration is that Greene is not proposing these food and supplementation protocols in isolation. Instead, Greene tells readers to augment this by following his Integrated Interval exercise philosophy, a simple pre-bed yoga flow, an ancestral squat position, and a detailed deep sleep protocol.

The Immunity Code strives to present "a new immune-centric paradigm to aging … and health" by teaching readers "how to control key immune mechanisms via a list of easy, non-time intensive list of to-dos." 

Greene promises to teach readers how to:

• Hack the aging process

• Restore and recolonize the gut

• Control the health of body fat

• Maximize sleep

• Amplify fasting

• Other life-extending skills 

According to Greene, you can start the two-day core eating pattern right away. https://bengreenfieldfitness.com/transcripts/transcript-crohns-disease/

Greene says the two-day core pattern is meant to be done regularly, as are his recommended sleep protocols and his integrated interval workouts. He states that if you follow the pattern generally — you can even veer off course on some meals — and still achieve the desired results. The routine is highly adaptable with almost infinite substitution options.

Greene even has tiers for the pattern — such as an aggressive fat loss level — that differs from less strict versions of the protocol.

Written by Beau Berman, Oct. 2021, beaub@layerorigin.com