I'm sure you've heard of the 3 Day Military Diet. It's been going crazy around the internet, so I thought I would try it. It is very strict and you're not really supposed to substitute or add any kind of condiments. On their website, it says it is a form of intermittent fasting. It is pretty low in calories, so I'm not sure if I would recommend it to someone that is pretty active, but I work at home for a living and I am pretty sedentary. You're supposed to do it 3 days on, 4 days off, yet still staying around 1500 calories on the off days. They say you can do this until you reach your goal weight.

Here is the plan:

Day 1 Breakfast:
1/2 Grapefruit
1 Slice of Toast
2 Tablespoons of Peanut Butter
1 cup Coffee or Tea (with caffeine)

Lunch:
1/2 Cup of Tuna
1 Slice of Toast
1 cup Coffee or Tea (with caffeine)

Dinner:
3 ounces of any type of meat
1 cup of green beans
1/2 banana
1 small apple
1 cup of vanilla ice cream


Day 2:
1 egg
1 slice of toast
1/2 banana

Lunch:
1 cup of cottage cheese
1 hard boiled egg
5 saltine crackers

Dinner:
2 hot dogs (without bun)
1 cup of broccoli
1/2 cup of carrots
1/2 banana
1/2 cup of vanilla ice cream

Day 3:
Breakfast:
5 saltine crackers
1 slice of cheddar cheese
1 small apple

Lunch:
1 hard boiled egg (or cooked however you like)
1 slice of toast

Dinner:
1 cup of tuna
1/2 banana
1 cup of vanilla ice cream

The first day wasn't hard at all. I felt very full after each meal and the ice cream was great! I didn't feel restricted at all. The second day was a bit harder and I kinda cheated. My potassium tends to get a bit low sometimes around that TOM because I get extremely bloated and I took a couple diuretics. So instead of half a banana, I had a full banana and a glass of orange juice instead of the ice cream. I did the same thing with the third day dessert.

So this past week, I have lost 6 lbs. I'd say it was pretty worth it. Like I said, I am pretty sedentary. I do a light workout, but nothing too strenuous right now. I wonder if it had made a difference if I hadn't "cheated." I am going to try it again when I'm finished with the 4 days off. I'll see if the weight just comes right back, but I think it might be a good temporary diet for those trying to get back on track with their eating habits. I have been eating much less the past month I've been off of birth control, but my diet was still full of fatty foods, just not as much of them as before.

I hope this was helpful to anyone out there looking into the 3 day military diet or just looking for something new to try!

That's pretty darn good results for a week!

I've never actually heard of this diet, and to be honest, if it were me, I'd end up dying if I had to do this. I can't STAND grape fruit or tuna. And I'm allergic to eggs. I don't drink coffee or tea either (bleck.) haha So obviously, this would NOT work out for me, but that's awesome that you are doing so well on it!

edit - invoking Thumper's rule on myself.

Thanks for the information. I've been thinking about going on a short, super strict diet to kick off the weight loss, and this is starting to look good. Are you sure it's not unhealthy to lose so much in so little time?

I imagine the weight loss will start to slow down after a while. That's probably when I'll switch it up and do something else. I think it's good for starting up and getting used to smaller portion sizes. You can lose up to 10 lbs, but most lose 3-6 from what I've seen. I'd check out the actual website over the pinterest version because it has more information.

There are some substitutions, but not for the grapefruit. I guess the grapefruit really does boost your metabolism because I know you can't take it with certain medications or they'll metabolize too quickly and overload your liver. I think if it works, I will continue to do it, but I might try it with some of the substitutions instead to mix things up.

Good for you!

I can't do that diet as I don't eat a majority of the things listed simply because I don't like the taste. Lol

But I think it's awesome that it worked for you!

Nothing about this statement is correct. It doesn't speed up your metabolism. Grapefruit juice does suppresses the action of some enzymes in the body which metabolize certain drugs.

As for this diet - there is no science operating here other than a simple caloric deficit. Thinking anything else is happening here is absurd. How then, do I explain the six lb loss? Water flux.

I realize we all want to believe there is some special magical formula that will melt the fat from our bodies but it doesn't work that way. There is no magic.

LOL how is this a military diet? Pretty sure that entire 3 days worth of food is less fat/calories/sodium than what's in one MRE.

Good luck, but I don't see how on earth that is sustainable for the long term and won't result in immediate regain.

I'm not sure where the name came from. What I've read on some other forums is that it's actually used for overweight patients before going into surgery that need to lose weight quickly.

Yeah, I actually took the time to look it up yesterday and saw my statement was wrong. Oops!

I originally wanted to lose weight to go into the military, so I looked alot into boot camp and asked all my friends who were or had been in the military about boot camp and their military experience.

This diet looks like what I remember what my friends described as the diet in boot camp and training school for those that met the weight requirements to join but not to pass PT tests.

eta: I could be 100% wrong so if anyone is ex-military and knows better feel free to correct me

LOL. I love it when you come in with your reality hammer and smash it over all of us.

Ahhh, that makes sense. I thought it was supposed to mimic how military members eat.

DH is deployed and has lost 30+ lbs from running up and down ladders on a hot ship all day long. I told him he should come home and open up a gym that mimics this environment.

Now I am going to date myself.... I have this exact same diet from 27 years ago taped to my fridge... It had beets on the 3rd day of dinner tho... LOL Funny how things come and go! But yes.. It does help you lose... Its just hard to not go wacky on those 4 days off...

The diet seems reasonably balanced, but it wouldn't work for me because it's too bland (no butter, mayo, dips or sauces). Tuna with mayo, chipotle sauce, chopped onions and cilantro tastes great to me; plain tuna, not so much.

F.