A Crash Diet To Lose Weight For A Special Occasion Like a Wedding - Crash Dieting in a Healthy Way

If you have a big event coming up soon, and need to lose a few pounds for the occasion, then you could be considering a crash diet. Perhaps you are going to a wedding, and have a great dress you've only worn once before, and want to wear to the wedding. Unfortunately, you have put on a few pounds since the last time you wore the dress, do you can only wear it if you go on a crash diet, and succeed.

What is the best crash diet? Of course, there is no such thing. What matters is that you choose the best diet for you in the circumstances, taking into account your own weight, health, lifestyle, and the time scale available. Maybe the best diet will be the one that you can combine with a new health and feel good campaign. After all, you are probably thinking about crash dieting so that you look and feel better than you do now.

So, if you can afford it, see a naturopath or nutritionist for advice, pamper yourself with massages, stock up with natural vitamin supplements, preferably liquid, and go for some relaxation sessions (taking up yoga is a good idea) while you are crash dieting. Why, you might ask, that is nothing to do with dieting? Well, what is the point of losing a lot of weight quickly and turning up at the wedding looking like death warmed up because you have not had enough nutrition? Far better to improve your overall image at the same time, look radiant, and take people's eyes of those surplus pounds you may not have got rid of yet.

There are a few diets that may be considered appropriate for a crash diet. However, you should bear in mind that these diets are not recommended for long term use, as they substantially restrict your intake of some essential nutrients. Using such diets long term may not be healthy for you. However, if you're normal diet is healthy, and you just want to lose say 8-10 pounds quickly, the Cabbage Soup Diet actually work for you.

The Cabbage Soup Diet has been around for nearly 30 years now, and is based on the idea that your body uses more calories to digest cabbage than the amount that it gains from cabbage. This crash diet is a 'negative calorie diet', and includes many foods that, like cabbage, are high in fibre, but very low in calories.

You will not be surprised that the base of the Cabbage Soup Diet is cabbage soup. There are several recipes for cabbage soup available, or you can concoct your own using a pick and mix approach from those you find. Essentially, the soup is made with onions, peppers, mushrooms, tomatoes, carrots, cabbage, celery and spices to taste. For the purpose of this crash diet, you will be eating the soup every day. The good news is that during the diet, you can eat as much cabbage soup as you want. So, it does help if you like vegetables and especially cabbage. If not, well, it is a special occasion, so maybe it's worthwhile to grin and bear it for just a few days, so that dress will fit nicely and your shape will be back to perfection.

Additionally in this crash diet, there is a seven day routine of foods to supplement the cabbage soup. This is how the routine basically goes:

Day One: You can eat all the fruit you like, with the exception of bananas, along with all the cabbage soup that you want. You are not, however, allowed caffeinated beverages or sodas. you should drink only water, tea and cranberry juice.

Day Two: You can, today, eat all the vegetables that you want, avoiding dried beans, peas and corn. Eat vegetables raw, fresh or cooked; it's up to you. You are not allowed fats, sauces, or butter for most of the day. At dinner, though, you may have one baked potato with butter - and of course, as much cabbage soup as you can stomach!

Day Three: You can now eat all the fruits and vegetables from days two and three that you want, but the sad news is you are not allowed baked potato today. Stick with it though, you're nearly half way there. Remember, you were looking for a crash diet, so this is over fairly quickly.

Day Four: Today you can go bananas! You can eat up to 8 bananas, and drink all the skimmed milk you want, along with all the cabbage soup you want. that's it, you're into the second half of this crash diet now.

Day Five: Today you can eat 10 to 20 ounces of beef (or, if you prefer, skinless chicken, or broiled fish). Drink at least 10 glasses of water, and eat up to six fresh tomatoes. Note, if you substitute for the beef on day 5, you may not on day 6.

Day Six: Today you can eat all the beef, vegetables and cabbage soup that you want. No baked potato is allowed this day, but you can have lots of leafy green vegetables.

Day Seven: You can have as much unsweetened fruit juice, brown rice, and vegetables as you want, plus at least one bowl of cabbage soup.

That's the crash diet based on the Cabbage Soup Diet. It is important to remember, though, this diet is not recommended for long term use for weight loss. It does not contain enough complex carbohydrates to be healthy for longer than a few days. But for a crash diet, or short term fix, it can be quite useful. That special dress you have only worn once before, may just fit after all. Longer term, look to your new healthy lifestyle you have practiced during your crash dieting, and experiment with a healthier less fattening, but nutritious, diet that you can enjoy. Plus, build up a regular exercise program that you will stick to for life.

Also: Crash Diet Guide