Military diet?????

I realize I will probably get a lot of slack for this, but I wanted to get opinions and hear others thoughts on this. I came across what this blogger calls the "Military Diet" yesterday. She said that you stay on this for 3 days, then are off for 4. If you want to do it again, you can..for as long as you feel necessary. Apparently it is what the military use when they need to lose about 10 lbs quick? And she does go on to say that it works better when you do an hour of exercise...
And as a disclaimer, I have not tried this. I am wanting to do research first before. And that is why I am asking your opinion. But please, be nice....

Thanks!!

3 DAY DIET

DAY 1: BREAKFAST--1/2 GRAPEFRUIT, 1 SLICE TOAST,

2 TBS. PEANUT BUTTER, COFFEE OR TEA

LUNCH--1/2 CUP TUNA, 1 SLICE TOAST, COFFEE OR TEA

DINNER--2 SLICES ANY TYPE OF MEAT (ABOUT 3

OZ), 1 CUP GREEN BEANS, 1/2 BANANA, 1 SMALL

APPLE, 1 CUP VANILLA ICE CREAM



DAY 2: BREAKFAST--1 EGG, 1 SLICE TOAST, 1/2 BANANA

LUNCH--1 CUP COTTAGE CHEESE (OR 1 SLICE

CHEDDAR CHEESE), 1 HARD BOILED EGG, 5

SALTINE CRACKERS

DINNER--2 HOT DOGS, (no buns), 1 CUP BROCCOLI,

1/2 CUP CARROTS, 1/2 BANANA, 1/2 CUP VANILLA ICE CREAM



DAY 3: BREAKFAST--5 SALTINE CRACKERS, 1 SLICE CHEDDAR

CHEESE, 1 SMALL APPLE

LUNCH--1 HARD BOILED EGG, 1 SLICE TOAST

DINNER--1 CUP TUNA, 1/2 BANANA, 1 CUP VANILLA ICE CREAM
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Replies

  • skylark94
    skylark94 Posts: 2,036 Member
    I sure as hell didn't eat like that when I was in the military.

    It looks like every other useless crash diet. You'll lose water weight, but not much else and it will likely come right back when you try to eat normal again.

    And it's "flak" not "slack". Two totally different meaning there.
  • Katbaran
    Katbaran Posts: 605 Member
    That's an old re-run of the old Mayo Clinic Diet. It's been around for at least 40 years. Yup, it works. Nope, not healthy at all. Not sustainable either.
  • dayone987
    dayone987 Posts: 645 Member
    This diet has been around for quite a while in one form or another. I've used it decades ago. I think at the time it promised 5 lbs off a week. I remember the ice cream was a nice treat. Overall though, hard to follow long term.
    Have you tried entering into your food diary to see what the calories and macros are? Looks not too bad at a quick glance as it has most of the food groups and decent protein.
  • ilovedeadlifts
    ilovedeadlifts Posts: 2,923 Member
    If it isn't sustainable, I don't see a point in doing it unless you actually NEED to lose the weight quickly for competition.


    Make changes that you can live with long term. And wait for the results.
  • Nothing like my normal daily fare in the air force... I remember lots of midnight omlets, hamburgers, fries, and ice cream.


    Unless you can live like that for the rest of your life,I would not put my self through that
  • WendyTerry420
    WendyTerry420 Posts: 13,274 Member
    There is NO WAY I could eat that much tuna at one time! Arrg! I usually eat about 1/4 cup, if that, and only once or twice a week.

    Also, I don't like diets where someone else plans it. I like to be in charge, or I will cheat.
  • Birder150
    Birder150 Posts: 677 Member
    For sh1ts and giggles, I entered Day 1 in to the food diary and came up with 1,140 calories total for the day.
    If you were to add mayo to the tuna and some fat to the veggies and for cooking the dinner meat, you'd be bumping it up to a calorie level that many here eat for weight loss.

    The 'secret' to this diet is the low calorie count, nothing else.

    eta: Day 2 = 1000 calories
    Day 3 = 935 calories
  • dhoddy
    dhoddy Posts: 35
    Haha, your friend found this on Pinterest! When I first saw it it made me laugh.



    I've been in the Air Force for two years (not that long, I know) and have NEVER heard of that. We actually have programs that encourage healthy LIFESTYLES, not crash diets :)
  • Going on 5 years active duty Marine and I think this is absurd. If you REALLY need to lose a pound or two in one day just put on trashbags and sweats and go run. This is NOT a military diet. This is horsesh^t.
  • Grlnxtdr0721
    Grlnxtdr0721 Posts: 597 Member
    I didn't think it was a healthy diet myself, but wanted to make sure I wasn't crazy! As I said, I haven't tried it, and really don't plan to. It scared me, to be honest. I don't see how this would not make a person sick after the second day because it doesn't seem like you're getting enough nutrition from it.
    I appreciate the feedback :)
  • brenbell
    brenbell Posts: 7 Member
    Hot dogs?!?! and ice cream for dinner?!?!? Um no. run away from this diet fast!
  • T34418l3angel
    T34418l3angel Posts: 474 Member
    My husband is in the military and he would NEVER eat like this. Even when he was coming off of profile and had to drop some weight he didn't eat like this. Who ever posted that blog was highly misinformed.
  • tmos512
    tmos512 Posts: 119 Member
    Not saying I agree or disagree with the diet, but my brother was told to lose weight before he went to basic training years ago and they printed this diet out and gave it to him. True story.
  • Not saying I agree or disagree with the diet, but my brother was told to lose weight before he went to basic training years ago and they printed this diet out and gave it to him. True story.
    The saying "Your recruiter failed you." seems applicable at this point
  • Also known as the "Birmingham Diet" used by patience going in for heart surgeries. My wife and I lost quite a bit while doing this. After about three or four cycles of doing this it gets pretty difficult to eat some of the same things over and over again. Oh by the way we both put the weight back on. I've done MFP for about two months and I have lost 20 pounds and have reached my goal weight (160) and I'm running five miles at a pop now. Believe me I'm not eating the same thing over and over again, I'm simply watching how much I intake. By the way I'm a retired Army Ranger Instructor and I would never advise anyone to do the "military diet". I wish you all the best
  • I wonder why this is called the military diet. I say that because this isn't really what they do for overweight individuals.
  • tishajo
    tishajo Posts: 142 Member
    I've been in the Air Force for 8 years now and never ate like that. My meals (even in boot camp) consisted of all sorts of items. Mashed potatoes, protein, veggies, pasta etc. We were even granted treats once in awhile (chocolate). I'm not sure why it's called the military diet. This wouldn't be sustainable for me. Best wishes.
  • BigJerm1
    BigJerm1 Posts: 4 Member
    11 years in the Army, and I never heard of anyone doing this, and never heard of anything referred to as a "military diet." Doesn't look sustainable, or like it would even be fun to try. Like with all fad diets, you should probably pass on this one.
  • Not saying I agree or disagree with the diet, but my brother was told to lose weight before he went to basic training years ago and they printed this diet out and gave it to him. True story.
    The saying "Your recruiter failed you." seems applicable at this point

    LOL 100% agreed. My husband is in the military. His recruiter told him he would probably want to be able to run before he got to basic, but not crash diet! And when he got there they encouraged them to eat enough to be able to sustain the intense work outs and training.
  • repmlrs
    repmlrs Posts: 154
    lol
  • Haters gonna hate. All the girls and I at work are trying this. Today was the first day. I will let you know how it goes because you never know untill your try!
  • Yikes! I've been on Active Duty for a loooong time and I would be concerned if anyone I know tried it. Essentially the diet is to eat as few calories as possible and pray for the best. On duty we burn up a lot of calories so I can't see it being a good practice. Good call posting for a check on this one.
  • My ex husband was a Marine Corp recruiter; they would use this diet all the time when they had a recruit that needed to weigh in at MEPS that was having issues losing weight. I don't think this was anything they used mainstream- because you will gain the weight back on this diet- this is for short term effects only......
  • clkuchtyn
    clkuchtyn Posts: 193 Member
    Bump
  • My one friend had just recommended me to this diet since i want to lose weight fast. Her and her bf both did it for a week and each lost 5-10 pounds she said it works great! I am about to get myself on this diet as soon as i can!
  • Gentyl
    Gentyl Posts: 184 Member
    I realize I will probably get a lot of slack for this, but I wanted to get opinions and hear others thoughts on this. I came across what this blogger calls the "Military Diet" yesterday. She said that you stay on this for 3 days, then are off for 4. If you want to do it again, you can..for as long as you feel necessary. Apparently it is what the military use when they need to lose about 10 lbs quick? And she does go on to say that it works better when you do an hour of exercise...
    And as a disclaimer, I have not tried this. I am wanting to do research first before. And that is why I am asking your opinion. But please, be nice....

    Thanks!!


    You know, I have heard of this many years ago. Supposedly, there's something chemically in the way they put the food together that does the trick. I've never tried it myself.
  • prokomds
    prokomds Posts: 318 Member
    From what you wrote:
    Apparently it is what the military use when they need to lose about 10 lbs quick?

    This is the diet for someone who desperately needs to make it for a weigh-in, not for someone who's looking to lose the weight and keep it off. If you want your weight lower for a couple days, you could consider this, but if it was me I'd be absolutely miserable for those days, definitely negating the "benefits" of any temporary weight loss
  • i have tried this it was amazing but critcal to keep going for the 3 days and no cheating i remember losing like 3 pounds in a day
  • I used this diet years ago & lost about 9 pounds/week. I am trying it again, beginning today. I will give an update in a couple days.....
  • T1mH
    T1mH Posts: 568 Member
    My one friend had just recommended me to this diet since i want to lose weight fast. Her and her bf both did it for a week and each lost 5-10 pounds she said it works great! I am about to get myself on this diet as soon as i can!
    EVERYBODY, wants to lose weight fast that's why there are so many crash diets out there. NONE of them work for more than temporary results. Was it 5 lbs or 10 lbs? That's a pretty big span for weight loss in a week.
    You know, I have heard of this many years ago. Supposedly, there's something chemically in the way they put the food together that does the trick. I've never tried it myself.
    Seriously? Something chemically? It doesn't say what kind of hot dog, what type of cheese. Nothing in this diet is specific except the fact that it is low cal. I would put money on most diets of similar calorie counts would net the same results. There is nothing special about this combination.
    I used this diet years ago & lost about 9 pounds/week. I am trying it again, beginning today. I will give an update in a couple days.....
    So what happened years ago? Did the weight come right back?

    Why so many first posts in this thread? I suspect trolls.

    People this is not sustainable, this is not a jump start, this is not healthy. Your not going to lose a bunch of weight thinking you'll then go on a healthy diet to keep it off. It won't work. You'll gain it back and then some plus lose muscle mass in the process.