The 17 - Day Diet

I'm trying the 17 day diet and using myfitnesspal as a tracking tool. Have any of you tried this diet? If so, please share the pros and cons.
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Replies

  • Khalter1975
    Khalter1975 Posts: 30 Member
    I started today....let me know how you are doing.
  • Hey there,

    Last year I came across the 17 day diet after a skeptical friend swore by it after he did it. I was in the middle of a weight loss team competition at work, and although I'd been counting calories and working out - I was stuck at 178 lbs.

    I read up on it, and gave it a go in combination with the mean green juice (featured in Fat, Sick, and Nearly Dead). I counted calories, worked out (mostly brisk walking, some swimming), drank the mean green juice twice a day, and the 17 day diet cycles guidelines for my meals over a period of 1 1/2 mos. It worked out great!

    A month and a half later- I was down a little over 20 lbs. Averaging 2 - 2.5 lbs. down per week.

    Pros-it worked, it taught me the importance of realizing the sugar, rice, flour intake and made me realize there was life without it. It incorporated healthy habits that I used pretty much daily since then, green herbs and fruits, balsamic vinegar over ranch or heavy dressings, lemon drink, and yogurt. Saved money on eating out, couldn't always eat what my family ate. My boyfriend complimented how exceptionally soft my skin felt, i didn't feel like my stomach was clogged, i felt light and happy.

    Cons-it was REALLY REALLY hard at first, the first 7 days i'd say. I craved all my old standbys. Very little flexibility with the items, but you can find creative ways to stick to it esp. using the cookbook or just googling recipes like '17 day diet cycle 1 recipe'. Eating out was super difficult at times, so I kept it to a minimum. I learned to plan ahead, i'd carry my truvia and green tea in my purse at all times, and had some stocked at work too.

    The biggest thing I found is the mental commitment. Once I realized that it was in my best interest to commit to the strictness of the cycles (esp. the first one), and not sulk about it, I was ok. I used it a few times in between the holiday season to re-balance my system, and am now beginning the new year with it to meet my final weight goal.

    Hope this helps! If you have any detailed questions, feel free to let me know.:smile:
  • Swibbels01
    Swibbels01 Posts: 47 Member
    I started the 17 day diet 9/24/12 and by thanksgiving i was down 36lbs. I would do cycle one, have a "cheat weekend" and then go right back to cycle 1. I quit the diet between thanksgiving and new years and gained about 10lbs back. I just restarted cycle one on new years day and have lost 5 lb. It should be more, but I worked all weekend and didnt eat well. My uncle has lost 80lbs in just over a year of off and on dieting, and my dad and I are at 30 a piece.

    I do believe the more you have to lose, the quicker you drop. Don't over do the exercise until you know what your body can handle as I found it very difficult to reach 1200 calories when I first started. (and i was never hungry)
  • Mzkfh
    Mzkfh Posts: 9
    Today is day 6 and I'm down 3 lbs. I'm falling short on my protein each day - have to work on that.
  • Mzkfh
    Mzkfh Posts: 9
    Thank you - you've really inspired me to continue. I will give you updates on my progress.
  • Mzkfh
    Mzkfh Posts: 9
    Thank you. You'll give me the push to keep on trying.
  • simplyk8
    simplyk8 Posts: 12 Member
    I love the 17 Day Diet. For me it was very easy; it made me less hungry, I didn't crave junk, and it was easy to go into "auto pilot" mode. I lost about 60 pounds before I stopped doing it (which was a mistake). Though, to be fair, 6 months after stopping the diet I'd only put on about 11 pounds, and that was including developing some REALLY bad habits. I'm following most of the guidelines now, but can't follow it exactly as it is impossible for me to eat enough calories following 17DD to a T when I'm working out a couple hours a day.

    I've encouraged many people to try it. It is nutritionally sound (though some of the things are wacky and fadish) and pretty consistent with results. I lost 2-3+ pounds per week every single week.

    Good luck!
  • where can I find this diet?
  • Got the book .good foods lots of veggies and easy to follow .new to this .please forgive mistakes I make typing. 62 years old this is my first I pad
  • Swibbels01
    Swibbels01 Posts: 47 Member
    I ordered the book thru amazon kindle. I installed the app on my phone also when i first started to look at while i did my food shopping. Recently i made a 17 day diet grocery list of the items i always need, i print that out and write in the items I need besides the "always" items. A list makes me accountable, makes it easy to grab all the ingredients for my meal plans.

    Getting past the chip/soda aisle at walmart is always difficult, but they don't own me anymore lol
  • tcunbeliever
    tcunbeliever Posts: 8,219 Member
    I tried it and was not impressed. I lost in cycle 1, maintained in cycle 2, and gained in cycle 3. It just doesn't work for me, but I have known people who had great results with it, so I think it might just depend on your individual body. Hopefully it will work great for you!!!
  • AntWrig
    AntWrig Posts: 2,273 Member
    What happens on day 18,19,20, etc?
  • KarenJean91
    KarenJean91 Posts: 283 Member
    My co-worker did it, lost a ton of weight...................then gained it all back. It's not a long term plan.
  • chivalryder
    chivalryder Posts: 4,391 Member
    Nothing like a fab diet that focuses on losing your glycogen stores/water weight. As soon as you stop, you'll gain most of it back.

    Instead of doing a "diet" to lose pounds quickly, why not trying to change your habits to create a more sustainable lifestyle where you'll lose the weight and easily keep it off? Without building new, good habits, you'll just go back to your old ones, and your work will be undone.
  • Swibbels01
    Swibbels01 Posts: 47 Member
    its 17 day cycles. the 1st 17 is no starchy carbs like bread, pasta, and potatoes. Then the second cycle you alternate days where you incorporate those items back in limited amounts. You keep repeating the cycles until you reach your goal, then its what the book calls maintenance.


    I follow it loosely, basically eating clean foods.
  • zenchild
    zenchild Posts: 680 Member
    I did it last spring when I seemed to be stuck on my weight and couldn't seem to get motivated. I needed a plan. The first few days were miserable. I was desperate for sugar and carbs. It made me realize how many of my calories I was getting from carbs. I lost 5-8 pounds. At my size (5'1" and 135 pounds at the time) that was a lot. And slowly transitioning back to a sustainable plan helped me keep the weight off.
  • Mzkfh
    Mzkfh Posts: 9
    It goes fast. I started on Jan 2, and I'm down 3.5 lbs already. The odd thing is that Im not even following the diet to the letter. Its awesome.
  • Mzkfh
    Mzkfh Posts: 9
    :-(
  • BV1980
    BV1980 Posts: 272 Member
    I am on about day 11,500 of my approximately 30,000 day diet.
  • Khalter1975
    Khalter1975 Posts: 30 Member
    Is a small amount of vodka ok on the 17 day diet?
  • Preferably no alcohol until cycle 3, if I remember correctly, but I had a wedding in cycle 1 and had some wine and was fine. This diet, in my opinion, is not a shortcut fad. It retrains your body and your behavior to 'crave' foods high in sugars, carbs, and grease. It is not meant to completely live without these long term, but your own body will begin to crave salads and fruits (at least for me it did). Use it to learn how to eat better, not a quick fix-and to maintain keep the good habits you learned and stay active. Just my humble opinion (: Good luck!
  • s_martin210
    s_martin210 Posts: 12 Member
    I love this diet not just because I lost weight, but I also learned a lot about eating healthy and reading what's in the foods I eat. I lost around 20 pounds going through the cycles the first time. I took a break over the holidays and gained back 5. I have about 10 to lose now. I started over this week (C1D4).

    Just so you know, there is a closed support group on FaceBook (17 Day Diet Support) that's very helpful. I also love the 17 Day Diet Gal's blog (http://17ddgal.blogspot.com/?m=1).

    If you stick with it, please friend me, I would love extra support to help me get these last few pounds off!
    Good luck!!!
  • lemonllama
    lemonllama Posts: 124 Member
    I tried it before and it worked well!
    I dont think its a "fad" diet like cabbage soup or a cleanse that temporarily makes you lose weight- just to gain it all back
    Its basically eating clean foods- it doesnt really LIMIT anything or make you eat only liquids or starve yourself.
    Feel completely full, content, satisfied, and the best part is the clean eating gives you so much energy!!!

    Starting it back soon after having baby!
  • My husband, daughter and I all started on the 17 day diet this week (Tuesday). So far, I've lost 2 pounds! started really watching my portions back in November and am officially down 16 pounds since that time! I never quite lost the baby weight from our last child (8 years ago! LOL). Anyway, we are enjoying the diet so far - the food choices in cycle 1 are limited but we feel healthy. We bought fat free cheese, Greek Yogurt, eggs, chicken, turkey, lettuce, lots of veggies, etc.

    If anyone has any suggestions please let me know!
  • Hemis_mom
    Hemis_mom Posts: 193 Member
    My sister and I started today, but we are both worried that we are actually eating too few calories to remain functional (for example we ate all day today and only netted 1050 calories) This seems too low to be safe. Right now we are trying to decide to stick with the accelerate phase or skip ahead to the next phase (which allows more choices and is thus easier to plan for).
  • Khalter1975
    Khalter1975 Posts: 30 Member
    Thank you!!!
  • Mzkfh
    Mzkfh Posts: 9
    I started Jan 2, 2013 and I've lost 4 lbs.
  • ValBFP4H
    ValBFP4H Posts: 18 Member
    If you are eating the unlimited vegetables he says to eat and the other foods, you will be ok. I would not recommended skipping to the next cycle until you have done the 17 days of cycle 1. I know it is tempting but it is set up this way for a reason. Also you should not stay on one cycle for longer then 17 days.
    I have lost over 25 pounds on this diet. I have a long ways to go and I lose slower then most.
  • Mzkfh
    Mzkfh Posts: 9
    It's awesome. Everyday I drop an additional pound. Im starting the 2nd portion... had salmon and veggies for dinner... yum!! Good Luck!!
  • wisconsinboogie
    wisconsinboogie Posts: 127 Member
    Great to hear someone else on this diet. I strarted this diet a 1 and 1/2 ago and lost 30lbs...kept it off till late this fall and got lazy, and gained 15lb, started back on last week and on day 9, cycle 2 and 3 are a pleasure once you get past this cleansing stage, I find it easy to follow and adhear to. If you want tips and food ideas or support friend me!!