The Fast and Furious movie franchise presents a two hour escape from reality. Unfortunately Fat and Furious is a reality without an easy escape.
Are you too fat? We compute your Body Mass Index (BMI) as your weight in kg divided by the square of your height in meters. BMI from 18 up to 25 kg/m2 may indicate optimal weight, a number from 25 up to 30 may indicate you are overweight, and a number from 30 upwards indicates obesity.
We also know that being overweight puts a strain on your heart and wears out your hip and knee joints, so getting into the “normal” range makes sense.
This is a seven day diet, and although I am not always in favor of ‘crash’ diets, this one does merit some study. It is reputedly from Sacred Heart Memorial Hospital and is used in their cardiac care unit for overweight patients to lose weight prior to surgery, but this may not be true.
It states the first no-no’s as being bread, alcohol, soft drinks, fried food or oil. Agree totally, though probably half of you have already decided it’s too hard!
After that there is a concoction called Fat-Burning Soup (FBS) which you make up and keep in the fridge. You gobble FBS any time you feel hungry and have as much as you want. You are also advised to drink plenty of water suggesting 6–8 glasses a day along with tea, coffee, skim milk, unsweetened juice or cranberry juice.
The physiology of hunger works that when the stomach is empty, messages are sent to the brain to send down food. Fill the belly with non-fattening food and the hunger pangs will be less, but the weight does not go on.
Here is the recipe for the Fat-Burning Soup:
4 cloves garlic
2 large cans crushed tomatoes (810gms)
2 large cans beef consommé
1 packet chicken soup
1 bunch spring onions
1 bunch celery
2 cans beans (or fresh)
2 green capsicum
1 kg carrots
10 cups water
Chop all veggies into small pieces. Boil rapidly for 10 minutes stirring well and then simmer until vegies are tender. Add water if necessary to make a thinner soup.
Now the downside to dieting is boredom. A week of FBS, water and cranberry juice will sap the resolve of most overweight people, so what this diet does is allow you to add different items on a daily basis. Here are the suggestions.
Day 1, any fruit except bananas. Eat only soup and fruit today.
Day 2, all vegetables. Eat as much as you like of fresh, raw or canned vegetables. Try to eat green leafy vegetables. Stay away from dry beans, peas, and corn. Eat vegetables along with soup. At dinner reward yourself with a jacket potato and butter.
Day 3, eat all the soup, fruit and veggies you want today. No jacket potato today. If you have not cheated you should have lost 3 kg. (That is an amazing loss in three days – but keep going anyway!)
Day 4, bananas and skim milk. Eat at least 3 large bananas and drink as much skim milk as you can today. Eat as much soup as you want. Bananas are high in calories and carbohydrates, as is the milk but you will need the potassium and carbohydrates today.
Day 5, beef and tomatoes. You may have 600 gm of beef or chicken (no skin) and as many as 6 tomatoes. Eat soup at least once.
Day 6, beef and vegetables. Eat to your heart’s content of beef and veggies. You can even have 2-3 steaks (grilled) if you like with leafy green vegetables. No baked potato. Be sure to eat soup at least once.
Day 7, brown rice, vegetables, fruit juice. Be sure to eat well and eat as much soup as you can.
By the end of day 7, you should have lost 7 kg. The theory is good, but I caution against losing too much, too soon.
If your weight loss needs are greater than 7 kg, then continue for another week, but I do not recommend more than two weeks at one time, and do not repeat the program within three months.
