7 Days Military Diet Plan for Weight Loss

The idea of a diet containing the word”military” just seems like it will provide results, isn’t it? In addition, as a strict weight loss diet, it’s said to benefit people who lose 10 pounds within a week, similar to the military Diet’s official website.

If learning more about the Military Diet intrigues you, and you’d like to find out more about it, how you can follow it, and the potential risks associated with its adoption, Read on for the most important information.

What is the Military Diet?

From a planning perspective, the Military Diet appears to be fairly simple.

The Military Diet requires you to eat certain foods for breakfast, lunch, and dinner for three consecutive days. The diet program is very calorie-restrictive. On the initial day, for example, you’re allowed to consume around 1,078 calories.

The typical moderately active man needs approximately 2,400-2,600 calories daily. 

That means you might consume less than half the calories you should eat on certain days in this Military Diet.

In contrast to the many popular weight-loss programs, this one differs from other popular weight-loss programs. The Military Diet doesn’t prohibit broad food categories. In the initial three days of the program, you consume between 1,200 and 1,500 calories per day, distributed between lunch, breakfast, and dinner. 

For the next four days “off,” it’s recommended that you limit yourself to a daily intake of 1,600 calories and that you consume a healthy diet.

Also worth noting: Even on days when you’re consuming 1,600 calories daily, you’re still under the recommended calories needed for moderately active men. 

This can lead to a boost in hunger (naturally), a dip in energy levels and exercise performance, and general agitation and mood fluctuations.

Do Soldiers Used To Eat The Military Diet?

No.

This name (wrongly) suggests that it’s utilized to help U.S. soldiers quickly get fit and has been proven to be effective in the field.

However, we know that the Diet was previously known under different names, including The Cleveland Clinic, the Mayo Clinic, the Kaiser, and the Birmingham Hospital. As per CNN.com, none of these organizations have acknowledged this Diet.

We also know that The Military Diet is not connected to the military or in any other way, claims Roland Paquette, PA-C, an assistant professor of physician research at UT Health San Antonio.

An ex-Green Beret who served in the United States Special Forces from 2004 to 2006, Paquette tells MensHealth.com that the military did not establish a particular diet plan to help cadets get in good shape.

“I pretty much ate everything that was available, because you’re so active all the time,” Paquette declares. He says pancakes, French toast, and biscuits and gravy were typical breakfast options, none of which is on the Military Diet.

Maj. Carla Gleason, a spokesperson for the Pentagon, confirmed this. She informed MensHealth.com that the United States Department of Defense is not a fan of any meal or diet regimen.

What are the Benefits of a Military Diet?

In the short run, the military Diet could be helpful for weight loss.

It’s easy to follow since it contains only a few recipes with easy measures and cooking methods.

The suggested menu program for the four days off offers many different kinds of fruits and vegetables. It also incorporates complete grains, beans, and various meal choices.

The guideline provides energy goals for each food and provides substitutes for those suffering from allergies to food or other dietary concerns.

The Diet is centered around protein, which improves the sensation of fullness, helps maintain muscle mass, and provides the energy needed for everyday activities. Muscles are essential as they contribute directly to a person’s metabolism.

A small study from the year 2018 studied the results of an eating plan with calories restricted on alternate days. Researchers compared diet outcomes to exercise’s effects on people who suffer from obesity.

Those who followed a Diet and exercise reduced their body weight, waist circumference, and percentage of body fat.

A 2016 review compared a VLCD with an alternate-day-fasting (ADF) diet. The study discovered that ADF proved more efficient in weight loss and preserving muscles and fat-free mass.

Given the recommended daily intake of 1,000-1400 calories over the first three days, it’s not feasible to categorize it as a VLCD or ADF program. 

Research into VLCD or ADF regimens is limited to diets offering less than 800 calories daily.

While the calorie intake of this diet plan is excessive and should be considered fasting, eating food generally on four days off resembles intermittent fasting. 

Thus, individuals may achieve greater long-term outcomes when following this particular Diet rather than eating a low-calorie diet.

More research is required to establish the advantages of the military Diet.

The 7-Day Diet Plan

The food options are limited to those days that are “on” days of the plan. On “off” days, there is a bit more variety, as in this case.

1. Day 1: toast served with peanut butter Tuna, grapefruit, hot dogs, broccoli, Ice cream
2. Day 2: Cottage cheese Banana, cottage cheese; steak green beans; Hot dogs, apple
3. Day 3: Grapefruit, hard-boiled eggs; hot dog green beans, hot dog Cottage cheese saltines
4. Day 4: off Yogurt parfait salad served with protein shrimp and zucchini noodles.
5. Day 5: Off: Oatmeal with fruits and nuts; chicken stir-fry with brown rice, Bean and beef chili, and ice cream
6. Day 6: Off day: Vegetable omelet; tomato soup topped with whole grain bread and low-fat cheese the salmon with Quinoa and Kale
7. Day 7: Off Toast made of whole-grain with nuts and butter fruit, and a chicken salad and spinach pork tenderloin and root vegetables

Food You Can Eat on the Military Diet

Use this list of recommended foods that are part of this Diet. 

• Apples
• Bananas
• Bread (whole-wheat) in tiny quantities
• Carrots
• cheeses (cottage or cheddar) in small amounts
• Coffee
• Eggs
• Grapefruit
• Greek yogurt
• Green beans
• Hot dogs
• Ice cream
• Meat
• Peanut butter
• Saltine crackers
• Tea
• Tuna

Foods You Can’t Eat on the Military Diet

• Artificial sweeteners (except for Stevia)
• Butter
• Creamers
• Fruit juices
• Milk
• Oranges
• Sugar (except for Ice cream)
• Yogurt (except for Greek varieties)

You may also adhere to this Military Diet if you’re a vegetarian or vegan, replacing your meat with beans or tofu.

It is important to remember that most of the suggested food items are deficient in fiber. This is contrary to most weight loss guidelines. 

For instance, the American Heart Association says to include high-fiber food items to keep you fuller with no extra calories.

Risks and Side Effects

• Includes Several Highly Processed Foods

Although certain processed foods on the military diet list may help you lose weight, they are packed with empty calories. This is true for processed bread, peanut butter, and Ice cream, which aren’t ideal for increasing overall health.

A significant disadvantage of diets that focus too much on calorie counting and restricting calories is that they must stress the importance of eating high-quality, nutritious foods.

The military diet is not exempt from this. 

Controlling calories is the main priority, but the main goal is to maximize nutrient intake and avoid refined food.

The Military Diet website states, “When you’re substituting, there is doubt about calories, not about size. You must warrant that whatever you replace contains the same number of calories as the one you’re removing.”

There needs to be somewhere on the site where you can pay close particular attention to the ingredients or try to select the least processed food products.

• May Be Too Low in Calories, Causing a “Starvation Mode” Response

“Starvation” mode is a state of metabolism in which the body slows down and burns fewer calories because it realizes that its intake is low. A military-style diet for a couple of weeks could be a good idea and not cause any harm, but sticking with it for longer than that could cause harm.

To keep weight loss from happening when calories are restricted to a minimum, and the body sees it as an imminent threat to its survival and food intake, the body will feel hungry. 

However, fewer calories are used for essential bodily processes such as repairing tissue, making hormones, assisting cognitive functions, physical exercise digestion, and libido.

• Doesn’t Teach You Healthy Habits and Isn’t Sustainable

Any modifications you make to your eating habits should aim to help you develop healthier habits that enable you to be at your best. 

The military diet doesn’t teach you to respond efficiently to your body’s signals of fullness or hunger, so it will not prepare you to prepare nutritious meals or cook healthy meals in the future. It won’t help you find healthier substitutes for unhealthy food items that can make you overeat.

If you decide to try it, be sure to take the following tips regarding eating a military-style diet

• After drastically reducing your calories, you’ll likely feel more tired, irritable, and hungry than you would normally. The feeling could last for a few weeks and may cause other adverse effects, such as cravings, headaches, muscle weakness, difficulties concentrating, sleep issues, and digestive issues.
• It is possible that you won’t be in a position to recover from exercising in the same way or train effectively if you’re an athlete. This is due to a lack of calorie intake and depletion of glycogen stores.
• If you’re currently overweight and recovering from the effects of adrenal fatigue or other types of eating disorders, going on a military diet isn’t an ideal choice since it could cause more health issues and extend the recovery process.

Should You Try the Military Diet?

It’s doubtful that your healthcare doctor will suggest following the Military Diet. Although you might lose weight in the beginning, this type of eating doesn’t offer a long-term solution to maintaining weight loss. 

It might cause you to need more nutrients to meet your needs, particularly in the case of an active lifestyle.

If your aim is to shed weight, a meeting with a registered dietitian who will provide individual weight-loss tips is a better option.

Can I Lose Weight on the Military Diet?

Since the 800-1,000 calorie limit is significantly less than most adults are recommended to consume daily, you’ll likely shed some weight. 

But it could be a more healthful or sustainable method. When you finish the diet, do you simply revert to your habits and procure weight? How long it will take to keep the weight loss you’ve made needs to be clarified.

“For most people, eating these few calories for more than a few days is likely to trigger a metabolic backlash, in which the body drastically reduces its energy expenditure to compensate for decreased calorie intake. 

Rapidly losing weight is most likely to improve losses of muscle mass, which is not the kind of weight we would like to shed. 

The Bottom Line

The military Diet is a low-calorie, strict diet. Although people can lose weight adhering to this plan, it’s unlikely to be the long-term solution to fulfilling their weight loss and health objectives.

Faq

How much weight do you shed on the seven days of the military diet?

How much weight do you shed on the seven days of the military diet? Military diet (not connected to any branch comprising the army) is a program that claims to be an effective way to lose weight through a strict diet regimen. It promises to lose about 10 pounds within a week.

What are the disadvantages of the three-day military diet?

Cons of the 3-Day Military Diet

It may be unable to prepare sufficient nutrients. Diets are highly restricted and include processed foods. It may be unable to offer additional suitable energy to maintain energy throughout the day.

Can I drink coffee while on your military diet?

Coffee is recommended for those on the Military Diet because it’s naturally high in caffeine and low in calories, but it’s not as high-caffeine as Zest Tea! Even though our teas offer higher levels of caffeine than coffee drinks, you can take advantage of a hot or cold coffee if you follow the 3-day Military Diet.

Are you able to snack between meals on the military diet?

It’s very prescriptive (though the diet website provides alternatives if you cannot eat or do not like certain food items). The diet needs to be more food. Also, eating snacks between meals isn’t permitted. The military diet will provide only 1,100-1,400 calories per day for the three days of calorie restriction.