Crash dieting is generally considered unsuccessful in the long term compared to healthy dieting and following an exercise regimen. However, if you need to lose weight quickly for a special occasion or simply to increase motivation in order to begin a healthy diet, crash diets can be a wonderful solution. If you have stamina and willpower, any crash diet can work. Here are just a few of the most popular and successful crash diets:

The Cabbage Soup Diet

The Cabbage Soup Diet consists of seven days, during which the dieter eats food specific to each day, plus unlimited cabbage soup. The cabbage soup itself is extremely nutritious and chock-full of cabbage, tomatoes, and other vegetables. Dieters should spice the soup to their liking to increase their chance of success.

  1. The first day of the cabbage soup diet consists of all fruit except bananas, plus the cabbage soup.
  2. The second day is vegetables, avoiding corn and peas, plus the vegetable soup, and a baked potato with butter for dinner.
  3. The third day of the diet is a combination of the first two days, minus the potato.
  4. On the fourth day of the diet, you can have up to eight bananas plus unlimited skim milk, and soup.
  5. The fifth day of the diet is beef and tomatoes, and soup.
  6. The sixth day of the diet is beef and vegetables, and soup.
  7. The last day of the diet consists of brown rice, unsweetened fruit juices, and unlimited cabbage soup.

Dieters can expect to lose up to ten pounds on the Cabbage Soup Diet. Some may find it hard to stick to, and some experience lightheadedness or dizziness, but most find it to be successful. The diet can be performed for one week with two weeks of regular eating in between.

The Master Cleanse Diet

The Master Cleanse Diet, also known as the Lemonade Diet, is both a weight loss and detox diet. The claim is that you can lose weight rapidly on the master cleanse, and the body will cleanse itself of toxins. The Master Cleanse Diet consists of drinking a mixture of fresh lemon juice, water, cayenne pepper, and natural maple syrup. You can drink up to twelve cups of the mixure daily, and the diet lasts for at least ten days. No other food is ingested during the diet. Because the body is not consuming fiber, some people on the Master Cleanse will find they need to take a laxative herbal tea daily to promote bowel movements. Dieters can lose up to a pound and a half per day. If you can get past the hunger stage of the diet (the first several days), the remaining days may leave you full of energy and experiencing super-quick weight loss. The Master Cleanse Diet can be performed several times a year.

The Three Day Diet

Also known as the Cleveland Clinic Diet, the Three Day Diet is a short diet plan that may help you shed up to ten pounds using an extremely low calorie plan that causes chemical reaction in your body that breaks down fat.

The diet must be followed precisely in order to work. Some dieters enjoy the detailed plan while others may feel deprived on it. Most dieters on the Three Day Diet will lose at least several pounds, and some follow the diet weekly, dieting for three days and eating normally the other four days. It is considered healthy as long as it is followed by several days of normal eating. In essence, weight loss on the Three Day Diet is the equivalent of restricting calories daily, but concentrated in only three days time rather than spread over a week.

The Israeli Army Diet

The Israeli Army Diet, which has nothing to do with its name, consists of eating the same food for two days at a time, for eight days’ time. The first two days consist of eating only apples, the next two days only cheese, the next two days only chicken, and the last two days only salads. The Israeli Army Diet is simple and easy to follow assuming you can handle the boredom of eating only one type of food for two days at a time. Dieters can lose approximately ten pounds on this diet.

Whatever crash diet you choose, remember that it is called a crash diet because it is only meant to be followed for a limited amount of time, after which you should resume a responsible diet, eating healthy foods and in moderation.