doing cabbage soup diet

ok so tmrw is the second day. i dno if i wanna keep doing it, cuz it has like no protein until day 4 and i'm paranoid i'll lose muscle instead of fat. on the other hand, i do diets really well when there's a definite menu to follow and i'm really curious to see if it works. i can also do the day with protein earlier. what should i do??/!

I don't like diets that tell me I can't eat what I want to eat...or force me to eat something I don't. That's why I like counting calories. I can eat whatever the heck I want up to my calorie limit everyday.

There are no long term benefits (including keeping weight off) and you have a very unhealthy, unbalanced diet. I'd run from it. Not good for your body.

actually, i hate these diets too. the food can get really boring, but they're harder to screw up, cuz there's a menu you can't stray from. 

I did the cabbage soup diet when I was in my teens - I think I lost about 5 lbs, and that was about it.  It's not one that is good for long term, and really, not a good wel-balanced diet.  However, that being said, I do use the soup as a meal - not as the only thing to eat like the diet suggest, but as a soup like any other soup.  I also add kielbasa (or linguica, if I can find it) and a few other things like cannellini beans, and it ends up being a little under 200 cals for a bowl of it - and it's filling.  Here is the recipe for my version of it, if you are interested.  It shows the sodium to be around 777 mg, however when you drain some of the stuff (like the beans and the mushrooms) you will end up lowering the sodium content.

yeah, i was worried about keeping the weight off... but a lot of people have had success with keeping weight off and i'm only doing it for seven days. 

It may be easier..but what you screw up is your metabolism...do you care more about weight loss than the health of your body?

thanks for the recipe :) 

loll, can one week really screw up your metabolism?

no offense meant, but I would not want to be stuck in a lift with you ;)

I'm so sorry to tell you, but the minute you stop this bogus "diet" you will gain back all you lost in an amazingly short amount of time, plus a few more pounds.

Any diet that restricts you to only one food group or which eliminates entire food groups, is an unhealthy diet.  These fads spring to life all the time, and this one has been around for at least 30 years. 

If you need menu help, which sometimes I do, I turn to the Discovery Channel Website.  That site sets up a balanced meal plan for you.  If you sign up for the National Body Challange, it will give you your meal plan and it will help with an exercise plan.  I mostly use this site, but I visit there daily as well for meal ideas.  Let me see if I can post the link:

http://health.discovery.com/

I've tried this in the past too, with poor results.  I haven't thrown out the baby with the bathwater, tho -- I actually really like the cabbage soup itself, it is really low in calories, and makes a good diet food.  It fails in the extreme of the cabbage soup diet.  I do add Boca Ground Burger (soy-based ground meat) to the soup --  it's low calorie, adds a nice flavor and ups the protein content of the soup, which will help with your muscle-loss concern.

lawill you wrote that you do really well when there  is a definite menu to follow. 

Make your own menu, sit down and write down what you are going to eat which days.  Calculate your calories ahead of time and your levels of sodium, fat, protein etc.  After you do this for a few weeks you can just put each day into a box and pick one out for each day of your next week without having to recalculate them each time.  This also makes it so easy to shop for what you need for the week from the grocery store you won't believe it.

also I use the cabbage soup as a switch from salads.  I happen to really enjoy the soup and it is so easy to have a container in the refrigerator and just grab a bowl when I want more veggies in my day. If you feel a real need to have protein just add a chicken breast to your bowl of soup and call it lunch.

Good luck.

this sort of diet will only result in binging since its restricting you so much!!  You've heard it a million times on here but honestly, just do it the good old fashioned way and you'll be happier, healthier and keep it off for longer!!  I would be sick living on cabbage soup so why do it if you can loose weight in a more satisfying way???

And after 7 days..then what? It's like taking out a high interest loan that you have to pay back in a week. No sense in it at all...I'd hope you think you're health  is worth more than that.

I did the CSD a few months ago and lost 7 lbs.  After which I went back to my normal dieting and excerise and kept it off.  It's more than just water weight you lose.  So don't knock it till you try it.   I only did it cause I was getting very stale mated in my diet and exercise routine and needed to be punched up a bit.  It's more of a cleansing experience to be able to have the will power to go through it and come out alive.

Oh and for the record it actually helps jump start your metabolism.

I will be doing it again starting tomorrow.   But only because I'm in the middle of a weight loss Challenge and so 7 lbs in a week should help me out a bit.  Though since I'm considerably lighter than before I doubt to lose that much again.  But there's always hope.  For this time round though, since I'll be running up to 6 miles a day I'm adding in protein shakes.  If not my body will litterally fold in half from all the loss of muscle when I'm trying to run.

I say so long as you know that afterwards you can't go back to normal eating, do it.  It's such a great experience to go through it.  It teaches you will power, and how not to pick at food.  It also teaches you to love veggies and fruit.  Cause you'll go out to the store and find NEW ones you never thought you liked in the hopes of having TONS of them to eat. hahaha.

Good luck to all!

Cabbage is wonderful and a great addition to any diet.  (It is SO high in fiber which is the best thing for any weight loss diet.)  That said, it should not be main thing in your diet.  You need variety to get the nutrients you need.  I think you are better off to modify your existing diet than to go on a diet that isn't sustainable long term or healthy.

For example, instead of noodles I will cut a head of cabbage into inch strips (doesn't have to be perfect) and saute in a pan with a little olive oil and lots black pepper until it is softened a bit and then I throw on more veggies and some spaghetti sauce and some precooked turkey sausage and I have a divine dinner! 

Well said Jenn. I too have  done this diet successfully. When supplemented with a multivitamin and protein ( i make a whey shake in the morning), it is a great way to jump start a healthy eating regimen. Of course (as with any weight loss attempt), if you eat restrictively or very healthy for ONE week, and think that's all you need to do to maintain or continue to lost- OF COURSE you're going to gain the weight back. Being sensible, healthy, and active once the week is through will guarantee you to keep the weight loss off. I do highly recommend adding protein, however, so that your body does not try to burn your muscle first- and goes right for the fat. another thing that is helpful when you're on it is if you can get the person you live with to do it with you!! this is virtually impossible for some, but it really helps.

...you're eating all fresh fruits, veggies, drinking only water and tea, taking vitamins, eventually you can have some meat, make sure you add that daily protein shake (don't worry it won't screw it up, promise)... the soup has many veggs in it- not just cabbage. it actually provides an array of vitamins and tastes good with the right variety of spices. if this is so "unhealthy" then, yes go back to your McDonalds and mac and cheese...:)

The first time I tried this diet 2 months ago i lost 9 lbs. I kept it off by being smart and I'm on it again now. It's day 4 and I lost another 3 so far. Try it if you feel it's a good jump start for you- !