Losing the Baby Weight: The 7 Day Diet

I am an educated person who knows that it isn't safe to lose more than two pounds in one week.

I know there is no easy trick to drop pounds besides eating well and exercising daily.

But I got on the scale the other day and realized I only weigh FIVE pounds less than I did the day I went into the the hospital to have my baby.

It has been almost six months since I had her, and I have to admit I've grown a little desperate.

So this week's PINspiration challenge is from my post-baby fitness board. It is a weight loss plan found on the blog Justin & Ashley, and the Sidekicks.

Source: justinandashleyrefresh.com via Jayme on Pinterest

It may look like an easy fix, but there is nothing easy for me about not eating whatever the heck I want. I thought I would attempt it an effort to test my self-control and let you folks out there know what it is like.

Sunday: Fruit Day

I thought today would be pretty easy. I love fruit. I had strawberries for breakfast, a mango as a midmorning snack, watermelon and honeydew chunks for lunch, and an apple and a fruit smoothie (made of carrots, strawberries, mango, and orange slices) for dinner. I'll link you to the fruit smoothie because the recipe is so delicious!

I did cheat by eating a slice of American cheese between the apple and fruit smoothie. It's just that everything tasted so sweet, that it would kill the sweetness of whatever I was eating next.

I went to bed feeling very hungry and dreading veggie day.

Monday: Veggie Day

Already down 4.2 pounds. Is this just water weight? Or calorie restriction so intense it is not maintainable? We shall see.

I started the morning with a bag of baby carrots that I shared with the puppy. I felt pretty good in the morning. I thought I would wake up ravenous and grumpy.

For lunch, I had cut up peppers, celery and carrots with hummus. The baby loved chomping on a slice of bell pepper. I had a snack of edamame and a baked potato with probably too much butter slathered all over it. I can't express how ready I was for that potato.

Tuesday: Fruit and Veggie Day

Forgot to weigh myself today. Grazed all day on bell pepper slices, carrot sticks, pineapple and edamame. Treated myself to another fruit smoothie at night.

The worst part of this day was making dinner for Danny that I couldn't eat. Tonight it was Chicken Alfredo. :(


Wednesday: Bananas and Yogurt Day

Weight loss so far: 4.2 pounds, no loss since Monday
Total number of bananas: 9
Total number of yogurt servings: 3
Total number of moments I thought "this sucks:" 3

The "this sucks" came while watching Danny scarf down a Subway meatball sub and chocolate chip cookie.

Thursday: Fowl and Tomatoes Day

This might be the hardest day of all. I started the day with a box of cherry tomatoes and some slices of chicken from the deli. Kind of icky. Down 6 pounds.

We went out to eat, and I ordered a butternut squash soup and bruschetta, because I thought I would look crazy asking for a tomato and a piece of chicken breast.

Friday: Fowl and Veggies


Still only 6 pounds down. Had sliced chicken for breakfast, skipped lunch, and celery with hummus for dinner.

Saturday: Miracle Soup

The soup is okay, but the idea of eating it all day was too much for me. So I ended the diet, having only lost six pounds, and ate a slice of my husband's homemade pizza.

Then I froze the rest of the soup to eat in the coming weeks with sandwiches or salads.

Pros of the 7 Day Diet:

• It taught me that I can survive quite happily on fewer calories than I originally believed.
• I lost six pounds.
• I proved to myself that I can do without sugar for 7 days, which is the longest I've probably ever gone without having a chocolate meltdown.

Cons of the 7 Day Diet:

• I probably would have lost the same amount by watching my weight and eating smaller, balanced meals. No need to eat bananas all day.
• Maybe I would have lost the other four pounds if I hadn't gone out to dinner, but six pounds is totally not worth the deprivation I experienced this week. 
• I'm pretty sure a nutritionist would have quite a few problems with this diet.

So I'm not sure if this is a pin fail or a pin success. Anyone else try this diet with results? What kind of Pinterest challenges have you been taking?

Happy Pinning!