This diet is better known as the 3 day military diet, and in recent times, this particular diet is the most popular weight loss diet of the world in the shortest duration of time which is very clear from the name of the diet itself.
The diet has claimed to help in losing weight very quickly up to about ten pounds which is four & a half kilograms and most importantly in just a single week.
Moreover, this military diet is basically free since you need not have to buy a book, expensive food, or any other kinds of supplements which are actually another of the main reason for it being preferred by the people.
In addition to this, all of the foods that are involved in the military diet plan are commonly found in almost each and every household making it quite an easy task for all the interested ones.
What is Three Day Military Diet?
3 day military diet is a typical weight loss diet that helps in the loss of about ten pounds in a week’s time. The plan of the military diet involves a three day diet meal plan which is then followed by four days off.
This weekly cycle is usually repeated up to a desired number of times until the time the exact goal of weight is attained.
The individuals who support this particular 3 day diet say that this diet was designed by some of the nutritionists of the military of the United States of America for the purpose of bringing the soldiers to the correct shape within a very short duration of time.
But the truth behind the fact is that this 3 days military diet is not at all affiliated with any of the military or the governmental institution.
The military diet is known by some other names as well which are marine diet, navy diet, army diet and even sometimes as ice cream diet.
For Whom is 3 Day Military Diet?
The 3 day diet is for any individuals who are looking forward to shedding off a few extra pounds from their body and that too within a very short span of time.
The diet plan is usually taken up by the celebrities who need to be in proper shape, the athletes, the army men and the young males and females who are desirous of being in the perfect shape but without spending too much of effort or money.
This is the reason why this diet has gained a lot of popularity in the recent times and is being extensively used by a considerable number of people.
Most importantly, the 3 day diet yields result and benefits the people who are why it is preferred.
The 3 Day Military Diet Plan
In the 3 day diet, the most important part is the meal planning. You should make it a point to strictly follow the 3 day meal plan to get the most of it.
Mostly, the meal plan of the military diet is the most significant part of the whole method that helps in the yielding of satisfactory results within the intended period of time.
Usually we take three major meals each day which breakfast, lunch, and dinner. The meal planning for the military diet is done for all of the major meals of the day and all the three days.
Day 1
This the is the meal plan for the first day of the beginning of the 3 day diet which amounts to about 1400 calories.
Breakfast
Breakfast in the opening meal of the day and should not be skipped at any cost irrespective of the fact whether you are on a diet or not. For the breakfast of the first day, you need to have the following –
- Take a slice of toast and combine it with two tablespoons of peanut butter.
- Secondly, take only a half of grapefruit.
- If you are a tea or a coffee lover, you can have a cup of tea or a coffee as per your choice. It is to be kept in mind that taking the tea or coffee is not mandatory. You can take it according to your wish.
Lunch
Now comes the lunch of the first day of the 3 day diet plan which is the second major meal of the day and consists of the following.
- Have a slice of toast.
- Then you need to take only half a cup of tuna.
- Finally, you can drink a cup of tea or coffee as per your liking, but it is optional again.
Dinner
Then you have come to the end of the day with the last meal of the day that is the dinner where you should be taking the following.
- A three oz which is equivalent to 85 grams of a serving of meat should be taken along with a cup of green beans.
- Have a small apple.
- Take only half of a banana.
- Finally, end your first day of military diet with a cup of vanilla ice cream.
Day 2
After the completion of the first day of the diet, we come to the second day and the total calories of the three meals of the day would be amounting to about 1200.
Breakfast
You need to begin your second day of military diet with the following as breakfast.
- Start with a slice of toast.
- Have one egg which is hard boiled.
- Take half of a banana.
- Again, you can have a cup of coffee or tea as per your choice which is not mandatory.
Lunch
For the lunch of the second day of the diet, you should be consuming the following.
- Begin your second day’s lunch with an egg that is hard boiled.
- Take a cup of cottage cheese.
- Have five saltine crackers.
- Drink a cup of tea or coffee which is once again optional.
Dinner
You have to end the second day of your 3 day diet plan by having the following as dinner.
- Have two hot dogs but make sure that you do not have the bun.
- Half a cup of carrots and broccoli each.
- Take only half of a banana.
- End your dinner with a cup of vanilla ice cream.
Day 3
Now, we have come to the last day the 3 day military diet programme which amounts to a total of about 1100 calories for all of the three meals of the day.
Breakfast
In the final day of the diet plan, you need to take the following as breakfast.
- Start with a small slice of cedar cheese about one ounce.
- Then take 5 saltine crackers.
- Have a small apple after it.
- Drink a cup of tea or coffee, but it is not mandatory.
Lunch
The lunch for the final day will include the below-mentioned things.
- Begin with a single slice of toast.
- Then you can have an egg which can be cooked in any of the ways that you prefer to.
- Finally, drink a cup of coffee or tea if you wish to since this is not a mandate.
Dinner
The ultimate day’s ultimate meal will have the following things.
- Have a full cup of tuna.
- Then have half of a banana.
- End it with a cup of vanilla ice cream.
With the completion of the dinner on the third day, it wraps up the 3 day diet or the military diet.
You should keep in mind that you are allowed to drink as much of tea or coffee as you like but make sure that you do not add up to the number of calories by the addition of sugar or cream in your drink. Moreover, you have to drink a lot of water in each of the three days of the diet program.
In the remaining four days of the week, you need to carry on the dieting as well. Having diet snack is allowed, and there are basically no food group restrictions.
But it is advised that you limit the food intake to small portion sizes and make sure to keep the overall calorie intake per day below 1500.
This concludes the one week of dieting, and there are no such rules in the last four days of the diet program.
Does the Military Diet Work?
The 3 days military diet have proven to yield satisfactory results within a single week.
This is quite evident from the fact of the positive reviews and comments given by the individuals who have followed this particular diet plan.
The working of this diet plan is quite simple which is based on the concept of extremely low intake of calories till the time you achieve your desired or intended result.
The 3 day diet is basically divided into two phases over a time of one full week that is seven days.
For the first three days, you need to stick to the low-calorie meal plan as discussed above for all of the three major meals of the day. It is also to be kept in mind that there is no snacking between the breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
The total amount of calories intake during these three days should be ranging from 1200 to 1400 calories per day. The total amount of calories intake is much lower as compared to the average intake of calories per day by a normal adult.
For the rest of the four days of the week, it is advised to keep eating healthy and at the same time make sure that the calorie intake should not rise.
All of the individuals who follow this military diet plan have stated that this week’s schedule should be continued week after week until the time you reach your desired weight goal.
The Vegan Way
In the meal plan which is designed for the three days includes non – vegetarian items but you need not worry at all if you are a vegetarian. All of the non – vegetarian items in the 3 day weight loss diet can be replaced in a vegan-friendly way.
Day 1
The lunch of the first day includes half a cup of tuna that can be replaced by 150 grams of tofu. The serving of meat in the dinner can be replaced by the same amount of cooked beans, lentils, kidney beans, etc.
Day 2
Instead of the hard-boiled egg in the second day’s breakfast, you can go 200 ml of soy milk. For lunch, you can be replaced the egg by 100 gm of cooked beans and the cottage cheese can be replaced by 15 to 20 almonds. In the dinner, you can go for soy or tofu dogs instead of the hot dogs and of course without the buns.
Day 3
Again, in the third day’s breakfast, the cedar cheese can be replaced by 15 to 20 almonds. The egg in the lunch can be replaced by 100 gm of cooked beans. Finally, in the dinner, the full cup of tuna can be replaced by 100 gm of tofu for the vegans.
Thus, it is quite clear how you can convert the 3 day diet in a vegan-friendly way so that even the vegetarians do not have any kinds of problems in following it.
The Science behind Military Diet
In reality, it is basic science that is behind the enormous success of the 3 day military diet. The scientific reasons as to why this military diet works wonders in the reduction of weight of the body are as discussed below:
First and foremost, the military diet recipe so designed is very low on the number of calories which when consumed limits the number of calorie intake thereby reducing the extra gain in weight of the body.
It is to be remembered that for gaining a pound of fat you need to consume 3500 calories more than what you burn. On the other hand, burning a pound of fat is required to burn 3500 calories than what you consume.
Now the fact is that the military diet is formulated in a way so that calories are burnt because you happen to eat less than what you burn for the three days of the diet week.
The second reason is that this particular diet is actually a form of intermittent fasting where the body is able to burn a lot of calories.
This is because on average the body requires more calories per day than what is consumed in the 3 day diet plan and to replenish that, the body burns the excess fat to fulfill its calorie requirements.
Finally, all the foods that are included in the meal plan for the three days help in the kick-starting of the metabolism of the body which in turn promotes the burning of the fat in the body. Hence, we can see a significant reduction in the weight of the body within the time period of just one week.
Going Hardcode on Three Day Diet
If you really want to get visible results from the 3 day diet, it is quite necessary that you go for it dedicatedly. It is always recommended to go hardcore on the 3 days diet if you want to lose a few pounds within a week’s time.
First of all, you should be sticking to the meal plan as designed for the three days. You should also make sure that you should not consume any kinds of unhealthy snacks in between the three major meals for the three days of the diet plan.
In addition to this, the next four days also be followed in a proper way so that no high-calorie intake should be present.
Therefore, it is extremely necessary for the individuals to strictly follow the plan for the week so that you get the desired results within that particular time frame.
Exercise and the Military Diet
If you want to significantly speed up the weight loss with the help of the of the 3 day military diet, then it would be a great idea to go for a perfect combination of exercises along with the diet plan that you are currently into.
While you are going into the military diet plan, you should be very well aware of the fact that there is some scientific evidence which proves that about 70 percent of the overall weight loss is attributed to the 3 day diet plan and the remaining 30 percent is attributed to the workouts or exercises.
One of the very good things about exercise is that it not only helps in the burning of calories during the session of workout or exercise but also helps in their burning throughout the day.
The main reason behind this fact is the development of muscle tissue. It would be very surprising to know that a single pound of muscle burns about fifty calories even at the time when you are resting.
Exercise plays a vital role in the tightening of loose skin, and therefore with an appropriate combination of diet and exercising, significant results in weight loss can be achieved within a short span of time.
The types of workouts that are best suited to the military diet are as mentioned below:
- You can begin with the cardiovascular exercises since they are extremely good to be included in almost any of workout plan. These exercises help in increasing your heart rate and the consumption of energy in these workouts is also very high which helps in achieving the desired weight loss results.
- Circuit training is also a very helpful combination of the 3-day diet which is actually a series of exercises that are done one after the other. You can go with bodyweight circuits and weight circuits in this situation.
- Interval training can also be included along with the three days diet plan which is basically a series of exercises that are performed in short but quite intense bursts which yield successful results since more calories are burnt in this case. In this interval training, high-intensity interval training or HIIT is the most recommended one. The Tabata interval training can also be included in the routine as well.
Thus, it can be clearly understood that the 3 day diet works best with an adequate combination of the appropriate exercises.
Editor’s Tip: Check also 30 Day Ab Challenge
Getting Best Results from the 3 Day Diet
The ultimate target of all of the individuals who are into this 3 day military diet is the achievement of good and positive results.
This is the exact reason why anybody who tries to get benefits from this diet plan makes sure that each of the steps of the plan is perfectly followed.
To get the best results out of this plan, you need to focus, concentrate and dedicatedly follow the strict routine for the three days without skipping any of the aspects of the overall program.
In addition to this, the combining of the diet plan along with appropriate exercises greatly enhances the overall results that you intend this plan to provide you with. To get to your desired weight, you need to continue with the plan till you achieve it.
Will you gain the weight back?
Sadly, this is perfectly possible and rather easy to achieve, in case you resume your eating habits. It is actually common to start storing fat again after the diet, as your body wants to retrieve its lost calories and prepare for an incoming period of deprivation.
On the other hand, if you’re doing this the right way and you focus more on physical exercise and healthy foods, you will avoid depleting your resources and losing weight more effectively.
In conclusion, the Three Day Diet will make you feel a lot less energetic – just like when fasting. This is a normal side effect and should not scare you. While in this state, your body begins to use up its lipid deposits to get the energy it needs and this is exactly what you need.
First of all, you will be losing water weight. Fat loss is achieved when you are constantly limiting your food intake and exercising regularly.
Conclusion
In the conclusive part, it is quite clear to us about the efficiency and the effectiveness of the 3 day diet in a significant amount of weight loss in about just a week’s time. Thus, it has been very rightly saying that if you are into this military diet plan, you will surely be shedding off a few extra pounds from your body.
Moreover, for the purpose of losing those pounds, you neither have to put in a lot of effort, nor you have to invest a lot of money. Therefore, this three day military diet is precisely the most effortless, cheapest, and at the same time the quickest way how you can lose weight.