Important note: Please advise your doctor before following any plan. Don’t follow the advice below if you are under 18.
People always ask: “How much weight can you lose in a week?” Well… to answer your question I have good news, awesome news, and bad news.
First onto the good news: YOU CAN LOSE A TON OF WEIGHT IN ONE WEEK
That’s right, you don’t have to be bound to the conventional wisdom of only losing 1 or 2 pounds a week. Extreme weight loss diets can definitely work, but only for a short period of time.
In fact, you can lose up to 15 pounds in one week if you do it correctly.
Now onto the awesome news: ALL THAT WEIGHT YOU LOSE WILL BE WATER AND FAT, NOT MUSCLE
Yup, you read that correctly, if you follow the methods at the end of this post, all the weight you lose during the week will be pure body fat. The conventional statement that losing more than 2 pounds per week leads to muscle, organ, and hair loss is absolute unicorn shit.
How do I know this? Because some awesome scientists from the American College Of Nutrition back in 1999, conducted a study, which tested 2 groups of people for 12 weeks.
One group only did traditional cardio, while the other group only did weight training. Both groups ate 800 calories a day. At the end of the study, both groups lost large amounts of weight, but the one that only did cardio lost large amounts of lean muscle mass, and the one that only did weight training didn’t lose any muscle mass at all.
So there you go, some hard hitting scientific facts that prove that you will not lose muscle during extreme dieting as long as you lift weights.
Note: And if you don’t have a gym membership or if you don’t have access to any weights, then doing a well-designed bodyweight program like Bodyweight Burn is your next best option.
And lastly, the bad news: YOU HAVE TO EAT VERY VERY LOW CALORIES
So yeah…. you have to eat a ridiculously low amount of calories to lose a lot of weight in a week. I’m talking along the lines of 800 calories a day.
The amount that would make any nutritionist hang themselves.
And now, onto the plan, but first, a picture of steaks:

The 2-step plan to lose the maximum amount of weight in a week
Please note that the following plan can be used by both men and woman.
And don’t do this plan if you’re under 18, you’re way too young to be eating such low calories.
I guarantee that if you follow the plan below, you will lose 10-15 pounds(water and fat) in one week:
1) For one week only, eat 800 calories per day.
2) Workout 2-3 times per week with weights. Make sure the weights are heavy and be sure to hit all body parts.
That’s all.
Some notes/tips about the above 2 steps:
- 800 calories is very little food, for any man, woman, or baby walrus. Because of this, I suggest that you only eat 1 meal per day a la Brad Pilon’s Eat Stop Eat. If you eat one 800 calorie meal per day, then you’ll at least feel somewhat satisfied, but if you split that up into 3 or even worse, 6 meals per day, then you’re not going to fare so well on this one week venture. Yes, this means that you will be fasting 24 hours every day for a whole week. Just remember, you will be burning fat, not muscle.
- Whenever possible, eat higher protein and eat foods with high water content such as fruits and soups. Also, drink lots of coffee and green tea, since they both tend to blunt hunger quite well.
- Stick with heavy compound exercises when in the gym. That means no curling and crunching, and if you even step foot on a treadmill, my dumbass radar will go off and I may have to kill you.
- If you can’t lift weights, then your next best option is to do some sort of bodyweight training. You know…exercises like squats, push-ups, lunges, pull-ups, sit-ups, etc..
- This is a mental game more than anything else. When you’re eating very few calories to lose weight faster, your mind starts playing tricks on you. Your stomach is gonna be grumbling more often. And there are gonna be times where you want nothing more than to self-sabotage yourself. Which is why the next point is so important.
- Above all, keep yourself distracted and out of the kitchen. If you’re constantly prancing around the kitchen and thinking about food, you’re going to fail. So keep yourself busy. Read a book, play some video games, take a nap, work on your tan, or shave your pubes. I don’t care. Just do something that doesn’t involve food.
- [EDIT 10/6/2014] I should also add that your protein intake needs to be HIGH. Like really high. In fact, the majority of your calories should probably come from protein, fruits, and veggies if you want this diet to be effective. The protein will help keep you full but more importantly also help maintain muscle.
Remember, this is only for one week
I just wanted remind you all, that this sort of extreme weight loss plan is only a temporary plan.
The results don’t have to be temporary, but the plan is. Please do not try and do this weight loss plan for more than a week.
Doing so is really going to mess with your head and you’ll most likely binge back to your original weight.
After one week, transition to a more moderate weight loss plan for the long haul.
I hope you guys now know how much weight you could lose in a week if went balls to the walls.
Want even better results? Take it to the next level with Fat Loss Boost
Many people have been asking me, “Can I do this for more than 7 days?”
Uh…
Yes and no.
Technically, you could eat 800 cals per day for a sustained period of time.
But sooner or later it’s gonna backfire on you.
If you want a more sustainable rapid fat loss plan…
Then I highly recommend checking out Fat Loss Boost.
This is a more long-term approach than the strategy I outlined in this blog post.
It’s a strategic rapid fat loss diet that works in 14 day cycles.
So you go hard on the diet for 14 days, lose a crap ton of weight, take a break, and repeat.
And the results from Fat Loss Boost are even better:
““I have been able to lose 10 pounds using this program. Starting weight 186. Weight this morning was 176.”
“I lost 12 lbs for my first attempt. Started at 201.7 and ended at 189.9. I am amazed!!! Thanks to everywhere for all the support and great hacks.”
“Ok people I’m done 😀. I hit 171.8 today, my goal was to break 172 on this round which was what I weighed almost ten years ago (lowest as an adult). That’s 30.2 lbs in just under 3 months.“
Pretty crazy, right?
Definitely give it a look if you want a realistic, yet challenging plan that burns fat faster than anything. you ever tried before.
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Questions? Like steak? Let me know down below.
I respond to (almost) every comment, which is pretty crazy considering there’s been over 3000 comments. Sigh…I need a hobby.
Need to loose . 10 pounds fasto I’m 5 4 and weight 177
did you try this plan?
So, I am 5’8, almost 5’9. I weigh 148-150 and this weight changes literally every hour. I’m a few weeks away from turning 15, and I workout 5 days a week. I have lower belly fat but have a 4 pack. My weight is unstable and I want to lose the body fat? Would this work? I literally have like 700 calories a day sometimes so the warning doesn’t really bother me
weight does literally change every minute/hour. That’s why you should weigh yourself that often. Also ,you’re only 15. You’re still in puberty, your body is still developing.
DO NOT do this plan.
I know this sounds boring as shit, but you need to focus on developing long term healthy habits. If you can, read the books Atomic Habits. It goes into great detail on how you can build sustainable healthy habits.
Literally hundreds of other people your age have commented similar things, you can read through. And i urge all of them NOT to do this.
Alright, see i have a problem. My football coach says I need to gain weight, because out of like 40 kids, I’m prob on the lower 10 on the weigh scale, but everyone on my team is just straight up fat. Like i’m not tryna look fat because I’m only playing for the girls
I need to maintain a balanced diet, because right now, I’m just eating pizza, bagels, etc.. To gain weight for a dumbass coach.
I personally don’t see a problem with your current weight! Just remember that 1 lb of fat is more volume / looks bigger than 1 lb of mushy. So long as you have a lot of muscle thecweigh is not so important!
Hey, so can you give me a meal plan more or less that adds up to 800 calories? Maybe some substitute foods? I really want to get my Summer body back thanks!!!!
i always recommend lean meats like chicken,pork ,or beef and lots of veggies plus some fruit when following this.
I’m 5’4 and weigh 113 do you think I’ll be able to go down to 105 in 2 weeks if I consume 800 calories a day?
no
I’m only in 9th grade but my weight is always something I’ve struggled with, do you think it’s okay if I try this out? Also do you know some tips to help get rid of extra water weight?
please read my other comments concerning kids 13-16 years old wanting to do this.
THe answer is no btw
Hey I was wondering what would be your best advice for someone 6’2 230 trying to get to 185-190 range?
shot you an email
Hi Keith!
I’m 225lbs and need to get to 200lbs by at least October. Do you think this plan would be best to get under 200lbs, or would the other diet you recommended be best? Also, I’m 5’3, 32 years old.
The real advice is to not look for shortcuts. No one likes to face the truth, because it hurts and it’s not “sexy,” but the only way you lose weight and keep it off is by following a sustainable plan. You can use this plan as a jumping off point but then you need to move to something sustainble asap.
Hi, so I’m trying this method and only ate a tuna fish sandwich on Italian bread today. Is this less than 800 calories? Should I eat a light snack? Or is this fine? Please write back. 🙂
impossible to say, could range from 200 cals to 2000 depending on the sandwich.
Help !!! I’m 40 years old and gained a lot of wait in the last year I’m at 244 and I’m 5’3 , what can I do ?
can you email me? I’ll try to help you out.
Hi Keith!
I’m 19 years old, 5’5” tall and my weight is 130 pounds. I think that for me loosing 10/15 would be perfect, I don’t want to lose more than 15 pounds. My only concern is gaining weight right after I start eating normally again. I work out 6 days a week and I was planning to (after I finish this diet of 800 cal) increase little by little the amount of calories. For instance 1000 to 1200 and then 1500. I’m super scared to gain back all the weight lost
Thanks in advance
have you lifted weights before or done resistance training?
Good morning. I need help. Over the past four months I have been in a deep depression and eating!! My weight is 200. The reason for the depression….my mom had a brain aneurysm and is now in a nursing home, my sister passed away in March of a massive heart attack, and my husband was diagnosed with secondary progressive MS. To start I would like to lose a significant amount fast. Please help!!
oh wow. I’m so sorry to hear all that.
What is hardest about dieting for you?
If you want, shoot me an email – [email protected] and I’ll try to help you out. easier to chat there than here.
Really need to loose this weight. After my 2 kids I let it go I’m 5foot 6in and I’m 275LBS I am getting married next fall and I really really need to loose this weight please help nothing has ever worked for me!!
sent you an email 🙂
I am 5’4 doing all crazy diets and nothing works for me. I want to do try this diet but I don’t know how to start.
Hi Keith,
Thanks for this article I was wondering if you could kindly help me out and send me any other specifications you recommend. I’m 5ft 130lbs right now and would really love to get back to at least 110ish. Because I’m petite could I do 600 cals a day?
no no. you’re looking for a shortcut which i understand, but it never works.
Hi Keith!
I’m 5’7 and have gained 10-15 pounds, I don’t know exactly as I try to not weigh myself that often but you can really see the little extra weight especially on my belly. I’m going on vacation in 3 weeks, would this plan work for me to lose those 10-15 pounds before my vacation? I’d just follow it for a week and then eat healthy and keep working out but I think just eating healthy and exercising without such a high deficit wouldn’t give me noticeable results before my holidays. What do you think? I’d guess I’m around 155 lb at the moment.
I was so happy that finally someone answers a blog and was refreshing your page every 5 minutes to find out that you answered others and skipped my comment lol
lol i appreciate the super respectful comment 😉
Look, if you only have 10 pounds to lose, this wont work as well.
FOllow something more sustainable. You can follow this, but you likely wont lose 10 pounds. Try to multiply your bodyweight by 10, and use that as you daily cal intake.