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.
So I am working out 3 times a day. I am 180lbs. So far in one week I have only lost three pounds. I am doing strength and toning in morning for half hour, treadmill for a mile in afternoon then more toning in evening. Can I still do this while following your diet? I need to see faster results! I am going nuts. This list also does not include the four times a day I go for quarter mile walks with my dogs. I am very active. After I hit 28, I just cannot seem to shed the pounds or at least stop them from packing on. Thanks for your help!
if you’re training that much, i wouldn’t eat 800 per day. Close to 1500 or so is better
Do you have to eat just one meal a day or can you spread the 800 calories over a couple of meals?
one is most popular
i did this for 6 days and lost 6 pounds but after two days of regular eating i was back to my original weight. what can i do to prevent that???
what is regular eating? If you go back to the way you ate before, of course you’ll regain the weight.
what do u recommend eating after
Just looking to drop the extra weight for an upcoming vacation. The 800 cal is easy but heavy weights, not so much. Will push ups, squats, kettle ball etc work in lieu of those heavy weights?
yes
I am 5’5” & currently 194 & would like to lose 25lbs in the next 3 weeks. Is this possible doing this for a week, eat low calorie & low carb for a week without the fasting part then back to this the final week? And can you drink water & coffee, tea during the fasting part or is it a dry fast? Thank you
chances are you will not lose 25 pounds in 3 weeks.
I am struggling to loose weight for years, but this year is even worse. I picked up 3Kg in a month. I haven’t changed anything in my diet except for cutting out Soda and Bread. I have been walking on the treadmill for a hour each and every day for the past 3 months. I eat alot of fruit, kids size portions of food but nothing is working. What food can you recommend?
if you’re gaining weight, 90% of the time it’s b/c you’re eating too much.
So, Just one meal a day, do things like unsweetened tea count? like if I wanted to drink that in between because I drink a lot of tea. I’m bouncing between this and a water fast to get the weight loss ball rolling. I’m leaning more towards this though.
unsweet tea doesnt count
Why do you say no cardio? I am on day 5 and do an intensive 5k walk that nails my quads, glutes and hammies. Lost 5kg so far. I needed to get back on track after a holiday blowout.
it’s just not needed when calories are this low and can do more harm than good for a lot of ppl
Wow you don’t say. Do you even read past the 2nd sentence? Hope nobody follows your advice I am sure all of it is wrong.
what?
If I start on the Keto diet after this one, will all my weight gain back?
depends but in general im not a big fan of keto
I noticed that you said this is not for people under 18. I’m only 6 months away from 18 so is it safe for me to follow the above plan.
Thanks
i wouldnt
Love the article and humor.
i love you
Dude I’m 5’2 I’m 25 years old and I weight a while big 160 I wanna be down to 135 but I legit suck at life. Anyways my question is….if I really stick to this 800 cal thing and drink water and read or whatever when hungry will this really work for me? I need backup here
1. Dont tell yourself that you suck. Whatever you believe will become true.
2. You lose weight by eating less, that’s how EVERYONE loses weight. This works but it’s not dark magic shit
Hey Keith,
Okay so this is what I am planning on doing. What if I eat like 500-600 calories in one meal (lunch ONLY) for a week. Walk 1 hour for 3 days (30 mins to the gym and 30 mins to my home). During the gym, I would go on the treadmill (one hour) and then hit the weights (one hour).
How many pounds would I be able to lose in ONE week?
Will it also help LOSE the double chin I have lol.
Thanks for reading this!!
you are overcomplicating this and looking for a magic pill solution. You wont lose a double chin in a week
What exercises can I do?
basic weight lifting stuff, bench press, pullups, rows, presses, etc…