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.


Hi, do you think that a higher calorie intake and doing cardio would have the same effect? So maybe 1200cal and cardio everyday as well as weights 3 times a week?
just stick to the plan.
Hello I don’t really get the calorie part, so you recommend to only eat one meal that is 800 calories and just drink water the rest of the days, if so should we eat that meal in the morning? I don’t have access to weights I only have a bicycle machine and treadmill. I do have p90x dvds
Please contact fast, plan to start this tomorrow.
Doesn’t have to be 1 meal, you can split up the calories however you wish but eating 1 large meal per day will likely be much more satisfy than eat 4 200 calorie meals.
Is this really possible? Have you tied and proven it? I would like to start this tomorrow but I’m just not sure if this works.
Yes but it’s not a magic pill. The majority of the weight you lose will be water, remember that.
I don’t know why people are making this out to be difficult. It’s not! Just do it! If you really want to lose weight build muscle etc then you’ll do it! Stop waiting it out. Don’t start tomorrow start now! Why wait.You don’t need weights either. There is tons of ways to build muscle without weights. Pushups planks squats crunches etc Dont forget to stretch!!! Also do a light warm up of walking.
Yea thanks am going for it now am 2days in to it.
Its all will power and keeping ur self busy.
Its not hard if u wana loook good once u lose the fat.
I’m in a hurry to lose weight. I’m doing bodyweight circuits plus HIIT 3 times a week and I’m eating 800 calories a day in one meal at night (fasting 24 hours each day). This is only for this week, is it ok?
I would just do the bodyweight circuit.
Any suggestions on what to eat soon as 800 Cal week is over? Any books or diets? I don’t wanna INSTANLY gain ALL weight back. Now have one successful 800 Cal day behind me. Tomarrow adding 50 kettlebell swings every 2 hrs from 8 am – 3pm, 15 push ups, 60 sec planks, & 60 sec wall squat. Drinking 60-80 oz of water a day. U think this will be effective enough?Or will it require something much more exerting ??? Thnx for posting. I enjoyed reading it.
Don’t be too restrictive. Everyone’s different but in general eat plenty of fruits, veggies, protein, whole carb sources. Just use some common sense and don’t be over restrictive.
Got it! I’mma make sure to ONLY have fresh fruits & vegtables along with lean protiens available in the house! Then gradually add an extra 100 calories every 3 days. Til I’m up to 1300 cals. If & when I get to 130 lbs, then I will decrease calories again til I’m able to stay at 1000-1200. Have lost 4 lbs so far in less than 2 days! Thnx for the inspiration!
I am curious as to how one would satisfy their protein needs, with such low calorie intake…doesn’t that sort of contraddict with the whole, pure weight-lifting process? I mean, if you’re working on sheer heavy weight-lifting, won’t the body just crave for proteins to help the body rebuild from all of that? Or do I have to pretty much live off WHEY during the process (seems hard to find the necessary protein in a very low calorie gain)
Yes you should be consuming a lot of protein on your diet, and one of the easiest ways to do that is by whey or just plain chicken breast (no skin). Yup it’s boring, but this diet isn’t meant to be fun.
Any weight excercises you would reccomend? I am a woman looking to loose weight. It bulk up- but I know I need to lift weights.
Nothing in particular. Focus on major body parts, so things like squat, bench press, pull ups…
I´ve been following a more traditional ¨diet¨ for weight loss. I calculated my caloric needs based on the Kath-MacArdle formula. I exercise hard 3 to 4 times a week (mostly bodyweight excersices like pull-ups, squats, sit-ups, etc) so I used that information in the formula. Finally I adjusted my calorie intake for weight loss (15% to 20% below maintenance level)
The thing is that I noticed that I´ve been loosing lean mass (as well as fat ) in the process. I know that is very difficult not to loose at least a little bit of lean mass, and that I should not make a big fuss about it but is something that has been happening for a couple of weeks. I’m already in 15% body fat but I want to get to the next level and increase the chances of burning only fat in the process.
What should I do? I read I have to increase my caloric intake. Would this actually help?
You’re either not getting enough protein or your workouts aren’t intense enough. This is why I recommend weight training when dieting.
How do you calculate the protein intake? I read is something like 1 or 2 grams of protein per pound of lean body mass
Won’t you you get a lot of loose skin due to extreme fat loss?
no only if you have a TON of weight to lose, like hundreds of pounds.
This does work I’ve been off n on this diet for 6 months n lost 35lbs Thank u!! I have to say an cuts works wonders js it worked for me n I’m trying to lose 40lbs more n I’ll b at my goal weight I was 185 now I’m 160
Awesome congrats Amita.
I want to lose 65 pounds. I would like to start this plan but have a few questions.
What is your recommendation regarding how much time (per day) should be dedicated to using weights?
Also, can the 800 calories be in the form of a protein shake and fresh fruit and vegetables or do you recommend actually eating protein in the form of chicken…as an example?
Thanks for your input.
prob about 45-60 min.
Chicken would be better since it’s real whole food that will fill you up better.
I also wanted to know if a weight machine can be used? I don’t have any access to free weights…which I know are more beneficial. Or, would you recommend body weight training versus a weight machine? Maybe a little of both? Thanks again for your advice.
yes weight machines are fine.
Hey hopefully someone can help. I’m about to do this and yes I am a coffee fiend anyways but was wondering if the coffee you can have is plain? Or are you allowed skimmed milk? Just a wee question, everything else sounds fine 🙂
A little milk is fine, just don’t go overboard and turn it into a milkshake.
With this method, how can I lose as much as 10-15 pounds? My maintanance calories should be roughly 2000, and with only 800 a day, I should be burning approximately 1200 a day. Right? Or did I miss something?
EITHER WAY, I’M DOING THIS. Like, right now. Haha.