Cabbage Soup Diet: Results & Notes
It’s over. I’ve held my will and stuck with the diet over the last seven days and have the results to show for it. My colleagues and I were talking about it on the last day when I told them the preliminary results of the weigh in on day six. Needless to say, we were all very pleasantly surprised and a colleague of mine was encouraged to go on the diet as well.
Results
I weighed 96kg when scaled in on day one. The preliminary weigh in read 92.5kg on the scale. WL was sceptical about the results and stepped on the scale herself to make sure it wasn’t broken. It wasn’t. Between days one and six, I had lost 3.5kg. I weighed in again on the day after the diet.
| Initial Weight | 96kg |
| Final Weight | 92kg |
| Total Weight Loss | 4kg |
The diet predicts a weight loss of up to 10 pounds. 4kg is 8.8 pounds and is mighty close. WL and I were pleasantly surprised by the results. To be frank, I wasn’t expecting anything so significant as I didn’t look or feel any different. Truth of the matter is, the scale doesn’t lie.
Notes
Having stayed on the diet for seven days, here are some of my observations and notes:
- The cabbage soup diet is not suitable for people who don’t eat beef (or vegetarians in general). The diet calls for two days of beef and you’re allowed to replace one of those days with fish or chicken but not both. So you’ll have to eat at least one day of beef. Frankly speaking, I don’t see the significance or science behind the requirement to eat at least one day of red meat.
- The cabbage soup diet is not a very healthy way of losing weight. Yes, it’s a quick weight loss program but the reason is because the diet is so low on calories that you’ll be hard pressed NOT to lose weight and most of it is from water instead of fat. The diet doesn’t really change your eating habits and if you go back to the way you were eating before, chances are you’ll regain the weight. I’ll be monitoring myself for the next couple of weeks to see how much I regain (although I am planning to also cut back on my daily calorie intake).
- Lethargy and lack of concentration. You’re fooling yourself if you think the lack of calories will not have some side effects. The diet allows less than the daily required calorie intake of an average person. Without the energy, you’ll be running on fumes in no time and these are just two of the symptoms. Through the working week, lethargy sets in towards four in the evening.
- Bloatedness and gas. Another side effect of the diet. Worst day was day four with the bananas and milk.
Running Tab
I was keeping a running tab of the cost for each day of the diet. Here’s my overall cost for the seven days:
| Running Tab | |
| Grocery Item | Cost (RM) |
|---|---|
| Day 1 | |
| Fruits | |
| 4 Washington Granny Smith Green Apple | 7.20 |
| 1 South African Grapefruit | 1.60 |
| 1 China Golden Pear | 2.05 |
| Soup | |
| 2 Green Capsicums | 3.00 |
| 6 large Red Onions | 0.40 |
| 1 stick US Celery | 0.50 |
| 4 local tomatoes | 0.85 |
| 3 Carrots | 1.00 |
| Black Mushrooms | 1.50 |
| 1/2 head of Cabbage | 1.40 |
| Total | 19.50 |
| Day 2 | |
| Vegetables & Baked Potato | |
| 1 bunch of Mustard Greens | 0.80 |
| 1 Japanese Cucumber | 0.70 |
| 1 big US Potato | 0.80 |
| Total | 2.30 |
| Day 3 | |
| Vegetables & Fruits | |
| Lunch Vegetables from the economy rice stall | 1.50 |
| 1 Slice Pineapple | 1.00 |
| 1 Washington Granny Smith Green Apple | 1.80 |
| 1/4 Seedless Watermelon | 3.10 |
| Total | 7.40 |
| Day 4 | |
| Skim Milk & Bananas | |
| 1 Dutch Lady Low Fat Milk 1L | 4.30 |
| 8 Bananas | 1.60 |
| Total | 5.90 |
| Day 5 | |
| Beef & Tomatoes | |
| 316g (11.11 ounces) Australian Beef | 11.05 |
| 350g Cherry Honey Tomatoes | 3.90 |
| Soup | |
| 1/2 Green Capsicum | 0.75 |
| 1 Local Tomato | 0.20 |
| Black Mushrooms | 0.60 |
| 1/6 head of Cabbage | 0.45 |
| 2 Large Red Onions | 0.15 |
| 1 stick US Celery | 0.50 |
| 1 Carrot | 0.35 |
| 1 Sachet Bak Kut Teh | 2.00 |
| Total | 19.95 |
| Day 6 | |
| Beef & Vegetables | |
| Grilled Sirloin Steak | 17.90 |
| Italiannies Grilled Strip Steak (+tax) | 51.65 |
| Total | 69.55 |
| Day 7 | |
| Brown Rice, Fruit Juice & Vegetables | |
| Lunch Vegetables from the economy rice stall | 1.60 |
| 1 Local Tomato | 0.25 |
| 1/2 Green Pepper | 0.75 |
| Remaining leaves of cabbage | 0.10 |
| 1 Lemon | 1.00 |
| 1 cup Brown Rice | 1.00 |
| Total | 4.70 |
| Grand Total | 129.30 |
RM129.30 for the entire week. Pretty economical considering that I had a steak dinner in there. It’s not that much more expensive than a normal week’s meals.
Overall, you can’t deny the results of the diet. However, we’ll have to see in the coming weeks in order to determine the effectiveness. Losing weight is one thing. Keeping it off is a totally different story altogether.
Related posts:
Cabbage Soup Diet: One Month Later
Cabbage Soup Diet: Day 7 - Soup, Brown Rice, Fruit Juice & Vegetables
Cabbage Soup Diet - Cabbage Soup Recipe
Cabbage Soup Diet: Day 4 - Soup, Skim Milk & Bananas
Cabbage Soup Diet: Day 2 - Soup, Vegetables & A Baked Potato Reward
Marilyn Goodwin Said,
September 20, 2009 @ 11:01 pm
This is a dangerous way to try to lose weight. You are missing out on essential vitmains, Minerals, and the rest. It is so restrictive and it is not sustainable. Try Marilyn’s Plan Now that is a hell of a lot nicer and easier to do than this. I also have well respected Doctor to back me up. Not everyone is able to buy all these foods and not everyone like cabbage. I would rather eat my way across my front lawn than be on this silly diet.