I need an idiot-proof, cheap and effective crash diet

[GreenTeapot]

I've posted about my impending wedding elsewhere - arranged at very short notice - and I've been ordering tons of dresses online. I've found one which seems perfect and I love it, and it's under £100, but it wasn't until after it arrived and I could only partially do up the zip that I looked online at reviews which all complain about the tiny sizing. No problem except they're sold out of the next size up!

So I have 7 weeks and 2 days to shrink myself. I am crap at diets but this is different! Help!

You need something sensible, non-faddy and achievable. I wouldn't call the little black dress diet a crash diet but I got good results from it a few years ago in a similar timeframe. Has good advice about fluid / bloating elimination etc.

I really wouldn't take the chance to be honest. The likelyhood is that you could lose a dress size in that time but how awful if you didn't and you were left with a wasted dress. Resell it and buy another one that fits. If you do lose weight you can have it adjusted.

But Angry, 7 weeks is easily time to lose a stone sensibly, so surely I could lose a bit more than that?

I'll look at that black dress diet too, thanks.

I'll be gutted if I have to write this one off, it's the only one which is kind to my dreadful belly without being shapeless :(

I would recommend WeightWatchers or similar, 2 lb a week is not hard to achieve if you stick to it and do some exercise and it'll mean you're getting a balanced diet (well it will if you eat sensibly, it is possible to do it eating crap but obviously not ideal!) I would worry that anything which limits you too much could mean that you lose weight but your skin looks awful or something, on your wedding day you want to be looking good all over, not just thinner!

Rosemary Conley does a lose a stone in a month diet (can buy book on amazon etc) - lovely recipes and low fat, sensible food with plenty of veg, fish etc. More than achievable!

Right. Good. I have access to a gym and pool (but very little time) and there's a Wii Fit gathering dust in the corner. Rosemary Conley may be good, I have one of her DVDs and it's fab. I'm a fat wench anyway so if I bite the bullet it should come off fairly easily to start with. Trying to work up some enthusiasm!

How much do you weigh now?

Er ... 13st 12lb

I think you should be able to lose a dress size easily enough.

Eat less, move more, drink plenty of water. Don't weigh yourself every day, and keep away from alcohol.

Right (sorry to be so nosey ), that makes a difference - if you were stressing about being 8 stone instead of wanting to be 7, then the advice would be very different!

You say you're crap at diets - what do you mean? I think most of us are pretty crap at diets (just look at any of the threads here and you'll get my drift!), and it's most often because you feel deprived, or you start something too punitive and try to do too much/expect too much too soon.

From my experience, if you're wanting to shift a substantial amount of weight in a short period of time, without feeling deprived, then a low carb diet is definitely the way to go. They key thing about LC is that you eat a lot more food than you would expect, so you are less likely to feel deprived - you won't be hungry for a start. None of those gnawing pangs at around 11.00, meaning that you end up reaching for the biscuits!

Lots of people can lose easily 7-10lbs in the first two weeks, especially if they are larger to start with. In weeks 3-5 weight loss will slow, possibly stop, but thereafter will continue at the more usual 1-2lbs per week.

The only real issue is that, to do it properly, you need to take a phased approach, so that you gradually re-introduce (some) carbs back into your diet. If you go from extreme low carbing back to your normal diet, you will suddenly pile 4-5lbs back on, which you won't be wanting to do!

The best book I can recommend you to read is India Knight/Neris Thomas's The Idiot Proof Diet (and get the recipe book that goes with it too). It has three phases. The first phase lasts for 14 days, and is the most strict (although you will still be able to eat lovely food that means you will not feel that you're on a diet!). The book gives you a day-by-day 'guide' - and it talks about your psychological motivation as well as more practical stuff.

HTH - and good luck!

Thanks for that BIWI - my only worry there is that I (TMI coming, sorry in advance) have nether region problems thanks to the ravages of childbearing, and I need my wholemeal bread each day in order to maintain undercarriage happiness. Would I have to go without that?

I agree low carbing is the way to go.

I haven't read the India Knight book (however read the extracts in the Sunday Times a couple of years ago when the book came out) however I think the Dukan diet is very easy as well.

The Dukan site here is very good - you put in some info and it comes up with how long you need to follow the diet for to achieve x amount of weightloss.

It is very simple to follow - you are not restricted on how mych you can eat, as lonmg as you eat the correct foods.

I think you can easily lose a stone or more in 6 or 7 weeks. Go for it.

Two years ago I lost 16 lbs in two months just following weight watchers. I say "following weight watchers." Actually, I went to the library checked out a bunch of their cookbooks and then assigned myself 28 points a day! (This is the old points system.) If I had properly joined, they would have told me to stick to 21 points a day. I probably would have failed at that because I would have been too hungry. I went on to loose a total of 25 lbs. Things slowed down after the first 6 wks though. (I started at about 12 stone 8lbs.)

I am rambling here. I think you can definitely loose a stone in 7 weeks and probably don't need a "crash" diet to do it. In fact 7 weeks is a long time to stay on a "crash" diet. You might be more successful with something more balanced since you have a long haul.

Finally, as a "just in case", it might be worth finding an alterations specialist for the dress. There may be enough fabric in the seam allowances to let it out and give you the breathing room you need.

GreenTeapot

My undercarriage has never been unhappy on low carbing ...

IME/O you are only likely to have a problem if

a) you aren't getting your allowable carbs in the form of vegetables/salad leaves. Too often people leap into low carbing and start to use their initial low carb allowance on things like processed foods/low carb substitutes. If you stick to good quality meat/fish and add lots of green veg and/or salad to your plate, you will keep your carbs lower as well as maintain a good fibre intake

b) you aren't drinking enough water. This can be a key cause of constipation, even if you aren't low carbing

And if it's still an issue, maybe you could consider Charles Clarke's approach - The High Protein Diet which, despite its name, is actually low carbing. He advocates a higher daily amount of carbs (around 60g I think, as opposed to 20g in the first two weeks of Atkins), and you are allowed a slice of wholemeal bread every day. The only downside I can imagine (as I haven't followed his diet) is that the initial weight loss could be less than if you are on the more severe first two week phase that Atkins and The Idiot Proof Diet recommend.

Thanks, these posts are all helpful.

I need to have a research and an investigate and decide on a plan of attack. I shall be thin less fat!

grrenteapot - i couldn't do the india knight diet due to similar issues to you, just got horribly constipated even with psyllium husk and loads of veggies and water and as have had long standing anal fissure need to be very careful. I found that dukan worked for me - the oatbran keeps me happy and i did not do the protein only days - have protein and veggies every day.