I have three types of arthritis, and take a cocktail of medication, so conventional diet plans just don't work for me. Because of my health issues, any diet plan I follow must meet with the approval of my doctor. The Cabbage Soup Diet is Heaven Sent for me: I love all soups,and I adore fruit and vegetables. With my doctor's advice, I have evolved a version of the diet which produces 7 - 10lb weight loss in a week. Also, the diet boosts my metabolism, so I continue to lose 1 - 2 lb a week after my Cabbage Soup Week. This is what works for me - try it for yourself.
The Cabbage Soup is made with a green cabbage, 5 carrots, 5 sticks of celery, 5 onions, one red and one green pepper, a cup of brown rice, a 400gm tin of plum or chopped tomatoes, water and seasonings. I use chopped tomatoes with herbs, and fresh parsley, Worcester Sauce and 3 Oxo cubes, plus freshly ground black pepper. When the soup is cooked, (after about 1 hour) I blend one third of it, then return to the main soup mix. This thickens the soup without adding calories, making for a heartier soup.
The classic Cabbage Soup diet is as follows: Unlimited soup every day, plus 125ml skimmed milk for drinks, or 1 pot of low fat yogurt daily. Have as much soup as you want each day, plus the following. Day 1 is fruit - anything except bananas, as much as you like. Day 2 is veg - almost any veg, plus a large jacket potato. Day 3 is fruit and veg , but no potatoes. Day 4 is up to 6 bananas, plus 2 pints of milk. Day 5 is unlimited chicken plus tomatoes. Day six is fish (salmon, tuna, sardines or other oily fish) plus veg . Day 7 is fruit and veg . Only follow the diet for one week in four. Drink tea or coffee with milk from allowances, water, fruit juice and diet drinks. No alcohol.
My doctor considered the diet, replete with fruit and vegetables, was good for patients with chronic conditions, but he felt some protein should be included each day. I adapted the diet by omitting the bananas and milk day. I have 3 bananas a week, but dispense with the 2 pints of milk. So I can have a chicken breast, fish or jacket potato each day without compromising weight loss. These modifications also make the diet easier to stick to. After all, if you can't stick to a diet - any diet - you're not going to lose weight, are you?
To accompany chicken or jacket potato, I cook an assortment of vegetables - broccoli, cauliflower, courgettes, mushrooms, beans, for example - and then toss them in a tomato-based pasta sauce with herbs. This makes a substantial and tasty main meal. I make my own coleslaw, with cabbage, onions, carrots and low fat yogurt, to serve with jacket potatoes. Add curry powder to ring the changes. I make a huge fruit salad and a bowl of crudites to store in the fridge for nibbles at any time. For a satisfying breakfast, poach mushrooms and peppers in water seasoned with black pepper and Worcester Sauce. Add chopped tomatoes, heat and serve.
The great thing about the Cabbage Soup Diet is that you never need to feel hungry, though by the end of the week you'll be sick of the soup. Try it, and watch the pounds disappear!
