What Is the Military Diet? A Detailed Beginner’s Guide

The military diet — sometimes called the soldier diet — is a three-day, very low calorie eating plan intended for rapid weight loss.

“The three-day military diet markets itself [saying you’ll] lose 10 pounds (lb) in one week,” says Julie Rothenberg, RD, a licensed dietitian-nutritionist and the owner of JuliENERGYnutrition in Miami.

It’s considered a three-day diet because it involves very strict calorie limits for three days, followed by four days when you can eat slightly more calories.

Despite its name, the military diet has no connection with the military and doesn’t follow any dietary principles used in the armed services. Instead, the diet’s name comes from the idea that extreme calorie restriction requires persistence when the going gets tough.

Some say the popular diet can help you drop weight fast. But it can also have health risks, and maintaining your weight loss might be a challenge. In fact, fad diets like the military diet may even lead you to gain more weight than you initially lost.

• Day 1: 1,400 calories for women; 1,500 calories for men
• Day 2: 1,200 calories for women; 1,300 calories for men
• Day 3: 1,100 calories for women; 1,200 calories for men

Some people participate in the military diet on an occasional basis, while others might do three days on and four days off for a month at a time.

Advocates may suggest that the biggest benefit of this type of diet is its potential for short-term weight loss.

“Weight loss is a result of taking in fewer calories than your body needs daily,” says Vanessa Imus, RDN, of Integrated Nutrition for Weight Loss in Bothell, Washington. “Cutting calories by an excessive amount, typically beyond 500 calories per day, can result in more rapid weight loss, but it also tends to be less sustainable.”

The catch here is that you also need to exercise and make some permanent lifestyle changes to maintain the effects — and no evidence suggests that the military diet leads to sustainable healthy habits that result in permanent weight loss.

It may be difficult to keep weight off in the long term by following a prescribed diet plan like the military diet.

Calorie restriction — like the kind promoted by the military diet — can lead to weight loss. But the reality might not live up to the hype around this eating plan.

Some proponents of the military diet claim it can cause weight loss of up to 30 lb in a month. While theoretically possible, this is unlikely. It would require an extreme calorie deficit that’s achievable only through extreme (and unhealthy) calorie deprivation or extreme levels of exercise.

Talk with your doctor or a registered dietitian if you need help creating a sustainable, effective weight loss plan.

The greatest short-term risks of losing weight too quickly, which the military diet claims it can help people do, are the health effects that may result.

Calorie recommendations and minimums will differ for each person, however, based on factors like sex, body weight, activity level, and more. It’s best to speak with a doctor or dietitian to create a low-calorie diet that’s right for you.

Another short-term risk is that restrictive diets like the military diet may lead to binge eating.

“Over-restricting calories can lead to binge eating habits, where when someone goes off the restrictive diet, they start eating all the foods they were denying themself and in large amounts, leading to rapid weight regain,” says Imus.

While the military diet primarily focuses on restricting calories, it also encourages eating and avoiding certain foods.

Top 10 Foods to Eat

1. Bananas
2. Carrots
3. Coffee
4. Eggs
5. Grapefruit
6. Greek yogurt (unsweetened)
7. Green beans
8. Meat
9. Peanut butter
10. Tuna

Top 10 Foods to Limit or Avoid

1. Alcohol
2. Artificial sweeteners (except for stevia)
3. Butter
4. Creamer
5. Fruit juice
6. Milk
7. Oranges
8. Soda
9. Sugar (except in full-fat ice cream or in the form of natural sweeteners like honey and organic maple syrup)
10. Yogurt (except for unsweetened Greek varieties)

Consider these tips if you’ve decided to give the soldier diet a try.

1. Keep Expectations Realistic

You may lose weight on the military diet, but remember that, as a fad diet, it’s unlikely to keep weight off in the long term. “Anyone on this diet should have a plan of how and when they will transition from this diet to a healthier way of eating and know what that will look like,” says Imus.

2. Balance Your Macros

Even when you’re cutting calories, it’s still important to get the nutrients you need. Rothenberg recommends a balance of healthy carbohydrates, lean proteins, and healthy fats for every meal.

3. Listen to Your Body

The drastic calorie restriction of a soldier diet could have some unpleasant side effects. “I would advise someone on this diet to pay attention to how they are feeling,” Imus says. “If they start getting lightheaded, dizzy, nauseous, or fatigued, then they should consider an alternative way to lose weight.”

4. Be Prepared for Challenge

This eating plan isn’t called the military diet for nothing. It requires serious discipline, so be prepared for the challenge of eating significantly less than you likely do now.

5. Stick to Only Light Exercise

Overdoing it on exercise might sound like it would speed up weight loss, but Imus says high levels of activity could be too taxing during the diet’s calorie-restriction phase: “I would advise only light exercises, if any at all, while they are on the three-day super restrictive part of the plan.”

• The military diet (aka the soldier diet) involves restricting calories below 1,400 for women and 1,500 for men for three days, then finishing the week with four days of about 1,500 calories each.
• It also encourages eating certain foods (like bananas, eggs, meat, and tuna) and avoiding others (like artificial sugars, alcohol, and butter).
• Experts say it can lead to rapid weight loss, but it probably isn’t a sustainable, long-term eating plan.