I ran across this list (below) the other day and it made me laugh. We humans really are strange creatures; sometimes we will resort to absolutely insane levels in order to avoid hard work. We all know that the best way to lose weight is to make better food choices and move more and I would highly doubt that this is new information. Yet many of us would rather resort to stinky breath and starvation just in case THIS is the ‘diet’ that holds the key to the eternal perfect body – seriously people SWALLOWED TAPEWORMS! Check these out…
The Fletcherism diet
The Fletcherism diet is defined as “the practice of eating small amounts and only when hungry,” according to Merriam-Webster.com. It also refers to the act of thoroughly chewing one’s food. The diet was made popular by a San Francisco art dealer, Horace Fletcher, who was known for chewing each mouthful of food 32 times or until is liquefied.
Ok, obviously we should eat small amounts and only when hungry. THAT part I have no problem with; but chewing my food until it’s liquefied – ugh no thanks!
Sleeping Beauty diet
The Sleeping Beauty diet was a method reportedly used by Elvis Presley. People who followed the diet went under heavy sedation so they could sleep off the pounds.
Cabbage soup diet
The cabbage soup diet is just that, eating nothing but cabbage soup for a week straight. The diet boasts fast results, but critics say the soup alone doesn’t have enough nutrients to ensure the body can properly function.
I don’t think I’ve tried this ‘diet’ myself but I’m pretty sure that my mom did back in the 80’s. Tell you what – cabbage smells awful. Next
Hallelujah diet
Bringing it back to the days of the Bible, the Hallelujah diet entails people eating the “garden foods God instructs man to eat,” including mostly raw, plant-based foods, according to WebMD.com.
Frankly, this sounds kind of right on track (unless, like me, you can’t stand the idea of NEVER EATING ANOTHER STEAK AGAIN nope, sorry). I’ve never heard it called the ‘Hallelujah’ diet though around here they call it the ‘Daniel Diet’
Tapeworm diet
Popular in the early 20th century, the tapeworm diet involved its participants ingesting the parasite, which was usually sold in pill-form, in the hopes of losing a lot of weight very quickly.
Sorry, nope, I can’t even address this one – well except for sharing the awesome advertisement (above) for ‘Lard-B-Gone * Now with live tapeworm eggs!*
Vinegar diet
One of the first well-known diet methods was this one, made popular in 1820 by Lord Byron. The diet consists of drinking water mixed with apple cider vinegar.
Now, I know a lot of people swear by apple cider vinegar mixed with water to assist with weight loss so unless this was ALL Lord Byron was ingesting I’d say this one might not be such a bad idea.
Nicotine diet
Also known as the cigarette diet, this one became popular in the middle of the 20th century, when cigarette companies began promoting cigarettes as a tool for weight loss.
Oh, you’ll lose weight all right; illness and death will do that to ya. (if any of my readers are smokers; I know it’s hard but please stop – we love you too much to pretend like it’s not bad for you)
Grapefruit diet
The idea behind the grapefruit diet is that by eating the fruit before every meal it helps a person burn fat and lose weight faster. However, according to WebMD.com, grapefruit doesn’t actually burn fat.
Master cleanse
Created by author Stanley Burroughs and made popular in the 1940s, the master cleanse is where a person doesn’t eat any food and only consumes a liquid mixture of cayenne pepper, fresh-squeezed lemon juice, maple syrup and water.
Okay I admit, I did this one and I DID lose weight – until my daughter brought a friend over the next week and we made cookies together. Then it was a free for all and I gained back MORE. Plus, I slept ALL OF THE TIME while I was starving myself.
Now I want to hear from you. Go to the comments (below or on our Facebook page) and tell us about the crazy diets that you have tried.