The Sacred Heart Diet: No Pain, You gain

The Sacred Heart Diet - (It's not what they showed in the brochure)

The sacred heart diet is basically an all out binge of Lipton vegetable soup that has next to no caloric content, not to mention fiber, protein and a host of other essential nutrients.

The plan simply calls for you get so full of soup that there's little to no room for anything else

And it's no cake walk either. It's a grind to the finish. Read on and you'll quickly see that the sacred heart diet a.k.a. the cabbage soup diet plan is what I call the "No pain, you gain" diet plan...

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In spite of what you've read, neither the Sacred Heart Memorial Hospital in Montreal Canada nor the American Heart Association advocate or promote the diet. I was told but no record of any patients have ever been prescribed the diet prior to surgery.

In fact back in 2004 the Sacred Heart Hospital became so publicly burdened that they felt it necessary to issue a press release stating that officially "no nutritionist at the Hospital has ever took part in the development of this diet."

Having said that the truth is...you will lose weight (of course it's water and lean muscle). Unfortunately, the diet is set up for failure. After the 7 days, you will gain it back...and then some. Unless of course you can maintain an 800 to 1000 calorie per day diet long term.

After 7 days of soup your tired and hungry. Even worse your metabolic rate has done sensed a 7 year famine, slows down to survival mode, and once you go back to eating....even eating healthy...you gain it all back. That has been the typical review.
On a positive not the sacred heart plan tries to make up for nutrient deficiencies periodically by adding a steak or potatoe one day. Bananas are also a thrown in on day 4.

But outside of those one time occurances, you're obsessively eating (drinking) soup, soup, and more soup. Some reviews offer suggestions below how to vary the recipe as well.

The Sacred Heart Diet:

Day 1 Any fruit (except bananas). Cantaloupes and watermelon are lower in calories than most other fruits. Eat only soup and fruit today.

Day 2 All vegetables. Eat until you are full with fresh raw, cooked or canned veggies. Try to eat green leafy veggies and stay away from dry beans, peas or corn. Eat veggies along with the soup. A baked potato and dinner time with butter. Don't eat any fruits through today.

Day 3 Eat all the soup, fruit and veggies you want. Do not have a baked potato.

Day 4 Bananas and skim milk: Eat at least 3 bananas and drink as much milk as you can today, along with the soup.

Day 5 Beef and tomatoes: you may have 10 to 20 ounces of beef and a can of tomatoes, or as many as 6 tomatoes on this day. Eat the soup at least once today.

Day 6 Beef and veggies, eat to your heart's content of the beef and veggies today. You can even have 2-3 steaks if you like with green leafy veggies but no baked potato. Be sure to eat the soup at least once today.

Day 7 Brown rice, unsweetened fruit juice and veggies, until full (and eat the soup). You can add cooked veggies to your rice if you wish.

Drinks permitted

Unsweetened juices
Tea (also herbal)
Coffee
Cranberry juice
Skim milk
Lots of water (8 glasses daily)

Soup Recipe

1 or 2 cans of stewed tomatoes
3 plus large green onions
1 large can of beef broth (no fat)
1 pkg. Lipton Soup mix (chicken noodle)
1 bunch of celery
2 cans Green beans
2 lbs. Carrots
2 Green Peppers

Season with salt, pepper curry, parsley, if desired, or bouillon, hot or Worcestershire sauce. Cut veggies in small to medium pieces. Cover with water. Boil fast for 10 minutes. Reduce to simmer and continue to cook until vegetables are tender.

Most reviews express mixed satisfaction of weight loss with the typical side effects:

"Headaches, nausea, dizziness, weakness, diaharea, and GAS!"

Again, the sacred heart diet reviews online are typically one sided. They all say the same thing as well. Such reviews usually paint a glorious, "pie in the sky" picture of the joy and ease of "shedding 14-17 pounds in just 7 days".

Here's the first line of a popular sacred heart "review":

"The Sacred Heart Diet will help you shed some serious pounds with great tasting foods that leave you feeling full and encouraged to follow through since it only lasts for 7 days!"

But that's not indicative of the typical user reviews I read. Most do lose weight intially. Yet at the same time they also reflect on some ailment or recurring side effect they endured due to the extreme lack of nutrients.

On day 4 the actual diet plan asks you to eat ("as much you can") a combination of a bunch of bananas and as much skim milk as you can take. This would mainly be due to the protein and postassium deficiency at that point of the diet.

Bananas and milk is an absolute perfect gas and diahrea recipe that I'm sure all your friends and family members will enjoy as well. Again, many user reviews have commented on this particular side effect.

Diet Reviews:

"This diet is obviously for those individuals who have 40+ pounds to lose and/or have done little or no exercise for fitness.

My wife and I have followed this diet to the "T". My wife has gained weight and I have not lost a pound. We both felt we needed to lose 10 to 15 pounds. However, we both exercise daily and usually walk 5 miles per day. Certainly, this is not a diet for us."

"It is still a difficult concept for most that weight loss comes from permanent, healthy changes in food choices, rather than becoming the occasional devotee of some WWII prisoner-of-war menu."