The BadZilla Free Diet: Lose 20lbs in 3 Months Without Counting a Single Calorie

Chances are at some time in your life you have been on a diet. Chances are the diet failed. It probably failed for a number of reasons: Boredom, effort to prepare special meals, effort to read through dry text books on the subject, or maybe even severe hunger.

I realised I needed to lose 20 pounds once I got to the stage an old friend I hadn't seen for a while mentioned that I was looking a little 'porky'. In fact, I was up to 203 - a lifetime high. To get back down to a more reasonable 182 pounds, my "fighting weight" I needed to diet. However, I did not like the idea of buying one of the fashionable books on the subject and religiously sticking to the arcane and obscure recipes contained in the book.

For a start, that would require the purchase of special ingredients and special preparation above and beyond the normal family meals. So, double the trouble. Secondly, I dislike the whole notion of dieting. If asked, I can just about manage a "I'm cutting down" but would never admit to being on a diet!

I needed a regime that wouldn't interfere with the other family members, that doesn't require faddish purchases and that doesn't require the onerous counting of calories. After a day or so's thought, I came up with the BadZilla Diet, stuck to it for 3 months and lost my 20 pounds. There were times when I was tempted to stray, but the reality of it is, this diet is relatively easy to stick to because there is little inconvenience and no additional food preparation.

Ok - so how does this work? Reproduced below is my formula for success. Later in this article I'll discuss each of the points in turn.

Stick to that and you should lose weight, although the usual caveats apply - firstly see a doctor before you embark upon a diet, and secondly your weight loss may vary depending upon your own starting point.

Ok so lets look at the diet in detail.

As the saying goes, only fat people skip breakfast. You can substitute fruit for my muesli but stricktly no chocolate flavoured cereals! I need a caffeine kick to get me going. If you eat too little, the diet will fail and you will snack. Therefore make sure you get a decent lunch inside you. Now whilst I say "deli-type" sandwich - don't take this to extreme. I mean a couple of sandiches with a filling and low-fat mayo, lettuce, tomato and cucumber. What filling you use is up to you, but if you use cheese, and can see teeth marks in it when you bite, then you are obviously taking too much. One slice of ham, thin slices of cheese, half a tin of tuna with low-fat mayo would be my choices. This is the good thing about this diet - you can eat the same as the rest of the family - only less of it! Downsize your plate, don't take second helpings, eat slowly and you with feel full. You may need some imagination with the 75% - if you have a burger and fries meal, then it is unrealistic to eat 75% of a burger. Cut the fries down to a small quantity you could feasibly count quickly if you were so motivated. The food you should be preparing is what I would consider to be regular "family" meals - e.g. spag-bol, chili, meat and two veg type meals. If your current diet consists of food at the junk end of the scale, you may find it more difficult to lose weight and an overhaul of your entire dietary needs should be undertaken. The sad fact is to lose weight calories in has got to be less than calories out. That can only be achieved by a combination of changes to the diet and exercise. By just cutting out the food, your metabolism will slow down to compensate and you will not burn any energy off. So with some exercise, weight loss will occur. I am recommending a 60 minute 'power walk' - which equates to four miles. If you have a sat-nav facility on your phone, you can use that to determine the distance covered, but it must be completed at a good clip rather than a gentle amble or there will be no gain. I finish off with a 10 minute stretch walking up a 1 in 6 incline, but if you don't have a steep hill handy, finish with 10 minutes of jogging instead. Your good work should not be undone with high-calorie drinks. I have a preference for barley water, but it is extremely acidic so clean your teeth after use or your tooth enamel will dissolve! What? A diet which recommends peanuts? Aren't they fattening? Well, if you are a horse or a cow, then yes. However, I don't believe too many of our equine or bovine chums will be reading this. Humans cannot digest peanuts so despite the fact they contain loads of protein, we can't break that down and they pass harmlessly through our system. In fact, they can be good for a diet to a certain extent - eat a packet and you will feel extremely bloated, thus removing hunger pangs. Don't over do them mind you - you don't want to be continually stuffed feeling uneasy due to peanut abuse. And categorically do not buy any of the coated varieties. They really are fattening!

Most of these are self-evident and don't need further expansion. The final points should be noted. If you tend to collapse in front of the TV at night, there will be enormous temptation to snack later in the evening. Try to keep yourself occupied with puzzles, crosswords, anything really to take your mind away from the diet. Don't watch cookery shows on TV! Don't keep anything in the house that can be nibbled on - try to ensure that all food needs some preparation time which will hopefully act as a deterrent from snacking.

Hopefully my diet will work for you. It worked well for me and fitted nicely with my circumstances. I found it relatively easy - there were times I was sorely tempted to raid the fridge, but I thankfully remained resolute. If you follow my guidlines you should see the sort of weight loss I achieved, but obviously your circumstances may be different. Let me know your success or failures, and armed with that, I will tailor my recommendations accordingly!