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Scarsdale Diet
The Scarsdale Diet was a famous book written in the 1970s. Dr Herman Tarnower ran a clinic in the town of Scarsdale, and (like so many other doctor-designed plans) created the diet for overweight patients.
The book has always been a huge seller, and is still popular today.
Low Fat, High Protein
The Scarsdale Diet has a peculiar nutrient ratio – the only diet exactly like this. It contains 43% protein, 22.5% fat, and 34.5% carbohydrate.
Dr Tarnower claims this level of diet brings about the process of ketosis. Indeed the diet is low calorie (about 1000 per day), and has very strict rules during the first two weeks. After the first phase, the calorie limit is lifted a little (the “keep-trim” program).
The supposed weight loss is 20 pounds (9kg) in just 14 days.
Scarsdale Meal Plan
| Breakfast 1/2 grapefruit slice of wholemeal toast (no spreads or butter) coffee (no sugar or milk) Lunch Dinner Drinks |
Scarsdale Diet Issues
Like many diets of this kind – the calorie recommendations are too low. While weight loss will occur, it is neither healthy, or sustainable in the long-term.
See Also
The Complete Scarsdale Diet which retails for $7.99.
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I am just about to start tomarrow and bought all the ingredients today. I have about 55 lbs to lose total but thought this was a great way to jumpstart my diet and healthy eating. I was wondering if adding exercise would help lose more or with some diets it doesn’t seem to make a difference. I work 12 hour shifts so squeezing them in would be hard but if it would really help I will do it. If anyone knows, I’d love to hear it. Thanks!
Today is the second day since i’ve been on this diet, and i’ve lost 1.5 pounds which to me was really unbelievable! Love this diet
hello from the heart of Dixie USA. yes, this diet definitely works. tried it many years ago along with my mother and brother. we lost so much!! yes, the breath thing is yukky but just keep you a little spray breath stuff in your pocket. also, the note about buying the book is so important. when we first began i had a copy of only the daily menus. even that was an improvement over the way we normally eat here in the deep south. i was raised on cornbread, fatback, biscuits, potatoes, sausage, gravy, fried catfish, hushpuppies, homemade custard ice cream, syrupy sweet iced tea and i didn’t wear it well!!! needless to say, when i got the book and read it through, we had made several mistakes, but even then had lost many pounds. when we really got on track, it was astonishing. try it. stick to it as closely as humanly possible and you will shock yourself. do the full two weeks, then the next two recommended. you can’t fail if you follow it like a prescription. and that is really what it is. a prescription for weight loss, for huge energy, for GOOD HEALTH. i wonder who it killed?? never heard that one before!! unless you have a serious medical condition {check with MS first!} you have nothing to lose but{t} fat. show it to your MD anyway. i would bet he will give you a quick go-ahead!!!
This diet really works and I lost a stone in two weeks despite having a couple of new potatoes with the evening meal, a glass of red wine at the weekend and ceasar salad dressing (not much!). At no time did I feel ill or hungry, in fact I felt energised.
I first did the diet in 1980 and go back on it everytime I feel the weight creeping back on. Funnily enough the diet is virtually identical in principle to the ideas in the new book ‘The Diabetic Revolution’ which my husband has just bought for himself.
I stillwalked my dog for 7 miles a day and worked out on my rowing machine whilst on the diet but ate an extra slice of granary bread if I felt weak.
Good luck.
I followed this diet (if not to the letter, in principle, at least) and lost 60 pounds–and kept it off for 20 years. I credit the diet a lot; however, I also did a daily exercise routine to help with weight loss and toning as I lost weight. Because of the exercise, I probably always ate a bit more calorie-wise, but anything I ate was in keeping with the diet’s principles and I never over-consumed the simple carbohydrates. Unfortunately, I gained weight again during midlife while going through some very stressful times. Now I am back to the Scarsdale Diet principles — and exercise — to lose again. I have about 25 pounds to go. My exercise routine is 90-minute walk (and/or 40 minutes on a stationary bike) 6x a week, 30-minute calisthenics/pilates-like workout 5x a week, plus 20-minutes with arm weights 3x a week. Oh, and I do the Wii Fit sometimes, too.
I love the diet, the only part I have a problem with is the no drinking!
Ive tried this diet a couple of months ago and I can definately swear by it… People say with “fad diets” you just gain all the weight back.. NOT TRUE! you only gain the weight back if you go back to your old junk food eating habits. I lost a total of I believe 9-10lbs and kept it off for a goood while..I am getting back onto the diet because I want to lose another 10lbs for my birthday! wish me luck!
-lah
This diet works. I first tried it in 1977 and I lost 14 lbs in 14 days. That was my goal and I maintained that weight pretty much for 25 years.I just ate and drank sensibly and weighed myself regualrly. If i went up a couple of lbs then two days back on the diet and evrything was ok.
This is not the full diet or at least not the one I followed 20+ years ago. The meal plan shown above looks like just a sample of one of the 7 day plan. Each day had a different meals. I also remember there being a suggestion for Protein Bread instead of Wholemeal Bread. I followed the orginal diet and lost a lot of weight and kept it off for several years. However, I was exercising daily(bike riding) and did not return to the eating habits that caused the weight gain in the first place. I was told that the Scarsdal Diet is not a diet one should stick to for very long periods of time because it could result in kidney problems. I followed it for a few months without any problems. It is important to eat exactly what the plan suggest. It’s the combination of the foods listed that cause the wieght loss.
I have done this diet many times and it works. Only thing when we moved my book was mis layed.
The Breakfast was the same every day for 14 days but I know that Lunch and dinner was different every day for 7 days and then it was repeated for the other 7 days. Has any one got the origanal diet?
my mother did this diet back in the 70′s. She lost so much weight. It was the best thing for her. I seem to remember her making cabbage, lamb and hamburger patties. what is the original menu?
Hello all …this is my stsuccess story with scarsdale ,i am 47 years old and i have 3 childeren ,i did scarsdale during the 70s when i was 17 i started with 210 and i lost 50 lbs in just 4 months and during the 3 something years and after i got pregnant 3 times i only regained 20 lbs ,and today iam back to my great life style diet scarsdale no diet no plan worked for me like this one,,so wish me luck and good luck all
…love cammey .
well i typed some words wrong way so i meant success story>>>and i meant 30 years not 3 years ,,,couldnt have 3 kids in 3 years looool ..sorry about that.
I have done this diet when I was much younger and lost 20lbs in 2wks and doing it now after having babies and still lost weight which is great. I love it, I have to say I tryed many and this is the only one that ever worked.
With this diet how much exercise is needed ?
Hey James- no exercise is needed as the calorie count is so low you will lose weight without exercise. This sounds like a lie but it is true. You will probably not have much energy for much anyway, but if you feel up for it and want to do some to speed up results you can- just be prepared not to be able to do much.
I was put on the scarsdale diet by my famiy doctor. He monitored me very carefully. He also gave me vitamin B-12 by injection. This helped with my energy, or lack of it. I was also given a sheet with a oneweek diet plan. You are right, the morning meal was always the same, but the other meals were different. I would follow the same plan for two weeks. then go off for two weeks and start over. It really worked. Unfortunatly I no longer have my copy, and my doctor passed away. How do we get the “original” diet plan. Will someone post it, if they have a copy? Thank You!…SAMM
Hi, I’m 30 and in pretty good shape. 5’7”, I was 148 pounds on Monday (2 days ago). Had a child in 2003, prior to the pregnancy I weighed 133 lbs. After the pregnancy, went up to 170 and stayed there until I worked it out, down to 135. Since then, I went through a difficult phase and ate great food (restaurant 3 times a day), few cups of wine with the suppers. Went back up to 158 lbs and was stuck there. After working out intensely for 2 months (P90X, very brutal), I was fit as hell and down to 145. But I have been unable to get myself down back to 140 and I lost my motivation to work out. If I can get down to 140, I’ll start working out again for fun and to keep the weight off. I completed 3 full days of this diet (by the book) with my mother and survived (only cheated once by adding a banana to my morning half grapefruit!) I will check my weight on Friday since it would be too discouraging to not see a weight change after all the diet limitations. Funny thing is, I’m getting used to this and I have an incredible boost of energy (that is since today; yesterday, I was ready to faint, fruits for lunch??!!). I’ll give you more feedback at the end of the week! I’m only doing this for a week since I have always been slightly anemic. After that, I’ll continue to eat well and workout! Good luck to all of you! Just for the energy level and the mental alertness, it is worth the try!
Pat
Since starting this diet on monday [dec7th] I have more energy then I ever have, which I didn’t think was possible. And my craving pangs for sweets and all that other junk is slowly decreasing whenever I want a sweet, I just get some veggies or fruits and i`m satisfied. I haven’t weighed myself I will either do it on Friday or at the end of my diet. Wish me luck.!
I just started this diet on Monday and am hoping for good results. It is encouraging hearing these success stories. I have a good 50lbs to lose and the incentive of a trip to Hawaii in 3 months. I am hoping to stick to this diet until then and look beach ready. I am wanting to incorporate exercise but don’t know where to begin with that. Any suggestions please!
I have been on many many diets in my life. I am now 43 years old and had a weight problem since school. This diet is the most amazing diet I have ever encountered. I lost 5kilogram in the 2 weeks. Took a break for about a month over the december holiday season and ate everything that was wrong. I’ve put on 2 kilos again but started the diet a week ago and already lost 3.2kilos. I’m only about 2 kilos away from my goal weight. I will never follow another diet again. I tell all my friends about it.
My wife and I found the Scarsdale medical diet in a thrift store, read over it and decided to buy and try it. I too have been on many diets and worked out and jogged in my life and found this to be the best program I have ever seen ! on our first try we both lost 10 lbs in the first week and then about 5 the next week. We didn’t take the break and stayed on it for along time, the only think that I noticed was feeling a lot better being less heavy and having a LOT more energy !
We have gone on the diet several times since, now we do change some things to adopt to our lifestyles and yes I guess cheat in that we use low fat salad dressing, fruit for breakfast not just grapefruit and I even drink Coors light beer and still loose weight !
We now make this a way of eating in our life even when not on it and it is truly the most incredible, best eating diet we have ever been on. We actually eat much much more healthy on this diet then when not on it ..
I totally recommend this diet over any I have tried or heard of .. looked at the Atkins but I refuse to put bacon fat etc into my body and cant see how that can be worth losing a bit of weight .
One more thing, with the chicken if we buy real chicken we always remove all the fat and skin from the chicken and by adding somthing like Cavenders greek seasons or Montreal steak spice it is delicious ! and believe me .. we will buy 3 bags of chicken legs and thights, by the time you remove the skin and fat and then pick up 2 hands full of this fat .. you will not want to ever eat the skin again ~ and don’t need it ..
So have said enough but just try it and stick with it for the 2 weeks, should call this a Miracle diet !
just started yesterday. snacking is the hard part. but this is a breeze. i just came off the master cleanse two weeks ago. i could only do it for 4 days. that was HELL. this is a much better route seeing that you can actually EAT!
BREAKFAST – The same every day: One half grapefruit, one slice dry protein toast, coffee or tea.
MONDAY – Lunch: Lean cold cuts, tomato slices, coffee or tea. Dinner: Broiled fish, salad, one slice toast, grapefruit, coffee or tea.
TUESDAY – Lunch: Fruit salad (any kind and as much as you like). Dinner: Plenty of steak, tomatoes, lettuce, celery, olives, brussels sprouts or cucumbers, coffee or tea.
WEDNESDAY – Lunch: Tuna fish or salmon salad with lemon and vinegar, grapefruit, coffee or tea. Dinner: Two lamb chops, celery, cucumbers, tomatoes, coffee or tea.
THURSDAY – Lunch: Cold chicken, raw or cooked spinach, coffee or tea. Dinner: Two eggs, cottage cheese, cooked cabbage, one piece protein toast, coffee or tea.
FRIDAY – Lunch: Assorted cheese slices, raw or cooked spinach, one piece protein toast, coffee or tea. Dinner: Broiled fish, salad (as many vegetables as desired), one piece protein toast, coffee or tea.
SATURDAY – Lunch: Fruit salad, coffee or tea. Dinner: Cold chicken, tomatoes, grapefruit, coffee or tea.
SUNDAY – Lunch: Hot or cold chicken, tomatoes, carrots, cooked cabbage or broccoli or cauliflower, grapefruit, coffee or tea. Dinner: Plenty of steak, celery, cucumbers or brussels sprouts, tomatoes, coffee or tea.
In addition, the diet provides an alternative meal to be substituted for any lunch. It consists of one-half cup low fat pot cheese, one tablespoon low-fat sour cream with sliced fruit, six walnuts or pecans and a diet drink.
I have done this diet a few times and I lost 17-20lbs in a 2 weeks period, each time. I haven’t however done the maintenance diet for 2 weeks in between. I do find that I really like it and luckily for me, I really like what he offers you to eat. The only issue I had was not putting any cream in my coffee. I am going to start this diet again in a few days and I am trying to get off coffee altogether so the diet will be easier. My only warning is that you can’t maintain this diet very long and if you don’t change your overall eating habits and start exercising, you WILL gain it back. I would recommend this diet for a quick fix to losing weight for a special event like a vacation. Either way, I still love it!
I am about to start this diet tomorrow so lets hope this works. I want to lose about 30-40lbs. Is it ok if I do this diet for moe than 2weeks, say for more than a month or do I need to take a break?
Shelly- you won’t be able to do it for a month (you will be sooo drained). You can do the second 2 weeks of it though which just means that you can eat anything the diet normally allows but whenever you want and you can add things like no sugar added jellies and some other fancier things. I would say if you do the two weeks (and make it through) then eat what is allowed but incorporate a bit more calories and food than you were doing during the first 2 weeks you will still lose more weight but just not as high amounts. Good luck to you!
hey, i am about to start this diet.i just had a baby a year ago and im still putting alot of weight on just cant stop eating lol. well love to get my figure back hope this deit works for me start tommorrow.
I love this eating plan. I have used it before, and now that I am going thru some “hormone changes” ( I am 52), I needed some extra help to stay on track. Don’t know why I didn’t do this sooner. I went on this for 2 weeks, and lost 12 pounds. I couldn’t even eat everything it posted for each day. I really don’t like grapefruit, so I sub with bananas, fresh strawberries, and fresh pears each day. I have more energy now than before. Now I am ready for my Keep trim “2 weeks”. But I can’t wait to go back on the actual plan. I also don’t like alot of meat, so I only eat half of what it says. Its also fun to weigh yourself every few days. Keeps me honest. Try this, you will love it, and be amazed!!