Since the day I was born there have been mystical soup diets whispered in between meals by desperate people willing to try anything to shave off that muffin top. Never did I think I would ever, ever try one… how wrong was I.
Isha had been talking about the Sacred Heart Soup Diet for sometime, and as much as I’d try to ignore it, the thought of losing all that weight in so little time was really appealing. I won’t lie to you. The diet is horrible. It sucks. Two days of not eating properly feels like a life time for a foodie. So the first time we tried the diet, we fought and bickered on the second day, were too hungry to speak on the third day, and gave up on the fifth. I lost 10 pounds.
Since then, we’ve pretty much mastered the diet, and have even given it our own twist. We’ve modernized the cooking methods, added a few herbs and spices (all allowed) making it that much more bearable. Ish and I have done this diet so many times now that we can buy all the ingredients without a grocery list, chop all the veg with our eyes closed, and follow the cooking process without a single doubt.
Now a word of caution. It’s claims of losing 10 to 20 pounds in a single week are true… however that’s where it’s legendary status ends. It’s a fake.
Well, the story is that either The Sacred Heart Hospital of Montreal 0r The Sacred Heart Medical Center supposedly invented the diet and released it to the world via internet so that everyone could be thin and sex. They’ve both denied this claim. In fact, none of the stories referring to the soup diet are true!! (ref) So why am I still posting this entry? Because it works… and regardless of whether it’s accredit, or even healthy for that matter… I guarantee you, if you follow it for 7 days, you will lose the muffin top. Just remember, before you go any further… it is fake. I can not be sued.
Always have tinned tomatos and stock in your cupbaord!
Ingredients
- 2 cans of stewed tomatoes (get the medum sized ones), we found Capri is the best brand.
- 3 white onions
- 1 can chicken broth (you can buy this in Cash & Carry or Rustans- original recipe is for beef broth)
- 1 pack Knorr Chicken Noodle Soup (original was Lipton’s but you try finding that here)
- 1 bunch celery
- 1 bunch string beans
- 3 carrots
- 2 green peppers (or red, doesn’t matter)
- dried curry powder, cumin, turmeric, cinnamon, paprika, nutmeg, basil, oregano
Method.
- In a deep pot, heat 1 tbs of olive oil over a medium heat. Sweat the onions first, then add the carrots, then the celery, and lastly the beans & peppers. Make sure they vegetable is properly sweated before adding the next
Release the flavors by sweating over a medium heat
- Now add the stewed tomatoes and add half the amount of water. Let it simmer for around 10 minutes.
- Add the chicken stock and the chicken noodle mix. Allow to simmer for around 20 minutes stirring from time to time.
Add the tomato sand stir!
- At this point the soup should’ve reduced a bit. Stir constantly until it thickens to a desired consistency.
- Add the dried herbs & spices as desired. We like putting a lot of the curry/turmeric/ cumin mixture to give it a slight African flavor.
Now that was the easy part. This is what you need to do for the next 7 days. This is taken directly from the chain mail.. with our comments at the end of each day.
DAY ONE
Any fruit (except bananas). Cantaloupes and watermelon are lower in calories than most other fruits. Eat only soup and fruit today. You’re still ok today. You think it’s easy- but you wish you could eat a do-nut… No biggie.
DAY TWO
All vegetables. Eat until you are stuffed 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. At dinnertime tonight reward yourself with a big baked potato and butter. Don’t eat any fruits through today. Today was harder. Your body got really hungry and the soup is starting to taste sour. The baked potato tastes like a cheeseburger.
DAY THREE
Eat all the soup, fruit and veggies you want. Do not have a baked potato. If you have eaten as above for three days and not cheated, you should find that you have lost 5-7 pounds. You need to remind yourself to eat the soup. You really don’t want to. You will go to the bathroom several times today. Your poo will smell awful… warning.
DAY FOUR
Bananas and skim milk: Eat at least 3 bananas and drink as much milk as you can today, along with the soup. Bananas are high in calories and carbohydrates, as is the milk but on this particular day, your body will need the potassium and carbs. Proteins and calcium to lessen the cravings for sweets. You’re thinking of quitting, but notice how nice your skin is. The stomach is slowly disappearing.
DAY FIVE
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. Finally you can have beef today! But you won’t be able to eat too much, your appetite has shrunk dramatically. You still hate the soup.
DAY SIX
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. Never made it this far… ask Ish…
DAY SEVEN
Brown rice, unsweetened fruit juice and veggies, again, be sure to stuff yourself and eat the soup. You can add cooked veggies to your rice if you wish.
Good luck to those who dare to try it!
Rikks
Two Dirty Aprons 