Grapefruit Diet Plan

by Moira Andersen- Physical Therapist
(Twin Valley, Minnesota )

Grapefruit diet plan

Have you tried the Grapefruit Diet Plan? I have and in all fairness I can say the diet works, except for the fact that it does not work for keeps. I went and followed the grapefruit food plan for 12 days and lost about 6 pounds instead of the 10 pounds that some people were able to achieve. Anyway, 6 pounds were good enough for someone who never had the experience of losing weight for quite some time. I think the reason this diet is not recommended for long term is because it does not promote a balanced diet.

It was okay when I started out with the first round of the 12-day Grapefruit diet, and then rested from the diet for 2 days by eating some of the veggies I missed like potatoes, carrots and cabbage which I often included in my beef stew. Naturally, I gained back almost two pounds because even with the Grapefruit Diet, there were no instructions to eat in portions. Actually you have to eat until you are full because the grapefruit juice is said to have natural fat loss burning effect. This means I never really kicked the habit of eating until I was satisfied.

Sample Grapefruit Diet

Just to give you a better illustration, here is a sample of the grapefruit diet I tried:

• For breakfast, an 8 ounce glass of unsweetened grapefruit juice plus a cup of coffee.
Two slices of bacon, wherein I opted for turkey bacon because I was not too fond of greasy food.
Two eggs which I preferred scrambled and the Grapefruit diet allows the use of butter.

• Lunch meant another glass of 8 ounces of grapefruit juice.
Salad but not the salad greens I preferred but was more on broccoli, radish, and spinach types which I was really not fond of. So even if the diet said there was no limit to the veggies, it did not matter since my lack of fondness for it did not make me have more than one serving.
Meat which could be anything lean which I ate much of until I felt more than full;

• Dinner saw another glass of 8-ounce grapefruit.
I was still stuck with spinach and broccoli until I totally gave up on the vegetables.
I more than made up for the lack of vegetables by eating more meat in different varieties, like baked chicken breast or fish fillet since butter is allowed;

• A glass of skimmed milk before retiring to bed;

Now here are the reasons why I stopped with the diet altogether:

1. I felt like I did not have the energy to exercise. Actually, I preferred exercise in burning fats over not eating some of the energy giving foods. I found out later that the Grapefruit diet contained only 1,000 calories and even less because I did not have many vegetables.

2. I went into bouts of constipation for lack of fiber foods which gave me more feelings of heaviness.

3. The two days of rest from the diet made me eat more of the food restricted during the 12-day Grapefruit program. I binged on everything I missed especially the carbo-foods like bread, cereals, pasta, potatoes and lots of cheese.

4. I developed sensitivity in my teeth because of two much grapefruit acid.

5. The whole diet program was expensive because I tended to buy more meat to satisfy my hunger, unlike in my regular meals which had some starchy foods especially for breakfast and a portion can keep me satisfied.


The end result is that the Grapefruit diet works with only minimal results. My weight was erratic but it never really went down. How I see it is that this kind of diet works only for a crash course program. If you’re looking for one that can really help you cut down on your calories, try Atkins Diet because the list of acceptable foods in this program was more of the type that one would ordinarily eat. The diet part about Atkins program is being conscious of your calorie intakes. It is also more concerned in keeping a regular exercise to burn off the fats you have previously stored to achieve weight loss.

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