The Yummy Watermelon Diet for Fast Weight Loss

The watermelon diet is not only tasty, it also helps you lose weight and detox your body. But the best part about that is that this diet is simple to follow!

There are different varieties of the watermelon diet, but the most popular one is the 3 day watermelon diet in which the dieter simply eats nothing but watermelon for 3 days to lose weight (Depending on how you look at it, it might sound like a dream come true!). After the dieting period is over, the dieter goes back to their regular diet. Tasty, short, and simple.

It's not so surprising to find that the watermelon diet is being used for weight loss. After all, 91% of the content in a watermelon is all water (and very nutritious).

Watermelons also have plenty of fiber in them, which when combined with water helps keep you full longer. And so they make a great companion especially if you frequently feel hunger and struggle with certain diets.

Experts recommend the average person to drink 8 glasses of water a day to keep themselves hydrated, which understandably isn't always easy to do for most people. Watermelons can help greatly as they contain so much water content already. Here are some Reasons Why Watermelons Are Great For Weight Loss.

How Does the Watermelon Diet Work?

If you've been familiar with clean eating then you're already half familiar with the watermelon diet. The diet is low-calorie and it works by making your body burn more calories than it takes in. You're required to eliminate most processed food while consuming watermelons which helps to detox your body.

Related: Reasons Why Watermelons Are Eye-Opening For Your Diet

Eliminating processed foods is an effective strategy because it helps restore your natural detoxification process. By doing this, you have a better chance to eliminate toxins and waste from your body. Getting rid of toxins is important because they usually get stored in fat cells in order to protect your body. You might ask, "Why would I want to get rid of that?!" Well, more toxins means more fat and while you're burning the existing fat from the diet, you'll also help get rid of all the toxins that were stored in fat, efficiently eliminating them through the body's renewed detoxification system.

While you're going on a watermelon diet you can also benefit from all the fluids you're taking in from these fruits. Just by chewing and swallowing as you eat them your body will think it already ate a good amount of food. But the best part is that these "foods" are all just the rich content of water in watermelons!

The tough outer layer of the watermelon is edible by the way, and they're very nutritious, like apples!

Related: 10 Fat Burning Juices Everyone Must Have for Quick Weight Loss

If you're one with a sweet tooth, this watermelon diet can help provide you with 6g of natural sugar per 100g of watermelon.

In order for the watermelon diet to work, you have to stick to the foods that the diet is intended for. That means you should avoid all junk foods, highly processed foods and even alcohol as well.

Variations of the Watermelon Diet

3 Day Watermelon Fast

In this version you eat watermelon for 3 days straight. The recommended amount to consume is at least 26 cups of watermelon in a day, which equates to 1200 calories--the minimum amount of calories you would need to prevent your metabolism from slowing down.

Find any time of the day to eat your watermelons. You might become bored of the taste after awhile but at least you won't be hungry since you're allowed to eat as much watermelon as you like, :)

Related: How To Reach Ketosis

To get you started, try aiming for an amount equivalent to 6 cups of watermelon for breakfast, with coffee if you'd like. For lunch aim for 10 cups of watermelon and some coffee as well. And finally, for dinner you can aim for 10 cups of watermelon and some tea on the side.

Related: How Coffee Can Help You Lose Weight

What is with the random coffee/tea? Well, they're zero calories and it's a technique to help push your hunger signals to stay quiet.

Watermelon in Every Meal for 5 Days

In this version you add watermelon to every meal for 5 days straight with no snacks in between.

Here is a sample meal plan:

Day 1

• Breakfast

  • 1 slice watermelon
  • 1 cup of coffee or green tea

• Lunch

  • 1 slice watermelon
  • 150g cooked rice
  • 150g boiled lean beef

• Dinner

  • 60g cottage cheese
  • 1 slice whole wheat bread
  • 1 slice watermelon

Day 2

• Breakfast

  • 1 slice watermelon
  • 1 slice toast
  • 1 cup green tea or coffee

• Lunch

  • 100g boiled skinless chicken
  • 1 slice watermelon
  • 1 slice whole wheat bread

• Dinner

  • 2 slices watermelon
  • 100g cooked rice
  • 100g grilled fish of any kind

Day 3

• Breakfast

  • 1 slice watermelon
  • 1 slice toast
  • 1 cup green tea or coffee

• Lunch

  • 3 slices watermelon
  • 50g pasta with tomato sauce

• Dinner

  • As much watermelon as you'd like
  • Salad containing only vegetables

Day 4

• Breakfast

  • 2 slices watermelon

• Lunch

  • 2 slices watermelon
  • 1 slice whole wheat bread
  • 1 bowl of broccoli soup (3 boiled broccoli with a little bit of salt)

• Dinner

  • 2 slices watermelon
  • 3 oven-baked potatoes

Day 5

• Breakfast

  • 3 slices watermelon

• Lunch

  • As much watermelon as you'd like
  • 150g boiled lean beef

• Dinner

  • 3 slices watermelon
  • 1 slice whole wheat bread
  • 60g cottage cheese

Read: 8 Top Ways on How to Lose Weight in Thighs

2 Meals and Watermelon as Snacks for 5 Days

In this version you eat 2 meals and only watermelons for snacks in a day, for 5 days straight. Drinks containing zero calories like coffee or green tea can be consumed to help push your body further from feeling full.

For these meals, it should include a reasonable portion of lean protein like lean beef, fish, or skinless chicken. The meals should also include a small bowl of rice as well or large portions of fresh vegetables.

The watermelon snacks should only be an amount of 2-3 slices per snacking session.

Related: What is the Whole30 Diet And How Does it Work?

Here is a sample meal plan for this diet:

• Breakfast

  • Coffee, green or black tea without sugar or milk

• Snack

  • 2-3 slices of watermelon

• Lunch

  • 100g cooked rice
  • 12oz lean beef, fish, or chicken, boiled or grilled

• Snack

  • 2-3 slices of watermelon

• Dinner

  • 12oz lean beef, fish, or chicken, boiled or grilled
  • 1 large plate of grilled vegetables or vegetable salad (small portion of salad dressing is allowed)

Read: 9 Ways to Drink More Water

Watermelon Diet Exercise Secrets

If you're planning to perform some exercising while on the watermelon diet, it's best to keep them light. Extreme and intense workouts can make you feel dizzy, light headed or exhausted since this diet only hands you very minimal amount of calories.

However, the good news is that studies have shown that watermelon is able to relieve muscle soreness because the fruits contain l-citrulline. L-citrulline is an amino acid that protects against muscle soreness.

Read: 10 Lovely Health Benefits of Avocados

For the best results possible, try to eat the watermelons before your workouts.

Also, a study in the African Food and Chemistry Journal provided 500 ml of natural watermelon juice with citrulline powder 1 hour before working out to 7 men. The results show that their intestines managed to absorb the citrulline more from the juices of watermelon than supplements do.

Benefits of the Watermelon Diet

• Watermelons contain plenty of vitamins and minerals including potassium, magnesium, vitamin B6, vitamin A, and vitamin C.
• Compared to regular tap or filtered water, the natural fruit juices obtained from watermelon is a nutritious alternative
• Watermelons contain powerful antioxidants like lycopene, which improves the detoxification process.
• Since watermelon is more than 90% water, you'll have lower chances of being dehydrated.
• The tough outer layer of watermelon is not only edible but are rich in nutrition.

Related: 9 Best Health Benefits of Flaxseeds

Precautions Going on the Watermelon Diet

Even though the watermelon diet is extremely effective and helps dieters lose weight fast, it can cause some serious harm if you aren't doing it correctly!

Here are some examples of what could happen:

• If you're planning to re-start the watermelon diet, you should wait awhile and take a good break.
• Stick to a healthy diet and perform regular exercise routines after the watermelon diet in order to maintain the weight loss and avoid yo-yo dieting.
• Due to the lack of good fats and protein, the 3-day watermelon diet should not be followed by young children, pregnant women or people with a comprised immune system.
• The diet is not recommended for long-term.

Related: How to Eat Chia Seeds: 10 Different Ways

Tips for the Watermelon Diet

• It's important to make sure you get enough sleep in order to prevent hunger and maintain your metabolism. Having adequate sleep will also ensure that you have enough energy for the day while you're on this low-calorie diet.
• You might experience detox symptoms like back pain, headaches, rashes, sweating, or cold-like symptoms as part of the detox process. If you start experiencing the symptoms start drinking plenty of water to help flush the toxins out of your body.
• For maximum nutritional value it's best to eat ripe watermelons.
• Stop the diet immediately if you feel dizzy or sick from the diet.
• It's not recommended to go on the watermelon diet if you're pregnant or have pre-existing health conditions.

Read: Overeating Makes It Harder To Lose Weight. Here's How To Stop Overeating