500 Calories a Day Meal Plan

Out of the many fad diets that we have seen emerge and fade out, there's one preposterously unusual one which makes you consume a meager 500 calories a day. Sounds unrealistic? Well, it's true! The 500 calories diet is a popular one among all those weight watchers who want to lose a lot of weight within a short period of time. But what does this diet consist of? And how effective is it in reality? Find out more about the diet in this Buzzle article. You'll also get a sample 500 calorie diet plan to try out (if you wish to).

*This article is purely for information purpose and in no way an alternative to medical advice. Do not use it as so.

Meal Plan for 500 Calories a Day

As many health experts will agree by the very instance of the word diet, the 500 calorie a day diet is one of the most dangerous diets to go on. This is because of fairly obvious reasons. The normal calorie intake of a person, who is even moderately active, is somewhere between 1800 to 2000 calories. When you bring this calorific value down by such a drastic amount in a short span of time, there are bound to be some major upheavals within your body. The only reason why people think this diet is successful is because it makes them lose a lot of weight very quickly. But isn't that fairly obvious, given that you're reducing your calorie intake to almost less than half of its actual requirement? What else do you expect to happen when your body is deprived of almost all the basic required nutrients, that too in such drastic quantities. Given below is a 500 calories a day meal plan. Just go through it and you'll know exactly what we're talking about.

Breakfast
For breakfast, you can consume a beverage of your choice from tea or coffee, without milk, of course. If you simply cannot do without milk and sugar, then a spoon of milk and a little saccharine will do. A really small fruit or a smoothie is also permitted.

Lunch
For lunch, you do have some options, but you need to keep a strict watch on the ingredients and the preparation technique of the meal, so as to prevent more than 500 calories from accumulating in your meal before the end of the day. You can grill a single chicken breast, without oil or butter and sprinkle it with some seasoning and serve it with a sauce made from herbs like coriander or mint. Alternatively, you can go for a fresh veggie salad made from spinach, red onions and mushrooms, and top it with a low fat cheese and some roasted red peppers.

Dinner
Dinner, being the lightest meal of the day (yes, lighter than what you've already eaten, if that's possible!), you can go for a single sandwich of some grilled chicken, cheese and some mushrooms. Make sure you use only whole wheat bread or bun and low fat cheese. Or you can always just have a small fruit like an apple or an orange.

That was just one sample of a 500 calories a day meal plan. What do you think? Absurd isn't it? Imagine eating these tiny amounts of food, when you're probably accustomed to eating more than two of them for one meal itself! Sure it may make you lose your weight real quick, but think about its other repercussions, the ones that are more dangerous. Unhealthy weight loss, low levels of energy, malnutrition, reduced strength in the body due to deprivation of protein, constant hunger, fatigue, reduced muscle in the body, etc. are only some of the physical repercussions of going on a diet that requires you to take in just 500 calories a day. All this can in turn lead to psychological problems as well.

The glaring truth about the 500 calories diet is that though it has one (supposed) major advantage, i.e., rapid weight loss, it is overshadowed by its numerous harmful side effects. However, if you still feel that your body can handle it for long (highly unlikely if you're even moderately active), then go ahead and try this one too, but not without the consultation and advice of your dietitian and/or nutritionist.