Fad Diet Series: 7 Day All You Can Eat Diet (Does It Work?)

Medically reviewed by Dr. Angela Tran, DO, double board-certified in Internal Medicine and Obesity Medicine · Originally published July 8, 2014 · Updated October 15, 2026

Of all the misleadingly named diets out there, this is probably the worst. The name suggests a huge buffet you can dig into and still lose weight, but the truth is that you’ll be eating a very restricted diet for the seven days the plan lasts.

Understanding the all you can eat diet

As with many crash fad diets, the 7-Day All You Can Eat Diet has a strict plan for what you eat each day. Versions differ slightly, but here’s how it typically goes:

• Day 1: All the fruit you want, except bananas
• Day 2: All the vegetables you want, with soy sauce, vinegar or mustard
• Day 3: All the fruit and vegetables you want
• Day 4: 5 bananas and 5 glasses of milk
• Day 5: Four 3-ounce servings of beef, chicken or fish, with fresh vegetables
• Day 6: Same as Day 5
• Day 7: Same as Day 5

So although you can technically eat all you want of fruits or vegetables, you aren’t really eating “all you can.” Your diet is so restricted that you’re very likely to create a calorie deficit, and on several days you’ll get far less protein than you need to protect your muscle.

The theory is that eating nutrient-rich foods tells your body it’s getting what it needs, so your hunger fades. No exercise is recommended during the week. The original version promoted on TV didn’t necessarily follow the day-by-day plan above; it emphasized a wide assortment of fruits and vegetables and the “G-BOMBS” of Dr. Joel Fuhrman, a family physician: greens, beans, onions, mushrooms, berries and seeds.

Does the 7-day all you can eat diet work?

Proponents, including Dr. Mehmet Oz, claimed you could kick-start your weight loss and lose 10 pounds in a week. (In June 2014, a U.S. Senate subcommittee questioned Dr. Oz about the weight loss claims made on his show.) Most of a quick 10-pound drop is water: when you cut calories sharply, your body burns through glycogen, the carbohydrate stored in your liver and muscles, and the water stored with it. That weight comes back when you eat normally again.

Proponents also say studies prove the approach works, but the published record is thin. In 2010, Dr. Fuhrman co-published an online survey on one idea he talked about on TV: that a high-nutrient-density diet calms so-called “toxic hunger.” About 80% of respondents said their hunger changed, and 51% described a dramatic or complete change. It was a self-selected survey with no control group, but it’s an interesting idea.

What about weight loss? This is where the story gets thinner. A 2008 chart review followed 56 patients who were prescribed his high-nutrient-density diet. Only 33 returned after a year (59%), and they had lost an average of 31 pounds. Only 19 returned after two years (34%), with an average loss of 53 pounds, and the authors later published a correction to how the two-year average was calculated. In other words, this approach has perhaps a 60% chance of producing weight loss of about half a pound a week, and only a third of patients were even followed for two years.

Based on this data, a one-week crash version is hardly an effective diet.

What to do instead

Real weight loss is slower and steadier, and it should protect your muscle. That means enough protein (most adults losing weight do best with about 1.2 to 1.6 grams per kilogram of body weight a day), regular activity, and a plan you can live with after day 7. For some people, that plan includes a physician-supervised meal replacement program or GLP-1 medications.

If you are tired of fad diets and are looking for effective weight loss, Med-Fit Medical Weight Loss can help. Compare Med-Fit programs, or see how Comprehensive Coaching helps you keep the weight off.

Frequently asked questions

What is the 7-day all you can eat diet?

It’s a one-week crash plan, a variation of the “GM diet,” that limits each day to certain foods: fruit only, vegetables only, bananas and milk, then lean meat with vegetables. You can eat as much as you like of the allowed foods, but the menu is so restricted that most people end up eating far fewer calories.

Can you lose 10 pounds in a week?

You might see the scale drop that much, but very little of it is fat. Most rapid first-week weight loss is water released as your body uses up stored glycogen, and it usually returns when you go back to normal eating.

Is the 7-day diet the same as the GM diet?

They’re close cousins. Both assign specific food groups to each of seven days, including a bananas-and-milk day, and the exact amounts vary by version. Neither has been tested in published clinical trials.

What is a safe rate of weight loss?

The CDC suggests about 1 to 2 pounds a week for people losing weight on their own. Faster loss can be appropriate under medical supervision, for example on a structured meal-replacement program or a GLP-1 medication, where a physician monitors your labs and health.

Sources

1. Medical News Today. Does the 7-day GM diet work?
2. Healthline. The GM diet plan: lose fat in just 7 days?
3. DrFuhrman.com. G-BOMBS
4. Reuters. U.S. Senate panel scolds TV’s Dr. Oz over diet claims (June 17, 2014)
5. Fuhrman J, et al. Changing perceptions of hunger on a high nutrient density diet. Nutr J 2010
6. Sarter B, Campbell TC, Fuhrman J. Effect of a high nutrient density diet on long-term weight loss: a retrospective chart review. Altern Ther Health Med 2008
7. Cleveland Clinic. What is a calorie deficit? (early weight loss is often water weight)
8. Cleveland Clinic. Is it healthy to lose 10 pounds in a week?
9. CDC. Steps for losing weight
10. Leidy HJ, et al. The role of protein in weight loss and maintenance. Am J Clin Nutr 2015

Photo: Lisa Lilo