The supermarket food diet, created by a dietitian for Good Housekeeping magazine, combines three of the most important aspects of a successful diet and weight loss program: it's inexpensive, simple to follow and allows you to eat foods you enjoy. Although Good Housekeeping published "The Supermarket Diet" book to provide detailed instructions for following the diet, with some preparation and information on shopping guidelines and recommended daily intakes, you can create your own supermarket food diet quickly and even more cheaply.
Step 1
Choose methods both for keeping track of your progress while on your diet and for making certain that you are staying within recommended nutritional guidelines to protect your health. You can design your own record-keeping charts and check general guidelines for healthy eating to keep you on track, however, many online sites can help make this task simpler. The Good Housekeeping site provides printable food diaries, a "Recommended Daily Intakes Table," a "Boot Camp Shopping List" designed specifically for the first two weeks of the Supermarket Diet and a general Supermarket Diet guidelines list. These printouts give you a place to keep track of your progression through the diet and provide a detailed breakdown of the nutritional content of different types of foods, so that you can accurately gauge the fat and calorie content of each food.
Step 2
Cross off the food items you already have on the "Boot Camp Shopping Lists," then purchase the remaining foods on the list, starting with "Week One." Be careful to read the nutritional information on the labels of foods, so you are certain they conform to the guidelines detailed in the shopping list.
Step 3
Use the foods you purchase from the "Boot Camp Shopping List" to prepare the following meals and snacks daily, for two weeks: breakfast, a mid-morning snack, lunch, an afternoon snack, dinner and an evening snack. Use the Supermarket Diet Shopping Guidelines printout to help you aim for 1,200 calories per day and record your daily progress on separate pages of your Supermarket Diet Food Diary. The online diet review site Every Diet recommends that you consume up to 1,300 calories each day if you begin this part of the diet and suffer from extreme hunger.
Step 4
Exercise by walking daily for 30 to 60 minutes and doing light resistance exercises with weights at least twice a week.
Step 5
Increase your daily caloric intake to 1,500 calories after you've completed the first two weeks of the diet. Use the Shopping Guidelines printout when shopping for food and design your meals with the help of the Recommended Daily Intakes table printout. Record your daily progress on the Food Diary pages. Continue to walk 30 to 60 minutes a day and aim for resistance exercises two to three times a week. Maintain this phase of the diet until you reach your target weight.
Step 6
Increase your daily caloric intake to 1,800 calories, again using the Supermarket Diet printouts to help you plan your meals, to ensure you are consuming recommended amounts of nutrients daily and to record your progress. Continue to maintain your exercise regimen.
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