Best last-minute beach body diets

THE MOUNT ATHOS DIET

The sell
This is a combination of the Mediterannean diet and a version of the 5:2. The twist is that the food you eat on your moderation and ‘fast’ days (vegetables, fruits, grains, olive olive and red wine) is based on that eaten by Greek monks for the last 1,000 years  The claim is this not only helps you lose weight, but is anti-ageing and anti-cancer.

How it works
Your week is divided into three days of moderate eating, three days of fasting, three ‘moderate’ days and one ‘feast’ day.

Pros:

• Based around natural, whole foods, eaten raw or cooked from scratch.
• No calorie counting, even on the fast days, so that makes it quite simple.
• Unlike many low carb diets, vegetables are unlimited which should ward off constipation.
• You get to eat fruit and drink wine!

Cons: .

• Unlimited fruit, even on fast days, could lead to sugar bingeing and lack of weight loss.
• ‘Fast’ days are very low in protein which can make meals feel unsatisfying.
• Meals require quite a lot of preparation as everything has to be made from scratch.