WHAT lengths would you go to in order to lose weight? Most people just cut back on junk food and limit their alcohol intake. But British athlete and sports scientist Ross Edgley pushed his body to the limit to try and lose a huge amount of weight in just 24 hours.

Why? He's waging a war against weighing scales, and he wants to show how body weight actually has very little to do with body fat percentage.

"So many people are slaves to the scales and have their self-esteem and nutrition governed by them," the 28-year-old told The Daily Mail.

"I hope this experiment will create a healthier relationship between people and the weighing scales and people will realise weight can fluctuate based on many factors, not just fat."

Most of our body weight - up to 50 or 70 per cent - is made up of water. Ross weighed 95kg before his experiment, which in theory means 47.5kg of his body is water weight.

So by cutting a lot of water from his body, he could lose A LOT of weight.

Ross sweated plenty, and used natural diuretics - such as vitamin C, dandelion root and caffeine - to encourage his body to flush out water.

But he's warned others against trying his wacky experiment. "I must stress that although I lost 25 pounds in 24 hours, absolutely none of this was fat and I immediately put it all back on within two hours after I finished the experiment," he said.

"What I did was very dangerous and was done under very strict conditions having consulted a doctor before the experiment. This was purely to prove the point that the number on those bathroom scales can fluctuate and has very little to do with your body fat.

News_Image_File: Ross Edgley. Picture: Supplied

So how did he do it? Here is Ross's diary of his 24 hours from hell:

Losing over 24 pounds in less than 24 hours is a lot of weight to shift. Yet standing here on the scales with my now dehydrated, prune-like body I've done it, and all without losing a single ounce of fat.

I can assure you I didn't enjoy it and equally I don't recommend it. But I can sit here taking a victory sip from my four litres of electrolyte water because I have proven my point that weighing yourself is an inaccurate measure of body fat and self-esteem.

9:00pm the night before

I finish what is to be my last supper of pizza, chips and salad before jumping onto the scales for the weigh in and beginning my 24 hour weight loss quest.

Tipping the scales at a healthy and sizeable 14st 9 lbs I then brush my teeth, get into my pyjamas and climb into bed content and with a stomach full of pizza but knowing by 9:00pm tomorrow I will be in a very different mental and physical state.

10:30am

I wake up and consult the pages of notes I've been compiling from thousands of medical journals over the last few months in preparation.

The first note reads: 'As much as 50 per cent - 70 per cent of our body weight is made up of the water content in your bodies.'

This means your level of hydration can also have a dramatic effect on how much you weight.

So put simply, if you were to sweat a lot in the gym or perhaps forget your water bottle, don't be surprised if you are two or three pounds lighter after the session.

It won't have anything to do with your body fat percentage, but the number on the scales may look better.

But with over 24lb to lose I know I needed to incorporate something a little more drastic than forgetting my water bottle to the gym.

Instead I begin my day with one ridiculously hot Epsom salt bath coupled with a 100ml bottle of water laced with diuretics.

This is the only liquid I am allowed all day. This is all because the body sweats most under hot, humid conditions and there aren't many things more hot and humid than being cooked like a giant lobster in a bath tub.

Plus the 'poisoned chalice' that was my diuretic-ridden water bottle would also make sure my body didn't store and hold the tiny amount of water I was allowed for the day - over the course of the day I would go to the loo 20 times.

News_Image_File: He took a very hot Epsom salt bath which made him sweat profusely. Picture: Supplied

The first five minutes of the bath were actually quite nice but around the seven minute mark this changed.

I started to feel faint as my heart rate went through the roof to cope with the extreme heat and the Epsom salt started stinging my eyes.

Climbing out of the bath I flung the bathroom door open to clear the humidity and pressed my head against the stone base of the toilet.

As weird as it sounds this felt amazing and luckily no one was home to witness what was clearly not the proudest moment of my life, an intimate encounter with a cold, stone toilet base.

After five minutes I managed to get to my feet and thankfully my efforts were rewarded early in the day when stepping onto the scales I discovered I had already lost four pounds, now just 20 more to go.

11:30am

Fortunately it's now time to eat. But instead of my usual nutritious breakfast of porridge oats, berries, yoghurt and a whey protein shake, instead I had what can only be described as homemade, green baby food.

Made solely with greens powder, whey protein and yoghurt the secret is it's very high in protein, minerals and key vitamins to keep my body functioning while it goes under this form of trauma, but at the same time is very low in water and carbohydrates so I didn't store any weight.

For the first time that day my stomach started to feel mildly full and satiated.

After the torture that was my burning hot Epsom salt bath I could now face the thought of the gym.

1:00pm

Now I was about ready to unveil the next trick in my weight loss arsenal.

Consulting my notes again it reads 'carbohydrates stored in the muscle weigh 18g per kg of muscle and 1g of these is linked to 3.5g of water'.

So you don't really have to be a scientist or mathematician to see how drastically reducing the amount of both within the body can have a dramatic effect on your overall body weight.

News_Image_File: Ross trained at the gym wearing a sweat suit, so he lose as much water weight as possible. Picture: Supplied

2pm

I drag my weary body to the gym and put it on a treadmill for 45 minutes, while all the time resisting the lure of the water fountain.

To make things worse, I was also wearing four layers of clothes with black bin bags sellotaped to my arms, legs and body to increase the amount I sweat.

Usually I quite enjoy the gym but those 45 minutes were some of the worst I ever spent down there.

Walking back to the changing room I step back onto the scales to find my treadmill session was worth it. 12 pounds lighter, 12 to go.

2:00pm - 6:00pm

I won't lie, this time was all pretty boring and consisted of more baths, more 'baby food' and me trying to force down a steak with absolutely no seasoning on.

6:30pm

Me and my stomach have fallen out because of the water famine and I could only manage two mouthfuls of steak and a few lettuce leaves. Thankfully, even with the digestive conflict, I stepped onto the scales 19 pounds lighter on my feet. Now just 6 to go and the finish line is in sight.

News_Image_File: Ross tried to eat this steak, but his mouth was so dry he could only swallow a few pieces. Picture: Supplied

7:30pm

I visit the gym for one last time. Looking gaunt I actually feel surprisingly perky since I just took 150mg of caffeine to help get my body over the final hurdle, plus caffeine is a diuretic itself.

The effects soon wore off though and this time I was only able to manage 30 minutes on the treadmill before my feet would literally not leave the floor and I had to hit the big red emergency stop button.

Dragging myself to the changing room I then slowly got undressed and entered the sauna to lose the final six pounds.

8:30pm

I emerge from the sauna now feeling like half the man I was when I started. Plus, my body doesn't even sweat that much anymore since it just doesn't have much more to give.

9:00pm

Standing on the scales for one last time I nervously await the scales decision as it flickers and calculates my number. 13st, I've done it! Over 24 pounds lost in less than 24 hours!

Wasting no time finding my underwear I ran to my bag and necked a pre-made four litre bottle of water with diluted multi vitamins and electrolytes, much to the amazement of full changing room who had no idea of the last 24 hours I've endured.

So there it is, over 24 pounds lost in 24 hours. It was horrible and I won't be doing it again but hopefully it shows just how much the number on those bathroom scales can fluctuate and has very little to do with your body fat.

So either throw them away or take what they say with a pinch of salt. But above all else don't ever let your diet or self-esteem be governed by them.

HOW DID THE DAY CHANGE HIS BODY?

Before:

Waist: 33 inches

Chest: 45 inches

Arms: 18 inches

Thighs: 29 inches

Weight: 14st 13lb (94.7kg)

After:

Waist: 29 inches

Chest: 40 inches

Arms: 14 1/2 inches

Thighs: 24 inches

Weight: 13st 2lb (83.4kg)

Have you done anything crazy to try and lose weight? Continue the conversation on Twitter: @beck_sullivan | @newscomauhq | @RossEdgley

Check out Ross Edgley's company The Protein Works here.

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