On the good news front, it is entirely possible to lose weight in that time and I have managed up to 7lbs of weight lost in a single 7 day period (though doctors would question how safe this level of weight loss was). On the downside, to really make those 2 weeks count you're going to have to do everything 100% right. No sneaky days off or food-related treats - you need to ensure every single thing you do leads you closer to your goal of losing weight.

So with the preable out of the way, how exactly are we going to get you to lose the maximum amount of weight in just 2 weeks? My own experience suggests that for a short term goal like this, vast amounts of exercise and a virtually carb-free diet are the ways to go.

Personally, I tried the Atkins Diet and that was what led me to lose that huge amount of weight, though I found the weight loss reduced considerably over the following weeks so don't consider this a long term plan.

However other pretty-much carb free diets like the South Beach Diet are likely to be just as helpful.

The carbohydrate free diet will involve living on items such as eggs, milk, meat and vegetables. At lkeast during the initial introductory phase there is no fruit, no cereal, no bread, no potatos and so on so it can be quite a shock to the system to give up your "normal" foods. After all, what could be more "normal" than just grabbing a sandwich, or a bowl of cereal or some pasta? Suddenly these are all off limits.

Also, be aware that due to this huge nutritional shift, some people will find at least for the first few days that their energy levels drop or that they get downright irritable. This, as I say, is normal and will likely pass within 2-3 days.

Also, appreciate that fluids will be provided by water mainly, with perhaps a sugar and milk-free tea or coffee which can be an experience in itself.

I personally found the Atkins Diet took quite a bit of getting used to, but when I started to adjust it was quite enjoyable. Who would complain at eating eggs and bacon for breakfast and still dropping a whole pound of weight that day?!

The other factor of course is exercise - and trying to burn off as much fat as possible.

In this regard, put aside at least an hour a day to go running, walking, cycling - anything, in fact - so long as it makes you sweat. You need to get puffed out and feel your heart thumping for the best result. An additional tip that can make this length of exercise more achievable is to split your session into 2 or more segments. Then try a different exercise in each section, and take a break inbetween.

An example could be walking quickly for 20 minutes, followed by a 5 minute break. Then 20 minutes on the treadmill jogging. Then another quick break for 2 or 3 minutes, and finally a 20 minute swim.

Job done, and without killing yourself!

Follow these steps and you'll rapidly lose weigt in the next 2 weeks.