The first thing to do is to get over the idea that you must and can lose weight quickly. Don't ask me why, but it seems to me the more I stress about losing weight, the less weight I lose and the more slowly I lose it. But if I don't think about losing weight (other than to just watch my portion sizes), the weight starts coming off more easily.
I've probably tried every pill that exists, and every crash diet that exists, and the truth is that you can probably drop five to ten pounds very quickly and easily but it will all start coming back on the day after the comp unless you've made actual permanent lifestyle changes.
For getting five to ten pounds of weight off quickly, try one of the reduced-carbohydrate diets like South Beach, Atkins, Sugar Busters, Carbohydrates Addicts, Protein Power, etc etc. Depending on your current start weight, you might be able to lose ten pounds in two to three weeks on one of these -- if you use the most restrictive form of the diet.
I don't recommend crash dieting. I know you've probably heard that 100 times, but like I've said I've tried every stupid diet there is and I swear all I ended up doing in the long run was making myself fatter than I would have been if I hadn't ended up yo-yo dieting. I also definitely depleted myself of vitamins, enzymes, and important neurotransmitters, with the result being that I physically and mentally crashed a few years ago and it's only now that I'm truly balanced and healthy again. And I'm still fat. But, interestingly enough, I gave up dieting about two months ago and I've lost over 15 pounds without even thinking about it. Who would have thought?
Good luck to you and don't panic. I make costumes for lots of people who complain they are fat, but when I take their measurements and determine what size they are and what their proportions are I tell them they are crazy and they're fine, especially if they are dressed in a way that (a) flatters their assets without emaphasizing their less-than-pefect areas and (b) fits well over all and is a good color for them. I think it's sad when a beautiful well proportioned young lady who is a size 5 complains that she is too fat. Ditto for a beautiful well-proportioned woman who is a size 10. In other words, don't kill your own energy levels and stamina just for a dress size or scale number.
Sorry for the lecture, but I'm just so tired of the body obsessions that people pick up....
