Choose a gradual and safe way to lose weight. We'll tell you everything about a gentle weight loss diet: basics, permitted foods and weekly menus.
How can you lose weight safely? Many nutritionists believe that a gentle diet is a great option for losing weight. Principles, contraindications, benefits and menus for a week at home - all the details are in the material.
There are many different weight loss diets designed for short sprint races.
A frugal weight loss diet compared to them is a marathon, it can last more than six months, while the calorie restriction on food is quite serious. Before losing weight in this way, be sure to consult with your doctor and find out if it is really safe for you to eat on the gentle weight loss diet system.
Gentle diet for weight loss: basic principles and contraindications
The gentle diet is divided into two main phases: an intensive phase and a re-phase.
The intensive phase lasts up to 6 months. During this time, you need to limit your calorie intake to 1, 800 calories per day. As part of your diet, focus on foods rich in protein. For example, poultry, fish, eggs, low-fat cheese, and tofu. Oil and other salad dressings are excluded from the diet menu and carbohydrates are limited to 20 grams per day. Initially, almost every meal contains some meat, usually without a side dish or with side dishes in the form of certain types of vegetables (broccoli, cauliflower and others from the list of permitted foods).
In the second step, you can slowly add fats and carbohydrates and gradually reduce the amount of protein to 70-140 grams per day. The second phase lasts 6-8 weeks. Up to 45 grams of carbohydrates per day are allowed in the first month and up to 90 grams in the second month.
Talk to your doctor. You may need to take an extra multivitamin, potassium, calcium, magnesium, or sodium supplement during the first phase to protect your body from nutritional deficiencies. You will also need to monitor your condition, and if it worsens, such as decreased performance or the dizziness starts, you need to immediately move on to the next phase or repeat or stop the diet.
Why is a gentle diet good for you?
A gentle diet is not only good for losing weight. Additional advantages of a gentle diet:
- Lowering cholesterol levels by up to 20%;
- Normalization of blood sugar levels;
- Lowering blood pressure;
- Protection against the metabolic syndrome.
Unfortunately, even a gentle diet is not an ideal recipe for losing weight. Before starting, be sure to consult a specialist, as the diet has side effects. For example, it can cause nutrient deficiencies in the body.
The diet is not suitable:
- for the elderly;
- for breastfeeding and pregnant women;
- for those with gallbladder problems;
- for people with eating disorders;
- for patients with chronic diseases.
Gentle diet for weight loss: menu for a week
Allowed and taboo foods
We have already described some of the foods you can eat on a light weight loss diet. Detailed list of approved products:
- Poultry: skinless chicken, turkey, goose, duck;
- Meat: lean meat, pork, lamb;
- Fish: flounder, cod, catfish, halibut;
- Vegetables: leafy greens, broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, celery, tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, zucchini;
- low-fat dairy products: cottage cheese, low-fat cheese, skimmed milk;
- Eggs and egg whites;
- Tofu.
A large amount of fats and carbohydrates are excluded from the menu of a frugal diet. Complete list of taboo foods:
- Fruits: apples, berries, oranges, grapes, melons, pears, peaches;
- starchy vegetables: potatoes, corn, peas;
- Grains: wheat, oats, barley, buckwheat, millet;
- Legumes: black beans, lentils, chickpeas, beans, peanuts;
- Processed Foods: Ready Meals, Baked Goods, Potato Chips, Fast Food, Candy;
- sweet drinks: juice, sweet tea, sports drinks, soda;
- Sugar and sweeteners: honey, maple syrup, table sugar, molasses, brown sugar;
- Fats and oils: olive oil, coconut oil, vegetable oils, salad dressings, butter, margarine;
- Whole milk products: yogurt, fat cheese, milk.
You need to eat gradually, in small portions, but often. This diet consists of three main meals a day and a few snacks. Well suited as such:
- Egg;
- A piece of baked meat or fish;
- Cottage cheese;
- A slice of low-fat cheese;
- Several stalks of celery;
- A handful of cooked vegetables from the list of allowed;
- A tomato.
Do not forget to drink enough water, the daily norm is about one and a half to two liters, it is best to drink at least one glass at least half an hour or an hour before meals and also drink unsweetened green or black tea as a snack to drown out the possible feeling of hunger. A good option is mineral water or rose hip broth, herbal tea, of course, you do not need to add sugar to these drinks and, in principle, do without sugar. The best way to prepare food is to steam, boil and bake. You can use a microwave oven.
Gentle diet for safe weight loss: Menus and meals that you can cook at home
Monday
- Breakfast: scrambled eggs with spinach and tomatoes.
- Lunch: Fried Cod with Steamed Broccoli.
- Dinner: chicken breast with grilled Brussels sprouts.
Tuesday
- Breakfast: tofu with onions, garlic and peppers.
- Lunch: baked chicken with a vegetable side dish (no dressing).
- Dinner: pork chops with fried asparagus.
Wednesday
- Breakfast: egg omelette with zucchini, tomatoes and garlic.
- Lunch: baked cod with boiled cabbage.
- Dinner: Salad made from lean ground beef, mushrooms, garlic, ginger, and green onion.
Thursday
- Breakfast: low-fat cottage cheese.
- Lunch: Low carb turkey meatballs with zucchini and tomato noodles.
- Dinner: fried chicken with garlic and lemon (no side dish).
Friday
- Breakfast: hard-boiled eggs with salt and pepper.
- Lunch: baked tofu with steamed green beans.
- Dinner: grilled steak with eggplant roasted in the oven.
Repeat one of the days on Saturday and Sunday.
Do not forget about the limitations - for the intense phase, the main part consists of proteins, for the second, their amount decreases due to an increase in the amount of carbohydrates.
Gentle diet recipes
Chicken casserole with vegetables
Ingredients: chicken fillet, cauliflower, broccoli, eggs, low-fat sour cream, low-fat cream, cheese to sprinkle, garlic, spices to taste.
Preparation: If the vegetables are frozen - thaw, if not - rinse in salt water, divide into inflorescences. Cut chicken, mix with vegetables in a baking dish, pour sour cream diluted with warm water, put in the oven for 20 minutes, temperature - 180 degrees. For the second pour, mix the cream with part of the cheese, eggs, finely chopped garlic or pass through a garlic press, add spices, mix everything thoroughly. We take the chicken with vegetables out of the oven, fill it with the freshly made filling, spread the rest of the cheese on it. We return everything to the oven for another 20 minutes.
vegetable salad
Ingredients: low-fat cheese, celery sticks, tomatoes, cucumber, red onions, herbs, lemon juice.
Preparation: Wash the vegetables, cut into a deep bowl, add finely chopped low-fat cheese, chopped celery stalks, herbs or finely chop with your hands. Add lemon juice and mix everything thoroughly.
Diet soup with meatballs
Ingredients: turkey, chicken or rabbit fillets, broccoli, cauliflower, carrots, onions, eggs, herbs, spices to taste.
Preparation: Chop the meat with the onion, add the egg, salt, pepper to taste, mix and shape the meatballs. Put the finished meat products in boiling water, add broccoli and cauliflower, previously divided into inflorescences (if you bought frozen vegetables, you do not need to defrost them beforehand), grated carrots on a fine grater - it acquires a golden colorwith the broth, spices to taste. Cook until cabbage and meatballs are ready, garnish with herbs as you serve. You can also add a hard-boiled egg to the soup - half on each plate.
Reviews of a gentle diet
Those who have tried this version of a gentle weight loss diet say that it is quite difficult to adhere to - the restrictions are severe, the daily amount of calories can occur for those who participate in physical activity or long walks, fatigue, dizziness may occur -in this case, it is necessary to increase the calorie content of the food, and then gradually reduce it, observing the state of health and avoiding fanaticism.
Food that can be eaten is tasty enough, but not too varied, the hardest thing for people to do without baked goods and sweets and switch to vegetables as a side dish. They also recommend not neglecting dietary supplements and reporting the feeling of hunger that may accompany you at first but then most likely will get used to the new diet.
The exit from the diet, as warned by those who tried it, must be very smooth, even after the completion of the second phase, foods from the prohibited list must be introduced very carefully, otherwise there is a risk that all efforts will be based on weight lossis wasted. The fact is that for a long time it takes this diet to rebuild the metabolism, the body gets used to processing a certain amount of a certain type of food, so the accumulation of excess fat can be a result of overdose. It is best to switch from this diet to one that meets the recommendations for proper nutrition. In this case, the chances of gaining weight are minimal, and there is enough strength and energy.