It's easy to get confused in the modern variety of diets, but protein diets stand out on the list. The Dukan diet is a prominent representative of protein food systems, which involve consuming enough food, but in a different ratio of protein, fat, and carbohydrate.
Basics of diet
The Dukan diet is known in many countries. The effectiveness of this approach has been demonstrated by numerous studies and applications. However, nutritionist Pierre Ducan himself claims that he has not developed a diet, but a balanced diet so that the body does not experience hunger and stress.
Weight loss occurs because the body burns subcutaneous fat and carbohydrate stores, while the stomach is not empty, but digests protein foods.
A good competitor here will be the Lesenka diet, the essence of which is the daily passage of different levels of nutrition. Different products, different approach for 5 days does not get bored.
Those who wish to reduce their forms with the help of the Dukan diet should familiarize themselves with the basic principles:
- Lead an active lifestyle, move a lot, run or walk. To take daily walks in the open air, lasting 30-40 minutes. Losing weight through diets is unreasonable, the body has to perform physical activity, because it is in the muscles that adipose tissue is burned.
- Drink plenty of water (not fruit juice, compote or beverage, but plain water). During a protein diet, the body drains accumulated fluids and its daily replenishment is the number one task for losing weight.
- Strictly adhere to the diet and stages of the diet. If you make your own diet changes or don't follow the regimen, you shouldn't be hoping for an effective result.
- Eliminate foods containing light carbohydrates from your diet. It is allowed to use complex and indigestible carbohydrates in the form of cereals, bran.
- Oat bran should be an essential ingredient in your daily diet. They prevent the formation of constipation during the diet and provide the body with the right portion of carbohydrates.
The main stages of the diet
The Dukan diet is based not only on following a certain diet, but on breaking down the entire course of the diet into phases that match your diet and product list. There are four stages in total:
- Attack.
- alternation
- Anchoring
- Stabilization
It is worth considering each stage separately.
Attack phase
This is the first phase of the diet, it is about eating only protein foods. The duration of the phase takes on average 7 days, but the interval can range from 3 to 9 days. The choice of the duration of the first phase is done individually and depends on the amount of excess weight and the state of health of the slimming.
30 kg of weight more or more suggests a maximum duration of the phase of up to 9-10 days, with an excess of 20 kg - 7 days and with a slight excess weight of up to 20 kg - 3-5 days. During this period, maximum weight loss occurs, which is associated with the restriction of carbohydrate and fat intake.
Recommendations: the attack phase accepts the consumption of protein products of animal origin: meat, fish, seafood and dairy products. You can use them in unlimited, but reasonable quantities and in any form (fried, boiled, steamed).
As for accompanying additives, their list includes: oat bran (their daily use is mandatory), mustard, salt, onion, spices, tomato paste, crab sticks (no more than 8 pieces per day) , lemon, olive oil. From drinks, diet drinks, fat-free kefir, tea and coffee are allowed.
The meat must not be fatty, pork, lamb, rabbit, duck, goose are excluded. If a bird is present in the diet, it should be eaten skinless. The restriction applies to fruits and vegetables.
During this period, the body is experiencing stress, there is a restructuring of internal metabolic processes. For some, this period can become critical: dizziness, weakness, loss of consciousness, and other symptoms indicate that it is worth moving to the next stage.
Alternating or "cruise" phase.
The essence of this stage is the introduction of additional foods (vegetables, fruits) into the diet, but not on an ongoing basis, but selectively at a certain interval. The intervals should be the same: in one day, in two days or more, it all depends on the amount of excess weight before the diet. If its value does not exceed 10 kg, the range can be minimum (1x1, 2x2) and if its value is greater than 10 kg, the maximum range is 5x5.
The duration of the second stage is determined individually, as well as the first. The interval is from one to two months, the duration directly depends on the amount of weight lost during the first phase. The bigger it is, the longer the second phase should last.
The diet should be more varied in the second stage, so you can add the following foods:
- all the products of the first phase;
- vegetables that do not contain starch (cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, peppers, asparagus, cabbage, mushrooms);
- unsweetened fruit;
- skim milk and cheese;
- bread.
It is possible to add fruit and vegetables only on those days whose menu corresponds to the second phase. That is, 5 days a protein menu of the first phase, the next five days a protein-vegetable menu of the second phase. Also, you cannot mix the products of the second phase together, you can only choose two ingredients per day and use them.
Among the forbidden vegetables and fruits are: potatoes, corn, legumes, bananas, cherries, avocados, grapes.
If during the first stage there was a deterioration in the state of health, in the second stage the state should stabilize, the state of health should improve and metabolic processes will be restored.
"Fixing" phase
The third phase helps to consolidate the result, its duration also depends on the number of "lost" kilograms. For every kilogram of weight lost, there are ten days of the third phase. The diet during this period is even more similar to the usual one and should not cause discomfort with weight loss.
In addition to the products of the first and second phase, the diet also includes:
- starchy vegetables (potatoes, legumes, corn);
- pasta;
- cereals (rice, buckwheat, oatmeal).
At this stage, it is permissible to interrupt the diet twice a week, but at the expense of one meal. For example, you can eat your favorite carbohydrate meal for breakfast, but skip lunch or dinner instead.
An important rule at this stage is the daily consumption of any fruit, with the exception of bananas, grapes and cherries. They have a lot of sugar, which quickly turns into subcutaneous fat.
"Stabilization" phase
This phase is the last and, in fact, a postulate for the next life after the diet. Its rules are simple and following them will allow you to always keep fit, without resorting to diets:
- drink plenty of water every day (at least 1. 5 liters);
- live an active lifestyle;
- once a week, prepare a protein menu that meets the requirements of the first phase;
- daily consumption of oat bran.
The implementation of the above recommendations will lead to the success of all those who want to overcome excess weight and, most importantly, remain at the level reached or exceed it.
Approved products
You can summarize the list of foods allowed in the Dukan diet:
- meat (beef, veal, pigeon, chicken, quail);
- eggs (chicken, quail, preferably without yolk);
- low-fat dairy and sour-milk products (milk, kefir, cottage cheese, cheese, yogurt, cheese);
- seafood in any form and in any quantity;
- crab sticks;
- river and sea fish;
- oat bran;
- vegetables that do not contain or contain a small amount of starch;
- unsweetened fruit;
- various unsweetened drinks, tea and coffee;
- spices, seasonings, condiments.
In addition to the developed diet program, nutritionist Dukan has published a cookbook with recipes. The dishes in Dukan's cookbook include only foods from the list of allowed diets, which greatly facilitates the whole process of losing weight and inventing new dishes.
Among the simplest and most popular dishes, it is worth highlighting the following:
- "Crab Salad". For its preparation you will need: half of Chinese cabbage, 4 sticks of crab sticks, 4 tablespoons of canned corn. Finely chop the cabbage and crab sticks, mash the cabbage and season with salt. Mix all the ingredients in a bowl and dress the salad with lemon juice and homemade lean mayonnaise.
- "Fish balls with cottage cheese. " For cooking you will need: 0, 2 kg of fish (salmon), 0, 4 kg of low-fat cottage cheese, 1 chicken egg, 4 tablespoons of oatmeal. Preparation: mix the ricotta with the egg, add the chopped skinless fish cubes. Add spices and seasonings to taste. Shape into balls from the resulting mixture and roll them in oatmeal, put them in a pan or grill and fry over low heat. Do not use oil for frying, do everything in a dry pan.
- Yogurt dessert. You can pamper yourself during the diet with a dessert, for which you will need: 0, 2 kg of low-fat natural yogurt, chicken eggs - 2 pieces, 50 g of corn starch. Put all the ingredients in a bowl, except the eggs. They need to be divided into proteins and yolks: immediately send the yolks to the finished mixture and beat the proteins with a whisk until creamy and also add to the mixture. The dessert can be sweetened with a sugar substitute, as well as adding flavoring and salt. Pour the mixture into a pan and bake for 20 minutes.
- "Beef with eggplant. " For two servings you will need: 0, 3 kg of beef, cut into cubes, 1 eggplant, 2 tomatoes, 0, 150 kg of mushrooms (champignon), 1 clove of garlic, parsley, salt and pepper. Preparation: cut the aubergines into slices or cubes and wet them with water for 30 minutes (the bitterness should come out). Drain the water from the aubergines and dry them on absorbent paper. Cut the tomatoes into slices, the mushrooms into slices and put them together with the aubergines in a saucepan. Add garlic and parsley, add water and cook for 30 minutes. Take a pan for the oven, put the vegetables on the bottom, then the salted and peppered meat, and on top of the rest of the vegetables. Send to the oven for 15-20 minutes.
It is not at all necessary to use the recipes from Dukan's book; you can also come up with your menu from allowed products that correspond to the phase of the diet.
How much can you lose a pound
Before talking about the estimated number of kilograms fallen, it is worth clarifying the factors affecting them:
- the presence of physical activity and its severity: if you do not play sports or at least walk, then you should not talk about a good result;
- lack of sufficient water in the diet - water contributes to weight loss, especially with a protein diet;
- the amount of excess weight - nutritionists claim that the higher the indicator of excess body weight, the more kilograms a person who is losing weight can lose;
- the duration of the diet and its individual phases.
The average indicator for weight loss can be considered 5-15 kg. In addition, each phase has its changes and weight loss. The first phase of the diet is the most important, as it contributes to the maximum rate of weight loss. The subsequent second phase is characterized by small losses, and the third and fourth completely consolidate the result.
Reviews about the Dukan diet
First review
"I've heard about the Dukan diet many times, but haven't dared to try it. Somehow scary, many talk about back pain, weakness and malaise. Maybe I'll look for an alternative to this diet. "
Second review
"My husband's sister often visits France. There, this diet is just a brand, even in supermarkets there are separate shelves for products that match this diet. She herself has tried this method of losing weight. The result is 10 kg in 2 months.
I am currently on a different diet, but in a month I will also be starting the Dukan diet to be fit by the season.
Third review
"Girls, don't try this diet! I was negligent and sat on it to the fullest. A week later, I felt the earth was coming out from under my feet, it was dark in my eyes, creaking in my ears. Pain. to the lower back or the kidneys, I don't know where, but it's very scary and dangerous.
I went to the hospital, where the nurse said I was not the first with such a diagnosis. Before trying this diet on yourself, you need to undergo an examination and consult a doctor. A protein diet is very dangerous for the kidneys and can cause tissue damage, so don't experiment on yourself. "
fourth review
"I have experimented with this diet more than once. Thank God I have not noticed any side effects. Perhaps because the first phase lasted a short time (5 days), but in the second phase I did not alternate between the days of the protein and protein-vegetable menu, I ate both proteins and vegetables every day. I was satisfied with the results (-8 kg). It would be possible to use this diet more often, but it is very expensive, especially in winter.
Fifth review
"I recently saw a TV show and there the endocrinologist told me that it was impossible to do without carbohydrates and glucose. Our brain feeds on them and if they stop entering the body, the brain first starves and then dies. I don't know if this is true or not, they can say anything on TV. But I thought, what if the negative reviews on the Internet were not without reason and, in fact, could harm your health?