Fats have always been considered the main enemy of the figure, but nutritionists around the world say that carbohydrates are a more serious problem. We are talking specifically about fast carbohydrates, which in the shortest possible time are transformed into glucose in the human body. If we do not use the glucose received for physical activity as quickly, then the body stores it in adipose tissue, in reserve. This fact is a real pain for those with a sweet tooth, because the most delicious desserts and pastries lack fast carbohydrates. But you can not completely exclude them from your diet, otherwise serious failure will occur in the body.
Slow carbohydrates provide a sufficient amount of energy and are included in the menu designed for a low-carb diet. This diet is recognized by many nutritionists as the safest, since a person does not limit his diet to a critical level, and the body does not panic, thinking that difficult times of hunger have come. It is better to consider such a diet not as a short-term method of losing weight, but as a transition period to a proper nutrition system. Let's look at the basic principles of a low-carb diet, its effectiveness and an approximate diet for a few days.
The main nuances of dietary nutrition
In a low-carbohydrate diet, the main emphasis is on protein foods, and the necessary minimum of carbohydrates and fats are given in the daily diet. Due to the creation of a deficiency of the main supplier of glucose, the body begins to spend fat reserves for the energy necessary for the full functioning of all systems. The basic postulate of such dietary nutrition says that starvation should not be allowed, otherwise the body will go into a sleep mode and will not consume fats, fearing that real hunger will soon come when they are needed more. It is necessary to competently reduce the consumption of carbohydrates, replacing them with the necessary amount of protein. The minimum amount of carbohydrate-containing products provides a person with the necessary vitamins and minerals, without interfering with weight loss.
This diet option, low in carbohydrates, is shown even to people suffering from diabetes. They already have a lot of sugar in their blood, and eating full carbohydrate foods will worsen their condition. When a large amount of carbohydrates in the blood enters the human body, the sugar level rises, due to which insulin is released. Insulin release during weight loss is bad because it slows down and even temporarily stops fat burning altogether. If too much insulin is produced due to the carb bombardment, the carbs are taken up by fat cells and converted to fat.
There is only one way out of this situation - to limit the consumption of carbohydrate-containing foods and dishes. So insulin will not enter the bloodstream and fats will break down faster. Another good low carb diet is that it suppresses the desire to eat. How did this happen? Insulin stimulates the center of the brain responsible for appetite. If it is not released into the blood, then the person will not pounce on the food.
Appetite suppression on a low-carb diet is also due to the formation of ketone bodies. It is important to simultaneously increase the amount of protein in the diet while reducing carbohydrates. The body will use it for energy and it will also help maintain muscle during weight loss. It is necessary to consume protein at the rate of 4-5 grams per 1 kilogram of human weight. And the amount of carbohydrates is reduced to 1-1, 5 grams per kilogram of weight. You need to keep track of your daily calorie intake. In order to lose weight and not harm your health, you need to consume at least 1200 calories daily.
An important rule of a low-carb diet is meals divided into small portions. You can eat 5-6 times a day, dividing the menu into 3 main meals and 2-3 snacks in between. It is recommended to have breakfast one hour after getting up and dinner 2-3 hours before going to bed.
All berries and fruits should be excluded from the diet, except for green apples. But they can be eaten only a couple a day and before lunch. During a low-carb diet, you need to adhere to the drinking regimen and drink 1. 5-2 liters of pure water per day. Juices and soft drinks, as well as alcohol, should be excluded. It is permissible to drink green tea or herbal decoctions.
Serious mistakes are harmful to health
Doctors and nutritionists focus on the fact that carbohydrates cannot be completely abandoned. It is only necessary to reduce its consumption and replace the fast ones with slow ones. If you go to extremes, you can deal a serious blow to your health. The body extracts energy from glucose, and if there is a shortage, it begins to extract the necessary resources from the muscles. That is, the fat layer on your body will not disappear anywhere, but even before that, the undeveloped muscles will become even thinner.
The complete absence of carbohydrate foods in the diet will lead to an early deficiency of stored glycogen in the liver and muscle tissue. According to doctors, it takes less than a day to deplete these reserves. In this case, the liver begins to become clogged with fats that break down as a result of the diet. It will be incredibly difficult to remove them from this organ later, and in advanced situations this leads to the development of type 2 diabetes mellitus.
The next serious threat is the long-term use of low-carb nutrition for weight loss. Protein begins to accumulate in the body, and its excess causes disturbances in the process of protein metabolism. As a result, kidney stones can form and uric acid crystals can precipitate in the joints. You also need to understand that if carbohydrates attract fluid to themselves, proteins, on the contrary, drive it out of the body, which with prolonged dieting can lead to dehydration of tissues. After such weight loss, you may notice that your skin has become noticeably drier and even saggy.
The ketones produced, on the one hand, suppress the appetite and activate the fat burning process. But, on the other hand, with a long-term low-carb diet, a disruption in the functioning of various body systems and an exacerbation of chronic diseases can occur. The ketones will start to build up in the body and it will try to get rid of the excess. But in this case, the body will not be able to function in a timely manner, and together with ketones it will remove useful minerals. In particular, potassium and sodium are under attack, the deficiency of which leads to dehydration and the development of diseases of the cardiovascular system. When ketones are excreted through the liver and kidneys, they are put under additional stress. A person may experience negative symptoms such as dizziness, insomnia, irritability.
It is difficult to tolerate a low-carbohydrate diet for people whose profession is associated with creativity or great intellectual stress, since the level of mental activity decreases due to glucose deficiency.
Protein foods are often saturated with cholesterol, which is also not good for health, in particular, for the state of the cardiovascular system. Even due to long-term use of low-carbohydrate nutrition with an abundance of protein, calcium deficiency in the body can occur. Following a low-carbohydrate diet is strictly prohibited in case of pregnancy and during lactation. Also, it should not be used for weight loss in children and adolescents.
Diet effectiveness and product characteristics
Nutritionists have conducted studies to study the effectiveness of a low-carbohydrate diet. According to the data obtained, the experts recorded that people who adhered to this diet for 3 months lost more excess weight than those who excluded fatty foods from the diet. Study participants who were in the low-carb diet group noted that they felt full faster with meals. This is due to the fact that fats and proteins break down more slowly than carbohydrates. And, accordingly, a person remains full longer. All participants in the three-month experiment were able to shed at least 10 kilograms of excess weight.
The basis of a low-calorie, low-carbohydrate diet is protein foods. Create a menu that includes the following items:
- diet meats;
- meat by-products;
- fish and shellfish;
- mushrooms;
- dairy and dairy products;
- eggs;
- non-starchy vegetables;
- Nuts and seeds;
- oatmeal.
From meat, avoid eating pork and lamb, and from vegetables completely exclude corn, peas, beans, lentils, potatoes, olives and black olives. Of cereal crops, it is allowed to consume no more than 150 grams per day of brown rice and buckwheat. You can also include some bran in your diet to encourage normal bowel function, as high-protein foods can cause constipation.
Even one day, you can eat a couple of sour fruits, but in no case eat avocados, grapes and bananas. Its high caloric content does not allow these species to be included in the diet menu. Try to eat fish and shellfish at least a couple of times a week. The protein that is part of its composition is much easier for the body to digest than the one found in meat. Chicken eggs are a good source of protein, but you can't eat more than three a week.
The list of prohibited foods to avoid on a low-carb diet includes:
- bread and pastries;
- sweets, cakes, sugar;
- pasta;
- smoked meats;
- sauces, ketchup, mayonnaise;
- juices, compotes, soft drinks;
- preserves and canned vegetables.
Vegetables rich in slow carbohydrates are recommended eaten raw, as they retain more of the beneficial vitamins and minerals that the body needs on a low-carb diet. If you cannot do without heat treatment, it is preferable to steam vegetables or boil them in slightly salted water. Choose dairy and sour-milk products with a fat content of no more than 2. 5-3%. You should not eat them with meat, it is better to combine them with sour fruits. Include a small amount of moderate-fat hard cheese on the menu. But refuse processed cheese, as they are characterized by high fat content.
It is better to cook meat yourself, rather than buy sausages, sausages and sardines. They contain a lot of fat and condiments, in particular salt, which significantly inhibit weight loss.
Compose a complete low-carb menu
A week is not enough to achieve significant results. You must follow a low-carb diet for at least a month to truly lose weight. We present you a variant of the seven-day menu, which you can repeat four times or make your own changes.
| food | Plates |
|---|---|
| The first day | |
| Breakfast | Portion of cottage cheese with apple, green tea |
| Sandwich | plain yogurt |
| Dinner | Stewed fish with vegetables |
| Sandwich | green apple or orange |
| Dinner | Buckwheat with chicken fillet |
| Second day | |
| Breakfast | Egg and milk omelette, green apple, green tea |
| Sandwich | cup of kefir |
| Dinner | Beef stew, fresh vegetable salad |
| Sandwich | natural yogurt, apple |
| Dinner | Mushroom soup without meat |
| Day Three | |
| Breakfast | Some hard cheese, orange, green tea |
| Sandwich | A handful of walnuts and an apple. |
| Dinner | Chicken broth with whole grain breadcrumbs |
| Sandwich | plain low-fat yogurt |
| Dinner | Boiled chicken fillet and stewed cabbage |
| Day four | |
| Breakfast | Buckwheat Porridge |
| Sandwich | plain yogurt |
| Dinner | Boiled chicken breast with stewed vegetables |
| Sandwich | an Apple |
| Dinner | Portion of boiled brown rice with steamed fish |
| day five | |
| Breakfast | Hard-boiled eggs (2 units) with hard cheese (40 g), green tea or coffee without sugar |
| Sandwich | Any fruit without sugar |
| Dinner | Salad with boiled beef and fresh vegetables |
| Sandwich | A glass of low-fat kefir and an apple. |
| Dinner | Stewed chicken with vegetables |
| day six | |
| Breakfast | Portion of cottage cheese and green tea |
| Sandwich | plain yogurt |
| Dinner | Chicken broth and vegetable salad |
| Sandwich | A glass of kefir with bread (2 units) |
| Dinner | Boiled rice with baked fish |
| Seventh day | |
| Breakfast | Buckwheat porridge and green tea |
| Sandwich | Glass of freshly squeezed apple juice |
| Dinner | Mushroom soup and vegetable salad |
| Sandwich | Any fruit without sugar |
| Dinner | Vegetable salad and lean roast pork |
You can rearrange the menu in places. Or, if it suits you, repeat an option for several days in a row. But it is not worth mixing dishes from different days, so as not to cross the recommended calorie limit.
Appetizing diet meals
You can grill mackerel. To implement this recipe you will need:
- mackerel - 1 piece;
- dill - to taste;
- lemon - 1/3 piece;
- garlic - 3 cloves;
- olive oil - 30 ml;
- salt, pepper, favorite spices - to taste.
Gut the fish and rinse well under running water. Cut the lemon into thin slices and the garlic into slices. On each side of the fish, make several cuts of medium depth, so you can put the stuffing on them. Salt and pepper, sprinkle with olive oil and lemon juice. Thoroughly rub the entire surface of the fish inside and out with spices to thoroughly soak it. Put the stuffing in the middle of the mackerel: sprigs of dill and a little garlic. And put slices of garlic and lemon slices on the cuts on the outside.
Wrap the stuffed fish in foil and put it in the refrigerator for half an hour to marinate. Turn on the grill, grease the grill grate with olive oil, so that later it is more convenient to get the finished fish. Unpack the mackerel and place it on a grill over hot coals. Cook, turning the fish from time to time to prevent burning. On average, it takes half an hour to cook on the grill. You can replace this option with baking in the oven. Try not to remove the foil, then the crust will not work, but the fish will remain juicy.
On a low-carb diet, the simpler the foods, the healthier they are.
For lunch, you can still cook a warm salad with duck fillet. For this you will need:
- duck fillet - 1 piece;
- leaf lettuce - 1 bunch;
- sesame - 1 tbsp. ;
- olive oil - 6 tbsp. l. ;
- cucumber - 1 piece;
- lime - 1 piece;
- honey - 1 teaspoon;
- salt, black pepper, ground ginger - to taste;
- soy sauce - 2 tbsp. me
Beat the fillet a little on both sides and season, pour with soy sauce and leave to marinate in a bowl for half an hour. Prepare the spicy dressing in a separate bowl. Squeeze lime juice, add 3 tablespoons of olive oil, a little ground ginger and black pepper, a teaspoon of liquid honey. Mix all ingredients. Cut the cucumber into thin strips and cut the lettuce into small pieces. Put the fillet in a frying pan, draining the juices beforehand, and fry in 3 tablespoons of olive oil until cooked through. Cut the finished meat into cubes and put it on a pillow of cucumber and lettuce. Top with the dressing and serve the salad warm at the table.
You can also cook a warm liver salad with chickpeas. For this you need:
- chicken liver - 0. 5 kg;
- milk - 1 glass;
- olive oil - 7 tbsp. l. ;
- pickled cucumbers - 2 pieces;
- onion - 1 piece;
- zucchini - 1 piece;
- chickpeas - 100 g;
- sesame - 1 teaspoon;
- salt and pepper to taste.
Soak the chickpeas in water for a couple of hours, then drain the liquid and rinse under the tap. We pour water again and put on the fire, bring to a boil, cover and cook over low heat. Drain the water from the cooked chickpeas. Soak the liver in milk and then fry it in oil. Cut the onion into half rings and send to the liver, then there - diced zucchini. Pour a little water and cook over low heat until the dish is fully cooked. Cut the cucumbers into rings and add them to the meat, send the chickpeas there. Season with oil and mix, and top with sesame seeds.
Constancy and sport will bring significant results
With all the advantages of this system, not everyone will be able to support a low-carb diet for a long time. "I can't eat like this. After a couple of days, I'm already fed up with meat, fish and eggs. I really want a piece of banal bread and a bowl of oatmeal. I realized that this system doesn't suit me, " summed up the 28-year-old woman.
But if you can push yourself and maintain a low-carb diet for a longer or shorter period, the positive results will not be long in coming. "In 20 days I was able to lose 7 kilograms, despite the fact that I did not attack myself in any way and made a varied menu. A great advantage is that I do not feel hungry at all, "said a 22-year-old girl about her victory over excess weight.
If you add physical activity to a low carbohydrate diet, the results will be even more outstanding. "We lost weight as a family. As a result, I lost 8 kilograms in 3 months. After giving birth, I actively walked with a stroller with a baby. My sister lost 15 kilograms during the same period. She did moderate exercise. But the husband for 1 , 5 months immediately drove 10 kilograms, but was actively involved in sports, "said the 30-year-old woman.
Losing weight on a low-carb diet is definitely possible. But you should not completely reduce carbohydrate-containing foods, so as not to harm your health. It is better to lose weight little by little and gradually, but with joy, than to immediately limit yourself to everything and lead to depression.