The essence of the diet is that every day you should mainly eat protein foods - a lot of fish, meat and low-fat dairy products. All these products are very nutritious, satiate for a long time, so you will not be bothered by the feeling of hunger. But the body, deprived of carbohydrates and fat, will begin to use its own fat reserves as extra energy.
The role of proteins in the body
Life without protein is impossible. The importance of proteins for the body lies in the fact that they serve as a material for building cells, tissues and organs, the formation of enzymes, most hormones, hemoglobin and other substances that perform the most important functions in the body. Proteins and their role in the body also lie in the fact that they help to protect the body against infections, and also promote the absorption of vitamins and minerals. Our life activity is associated with continuous consumption and renewal of protein. To balance these processes, protein loss must be replenished daily. It, unlike fats and carbohydrates, does not accumulate and is not synthesized in the body from other nutrients, that is, you can only get protein with food.
The duration of the protein diet
Typically, protein-type diets are prescribed in detail for one or two weeks. The menu is not very diverse: in the second week, if any, experts recommend eating the same menu as in the first, following the diet from the last day to the first.
Nutritionists also recommend following a protein diet for no longer than 14 days, after which you should take a break for half a year. Only then can you resume the course.
Pros and cons of a protein diet
In addition to the usual goal of "reducing weight", a protein diet has other beneficial effects on the body. Exactly:
- Improving the condition of the skin. Protein is basic in the body. Thanks to him, your muscles are strong and the skin does not sink. By increasing the protein content of your daily diet, you will ensure the beautiful appearance of your skin.
- Calorie content. Proteins contain almost 2 times fewer calories than fat. And given the fact that the body needs a lot more time and energy to process fats, the process of losing weight is simply inevitable.
- Removal of toxins. Protein helps to remove excess fluid from the body, and with them toxins.
- Lack of feeling of hunger. Due to the properties of the body and the long assimilation of proteins, the feeling of hunger comes after a longer time. And given that the protein diet consists of 4-6 meals, there is no feeling of hunger during the day.
There are few disadvantages to a protein diet. Most of them rely on contraindications for certain groups of people. But they can not be fully attributed to the minuses, because they have contraindications to the diet - there is no point in sitting on it. And if they did sit down anyway, then what's the point of complaining?
So the disadvantages of the diet include:
- Constipation. This is a common problem in humans on a protein diet. The solution to this problem is the use of large amounts of water or kefir. If that does not help, then the use of a laxative
- Fallout products are not removed. The solution to this problem, as in the previous case, is the use of water in the required amounts.
- Bad breath
- Duration of the diet. Due to its specificity, it is not recommended to sit on a protein diet for more than a month. If you only use the diet as a means to maintain a figure in good shape and do not try to lose extra pounds, then this restriction does not apply to you.
This is where the disadvantages of dieting end. Everything else already belongs to the category of contraindications and should be taken first and foremost, even before going on a diet.
Protein diet rules
The functions of the protein diet are in accordance with the following rules:
- each meal is protein combined with other foods,
- all food must be prepared without fats, your fat percentage per. day is 30 gr. , This is 1 - 2 tbsp. l. oils such as salad dressing
- until 14. 00 it is allowed to eat complex carbohydrates in the form of grains (rice, buckwheat, oatmeal) 4 - 6 tbsp. l. ,
- you can use vegetables that do not contain starch (or with a minimum proportion of it) - cucumbers, tomatoes, zucchini, cabbage and lettuce,
- from fruits, give preference to citrus fruits or unsweetened apples (1 - 2 a day),
- drink plenty of water (1-2 liters a day),
- you should eat 4 to 6 times a day, approximately every 3 hours,
- such as herbs, use herbs, lemon juice, soy sauce, balsamic vinegar, garlic,
- do not drink alcohol and sweets during the diet,
- Follow the table of protein content in products,
- the duration of the diet is not more than 2 weeks.
Diet in a protein diet
You should eat at least 5 times a day, while the last time you can afford food is 3 hours before the lights go out, and breakfast can only begin 30 minutes after you wake up. As for the distribution of nutritional components, you should consume a small amount of carbohydrates in the form of buckwheat, brown rice or oatmeal before lunch. Before lunch you can also eat some fruit. You can consume up to 40 grams of fat a day, which is enough for your body.
How to make meals with a protein diet
For 7 days, 14 or a month, the menu, the number of grams per serving, with a protein diet, is not much different.
The first, second and third are an integral part of breakfast, lunch and dinner. The difference is only in the preparation and timing of eating.
Soup is the first item on the menu. The basis of the soup is a protein broth: fish, meat, poultry. Vegetable supplements of your choice, cabbage, eggplant, sweet pepper, beans, eggs.
Potatoes are banned because of their high carbohydrate content. The lack of pasta and potatoes in the soup will not reduce the taste of vegetable soup with protein broth. Any liquid food contributes to weight loss.
For other dishes, there is a much wider range of products to satisfy hunger and at the same time lose weight. Any recipes for dishes consist of chicken, fish, meat, eggs, cottage cheese, with the addition of vegetables, herbs and spices.
The question is, what should replace the accessory? Potatoes, pasta, grains are saturated with carbohydrates and are therefore not suitable for any diet. Replace carb accessories with vegetable dishes. Bake, cook, stew, for any housewife. Just be careful with the spices.
Sugar, sweet syrup and some additives that are not advisable to use may be lost in the composition. Using different foods in a diet, nutritional disorders and a feeling of hunger are not noticeable.
Menu options for protein diet
The menu for each day consists of five meals, including a sufficient amount of protein foods so that the body does not experience hunger. The diet is quite varied, while it consists of the simplest and easiest to prepare dishes.
The diet is designed for one week, with obesity, the number of days can be increased to 14 days (2 weeks is the maximum where you can be on a protein diet).
Menu №1 protein diet for one week (7 days)
Make your diet in such a way that its daily calorie content does not exceed 1000 kcal. Divide them into 5 meals so that the last is 3-4 hours before bedtime. In a week you can shed 5-7 kg.
| Day | meal | Menu for the day |
| 1 day | Breakfast | Omelet from 3 proteins 1 cup kefir (low fat) tea or coffee without sugar |
| Late breakfast | 1 cup kefir or yogurt (no additives) | |
| Dinner | 100 gr. Boiled chicken with spices and herbs | |
| afternoon tea | 1 apple or orange | |
| Dinner | 100-150 gr. Baked fish with herbs and spices. 1 cup fat-free kefir |
|
| 2 days | Breakfast | 2 hard-boiled eggs 1 tomato 1 wholemeal bread |
| Late breakfast | 1 cup kefir or yogurt (no additives) | |
| Dinner | 100 gr. Steamed meat, tomato and pepper salad - 100 gr. |
|
| afternoon tea | 1 apple or orange | |
| Dinner | 100 g canned fish (you can tuna or sardinella), 100-150 gr. Salad of fresh cabbage and cucumber, 1 glass of kefir (fat content up to 5%) |
|
| 3 days | Breakfast | Oatmeal with a handful of nuts or dried fruit. Tea or coffee |
| Late breakfast | Wholemeal bread and low-fat cheese sandwich | |
| Dinner | 100 gr chicken breast, 1/3 cup brown rice tomato and pepper salad - 100-150 gr. |
|
| afternoon tea | 1 fruit, any, except bananas | |
| Dinner | 100 g steamed fish, 1 cup cooked beans 1 cup kefir or yogurt |
|
| Day 4 | Breakfast | 150 g fat-free cottage cheese, Green tea |
| Late breakfast | a handful of nuts - no more than 30 gr. | |
| Dinner | Chicken broth with vegetables and chicken breast. 1 wholemeal bread |
|
| afternoon tea | 1 apple or orange | |
| Dinner | Baked fish or meat. Salad of fresh vegetables - cabbage, tomatoes and red pepper. |
|
| Day 5 | Breakfast | Tomato salad and salad seasoned with lemon juice |
| Late breakfast | 1 cup kefir or yogurt (no additives) | |
| Dinner | Broccoli cream soup with chicken breast pieces. 1 wholemeal bread |
|
| afternoon tea | 5 pieces. any dried fruit | |
| Dinner | Cabbage and green pea salad. Breast baked with cheese and tomatoes (hard cheese) |
|
| Day 6 | Breakfast | Omelette from 2 eggs and low-fat ham. Tea or coffee, all without sugar. |
| Late breakfast | 1 fruit, any, except bananas | |
| Dinner | 100 g steamed fish, 1/3 cup cooked rice. 1 tomato |
|
| afternoon tea | 1 cup kefir or yogurt (no additives) | |
| Dinner | Stewing from vegetables and meat - no more than 200 gr. Kefir or yogurt |
|
| Day 7 | Breakfast | 150 gr. Fat-free cottage cheese with dried apricots, Green tea |
| Late breakfast | a handful of nuts - no more than 30 gr. | |
| Dinner | 1/3 cup buckwheat (it is better not to boil it, but pour it with boiling water and leave it overnight) and fish or meat of your choice | |
| afternoon tea | 1 orange | |
| Dinner | 150 g of meat with lemon and herbs baked in the oven. Mix the juice of half a lemon and spices for meat, marinate the meat for 1 to 4 hours. After baking in the oven for 25-30 minutes |
Menu number 2 protein diet for a week
Another benefit of a protein diet for very fast weight loss is that you can make a menu at your own discretion. There are no strict rules here. The option shown is just an example.
Portion size is about 200-250 gr.
Day one: Morning, afternoon, dinner, snacks
| 1 p. m. (breakfast) | Coffee / tea without sweeteners + cottage cheese |
| 2 p. m. (2nd breakfast) | Apple |
| 3 p. m. (breakfast) | Boiled chicken breast with baked vegetables |
| 4 p. P. (Snack) | Empty natural yogurt |
| 5 p. m. (dinner) | Steam fish + vegetable salad |
Day two: Morning, afternoon, dinner, snacks
| 1 p. m. (breakfast) | Coffee / tea without sweeteners + yogurt |
| 2 p. m. (2nd breakfast) | orange |
| 3 p. m. (breakfast) | Vegetables (baked) + veal (beef) |
| 4 p. P. (Snack) | Kefir |
| 5 p. m. (dinner) | Fish (baked) and vegetables (natural, without heat treatment) |
Day three: Morning, afternoon, dinner, snacks
| 1 p. m. (breakfast) | Coffee / tea without sweeteners + a few eggs |
| 2 p. m. (2nd breakfast) | Grapefruit |
| 3 p. m. (breakfast) | Baked turkey thighs + -5 tbsp. Brown rice |
| 4 p. P. (Snack) | cottage cheese |
| 5 p. m. (dinner) | Cabbage salad + boiled veal |
Day four: Morning, afternoon, dinner, snacks
| 1 p. m. (breakfast) | Kefir + cookies (2 pcs. , From oatmeal, better homemade) |
| 2 p. m. (2nd breakfast) | Kiwi (2 pcs) |
| 3 p. m. (breakfast) | Chicken with asparagus |
| 4 p. P. (Snack) | Fresh juice |
| 5 p. m. (dinner) | Seafood and vegetables |
Day five: Morning, afternoon, dinner, snacks
| 1 p. m. (breakfast) | Steamed omelette with 2 eggs + tea or unsweetened coffee |
| 2 p. m. (2nd breakfast) | Apple |
| 3 p. m. (breakfast) | Fish with bread |
| 4 p. P. (Snack) | Ryazhenka |
| 5 p. m. (dinner) | Chicken + raw vegetables |
Day six: Morning, afternoon, dinner, snacks
| 1 p. m. (breakfast) | Cottage cheese + tea or unsweetened coffee |
| 2 p. m. (2nd breakfast) | orange |
| 3 p. m. (breakfast) | Tofu baked with vegetables |
| 4 p. P. (Snack) | Yogurt without additives |
| 5 p. m. (dinner) | Shrimp with asparagus |
Day seven: Morning, afternoon, dinner, snacks
| 1 p. m. (breakfast) | Cottage cheese + tea or unsweetened coffee |
| 2 p. m. (2nd breakfast) | Apple |
| 3 p. m. (breakfast) | Vegetable soup + boiled beef |
| 4 p. P. (Snack) | Kefir + wholemeal bread |
| 5 p. m. (dinner) | Steam fish + vegetable salad |
Protein diet menu for 14 days
Products on the menu can certainly be replaced with equivalent from the table of allowed, and the suggested dishes can be replaced with similar in terms of calorie content and composition. The most important thing is to follow the rules: eat fractionally 5-6 times a day, drink at least 2 liters of fluid a day, do not eat forbidden foods.
| Breakfast |
|
| second breakfast |
|
| Dinners |
|
| afternoon tea |
|
| Dinners |
|
The list of permitted products is so diverse that it is not difficult to develop a detailed menu with a protein diet for yourself that has room for the imagination to "roam around". Gradual adherence to a protein diet will allow you to gradually and effectively leave the diet.
Protein diet recipes
As you know, a protein diet is based on the complete or partial exclusion of carbohydrates from your body. The basis of your diet should be white meat, fish, eggs, dairy products. In more sparse versions of such a diet, vegetables and nuts are allowed. In a rigid weight loss system, you can not really clean up. For a week, and sometimes more, eat only boiled eggs, fish, and chicken every day.
As you understand, the following recipes are more suitable for saving and more diverse in terms of permitted products. They are based on protein products, but some ingredients can be added to improve the taste, which is something outside the nutritional principles of a rigid protein diet.
First meal
Egg cream soup
Ingredients:
- 400 g chicken or turkey breast
- 300-400 g spinach,
- 2 boiled eggs,
- 150 ml of milk
- spices,
- salt,
- parsley sprig.
Boil the meat in 2-2, 5 liters of water until tender with bay leaves, peppercorns and Provence herbs. Take the meat out and cut into cubes. Put the chopped spinach in the broth and cook it tender. Pour the soup, the milk into the blender bowl, place the meat and chopped eggs and beat until creamy. Serve immediately, garnished with a sprig of parsley and half a boiled egg.
Nourishing fish soup
- 400 g fillet of any white fish,
- 1 red onion
- 400 g cauliflower,
- lemon juice,
- pepper,
- salt,
- natural yogurt (optional)
Separate the cauliflower, peel, cut into small pieces. Cut the fish into large cubes. Chop the onion into thin half rings. Put it all in a saucepan, fill with water and cook until tender. Salt, pepper, before serving, add lemon juice and a few tablespoons of Greek yogurt if necessary.
Soup with chicken meatballs
- 300 g minced chicken,
- 2 squirrels,
- 1 tablespoon,
- vegetable broth (from celery or cauliflower with onions),
- 5 stalks green onions
- 1 small onion
- salt and spices.
Mix minced meat, squirrels, bran and finely ground onions, form meatballs the size of a small chestnut. Put meatballs, bay leaf, 5 black peppercorns in the boiling broth, cook until tender. Before serving, garnish the soup with finely chopped green onions.
Results and reviews after a protein diet
The results before and after the diet are impressive - in just one week you can lose up to 5 kilos, depending on the initial weight and activity. Since protein foods saturate the body with energy well, it is recommended to combine the diet with exercise for maximum effect.
As for the reviews, they are both positive and negative. For many, the diet did not fit - due to a lack of vitamins and trace elements, some of those who lost weight developed dizziness and weakness. Despite this, every person who has been on this diet has lost weight.
Protein diet contraindications
Before this diet, you must undergo a mandatory medical examination, because the protein diet is not allowed for everyone and is completely forbidden:
- with abnormalities in the work of the heart (with arrhythmias) and any of its diseases,
- hepatitis and any liver disease,
- during breast-feeding and during pregnancy,
- with renal impairment
- with joint pain or related diseases,
- with colitis, dysbacteriosis, chronic pancreatitis and a number of other diseases of the digestive system,
- diet increases the risk of thrombosis and is therefore not recommended for the elderly,
- with a duration of more than 4 weeks.
Protein diet options
Many modern diets are based on the principle of protein nutrition. Consider the most popular options.
Protein-carbohydrate diet
Its essence is that protein days alternate with carbohydrate days, that is, on one day you eat exclusively protein foods, on the other you eat complex carbohydrates. This diet option is considered to be more balanced and can be followed for more than two weeks. Usually, such a diet is resorted to after a pure protein diet to consolidate the result.
Atkins diet
Also known as the Hollywood Diet, which has become a favorite among many Hollywood stars. The nutritional basis, prepared by Dr. Atkins, the use of predominantly protein foods, even high-calorie fatty foods are allowed, but carbohydrates are excluded.
Dr. Pierre Dukan's protein diet
The most popular protein diet is the Dukan diet. This is exactly the system of proper nutrition that must be followed for the rest of your life. According to modern nutritionists, the best diet for weight loss is one that you can comfortably follow without suffering from hunger, without falling from weakness and without becoming obsessed with calorie count.
Recommendations for protein diet
Given the disadvantages of this method of losing weight, we have compiled recommendations for you, after which you can minimize the negative consequences for your body and only benefit from the diet:
- First and foremost, do not overdo it. Remember that the measure is necessary in everything: do not completely exclude carbohydrates and fats from the diet. If after a week of dieting you decide to continue losing weight, do not sit on such a diet for more than a month and then take a break of 2-3 months.
- Since the protein diet for weight loss for 7 days puts a lot of stress on the kidneys, eat more vegetables.
- Eat at least 4 small meals a day.
- The last meal should be no later than 2 hours before bedtime.
- To avoid problems with bowel movements, observe the water regime - you should drink at least 1, 5 liters of clean water a day.
- Do not exceed the daily caloric intake of 1500 kcal.
- Choose quality products! Remember that the quality of food is a very important condition for losing weight.
- If you include eggs in your diet, do not eat more than 4 eggs a day. This is especially true of egg yolk, which consists mainly of fat and increases cholesterol levels.
- Proteins in a duet with carbohydrates are better absorbed. When eating boiled chicken breast, add a little steamed cauliflower to your plate. But it is better to introduce carbohydrates in the middle of the day, at lunchtime.
- If your goal is not only to lose weight, but also to gain muscle mass, then remember that muscle grows precisely from a force load.
- To avoid lack of nutrients, it is recommended to drink vitamins during weight loss.