The Dukan diet is in demand by celebrities all over the world. The problem of excess weight worries every second woman today. Stress, sedentary lifestyle, fast food, lack of physical activity and malnutrition: all this is reflected in the female figure. In search of a solution to this problem, girls resort to weight loss with the help of diets. Not all of them are effective.
One of the most popular proven methods can be called the program of the French nutritionist Dr. Pierre Dukan, the author of the famous book entitled "I can not lose weight", where you can find everything about weight loss. Adhering to all the rules and recommendations, you can lose weight by 30 kg. For those who have not practiced a diet before, many questions arise, but the most relevant are: "Where to start, how to sit down and what can I eat? ". To answer, it is necessary to study the essence of the method and all stages of the program.
Reviews of doctors and nutritionists about the Dukan diet are ambiguous. The technique has thousands of fans and followers, but there are always those who oppose it and try to refute its effectiveness. To evaluate the results and draw your own conclusions, you need to test the program yourself, compare the weight before and after weight loss.
General recommendations and basic principles
At the heart of the diet are several important principles that are of great importance in losing weight. Ignoring these rules will reduce the effectiveness of the program. Important to remember:
- Fighting excess weight by temporarily reducing calories is useless. At first, the extra pounds will go away, but they will come back very quickly. You should change the diet and constantly consolidate the result.
- Despite the fact that the diet is protein, it excludes mononutrition. You have to eat enough not to be hungry.
- Review the foods that are allowed and make a list. Anything not included should be removed from the refrigerator and kitchen cabinets to reduce the risk of temptation.
- The foundation of the Dukan diet is oat bran. They must be present in the diet every day, 1, 5 tablespoons. L. the product should be taken with a glass of water. Often women are interested in how to replace oat bran? It is advisable not to look for alternatives. Replacement is possible only in case of intolerance to the product. In this case, use buckwheat.
- Go sports. Physical activity is extremely important, they not only allow you to burn calories, but also get the body in shape, strengthen the walls of blood vessels, the work of the heart muscle and the brain.
The author of the methodology insists that these principles must be remembered and respected, not only when compiling a menu for every day, but also throughout life, it is necessary to cultivate the habit of eating well.
Active start
The program of the famous 72-year-old French nutritionist consists of four phases. The first and most important phase is called "Attack". It is designed for 7 days. Abuse and zeal is not worth it, practicing it for more than a week, you risk your own health. If everything is done correctly, then during this period you can get rid of 1 to 6 kg.
In the first week, carefully monitor your well-being. You can only eat protein, you should also drink a lot. A meal should replace bran. The danger of this period is that the consumption of such an amount of protein adversely affects the kidneys and leads to dehydration.
If you can't afford the treats, replace them with cheaper alternatives. Cooking should be with a minimum amount of salt and preferably without it. Use spices, seasonings, vinegar, mustard, etc. to keep food fresh. Prefer food processing methods such as steaming, baking and boiling. Sometimes you can eat fried foods, but you should cook with olive oil, which should be used in minimal quantities.
Why rotate products
The second phase is called "Alternation" or "Cruise". Its duration is not strictly defined. The theory says that you need to stick to this diet until you reach your ideal weight. Vegetables are added to the diet for protein. They are rich in vitamins and minerals, fibers, acids.
In phase 2 it is necessary to combine protein-only days with protein and vegetable days. You should also increase the daily dose of bran to two tablespoons. Don't forget the drinking regime. Every day you need to drink up to 2 liters of pure non-carbonated water. If in the first phase the weight loss has occurred intensively, in the second phase the weight loss rate will be lower, but the result will be of better quality and more stable. In a week you can lose 1 kg of weight.
There are practically no restrictions on vegetables and herbs. Don't just eat peas, beans, potatoes, and corn. These vegetables are high in calories and starch. Be sure to include seasonal fruit on your menu. The risk of failure at this stage of the diet is reduced to zero, because the diet becomes much wider and the recipes are more diverse.
Let's solve the result
The third phase of the Dukan diet is called "fixation". At this stage, the weight does not go away, the goal of losing weight is to correct the result. As a result, the "gone" kilograms will not return as soon as you relax and stray from a strict schedule. At this point, you can add starch and honey to your menu. Starchy foods such as potatoes should be consumed infrequently, such as once a week. Honey is designed to compensate for the lack of sweetness. The permitted rate is 3 teaspoons per day.
At this stage it is necessary to increase the volume of the bran. During the day, you need to eat 3 tablespoons and drink them with plenty of water. The "attack" days should be arranged periodically. Once a week, eat like the first day of the diet. A party is allowed twice a week. What is this "party" for those on a diet? This means that a woman at one of the meals can eat anything and in any quantity.
How much you can lose at this stage is difficult to say, because each case is individual. The approximate number of days can be calculated by multiplying by 10 the number of kilograms lost during the "alternation" phase. For example, if you have lost 7 kg, the duration of the "fixation" will be approximately 70 days. Now cheese, bread, fruit can appear in the diet, but only in limited quantities.
Change your diet and lifestyle
The fourth stage is "stabilization". Now the diet is not perceived as a restriction in food. Your body has adapted and is used to the new routine. Keep eating at the same pace for as long as you want to stay slim, attractive, and healthy. Dukan recommends that you always eat like this.
Often women are interested in whether it is possible to introduce walnuts in the diet during weight loss, and if so, which ones? Nuts are sources of fat and carbohydrates, but the author of the method states that in the stabilization phase, you can sometimes eat walnuts, but their quantity should not exceed your handful.
A lighter version of the methodology is a new program called Food Ladder or Second Front. Each day is one step. Every day the list of products admitted for consumption expands. The weight will decrease slowly but steadily and comfortably. In one week, the body weight will drop by only 700 grams. The duration of the diet varies according to weight loss. Once you have achieved your goal, you can stop and continue to follow the rules of proper nutrition.
Anyone who has lost weight thanks to the technique notes its high efficiency. It is available for people who are starting their journey towards beauty and wellness.