What is the essence of a protein diet for weight loss?
By following the simplest protein diet, you can feel cheerful and active throughout it.
This is a significant advantage of this weight loss technique. But it can last no longer than 14 days, optimally 1 week. The fact is that a protein diet creates an energy deficit in the body by saturating it with high-protein foods and limiting the intake of carbohydrate foods. This causes stress in the body.
With a lack of carbohydrates, hidden glycogen reserves in fat deposits and muscle mass begin to be extracted.
Moreover, weight loss is first ensured by a significant loss of fluid, and a little later the muscle-fat mass begins to give up its energy reserves. The result of following the protein weight loss method:
- Lose weight by about 5 kg per week;
- absence of a constant gnawing feeling of hunger;
- maintaining weight loss results for a long time.
But despite these advantages of this diet, it cannot be called varied; the downside is that such a diet puts excessive stress on the kidneys and gastrointestinal tract and can lead to deterioration of health; pregnant women are prohibited from using it.
Therefore, the menu of a protein weight loss program includes not only foods with a predominant protein content, but also many other essential nutrients, this greatly facilitates compliance with the dietary regime and reduces the load on the kidneys.
results
With a protein menu for 2 weeks as part of this diet, you can lose weight in different ways. Results will depend on proper nutrition, lifestyle, exercise, positive attitude and existing diseases. If you never leave the race during these 14 days, following all the recommendations of nutritionists, the treasured figure on the scale may be 10 kg less, which is an excellent indicator. The main thing is to maintain it and not gain weight again, which likes to increase very quickly after leaving the hunger strike.
The presented protein diet menu options for 2 weeks allow you to assess your own strengths in advance. Look through it carefully and honestly answer yourself the question: do you have the fortitude to give up sweet and salty foods for such an impressive period of time? Perhaps you should first try yourself on a 7-day fast.
We also recommend reading: “Protein diet for 10 days.”
Protein diet: list of allowed foods and recommendations
During the protein diet, the following are allowed:
- any meat - pork, beef, poultry with minimal fat content;
- seafood, eggs, low-fat cottage cheese;
- raw vegetables: cabbage, cucumbers, herbs, tomatoes;
- Lemon juice or olive oil is used as a dressing;
- Oatmeal and buckwheat are allowed 2 times a week.
It is advisable to alternate different types of meat.
Excluded:
- sweets - here are all confectionery products (cakes, cookies), sugar and sweet fruits;
- bakery products, pasta, foods fried in fat;
- grains, potatoes, butter.
When following a protein diet, you must follow the following recommendations:
- you need to eat 5-6 times a day, the last time no later than 2 hours before bedtime;
- drink at least 1.5 liters of mineral water without gas or clean water daily;
- any alcohol is prohibited;
- If desired, it is permissible to eat a couple of citrus or unsweetened apples for a snack.
Who is the diet contraindicated for?
You should not start a protein diet if you belong to one of the following groups of people:
- Children under 18 years of age
- Pregnant and nursing mothers
- Aged people
- People suffering from chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract and excretory system
- Diabetics
- People leading a sedentary lifestyle
Remember that a protein diet for weight loss is a burden for the body. It is not recommended to follow it for more than two weeks, as this will lead to disorganization of metabolic processes and disrupt the functioning of the kidneys and heart. Elderly people should not choose this diet, as consuming too much protein increases the risk of blood clots.
Protein diet for a week: menu options
Option 1 protein diet for 7 days
The first day:
- Breakfast: 150 grams of beef with one whole grain bread, a cup of tea or coffee;
- Snack: 1 apple;
- For lunch: boiled chicken breast (150 grams) with vegetable salad (200 grams);
- Afternoon snack: 1 glass of low-fat yogurt or kefir;
- For dinner: boiled sea fish (200 grams) with vegetable salad dressed with lemon juice.
Second day:
- Breakfast: 150 grams of low-fat cottage cheese, tea, coffee;
- Snack: 1 any citrus fruit;
- For lunch: beef stewed with vegetables (150 grams);
- Afternoon snack: 1 cup of low-fat kefir with diet bread;
- For dinner: 200 grams of boiled lean fish with fresh vegetables.
Day three:
- Breakfast: boiled chicken fillet (200 grams), tea or coffee;
- Snack: 1 apple;
- For lunch: 200 grams of boiled beans with a portion of vegetable salad;
- Afternoon snack: 200 grams of low-fat yogurt with dietary cookies;
- For dinner: 150 grams of boiled beef with 150 grams of cabbage salad, seasoned with 1 tbsp. l. olive oil.
Day four:
- Breakfast: 1 glass of low-fat kefir with dietary cookies;
- Snack: 1 unsweetened fruit;
- For lunch: 200 grams of boiled chicken breast, 1 glass of apple juice;
- Afternoon snack: 1-2 boiled eggs;
- For dinner: 200 grams of boiled fish, 150 grams of fresh vegetables.
Day five:
- Breakfast: 150 grams of boiled turkey, 1 apple, tea or coffee;
- Snack: 1 glass of apple juice, 1 diet cookie;
- For lunch: boiled fish (200 grams) with a piece of whole grain bread;
- Afternoon snack: 1 glass of low-fat kefir;
- For dinner: 150 grams of boiled beef with vegetable salad.
Day six:
- Breakfast: 150 grams of low-fat cottage cheese and tea;
- Snack: 1 grapefruit;
- For lunch: beans stewed with vegetables;
- Afternoon snack: 1 glass of kefir;
- For dinner: boiled sea fish (200 grams) with fresh vegetable salad.
Day seven:
- Breakfast: 1 glass of skim milk, 1 diet cookie;
- Snack: 1 unsweetened apple;
- For lunch: vegetable soup with champignons;
- Afternoon snack: 50 grams of low-fat cottage cheese;
- For dinner: boiled beef (150 grams) with fresh salad.
Option 2 of the seven-day protein diet
Day 1. Distribute throughout the day 200 grams of boiled chicken breast, 1 fresh cucumber and tomato, canned tuna without oil, grapefruit and 1 piece of whole grain bread.
Day 2. For the whole day, 200 grams of fried veal, the same amount of fresh cucumber, tomato, bread, fruit: apple or pear.
Day 3. Hard low-fat cheese (50 grams), boiled vegetables (200 grams), 2 cucumbers and tomatoes, bread, orange.
Day 4. 200 grams of boiled turkey fillet, the same amount of fresh tomatoes and cucumber, bread, pear, grapefruit.
Day 5. 2 eggs, 3 tomatoes, salad with vegetables, orange.
Day 6. Boiled turkey breast (200 grams), canned tuna, boiled vegetables, two cucumbers and tomatoes, bread, apple.
Day 7. 200 grams of low-fat cottage cheese, cucumbers, tomatoes, 2 cups of kefir, grapefruit.
Grapefruit not only contains a lot of vitamins, but also helps burn calories.
Protein diet menu for 14 days
A two-week weight loss program gives good results on high-protein foods. There is an effective menu option that specifies 3 meals, but in practice it is advisable to divide the amount of food into 5-6 meals.
- Breakfast: coffee. Lunch: tomato juice, salad with cabbage and vegetable oil. Dinner: boiled or fried fish (200 grams).
- Breakfast: crackers with coffee. Lunch: boiled fish (200 grams), vegetable salad with cabbage. Dinner: boiled beef with kefir.
- Breakfast: coffee and crackers. Lunch: stewed zucchini, apple. Dinner: boiled beef (200 grams), 2 boiled eggs, cabbage salad.
- Breakfast: coffee. Lunch: 1 boiled egg, fresh carrot salad with olive oil (1 tsp), a piece of hard cheese. Dinner: kefir.
- Breakfast: carrot salad dressed with lemon juice. Lunch: boiled fish fillet (200 grams), 1 glass of tomato juice. Dinner: a glass of kefir.
- Breakfast: tea. Lunch: boiled chicken breast, salad with cabbage and carrots. Dinner: 2 boiled eggs, grapefruit.
- Breakfast: coffee. Lunch: boiled beef (200 grams) and grapefruit. Dinner: 150 grams of low-fat cottage cheese.
- Breakfast: tea. Lunch: boiled turkey fillet, 1 apple. Dinner: a glass of kefir.
- Like the sixth day.
- Like the fifth day.
- Breakfast: coffee. Lunch: 1 boiled egg, boiled carrots, a piece of hard cheese. Dinner: a glass of kefir.
- Like the third day.
- Breakfast: coffee and crackers. Lunch: boiled fish (200 grams) with cabbage salad. Dinner: boiled beef (150 grams) and a glass of kefir.
- Breakfast: coffee. Lunch: 2 boiled eggs, cabbage salad and 1 tomato. Dinner: boiled fish 200 grams.
Dukan diet menu
The Dukan diet according to the menu is divided into various stages: attack, cruise, protein-vegetable, consolidation, stabilization. The very first stage of the attack is the most critical, here is its approximate menu:
- For breakfast: 2 egg white omelette with low-fat milk and some herbs.
- Snack: one and a half tablespoons of bran oatmeal.
- For lunch: 200 grams of boiled veal.
- Snack: boil 200 grams of shrimp or other seafood.
- For dinner: 200 grams of boiled veal or lamb.
Boil seafood in slightly salted water.
Recipes for a protein diet
Chicken fillet in kefir
You will need:
- 100 grams of chicken fillet;
- 50 ml each of kefir and water;
- salt, pepper, herbs to taste.
Cut the chicken fillet into pieces and mix with salt and seasonings. Pour a mixture of kefir and water over the chicken. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours. Cook the fillet pieces in a hot frying pan without oil for 5 minutes on each side.
Oven baked fish
You will need:
- 200 grams of fish fillet (pollock, hake, cod, tilapia, pangasius, trout);
- juice of 1 lemon;
- seasonings to taste.
You can also bake it in a special sleeve.
Pour lemon juice over the fish fillet, sprinkle with seasonings and dried herbs. Place the fish on foil, wrap and bake in the oven until cooked (20-30 minutes).
To prevent the fillet from burning or sticking, add a little water to the baking sheet where it is baked.
Spinach cream soup
You will need:
- 1 skinless turkey breast or drumstick;
- 1 package spinach (fresh or frozen);
- 2 cloves of garlic;
- salt, pepper, any herbs as desired;
- 1/3 cup skim milk.
Boil the turkey, remove it from the broth and let it cool. Chop the spinach and simmer in the broth for about 5 minutes. Separate the turkey meat from the bones, chop it finely and put it back into the broth. Cook for another 2 minutes. Cool the soup a little, then puree everything using a blender, gradually adding milk to the mixture, adding spices and chopped herbs. It is better to serve the finished puree soup immediately; when heated, it may lose its puree-like consistency.
Beef baked with eggplant
For 4 servings you will need:
- 0.5 l of water;
- 500 g lean beef;
- 300 g eggplant;
- 400 g peeled tomatoes;
- finely chopped parsley, a clove of garlic.
Cut the eggplants into rings and place in salted water for 15 minutes. Chop the tomatoes, place in a saucepan, sprinkle with parsley and crushed garlic. Bring water to a boil and cook the eggplants in it for half an hour over medium heat. Then add to the tomatoes and mix everything. Cut the meat into thin slices.
Place half of the vegetables in a heat-resistant baking dish, place the meat on them, and cover with the rest of the vegetables.
Bake in the oven for 15 minutes.
Pros and cons of a protein diet
You can find a lot of positive reviews on the Internet. Indeed, such nutrition helps to quickly lose weight without making you starve. A protein diet forces the body to burn stored fat tissue and use it for energy. With fat, excess water also leaves the body, due to which body volumes quickly decrease.
However, many nutritionists warn that such a diet can be dangerous for people with kidney disease. They are at high risk of developing urolithiasis or kidney failure. Even healthy people should consult a specialist before switching to this type of diet.
It is worth noting that the lack of sugar greatly affects your mood - you may feel anxious and depressed. Another disadvantage is the lack of fiber, which leads to constipation. But this problem can be solved by eating plenty of vegetables and drinking plenty of fluids.
Before going on a diet, read all the details and assess your condition. Any transition to a different diet is a huge stress for the body. Therefore, try to maintain balance and make your weight loss not only effective, but also healthy.