Weight loss is often accompanied by health problems, hair loss, skin deterioration. But not in this case. The Mediterranean diet helps in weight loss, rejuvenation and improving overall well-being.
The essence of the Mediterranean diet
This is the only UNESCO approved diet recognized as a truly safe weight loss system. On the contrary, it is able to improve the general condition of the body, does not contradict the rules of proper nutrition, but has its own approach to drafting a diet. The classic Mediterranean diet contains many foods that are forbidden by other weight loss systems.
The essence of the diet is the daily use of food that is in the diet of the inhabitants of the Mediterranean. Italians, Libyans, Moroccans, obese and obese are rare among Spaniards. These countries have a low mortality rate from cancer and cardiovascular disease. They precede the life expectancy of the local population.
What are the benefits of the Mediterranean diet?
This system was not invented by nutritionists, it was not written in laboratories, but it was formed over the centuries in some places. The menu of the Mediterranean diet does not contain artificial products, preservatives, semi-finished products, which will already have a positive effect on human health.
The benefits of this diet:
- Prevents diseases of the heart, blood vessels, lowers cholesterol, dissolves existing plaques, prevents the formation of blood clots, the development of atherosclerosis.
- Maintains clarity of mind, positively affects brain function. This diet can prevent Alzheimer's disease.
- Diet according to this system prevents cancer of the stomach, intestines and breast.
- It lowers blood sugar levels, prevents the development of diabetes, as well as insulin resistance.
- Boosts the immune system, helps the body to recover faster after serious illnesses, long-term medication.
It is based on products that give strength and positively affect the emotional background. It is believed that the miraculous Mediterranean diet not only increases life expectancy, but also affects quality. Only an energetic, happy, active person can live every day 100%.
Basic nutrition principles
It is worth immediately dispelling the myth that food according to this system is expensive. The diet in the Mediterranean cleansing diet is rich based on a variety of products. It is not necessary to eat only shrimp or fish delicacies, you can always get financial analogies.
Basic principles:
- There is not enough fat intake, it is not fried sausages or cakes. This is a useful extra virgin olive oil. You can safely water salads and other dishes without worrying about the calorie content of your daily diet.
- Lots of vegetables and fruits. The Mediterranean diet even allows grapes, bananas, which are forbidden by other systems. Plant foods should be included in every meal.
- Dairy products. It is worth focusing on natural yogurt, condensed milk, fermented boiled milk. You do not need to use dairy products that have been fermented with sugar, dye, flavors in the composition. If you want, you can always add berries or honey.
- Fish and seafood. Like vegetables, this category is the basis of the diet. These products should be on the daily menu.
- White meat. You do not need to use it often, 3-4 times a week is enough, less often. In the heart of chicken, rabbit, quail, sometimes you can also lamb.
- Cereals. Brown rice, durum wheat pasta, buckwheat may be present in the diet in the Mediterranean diet, pearl is allowed. Legumes are a must.
- Red wine. You can drink up to two glasses a day, served with lunch or dinner. It is important to choose natural wine without preservatives and too much sugar in the composition.
- Eggs. Yes, but not more than one a day
- A variety of natural spices, all kinds of fresh and dried herbs are welcome. You can eat nuts and seeds.
- Bread and rye cakes are baked goods made from wholemeal flour.
During the Mediterranean wellness diet, it is important to drink not only wine (although this is very pleasant), but also clean water. The minimum daily amount is 1. 5 liters. Green tea, natural fruit drink with fresh berries, lemon water are welcome. Just do not turn healthy drinks into a source of carbohydrates by adding sugar or honey. The taste buds need to be cleaned.
Weight loss rate, duration
This system does not promise to lose 15 pounds in a month or 40 pounds in six months. The weight in the Mediterranean (Mediterranean) diet gradually decreases without stress in the body. With the right approach, a person will lose 3-4 pounds a month, but it all depends on the initial data.
If you eat on the menu of the Mediterranean diet for weight loss for a long time, then very soon your old habits will be forgotten, other foods will replace your favorite dishes, proper nutrition will become a way of life. The Mediterranean diet is not limited in time, it can be observed at any time, because the inhabitants of Morocco, Italy, Greece, Spain eat something like this.
List of prohibited products
The diet for weight loss in the Mediterranean diet can be made independently, below are only approximate menu options. The main thing is not to add banned products. This is especially true for refined sunflower oil, sugar, mixed spices with glutamate and other preservatives.
What not to diet:
- sausages, ham, semi-finished products.
- pure sugar, limited honey;
- sweet drinks, sweets, ready-made desserts.
- any white flour dough.
- lard, bacon, fatty meats and dairy products.
The easiest way to avoid dishes mistakes is to cook it yourself. Cheap oils are more commonly used in cafes and restaurants, not the freshest vegetables, meat and fish.
Mediterranean diet for weight loss: menu for every day
The following is an example of how you can eat in this system. Then you can adjust the diet to your work or study schedule, your personal taste. In addition, you do not have to eat different dishes every day, you can cook something for many lunches or dinners.
The Mediterranean diet for weight loss includes minimally processed foods. Prolonged cooking, baking, marinating reduces the amount of nutrients. And simple cereals, soups, salads do not need much time to cook.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| breakfast | Avocado toast with mozzarella, tomato, tea | pot of cottage cheese with banana, tea | egg, mozzarella and 10 cherry pieces | cereal bread, feta cheese, 2 cucumbers | brown rice with cheese and herbs | pasta with shrimp and cheese | Omelet with green beans and tomato |
| Junk food | Orange | A glass of tomato juice | fruit salad with yogurt | soft curd | grape | Orange juice | a pineapple |
| Dinner | boiled vegetables with chicken, a large bunch of greens | creamy soup with shrimp | vegetable stew with meat, tomato juice | soup with mussels and cheese | fresh tomato gazpacho, a piece of grilled fish | broccoli soup with fried shrimp | brown rice, squid in cream, vegetable juice |
| afternoon tea | apple, cottage cheese | smoothies with vegetables | glass of yogurt | vegetable salad with olives | fruit salad with nuts and yogurt | tuna toast, any juice | a slice of bread, salted fish, tea |
| Dinner | pasta with seafood and cheese, vegetables | brown rice pilaf with chicken and vegetables | Baked fish with rice, vegetable salad | Baked chicken, carrot and cheese salad | pasta with green beans, mussels | fish stew with tomatoes, vegetables | pasta with shrimp, cherry tomatoes and cream |
Remember that all diet dishes are made with olive oil, it is also used for dressing salads, you can add lemon juice, various spices. You can also include a glass of red wine with any meal.
According to the classic Mediterranean diet, the number of meals is unlimited, but it is important not to overeat. Most menu options have five. You can add an extra dinner or skip the second breakfast, which is also a snack.
Mediterranean diet for weight loss: menu for every day
Many say that the Mediterranean diet is very expensive and the quality of frozen seafood leaves much to be desired. It is also difficult to find real olive oil. But in this case, it can be replaced with other unprocessed fats. Suitable flaxseed, walnut, hemp oil, from pumpkin seeds. You can use edible coconut oil for the diet.
Do not forget that the Mediterranean diet (menu for the following week) includes frugal ways of cooking. The oil can be consumed in any quantity, but only for refueling. You can spread the product before baking on the grill or in the oven. You can not use it for frying, it is better to cook meals for dieting in a dry pan or lightly grease it with the thinnest layer.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| breakfast | fried zucchini with garlic sauce and sour cream | raisin pot | oatmeal with nuts | cheese sandwich, boiled egg, tea | pumpkin porridge with rice | muesli with yogurt | fish sandwich |
| Junk food | banana | grapefruit | Garnet | apple | vegetable salad | fruit juice, egg | pumpkin puree |
| Dinner | fish soup without potatoes from any fish, rye bread | boiled vegetables, toast, a piece of boiled meat | vegetable soup, a piece of fish, a slice of bread | pasta with cheese and squid, vegetables | cream soup with chicken and vegetables, tortillas | cabbage soup in fish broth with beans | boiled vegetables with beans, lightly salted herring |
| afternoon tea | yoghurt | fruit and milk smoothie | cottage cheese with apple | fruit salad | cucumber and herb smoothie | cottage cheese with nuts | Tomato juice |
| Dinner | Greek salad with cheese and olives | fish cake (steamed, baked), coleslaw | spaghetti and cheese, carrot salad with nuts | fish stuffed with vegetables, cucumber salad with sour cream and dill | buckwheat with chicken, tomato | chicken stew with cream, coleslaw | grilled vegetables, a piece of pike |
Here, there are virtually no seafood on the Mediterranean diet menu, but if you want, you can sometimes include them in your diet. For example, add shrimp to a salad or have a snack with a seafood cocktail.
Mediterranean diet: recipes from the menu for the week
On the diet menu there are many interesting dishes, which are also simple and quick to prepare. They are great for breakfast, afternoon and evening. Here are the most interesting recipes.
Cream soup with chicken and vegetables
In the Mediterranean diet, cream soups are often on the menu for the week. They are good for the stomach, well saturated and easy to prepare. Here's a basic vegetable recipe.
Components:
- 300 g chicken fillet;
- 300 grams of broccoli (you can cauliflower).
- 100 grams of carrots;
- 100 g onion;
- 200 g zucchini or squash.
- 150-200 ml sour cream?
- spices to taste.
Cooking:
- Chop the chicken, dip in 800 ml of boiling water, add the carrots and onions and cook for 10 minutes.
- Insert the zucchini, another five minutes after the broccoli, lightly salt. Cook covered on low heat for 10 minutes.
- Grind the chicken with vegetables, add spices to taste. Dilute the soup with cream, boil again and you are ready to serve!
In winter, you can use a frozen vegetable mixture for such a soup. Also, it is not necessary to dilute the dish with cream, you can initially add a little more water.
Spaghetti with cheese and squid
This dish is on the above menu for every day for weight loss in the Mediterranean diet. Buying squid in the store is not a problem now, but it is prepared very simply and quickly.
Components:
- 1 squid;
- 200 g pasta;
- 150 ml 10% sour cream;
- 0, 5 teaspoons oils;
- 70 g cheese.
Cooking:
- Cook the pasta according to the instructions, but bake for a minute less. Drain in a colander.
- Heat a pan, lightly grease with oil.
- We clean the squid, remove the ridge, cut into strips. Pour and fry for a minute literally, while making sure to mix with a spatula.
- Pour cream on the squid, let them boil, start with half the grated cheese, let it dissolve and salt.
- Spread the pasta, stir quickly, let the dish boil and turn it off. Leave for ten minutes under the lid.
- Sprinkle with the remaining cheese when serving.
In the same way, you can cook shrimp sauce or other seafood for diet. The only point is that you should use low fat cream so as not to increase the caloric content of the dish.
Greek salad with cheese and olives
This salad is a great substitute for lunch, dinner on a diet, especially in summer. Fully meets the requirements of the diet.
Components:
- 2 cucumbers;
- 2 tomatoes;
- 0, 5 red onion;
- 1 pepper;
- 15 ml of lemon juice.
- 1 pinch of pepper;
- 100 g feta cheese;
- 2 tablespoons oil (olive);
- 10-12 olives.
Cooking:
- Cut the cucumbers. Remove the seeds from the tomatoes and chop them finely. Cut the red onion into very thin half rings. Put in a salad bowl.
- Cut the pepper into thin strips and cut the feta, the quarters of the olive, add to the rest of the products.
- Mix the lemon juice with the oil, add salt, pepper. Pour over the salad. Stir when serving.
You can add any greens, use cherry tomatoes instead of regular tomatoes or replace the olive oil with Greek yogurt. It also makes a wonderful sauce.
Mediterranean diet for the elderly
It has already been mentioned above that the Mediterranean diet helps prevent Alzheimer's disease. It has a positive effect on the brain, it will be a salvation from senile dementia. Also, the diet according to this system has a great effect on other internal organs, but in old age it is recommended to give up wine and also to change the composition of certain dishes. The following is a sample menu for a week of Mediterranean diet for seniors. Meets all the requirements of an aging body.
| Monday | Tuesday | Wednesday | Thursday | Friday | Saturday | Sunday | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| breakfast | oatmeal with raisins | cheesecakes from the oven, fruit puree | Steam omelette with green beans | millet porridge with pumpkin | fried pumpkins, sour cream | omelette with fish fillet | Fruit cottage cheese |
| Junk food | pumpkin puree | Orange | Apple juice | portion of soft curd | vegetable salad | Beijing cabbage salad with olives, lemon, herbs | salad with carrots, walnuts |
| Dinner | boiled vegetables, minced cutlet | vegetable soup, a piece of fish | buckwheat soup without potatoes | chicken soup puree, brown bread | soup with rice and tomatoes, compote | Casserole with cauliflower and cheese | cauliflower soup, bread |
| afternoon tea | cottage cheese | a glass of kefir | banana and yogurt smoothie | Tomato juice | cottage cheese | vegetable smoothie with leafy greens | any fruit |
| Dinner | buckwheat with fish cutlets and tomato sauce | vegetable stew with fish | vegetable salad, chicken cutlet | Baked fish, vegetable puree | chicken stew with pasta | aspic fish, 10 olives, 1 tomato | chicken steak, brown rice, tomato juice |
Reviews on the Mediterranean Diet
First review, woman, 34 years old
For the second year I eat on this diet, I got used to it, I do not want red meat, I refused animal fats, but I added chia seeds to the main diet, I use quinoa instead of rice. All the time my weight has decreased from 82 to 57 kg. It was gradual, not at the same time. I noticed that the clothes become looser, the stomach is much smaller, besides the scales pleased me.
Second review, woman, 25 years old
It all started strangely for me, at first I saw a menu for a week with recipes for weight loss in the Mediterranean diet from a friend, only then I began to delve into what kind of system it was. I immediately liked that everything is simple, you do not need to cook anything complicated, just for me. We generally sat with a friend, she supported me, but she was the first to leave the fight. I did the fifth month of the diet, my health improved significantly, I came to life, I started to sleep well, I lost 9 kilos. But the initial weight was small (67 kg at 164 cm).
Third review, woman, 47 years old
I have never had weight problems, but menopause came very early. From the age of 44, I started to gain weight fast, resulting in +20 kg in a year. The endocrinologist told me about the diet, I liked the very idea of such a diet, but I adjusted it a bit for myself, for example, I refused the wine. I can not drink it, the body does not tolerate it well, constantly heartburn. But I allow myself pomegranate juice.
Fourth review, woman, 38 years old
I heard about the Mediterranean "miracle" diet from a doctor, decided to study this diet and turned smoothly to it. I had neither Monday nor schedule. I just gradually changed the usual food into systemic dishes. My goal was to improve my health, as there are many chronic diseases and inherited risks. At the same time, I lost 11 kilos.
Dietary contraindications
Despite the high scores, awards and many positive reviews, the Mediterranean system has contraindications.
Who should not diet:
- People with diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, the abundance of fiber can cause pain attacks.
- people who have suffered serious illnesses, surgeries.
Also, do not follow this diet if you have an intolerance to fish or seafood. Each person should evaluate in advance how narrow the diet is, if they can follow such a diet in the menu of the Mediterranean diet for weight loss for a long time.