In most cases, excess weight is caused by an excessive supply of adipose tissue, which is deposited as a result of the chemical transformation of carbohydrates entering the body. And although obesity is based on a certain disturbance of the endocrine and digestive system, the most convenient and painless solution to the problem remains the restriction of excessive sources of calories in daily nutrition. By stopping or critically reducing easily digestible carbohydrates from reaching the stomach with a carbohydrate-free diet, we automatically start the reaction of burning the accumulated reserves.
What is a no-carb diet?
Based on the carbohydrate-free diet, athletes lose extra pounds before competitions, artists on the eve of filming, and public figures when they need to get in shape. Athletes even have a special term for such nutrition. It is called "drying" - by removing carbohydrates from the diet, they remove subcutaneous fat deposits and improve the relief and flexibility of ligaments and muscles. However, life without carbohydrates is a difficult test for those with a sweet tooth, who are forced to radically change their taste preferences and for quite a long time. It requires not only determination, but also a sufficient amount of patience and willpower.
There is another side of the coin - the complete rejection of carbohydrates in favor of protein products causes a condition that nutritionists call the not entirely correct term carbophobia (literally "fear of carbohydrates"). Avoiding the smallest crumb of bread or a piece of sugar, likefire, thinking of nothing but weight loss, sitting on "omelettes and slices" for months, followers of a no-carb diet inevitably "search" for digestive and metabolic problems. in some cases, disorders of the higher nervous system, activities, memory loss, depression and sociopathy.
Permanent or permanent refusal of carbohydrates causes a disturbance of the acid-base balance in the direction of acidification of the body, which inevitably leads to a decrease in immunity and premature aging. Side effects of a long-term low-carbohydrate diet include intestinal, kidney, arthritis, gout and other diseases.
Below we will look at several examples of a carbohydrate-free diet and its system of use, which allows you to normalize metabolic processes, get rid of excess weight, and at the same time not to overdo it, pumping the body with proteins. they are of animal origin with their far from harmless chemistry and energy.
Biochemical and anatomical basis of a low-carbohydrate diet
The decisive argument in favor of a low-carbohydrate diet is the peculiarity of the body's reaction when even a small amount of sugar enters the stomach. The pancreas immediately begins to reflexively release insulin into the blood and digestive enzymes into the stomach, which immediately increases appetite (that's why they say appetite comes with eating). As a result, when we eat foods rich in carbohydrates, we almost always eat more than we objectively need. Protein-containing foods do not have such a tempting effect on the "pancreas", the production of hormones and enzymes is functional, satiety occurs gradually and completely. Proteins break down in the gastrointestinal tract much longer than carbohydrates, so the feeling of fullness lasts for several hourslasts, and the need to snack simply does not arise if we eat three or four protein meals a day.
Basic principle 250 kcal
It is probably not possible to give up carbohydrates completely - simply because they are included even in completely protein foods, albeit in minimal quantities. But this is not scary, the point is that the specified number of "carbohydrate" kilocalories should not be exceeded.
A low-carb diet certainly takes willpower, but it can be very disciplined. It is enough to remember a single number - 250. This is the number of energy units - calories - contained in the daily amount of carbohydrates entering the body. Of course, we have to carefully measure all the food and calculate the energy value using special tables or notes on the restaurant menu, but this is an almost unavoidable cost of any strict diet.
Carbohydrate monodiet: effective, but monotonous
The ideal low-carbohydrate diet for guaranteed and rapid weight loss includes a separate daily meal - on the first day of the diet, only chicken is eaten, on the second day only eggs, and on the third day only cheese or cottage cheese. This is the fastest, but also the most tasteless and monotonous way to lose weight. Not everyone is ready for such sacrifices, so we will lose weight without fanaticism and combine business with pleasure - a healing effect with gastronomic pleasures, which are promised by tasty and healthy products based on animal and vegetable proteins.
By the way, the above-mentioned critical, infamous 250 daily carbohydrate kilocalories should also not be obtained from buns and sweets, but by the harmonious inclusion of complex carbohydrates (long digestible) in the diet - non-starchy vegetables, cereals, yeast-free whole. grain bread.
Basic ingredients of a carbohydrate-free menu
Here is a list of protein foods for a protein diet:
- lean meat - chicken, turkey, rabbit, veal;
- offal - steamed heart and liver;
- duck, chicken, quail eggs;
- sea fish fillets, crabs, shrimps, lobsters, marine cephalopods;
- dairy products - kefir, yogurt, cottage cheese, low-fat sour cream and hard cheese;
- leafy vegetables (cabbage), artichokes, green peas, beans, zucchini, onions, garlic, garden herbs. You can eat mushrooms, but with caution, since mushroom proteins are different from animal proteins;
- sour berries and fruits, as well as avocado;
- nuts and seeds.
Meat and fish should be cooked by steaming, in the oven or, at most, on the grill, but never in a pan or deep-fried.
Sausages, sausages, pate, which contain many dubious carbohydrates and transgenic fat-based additives, are excluded from the proper diet.
When choosing food suppliers, preference should be given to farms where meat and dairy animals are kept in comfortable conditions and do not receive various growth hormones and antibiotics in their feed. Do not trust the price tags in supermarkets - if you are on a diet, carefully read the instructions on the package and study the list of food additives in advance, many of which are harmful to health, but the notorious "healthy" products.
Forbidden carbohydrates
Now about the most important thing in any diet - what is forbidden. In the case of a low-carbohydrate diet, the following are prohibited:
- bread, except whole grain without yeast;
- everything made from flour - pasta, pizza, pies, khachapuri, cakes, pastries;
- chocolate and sweets;
- sweet and sour-sweet fruits and berries;
- vegetables rich in starch (potatoes, carrots, corn, beets);
- industrial semi-finished products. In spite of what the manufacturers write on the packaging, they almost always contain carbohydrate additives and preservatives, and even genetically modified fats;
- fruit juices and carbonated drinks;
- alcohol in any form.
Committed carnivores will find it hard to resist a glass of red wine with their favorite steak, but here you have to choose: health or pleasure. In addition to its direct toxic effect on the body, alcohol is also a strong appetite stimulant and a fairly high-calorie product - the calories gained from it can easily be added to the 250 kcal, which is the daily limit of the protein diet.
Menu for 7 days
Monday
- Breakfast - Cheesecake made from low-fat cottage cheese with bran.
- Lunch - Vegetable salad with herbs, 200 g chicken breast with herbs.
- Snack - orange.
- Dinner - Turkey with 100 g of steamed vegetables.
Tuesday
- Breakfast - Omelet with vegetable salad or steamed vegetables. Black tea without sugar.
- Lunch - Vegetable cream soup with pieces of turkey or chicken.
- Snack - Green apple.
- Dinner - salmon baked in the oven.
Wednesday
- Breakfast - unsweetened muesli with milk and dried apricots or other dried fruit.
- Lunch - Lentil soup with chicken breast.
- Snack - Almonds or other nuts (a handful).
- Dinner - Salad of cherry tomatoes, arugula, canned tuna (1 can) and mozzarella.
Thursday
- Breakfast - Oatmeal with water without sugar. A banana (can be cut into small pieces and added to oatmeal).
- Lunch - Vegetable soup with veal meatballs.
- Snack - Orange or grapefruit, a glass of citrus juice.
- Dinner - low-fat steamed fish.
Friday
- Breakfast - a mixture of 1 banana, a glass of fresh or thawed pitted cherries and a glass of milk. Mix in a blender.
- Lunch - Chicken pilaf 200 g.
- Snack - Green tea with a piece of hard cheese.
- Dinner - Chicken or turkey with vegetable salad.
Saturday
- Breakfast - Egg white omelette. Unsweetened tea. 1 banana.
- Lunch - Boiled chicken breast with 100 g of brown rice.
- Snack - Sandwich made of unleavened bread, soft cheese, ham, salad and sliced tomatoes.
- Dinner - Roasted vegetables with meat. A glass of kefir or unsweetened drinking yogurt.
Sunday
- Breakfast - 1 hard-boiled egg. Diet bread with hard cheese.
- Lunch - Creamy mushroom or wild mushroom soup. Chopped turkey or chicken can be added to the soup.
- Snack - Orange, green apple or a handful of nuts.
- Dinner - Vegetable salad, 100 g oven-roasted meat or fish.
Porridge for a low-carbohydrate diet
Porridge made on water occupies a borderline position. In the case of a diet without carbohydrates, it is recommended to add four types of cereals to the menu:
| No. | Name | Protein content | Carbohydrate content |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buckwheat | eleven% | 68% |
| 2 | Pea | 21% | 50% |
| 3 | Cereal | 12% | 65% |
| 4 | Quinoa | 14% | 64% |
Porridge is especially useful during periods of active weight loss, when you need to restore the balance of fats, proteins and carbohydrates in the body.
A dubious alternative: the keto diet In the United States, which has a notorious fast food culture, a very popular type of carbohydrate-free diet is the ketogenic diet, which allows the consumption of not only proteins but also animal fats in large quantities. This system has supporters and opponents. The main argument of the latter is the harmful effect of fatty foods on the cardiovascular system due to the deposition of cholesterol on the walls of blood vessels. It's hard not to understand that.
Diet timing and precautions
The effect of the diet begins to appear after two to three weeks, with strict daily separate meals you can lose weight within a week after switching to proteins. Limitation of quickly digestible food almost inevitably causes intestinal disorders - constipation, flatulence, which is caused by a decrease in the vegetable fiber content of food. If you eat meat, fish and seafood, you should drink at least two liters of liquid and eat soup a day, and if you are constipated, you should take a mild laxative. After a month, to avoid the development of permanent carbophobia, you need to take a break - for two to four weeks. It restores the protein-carbohydrate balance and bowel movement. You should not go too far during the diet break: the diet should be balanced and strict, otherwise you will not only lose all the gains, but also gain additional fat deposits and have to start the fight. against overweight again.