Excess weight in most cases is caused by excessive stores of adipose tissue, deposited as a result of chemical transformations of carbohydrates that enter the body. And although obesity is based on certain disorders in the endocrine and digestive system, the most comfortable and painless solution to the problem remains limiting the source of excess calories in the process of daily nutrition. By stopping or critically reducing the access to the stomach of easily digestible carbohydrates by using a carbohydrate-free diet, we automatically trigger the reaction of burning the accumulated reserves.
What is a no carb diet?
It is precisely on the basis of carbohydrate-free nutrition that athletes lose excess weight before competitions, artists before filming, and public figures when they need to get in shape. Athletes even have a special name for such a diet. It is called "drying" - eliminating carbohydrates from the diet removes subcutaneous fat deposits and improves the relief and elasticity of ligaments and muscles. But life without carbohydrates is a difficult test for those with a sweet tooth, who are forced to radically change their taste preferences, and for a fairly long period of time. This requires not only determination, but also a fair amount of patience and will.
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 even the smallest crumb of bread or piece of sugar like fire, thinking about nothing but losing weight, sitting for months "on omelets and chops", lovers of a diet without carbohydrates inevitably "earn" digestive and metabolic problems, in some cases full of disorders of the higher nervous systemsystem, activity, memory loss, depression and sociopathy.
Long-term or constant rejection of carbohydrates causes a disturbance of the acid-base balance in the direction of acidification of the body, which inevitably leads to a decline in immunity and premature aging. A side effect of a long-term low-carb diet is problems with the intestines, kidneys, arthritis, gout and other diseases.
Below we will look at several examples of a carbohydrate-free diet and a scheme for its use, which allows you to normalize metabolic processes, get rid of extra pounds and at the same time not go to extremes, pumping the body to capacity with proteins. of animal origin with its far from harmless chemistry and energy.
Biochemical and anatomical basis of a low-carbohydrate diet
The decisive argument for a low-carbohydrate diet is the peculiarity of the body's reaction to the entry of even a small amount of sugar into the stomach. The pancreas immediately begins to reflexively release insulin into the blood, and digestive enzymes into the stomach, which instantly increase 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 food does not have such a seductive effect on the "pancreas", the production of hormones and enzymes takes place in a working state, saturation occurs gradually and completely. Proteins are broken down in the gastrointestinal tract much longer than carbohydrates, so the feeling of satiety lasts for several hours, and the need for snacks simply does not arise if you have three or four protein meals a day.
Principle 250 kcal
Most likely, it will not be possible to completely give up carbohydrates - simply because they are included even in completely protein dishes, albeit in minimal quantities. But that's not terrible, the main thing is not to exceed the specified number of kilocalories of "carbohydrates".
A low-carb diet certainly requires willpower, but its use can be very disciplined. It is enough to remember one single number - 250. It is the number of energy units - calories, which are contained in the daily amount of carbohydrates that enter the body. Of course, we will have to carefully weigh all dishes and calculate their energy value using special tables or notes on the restaurant menu, but this is an almost unavoidable expense of any strict diet.
Carbohydrate mono-diet: effective, but monotonous
An ideal low-carbohydrate diet for guaranteed and rapid weight loss implies separate daily meals - on the first day you eat only chicken, on the second - only eggs, on the third - only cheese or cottage cheese. This is the fastest, but also the most "tasteless" and monotonous way to lose weight. Not everyone is ready to make such sacrifices, so we will lose weight without fanaticism and combine work with pleasure - medicinal action with gastronomic pleasures, which are promised by tasty and healthy products based on animal and vegetable proteins.
By the way, the mentioned critical 250 notorious kilocalories of carbohydrates per day should also be obtained not from pastries and sweets, but by the harmonious inclusion of complex carbohydrates (long to digest) in the diet - vegetables not rich in starch, cereals, whole wheat bread without yeast.
Basic ingredients of a carbohydrate-free menu
Here is a list of protein foods intended for a protein diet:
- lean meat - chicken, turkey, rabbit, veal;
- offal - stewed heart and liver;
- duck, chicken, quail egg;
- fillets of marine fish, crabs, shrimps, lobsters, marine cephalopods;
- dairy products - kefir, yogurt, granulated fresh 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, because mushroom proteins are different from animal proteins;
- sour berries and fruits, as well as avocados;
- nuts and seeds.
Meat and fish should be steamed, in the oven or at most on the grill, but never in a pan or deep fried.
Proper nutrition excludes sausages, sausages and pates that contain a lot of dubious additives based on carbohydrates and transgenic fats.
When choosing a feed supplier, you should give preference to farms where meat and dairy animals are kept in comfortable conditions and do not receive various growth hormones and antibiotics in their feed. You should not believe the prices 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 are used in the production of notorious "healthy" products.
Forbidden carbohydrates
Now about the main thing for any diet - what is forbidden. The following are prohibited on a low-carb diet:
- bread, other than unleavened whole grain;
- everything from flour - pasta, pizza, pies, khachapuri, cakes, cookies;
- chocolate and sweets;
- sweet and sour-sweet fruits and berries;
- vegetables rich in starch (potatoes, carrots, corn, beets);
- industrial semi-products. Regardless of what 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.
Confident 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. Alcohol, in addition to its direct toxic effect on the body, is also a strong appetite stimulant and a fairly high-calorie product - the calories obtained from it can safely be added to 250 kcal, which is the daily limit for protein nutrition.
Menu in 7 days
Monday
- Breakfast - Low-fat cottage cheese cheesecakes with bran.
- Lunch - Vegetable salad with herbs, 200 g of chicken breast with herbs.
- Snack - Orange.
- Dinner - Turkey 100 g with stewed vegetables.
Tuesday
- Breakfast - Omelet with vegetable salad or stewed vegetables. Black tea without sugar.
- Lunch - Creamy vegetable 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, rocket, canned tuna (1 can) and mozzarella.
Thursday
- Breakfast - Oatmeal with water without sugar. One banana (can be chopped and added to oatmeal).
- Lunch - Vegetable soup with veal meatballs.
- Snack - orange or grapefruit, a glass of citrus juice.
- Dinner - lean steamed fish.
Friday
- Breakfast - a mixture of 1 banana, a glass of fresh or thawed pitted cherries and a glass of milk. Blend 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 100 g with brown rice.
- Snack - Sandwich of unleavened bread, soft cheese, ham, lettuce and sliced tomato.
- Dinner - vegetable saute with meat. A glass of kefir or unsweetened yogurt to drink.
Sunday
- Breakfast - 1 hard boiled egg. Diet bread with hard cheese.
- Lunch - Cream of champignon or wild mushroom soup. You can add chopped turkey or chicken to the soup.
- Snack - an orange, a green apple or a handful of nuts.
- Dinner - Vegetable salad, 100 g of meat or fish baked in the oven.
Low-carb diet porridge
Slurries on water occupy a borderline position. When you are on a diet without carbohydrates, it is recommended to include four types of grains in your menu:
| no. | Name | Protein content | Carbohydrate content |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buckwheat | eleven% | 68% |
| 2 | Peas | 21% | 50% |
| 3 | Oatmeal | 12% | 65% |
| 4 | Quinoa | 14% | 64% |
Porridges are especially useful in the intervals between periods of active weight loss, when it is necessary to restore the balance of fats, proteins and carbohydrates in the body.
A questionable alternative: the keto diet In the United States, with its notorious fast food culture, a very popular type of low-carb diet is the ketogenic diet, which allows you to eat large amounts of not only protein, but also animal fat. This scheme has both supporters and detractors. The main argument of the latter is the damage of fatty foods to the cardiovascular system, due to the deposition of cholesterol on the walls of blood vessels. It's hard to disagree with this.
Feeding time and precautions
The effect of the diet begins to manifest itself after two to three weeks; with strict daily separate meals you can lose weight within a week after switching to protein. Limiting fast-digesting food will almost inevitably cause intestinal disturbances - constipation, flatulence, caused by a decrease in the content of plant fibers in food. When eating a meat menu or eating fish and seafood, you must drink at least two liters of fluid a day, eat soups, and if you have constant constipation, take mild laxatives. After a month, in order to avoid the development of persistent carbophobia, you should take a break - from two to four weeks. It will restore the disturbed balance of proteins and carbohydrates and intestinal motility. While taking a break in the diet, you should not try too hard: the diet should be balanced and strict, otherwise you will not only lose all your gains, but you will also gain additional fat deposits, so you will have to start a fight. against excess weight again.