Japanese diet. Is it really so good and for whom is it contraindicated? - Let's prepare for summer before it's too late
The main advantages of the Japanese diet for residents of our country are its relative availability and duration. The absence of complex and expensive ingredients, only two weeks of restrictions - and now you show yourself in jeans that have never been buttoned before. But to become a beautiful geisha, you must strictly follow the menu.
Briefly about the essentials
The duration of the diet is 14 days. This is a low-calorie protein menu, you can only practice this diet twice a year maximum. The average result of the Japanese diet is 5-8 kg in 2 weeks. This menu is not suitable for pregnant women, nursing mothers, people suffering from gastritis and ulcers, as well as people suffering from liver disease, kidney disease or heart problems. Before starting a diet, you should consult your doctor.
Original or speculation?
There will be no exotics - all foods allowed in the Japanese diet have long been familiar to us. This is an undeniable plus, because the risk of allergies is minimized and the ingredients necessary for cooking can be purchased in any supermarket.
It is not clear why this diet is called Japanese. According to some sources, it was invented in a clinic in Tokyo, according to others, the name was inspired by the simplicity and clear dietary plan, which gives the expected inspiring result (a bit in the Japanese way: follow the rules, do your best and you will be rewarded).
The Japanese diet is popular all over the world, it is distinguished by moderation in the composition and calorie content of permitted foods, which also makes it similar to the traditional Far Eastern diet. Japanese nutritionist Naomi Moriyama is convinced that the youth and longevity of her compatriots allows them to keep a relatively small amount of carbohydrates in the daily menu and small portions.
Moriyama estimates that the Japanese consume on average 25% fewer calories than people in any other country. In Japan, for example, it is not customary to eat chips, chocolate or pastries, and the Japanese only knew about butter at the beginning of the 20th century thanks to Europeans and are still wary of it. In other words, choosing healthy foods in moderation is a national characteristic of Japanese culture. And the Japanese diet for 14 days fully meets this requirement, despite the formal differences from the usual diet of ordinary residents of the Pacific state.
"Samurai" rules of the Japanese diet
The main satiating substance in the diet is protein, obtained from chicken eggs, chicken, beef, fish and dairy products. Carbohydrates are found in crackers and some permitted vegetables, fats are found in olive oil, which can be used for cooking and salad dressing, and in meat and fish.
Fiber is found in abundance in vegetables and fruits, the amount of which is not even regulated on some days of the diet, so the stomach will probably do its job well. Coffee and green tea not only help to invigorate you, but also contain healthy antioxidants (so it is important to choose high-quality tea and coffee, always natural, without flavors and additives).
However, such a diet still cannot be called balanced and following it for more than two weeks is dangerous for health. But even during these 14 days, your body may react badly to the reduction in the amount of carbohydrates in the menu: in this case, you will experience aches, weakness and headaches. Then you need to gradually abandon the strict menu and consult a doctor.
The drinking pattern of the Japanese diet is particularly important. Drink plenty of clean, still water at room temperature to not only help your stomach feel full, but also to ensure that animal protein waste is flushed out.
The main condition for the success of the Japanese diet is strict adherence to its plan. We cannot confuse the days and replace certain products with others, even similar ones, at will. The only exception may be morning coffee: it can be replaced with a cup of green tea without sugar. It is advisable to avoid salt throughout the diet, but if this ban is critical for your taste buds, then add minimal salt to your food.
A small number of meals per day (just three instead of the healthier 5-6) and lack of snacks can also be difficult on the Japanese diet, so be prepared for that. Eat dinner at least a few hours before bed and start the morning with a glass of water on an empty stomach - this is good for the metabolism and allows you to better tolerate the absence of breakfast.
The Japanese diet being strict, it is extremely not recommended to enter it in a hurry. If you decide to lose weight with such a menu, prepare yourself psychologically and prepare your body at least a few days before starting the diet by giving up sweets and fast food and reducing the size of your usual portions.
Shopping list for the Japanese diet for 14 days
- Coffee beans or ground - 1 pack
- Green tea of your favorite variety (no additives or flavors) - 1 pack
- Fresh chicken eggs - 2 dozen
- Sea fish fillet – 2 kg
- Lean beef, fillet – 1 kg
- Chicken fillet – 1 kg
- Extra virgin olive oil – 500 ml
- White cabbage - 2 medium sized forks
- Fresh carrots – 2–3 kg
- Zucchini, eggplant - 1 kg total
- Fruits (except bananas and grapes) - 1 kg total
- Tomato juice - 1 l
- Kefir - 1 l
- Lemons - 2 pcs.
Menu for the most robust
The composition of the Japanese diet is often compared to the "chemical diet", a diet invented by American physician Osama Hamdiy to treat obesity in diabetics. Like the Hamdia diet, the Japanese diet uses the effect of a sharp reduction in carbohydrate nutrition while increasing the amount of protein. As a result, the chemistry of the body's metabolic processes is reorganized, accumulated fats are burned quickly, and new ones are prevented from forming due to muscle strengthening.
In the Japanese diet, no changes in schedule or diet are allowed. If you want to achieve results, you must strictly follow the diet program.
First day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar or milk.
Lunch: 2 boiled eggs, boiled cabbage with vegetable oil and a glass of tomato juice.
Dinner: 200 g of boiled or fried fish.
Second day
Breakfast: a piece of rye bread and sugar-free coffee.
Lunch: 200 g of boiled or fried fish with boiled cabbage and vegetable oil.
Dinner: 100 g of boiled beef and a glass of kefir.
The third day
Breakfast: a piece of rye bread toasted in the toaster, or unleavened biscuits without additives, coffee without sugar.
Lunch: zucchini or eggplant, fried in vegetable oil, in any quantity.
Dinner: 200 g of boiled unsalted beef, raw cabbage in vegetable oil and 2 boiled eggs.
Fourth day
Breakfast: a small fresh carrot with the juice of a lemon.
Lunch: 200 g of boiled or fried fish and a glass of tomato juice.
Dinner: 200 g of any fruit.
Fifth day
Breakfast: a small fresh carrot with the juice of a lemon.
Lunch: boiled fish and a glass of tomato juice.
Dinner: 200 g of any fruit.
Sixth day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar.
Lunch: boiled unsalted chicken (500 g) with salad of fresh cabbage and carrots in vegetable oil.
Dinner: small fresh carrots and 2 hard-boiled eggs.
Seventh day
Breakfast: green tea.
Lunch: 200 g of boiled unsalted beef.
Dinner: 200 g of fruit or 200 g of boiled or fried fish, or 2 eggs with fresh carrots in vegetable oil, or boiled beef and 1 glass of kefir.
Eighth day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar.
Lunch: 500 g of boiled chicken without salt and carrot and cabbage salad with vegetable oil.
Dinner: small fresh carrots with vegetable oil and 2 hard-boiled eggs.
Ninth day
Breakfast: medium carrot with lemon juice.
Lunch: 200 g of boiled or fried fish and a glass of tomato juice.
Dinner: 200 g of any fruit.
Tenth day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar.
Lunch: 50 g of cheese, 3 small carrots in vegetable oil and 1 hard-boiled egg.
Dinner: 200 g of any fruit.
Eleventh day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar and a slice of rye bread.
Lunch: zucchini or eggplant, fried in vegetable oil, in any quantity.
Dinner: 200 g of boiled beef without salt, 2 boiled eggs and fresh cabbage in vegetable oil.
Twelfth day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar and a slice of rye bread.
Lunch: 200 g of boiled or fried fish with fresh cabbage in vegetable oil.
Dinner: 100 g of boiled unsalted beef and a glass of kefir.
Thirteenth day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar.
Lunch: 2 boiled eggs, cabbage boiled in vegetable oil and a glass of tomato juice.
Dinner: 200 g of fish boiled or fried in vegetable oil.
Fourteenth day
Breakfast: coffee without sugar.
Lunch: boiled or fried fish (200 g), fresh cabbage in olive oil.
Dinner: 200 g of boiled beef, a glass of kefir.
There is an opinion that such a diet is one of the most durable and the results achieved can last up to three years. But, of course, the dream will remain unattainable if, after the restrictions end, you start overeating.
Fast does not mean high quality
It should be noted that among experts there is also an opinion that diets that have a name most often do not work or are even harmful. Endocrinologist and nutritionist Irina Tatarnikova claims that weight loss should be gradual, and a drastic low-calorie diet itself leads to breakdowns and can even cause depression. The fact is that a person begins to scold himself for his weakness, but in reality his diet was simply unbalanced.
—Here they use extremely low-calorie diets and fasting, for which a person is not ready. Therefore, extreme methods are effective only at the initial stage, but then there will be a breakdown - and the weight will return with interest, the expert explains.
The nutritionist also points out that for most people, long breaks between main meals, such as skipping breakfast, will lead to overeating at dinner.
- Don't try to lose weight - you should completely forget this phrase, because trying comes from the word "torture" and losing weight comes from the word "bad". By saying this, we are not preparing ourselves for positive weight loss, " concludes the nutritionist. Irina advises us to think that by limiting ourselves without fanaticism, we are, above all, making ourselves healthier. Specially for the editorial, she cited 10 popular habits that prevent you from losing weight.