Mediterranean diet for weight loss. Menu for the day, week, recipes. Reviews and results

The Mediterranean diet is the only food system that has a phenomenal number of fans who follow its rules not only to lose weight, but also to improve the health of the entire organism, which ultimately leads to active longevity.

Essence and basic principles

The uniqueness of the diet is that it is not a set of rules, principles and restrictions artificially created by nutritionists that you always want to break.

This is the result of observing the community in a certain region, comparing the morbidity statistics of its population with the rest of the population of the planet, identifying the reasons for its superiority and adapting the traditional diet of the region to other countries.

The term "Mediterranean diet" was introduced for the first time in the middle of the 20th century by the American couple A. and M. Case, who, studying the dependence of cardiovascular diseases on the diet, made an unexpected conclusion.

It turned out that Italy, where nutritionists published their scientific works on heart disease, differed from their homeland in that the local population, consuming a lot of fatty and high-calorie foods, did not suffer from obesity and was less prone to diseases of the circulatory system. , hypertension and diabetes.

This served as an impetus for new research work in Italy, and then for the validation of the idea in Japan, Germany, Finland and Yugoslavia.

Ansel and Margaret Case's sensational discovery prompted American scientists, concerned about the nation's rate of disease and rapid "obesity, " to use their research to create a program of "preventive medicine" in the 1970s. In essence, these are the systematized foundations of the traditional nature of the diet of the inhabitants of the Mediterranean countries.

The popularity of the diet has been very high for half a century, which proves its simplicity and effectiveness, and the UNESCO organization recognizes the cuisine of 12 Mediterranean countries as national cultural heritage. Unlike other diets, the Mediterranean diet has no time limits.

It should become a way of life, turning its nutrition advocate into a resident of the Mediterranean region. Which is not at all difficult, given the simple principles and the availability of the necessary products in all stores. The Mediterranean diet for weight loss means following certain rules that quickly become a habit.

To do this you need:

• switch to 6 meals a day (3 main and 2 additional, called snacks);
• make seasonal (not greenhouse) vegetables, fruits and berries the basis of the diet;
• focus on fish and seafood in your diet;
• use only olive oil in the kitchen, using it both for cooking and salad dressing;
• eat legume meals every day;
• minimize sugar consumption by replacing it with honey;
• drink only dry red wine, refusing other alcohol;
• consume at least 6 tablespoons of clean water per day;
• lead an active and mobile lifestyle.

For a better understanding of these simple rules, the so-called "Mediterranean dietary pyramid" was developed. Closer to the base, which occupies the largest volume of the geometric figure, are the foods that should be consumed several times a day.

This:

• rice, millet, bulgur, durum wheat pasta, whole grain bread;
• vegetables and fruits;
• fermented milk products, cheeses;
• nuts, dried fruits.

In addition, closer to the top of the pyramid, that is, occupying a significantly smaller volume, there are food products with a consumption limit of 1 to 6 times a week.

This:

• fish dishes;
• chicken meat;
• potatoes;
• chicken eggs;
• sweet desserts.

At the top of the pyramid is meat. Italians prefer beef and lamb and almost never eat pork. In countries where the main meat diet is pork, it makes no sense to deviate from the generally accepted product, you just need to choose lean cuts.

Thus, the visual distribution of priority products allows us to reduce the diet to the following daily diet:

Name of the product	% of food consumed per day
Cereals and legumes	35
Vegetables, fruits, vegetables	thirty
Fermented dairy products, cheeses, fish, meat	20
Olive oil	10
Sweet desserts	5

Important point: when to eat the listed products.

The distribution of the diet over time looks like this:

• cereals, cereals, chicken eggs, vegetables, fruits - breakfast;
• fermented milk products, fruits - 2nd breakfast;
• soups, pasta, rice, vegetable salads, meat, fish, fruit - lunch;
• fruit salads, fermented milk products, cheeses - afternoon snack;
• fish, vegetable casseroles, salads, seafood, cheeses, fruit - dinner.

Thus, looking at the list of permitted foods and the distribution of their intake during the day, we can conclude that you will not have to starve. Also, good red wine is a daily bonus in the Mediterranean diet. Even desserts are allowed - once a week (Italians and French are known sweets lovers, but in moderation).

However, in order to start the process of losing weight (namely, this is the goal of switching to dietary nutrition), you need to remember the amount of food you eat. The volume of food consumed for one meal should not exceed 240 ml (visually this is 16 tablespoons. L. or 1 tablespoon).

The Mediterranean diet for weight loss does not give immediate results. Using a balanced menu, hearty meals and minor restrictions in their lives, adherents of these principles, as a rule, continue to live, observing them further and after some time notice an improvement in health, significant weight loss and the need to renew the body tois actively moving.

Contraindications for use

The success of the diet is due to three factors:

• low in animal fat and sugar;
• high content of dietary fiber, fiber;
• with a high content of omega-3 fatty acids and antioxidants.

Although the Mediterranean fasting diet is a well-balanced way of eating, it has contraindications.

This combination is unacceptable for some people:

• People with a high level of obesity will not be able to get the expected results by changing their diet. In this case, special, radical methods of weight correction are needed.
• Such a food set with a high level of fiber can be harmful for diseases of the gastrointestinal tract.
• Allergy sufferers who react to seafood or other main components of the Mediterranean diet will need to avoid it.

Main menu for the week

After some time, getting used to the Mediterranean diet and its characteristics will help you create a balanced menu for the day, taking into account the rules, your own preferences and capabilities. Until then, you can use the nutritionists' recommendations.

Days of the week		Main meals (no snacks)
	breakfast	Dinner	Dinner
Monday	Oatmeal with water (or low-fat milk) with fruit; Coarse bread with cheese; Green tea	Baked fish (200 g); Garnish of stewed vegetables; 100 ml of red wine	Boiled seafood; Vegetable salad
Tuesday	Muesli with yogurt (natural, without additives); Cereal bread with feta cheese; tea (green or black)	Boiled fish with herbs; Macaroni category "A"	Boiled or roasted turkey (200 g); Boiled buckwheat; Tomato vegetable salad; 100 ml of red wine
Wednesday	Omelette them 2 eggs; Coarse bread with cheese; Fruits (1 pc. )	Chicken soup; Vegetable salad	Seafood salad with avocado; 100 ml of wine
Thursday	Buckwheat milk porridge; Green tea; Fruits	Pasta with seafood and tomatoes; 100 ml of wine	Steamed fish (200 g); Garnish - boiled bulgur; Vegetable salad
Friday	Cottage cheese casserole; coffee	Cheese soup with shrimp; 2 slices of bread croutons; 100 ml of wine	Fish cutlets; Vegetable stew; 2 slices of hard or semi-hard cheese
Saturday	Muesli with yogurt and dried fruit; Whole grain bread, cheese and avocado sandwich; Green tea	Zucchini, tomato, feta cheese casserole; 100 ml of wine	Roasted or boiled chicken breast (150 g); Boiled lentils; Vegetable salad
Sunday	Cottage cheese casserole with dried fruits; Fruits (1 piece); coffee	Risotto with seafood; Vegetable salad	Boiled or stewed fish (preferably boiled meat (150-200 g); Vegetable stew; 100 ml of wine

Mediterranean diet recipes

The Mediterranean diet for weight loss is characterized by a wide choice of dishes to compose a menu.

It is important to remember that:

• In cooking, olive oil is used - a source of polyunsaturated fatty acids and lipids, which can sometimes be replaced with another vegetable oil;

• the consumption of bread is limited, which must be grainy, coarsely ground;
• food must be prepared without the use of store-bought sauces or preserves that contain E-additives;
• milk and fermented milk products should be low-fat;
• in dietary nutrition, the consumption of any sea fish is encouraged - herring, mackerel, cod, hake, pike, perch; fish should be steamed, grilled, boiled or steamed, avoiding frying;
• White poultry or rabbit meat can be included in the diet 2-3 times a week, red meat (beef, lamb, lean pork) - no more than 2-3 times a month. It should also be boiled or stewed;
• salt is used in small quantities, it is well replaced with lemon juice and spices; sugar is completely excluded, you can use a little honey;
• We must not forget about the drinks - all kinds of teas, herbal teas, coffee are allowed; simple clean water is needed;
• wine should be red and dry, which helps reduce appetite, normalizes stomach acidity, participates in hematopoiesis and lowers cholesterol;
• Store sweets with a high content of sugar, fat and palm oil are excluded from the diet.

Summer salad (with chicken)

The hearty and easily digestible salad has an unusual, spicy-fruity taste, thanks to the combination of its ingredients.

Composition of the ingredients

Compound:

• boiled chicken breast - 150 g;
• fresh peaches - 2-3 pcs. ;
• canned pineapples - 50 g;
• stalks of celery - 2-3 pcs. ;
• any lettuce leaves - 150 g.

For dressing, you need low-fat natural yogurt without additives (1/2 cup), mint, cinnamon, lemon peel.

Step by step cooking process

The summer salad is prepared in 3 stages:

1. The process should begin with the preparation of the base of the salad: you should cut chicken breast, peaches, pineapples and celery into small cubes. It is better to tear the lettuce leaves with your hands.
2. To prepare the dressing, put the yogurt in a separate bowl, add the cinnamon, lemon zest and chopped mint leaves.
3. Then you need to add the dressing to the base of the salad and mix carefully.

What can I add?

The salad will remain tasty, healthy and in accordance with the rules of the Mediterranean diet if:

• use turkey instead of chicken;
• peaches can be replaced with nectarines and pineapples with orange pulp.

This type of salad will remain a healthy, low-calorie and satisfying dish.

How to serve a dish

Summer salad is easy to prepare in any season by buying imported peaches or oranges. It is suitable for dinner with a glass of dry red wine. The dish can be decorated with lettuce leaves and pieces of fruit left aside.

Salad with basmati rice

The Mediterranean diet for weight loss is famous for its grain salads, in which you can combine poultry, fish or vegetables with grains to get a variety of taste, but filling and healthy meals.

One of those salads is below.

Composition of the ingredients

Compound:

• basmati rice - 1 tablespoon;
• feta cheese - 60 g;
• dried tomatoes - 2 pcs. ;
• peanuts - 2 tablespoons;
• peppermint;
• olive oil;
• spices;
• water (for 200 g of rice - 250 ml of water).

Step by step cooking process

Basmati salad is prepared in 6 steps:

1. Basmati rice should be washed and then soaked for 15 minutes. in lukewarm water, which will help the beans to more fully reveal their taste and aroma properties.
2. Then you need to continue cooking in the same water, after it boils, reduce the heating temperature. After boiling the grains for 20 minutes, set the pan aside and let the grains sit in the hot pan for another 15 minutes. Only then can the rice be mixed with a fork.
3. At this time, dried tomatoes should be poured with hot water and kept in it for 10 minutes, then dried with a paper towel and cut.
4. Roast the nuts and chop them and the feta cheese.
5. Add tomatoes, cheese and nuts to the cooled rice - this is the basis of the salad.
6. Add the chopped chives, the spices and season with olive oil.

What can I add?

In this dish you can also use other nuts - pine nuts or walnuts, which is quite suitable for the Mediterranean diet.

How to serve a dish

You can serve the dish for lunch or dinner, garnished with a sprig of mint.

Cheese cream soup with seafood

The Mediterranean diet allows for the consumption of large amounts of fatty foods such as cheese.

They appear on the table almost every day, served as an appetizer, at the end of a meal with dessert or when preparing a warm dish.

Composition of the ingredients

Compound:

• hard or semi-hard cheese - 200 g;
• processed cheese - 100 g;
• shrimps - 150 g;
• mussel meat - 100 g;
• cream (20%) - 200 ml;
• chicken egg (yolk) - 1 pc. ;
• carrots - 1 pc. ;
• onion - 1 pc. ;
• wheat flour - 1 tablespoon;
• wine vinegar - 1 tablespoon;
• olive oil - 1 tbsp.

Step by step cooking process

The cream cheese soup is prepared in 5 steps:

1. To prepare the broth, you need to boil the shrimps and clams, peel them, filter 200 ml of liquid and pour them into a pot for preparing the soup.
2. The peeled and chopped onion is fried in a small amount of olive oil until transparent and, adding pieces of carrots, it is kept on the fire a little longer.
3. Put the cream in a pot with the broth, let it boil and add the grated cheeses on low heat. The broth must be stirred continuously until the cheeses are completely melted.
4. The next step is to collect the stirred egg yolk, the boiled vegetables and the flour dissolved in a small amount of water in a pot. While stirring, let the soup boil and cook for 5-7 minutes.
5. It is necessary to "beat" the contents of the pan with a blender, achieving the desired consistency with the remaining broth.

What can I add?

To improve the taste, you can use the broth left after cooking boiled fish.

How to serve a dish

Soup is served at lunchtime. The contents of the plate are sprinkled with herbs.

Zucchini with feta cheese

Vegetables cooked in the oven are a great option for a meal that is healthy and does not take much time in the kitchen.

One option is zucchini with feta cheese.

Composition of the ingredients

Compound:

• Zucchini (small) - 4 pcs. ;
• feta cheese - 200 g;
• garlic - 1 clove;
• olive oil - 1 tablespoon;
• peppermint;
• spices;
• Pine nuts.

Step by step cooking process

Zucchini with cheese is prepared in 4 steps:

1. To prepare the zucchini for baking, you need to wash them; Peel the old fruits from the skin, leave the young ones with the skin; cut lengthwise in two and remove pulp.
2. Then fry the chopped mash in olive oil with garlic passed through a garlic press.
3. Add the remaining ingredients to this mixture: crumbled feta cheese and mint, nuts and spices. Mix everything carefully.
4. The zucchini "boats" are filled with the prepared filling and baked in the oven at 220°C for 30 minutes.

What can I add?

You can also cook courgettes and eggplants and use semi-hard cheese instead of feta cheese.

How to serve a dish

The dish goes both alone and with a side of boiled brown rice. Or you can use it on its own as a braised vegetable for chicken breast or turkey. Zucchini will look beautiful with parsley.

Fish baked with cheese

Fish is a commonly consumed food in the Mediterranean diet. During the weight loss period, it should be eaten boiled or stewed.

By changing the type of fish, you can change the calorie content and taste of the dish while maintaining the health benefits.

Composition of the ingredients

Compound:

• fish fillet - 200 g;
• low-fat kefir - 50 ml;
• semi-hard cheese - 70 g;
• olive oil - 1 tablespoon;
• lemon juice - 1 tbsp.
• fennel.

Step by step cooking process

Fish with cheese is prepared in 4 steps:

1. The baking tray should be greased with oil and pieces of fish should be arranged.
2. The dressing is prepared as follows: you need to combine kefir, juice, herbs and mix everything. The mixture is carefully poured over the fish portions.
3. Each piece should be sprinkled with grated cheese on top.
4. The products must be stored in an oven preheated to 180°C for 15 minutes.

What can I add?

You can add chopped pepper to the mixture or place a slice of tomato on top of the fish.

How to serve a dish

The fish can be decorated with herbs and thin lemon leaves.

Pasta with peas

The Mediterranean diet includes among the foods allowed for consumption pasta (pasta), beloved not only in Italy.

It is not certain that by eating them you can achieve significant weight loss, but nutritionists believe that category "A" pasta made from durum wheat does not lead to weight gain.

Composition of the ingredients

Compound:

• category "A" pasta products - 200 g;
• semi-hard cheese - 200 g;
• green peas - 0. 5 tablespoons;
• black pepper - 1 pc. ;
• olive oil;
• lemon juice.

Green peas can be used fresh frozen, it is much better than canned.

Step by step cooking process

Pasta with peas is prepared in 3 steps:

1. The pasta should be boiled until done, and the cooking time is always indicated on the package.
2. Then boil the green peas until half done and fry them in olive oil with finely chopped pepper.
3. You should combine hot pasta with peas, black pepper, grated cheese and add lemon juice to taste instead of salt.

What can I add?

Cooked pasta can be combined with many foods and sauces, resulting in dishes with different taste and richness.

How to serve a dish

Before serving, you can add arugula leaves to the dish.

Oatmeal Muffins with Almonds

Sometimes you can treat yourself to homemade desserts.

In this case, the composition of the ingredients will certainly be known and there will be confidence in the absence of preservatives and harmful additives.

Composition of the ingredients

Compound:

• oatmeal - 4 tablespoons;
• chicken egg - 2 pcs. ;
• milk powder - 4 tablespoons;
• baking powder - 20 g;
• almonds - 10 g.

Step by step cooking process

Oatmeal muffins are prepared in 4 steps:

1. To prepare the dough, you need to mix the "dry" ingredients: cereals, milk, baking powder, chopped nuts.
2. The eggs are beaten and carefully mixed with the "dry" mixture.
3. The resulting dough is placed in silicone molds, which do not need to be greased with oil.
4. Place the muffins in an oven preheated to 200°C and bake for 15 minutes.

What can I add?

Any chopped nuts, dried fruit or fresh fruit are suitable as an addition to the oat-milk mixture.

How to serve a dish

The dessert can be served garnished with mint leaves or fresh fruit. For greater pleasure, you can make tea or herbal infusion.

When to expect an effect

People who switch to the Mediterranean diet note that without much effort or discomfort, they begin to notice positive changes in their health and figure after about 3-4 months. Gradual, initially almost imperceptible weight loss, reaching an average of 3 kg within six months.

Becoming fans of delicious and healthy food, people stop focusing on their weight and after 2-3 years 10-15 kg disappear unnoticed. After reaching the optimal weight, the body independently reaches an equilibrium state.

The Mediterranean diet is not a change in diet for rapid weight loss with lightning weight regain after completing the course. It's a change in lifestyle, attitude to the world around you, to yourself, to your body and body, giving them the attention they deserve.