Our appearance is largely determined by what we eat. Proper nutrition is the key to our health, and therefore beauty.
Many consider obesity to be a payment for scientific and technological progress, thanks to which a modern person, without making any special physical efforts, can eat his fill, but move little. Most nutritionists regard excess pounds as a consequence of unspent energy and recommend low-calorie diets to their patients.
Montignac takes a different point of view. It’s not about the amount of food eaten and its calorie content, but about the quality and method of processing food. Low-calorie diets, he argues, are not only harmful to health – after all, the body not only lacks vital elements, but also contribute to … accelerated accumulation of fat.
When we do not get the required amount of food from day to day, the instinct of self-preservation turns on in the body – it tries in every way to preserve its reserves and begins to form new fat cells, so that later it will quickly accumulate fat lost from starvation. The most unpleasant thing is that it is impossible to destroy a fat cell – it can only be forced to change its size.
So, in order to lose weight, you need to eat (it sounds like a song for an organism exhausted by diets!), And fully, to your fill, three times a day, and in the intervals between meals you can feast on fruits (all except bananas).
But, before you start losing weight according to all the rules, you will have to understand the terms. According to Montignac’s theory , all foods, or rather carbohydrates, are divided into “good” and “bad”. For this, the concept of the glycemic index of a particular carbohydrate is introduced. Glucose, relatively speaking, is the fuel for humans. We eat food that contains carbohydrates, it is digested, processed into glucose and enters the bloodstream. When there is not enough glucose, the body itself produces it from fat stores. Blood glucose is called glycemia, and the ability of carbohydrates to peak in blood glucose after a meal is called the glycemic index. The lower this index, the better for us who dream of losing weight. So what is good and what is bad?
“Bad” carbohydrates are potatoes, black and especially white bread made from premium flour, honey, carrots, cornflakes and granola with sugar, sugar, regular chocolate, biscuits, corn, white rice, beets, bananas, jam and preserves. “Good” carbohydrates – bran bread, unprocessed rice grains (called brown rice), peas, unprocessed cereals without sugar, oatmeal, buckwheat, rye bran bread, fresh fruit juice without sugar, wholemeal pasta, red beans, dairy products, fresh fruit, canned fruits without sugar, fructose, soy, green vegetables, tomatoes, mushrooms, dark chocolate (cocoa content over 60 percent). The most “disgusting” carbohydrates can be considered fried potatoes (glycemic index 95), pure white bread (95), honey (90), mashed potatoes (90), carrots (85), cornflakes (85), sugar (75). In a word, down with potatoes, sweet and starchy foods from the diet. Coarsely ground bran bread (35), dark chocolate (22), and fructose (20) are encouraged. The healthiest foods are green vegetables, tomatoes, lemons, mushrooms (glycemic index less than 15).
Fats, both vegetable and animal, are absolutely essential for the body, and meat and fish products cannot be excluded from the diet. The most useful thing is to eat fish (paradox, but – the fatter the better) and poultry – chicken, turkey, duck (without forgetting to remove the skin from it). In no case should the fish be rolled in breadcrumbs or flour. Several times a week you can delight yourself with meat – beef, veal, pork, choosing only lean parts.
The wrong sandwich So, we passed the first part of the theory – we learned how to choose good and bad products, now we will learn how to combine them correctly with each other.
All our extra pounds are the result of impaired pancreatic function. Tortured with the wrong foods – buns, cakes, cola and chips, she releases huge amounts of insulin into the bloodstream to lower her glucose levels, often in excess. Excess insulin immediately pounces on fatty acids walking in the blood and … stores them. Thus, new kilograms are gradually accumulated.
Let’s eat (but only mentally) white wheat bread, spread with butter. White bread is converted into huge amounts of glucose, and butter into fatty acids, and all this will enter the bloodstream. The pancreas will respond with a large amount of insulin, which will store the oil just eaten in reserve. What should be done to prevent this from happening? First, eat not pure white bread, but wholemeal bran bread (much less insulin is required). Secondly, spread it not with butter, but, for example, low-fat cottage cheese or jam with fructose. That is, carbohydrate and lipid (fatty) foods should be separated.
Can and not
Breakfast can be carbohydrate or protein-lipid. What can you eat for a carbohydrate breakfast?
Recommended: Fresh fruit juice or fruit (15 minutes before breakfast), raw cereals without sugar, unprocessed cereals made from rye oatmeal or wheat flakes, jam without sugar, completely skimmed cottage cheese (0%) or yogurt, powdered diluted milk, decaffeinated coffee , chicory. Acceptable: bread or crispbread, muesli, rye bread, boiled fruit without sugar, tea.
Forbidden: white bread,
buns, honey, fat cottage cheese, whole milk, cheese, butter, sausages.
And what can you eat for a protein-lipid breakfast?
Recommended: Hard boiled eggs, scrambled eggs, sausage, cheese, skim milk, decaffeinated coffee, chicory.
Acceptable: fruit juice (15 minutes before meals), whole milk, tea.
Forbidden: any bread, rolls, jam, honey, muesli, fruits, regular coffee.
Of course, you should not eat everything according to the list, but it is better to choose 1-2 products per meal.
The same rules apply for lunch and dinner:
We eat meat, fish, poultry only with good vegetables (except for potatoes, carrots and beets). Naturally, no bread.
Brown rice, lentils, beans or pasta made from coarse flour are considered a separate dish and are served without oil, they can be seasoned with vegetable juice or mushroom broth.
Strong alcohol, aperitifs (at first) and especially beer (its glycemic index is 110!) Are strictly prohibited. Wine is welcome, especially red wine, within reasonable limits – no more than 2 glasses at dinner.
The process of losing weight itself is divided into 2 phases, the first is more strict, when there is active weight loss, the second pleasantly pleases with some indulgences in the choice of products – desserts and buns on fructose and other exceptions to the rules. Actually, you will always have to live in the second phase, if you do not want to return to your previous weight again.
Where to begin?
I began to follow the Montignac method as soon as I turned the last page of the book. It is written very convincingly and easily. The hardest part was buying the right products the first time. In the supermarket, I spent hours sorting out the inscriptions on the labels. But then I quickly got used to it. To shorten your searches, here are some tips. The most suitable bread for us is grain bread, it is inexpensive, sold in many bakeries and supermarkets. There are several varieties – with the addition of oatmeal, raisins, poppy seeds.
The situation with dairy products is worse. Completely fat-free, zero yoghurts, natural and no additives, you will not find here with fire during the day. We have to do with our usual 1% kefir and 0.5% milk. Very good low-fat cottage cheese (0%), which you, upon closer inspection, will find in any store. There are also low-fat cheeses on sale, but go to the big supermarkets for them.
The main question tormenting the newly minted supporters of Montignac is how long the first phase lasts, that is, how quickly the extra pounds will go away. Everyone has this process at their own speed – someone is losing weight quickly, someone is slow. I lost 5 kg in two and a half months, and I think that this is not the limit. The first 20 days of life according to Montignac did not give any results at all – the arrow of the scales stubbornly did not want to move,
and then things went – I dropped 2 kg a month. And this despite the fact that she ate an awful, in my opinion, amount of food. For example, before for breakfast I only drank a cup of coffee, sometimes eating it with yogurt. Now breakfast for me is a whole ritual – juice, bread, muesli, cottage cheese or an omelet with cheese … The desire to catch up with Claudia Schiffer’s size was so great that I even started jogging in the morning, since the school stadium is under the window, and with the onset of cold weather I signed up in the pool. The results, I can tell you without bragging, are amazing! I’m losing weight, and energy is in full swing. True, all the trousers had to be altered urgently, but this, you see, is a pleasant chore.
Here are some expert advice on what main courses, salads, etc. should be.
Soups
Many people think that soup is only a food that precedes the main course, but if you add the right ingredients to the soup, it turns into a very important independent food element. Add foods such as potatoes, cereals, vegetables, and beans to the soup pot for a highly nutritious, complete meal. It’s also a great way to use up any leftovers. Boil broth or open a can of prepared soup and add any meat or vegetable ingredients you have on hand. Even if you cook soup with raw ingredients, it will take you no more than 10 minutes. Serving anything else with this soup is optional, except that fresh, crispy bread (preferably from whole grain flour).
Second courses
On the daily menu, I recommend including steaks, chicken breasts, whole eggs mixed with proteins, yogurt, cereals, potatoes, vegetables and fruits. As you can see, this is a common meal that you can enjoy. To remain healthy and efficient, the digestive system must be supplied with mostly natural food, in particular natural protein. The value of these dishes lies in the fact that they are prepared from the same “main sports” products that may no longer fit into your mouth, but the dish itself has an unrecognizable taste and appearance. Most of these dishes are unlike anything you’ve ever seen before. How many times have you heard: “Skin your chicken. Eat only egg whites, no yolks. Eat tuna canned in water instead of oil. ” Great advice. But this approach to diet causes severe irritation after a while. Try making these delicious meals instead of your usual recommended low-fat diet. This is the best way to stay lean and muscular and still enjoy the sensual pleasure of eating. After all, food is one of life’s pleasures.
Salads and snacks
Simple salads look pretty pathetic
when you have a healthy appetite and when you need to replenish your carbohydrate stores. Many “mega salads” are formulated in such a way that they themselves are to some extent a complete main course. They combine vegetables with high-carb foods such as pasta, rice, cereals, or legumes. Some general guidelines: – Prepare more salad than you need at one time, it can be stored in the refrigerator for up to three days. – Take along plastic boxes with individual salad portions. – Add one of the dressings (more on them later) just before serving.
· Pitatatelnye cocktails
What if the hectic pace of life prevents you from eating in an organized way? Look for alternative power sources. Pay attention to protein shakes. They can be prepared in less than a minute using fruits and fruit juices, milk, yogurt or even ice cream, but their nutritional value is comparable to high-octane gasoline.
Here are some recipes:
Sea salad
Products: 1 cup rice, 1/3 cup olive oil, 2 tablespoons . lemon juice, 2 tbsp . chopped orange zest, 3/4 tsp . salt, 1/2 tsp . ground black pepper, 250 gr. peeled, boiled shrimp, 250 gr. crab meat, 250 gr. boiled scallops, 1/2 cup finely chopped red hot pepper, 2 chopped onions, lettuce leaves
Instructions: Boil rice in water. Leave for 5 minutes until the rice has absorbed all the water. In a bowl, combine butter, lemon juice, zest, salt and ground pepper. Pour the mixture over the rice, cover, cool. Before serving, add shrimp, crab meat, scallops, peppers and onions, sprinkle with ground pepper and stir gently. Serve on lettuce leaves.
Immune blast
This cocktail is “fortified” with green tea, ginseng and ginger. It is also loaded with vitamin C, nature’s main antioxidant. The healing effect is enhanced by linseed oil.
Products: Per serving: Green tea with ginseng – 1 sachet, 1/2 cup non-fat vanilla yogurt without sugar, 160 g orange juice, 2/3 cup frozen mango diced, 2 tablespoons whey protein powder, 2 teaspoons flaxseed oil .1 / 8 teaspoon ginger.
Instructions: Brew tea in a half glass of water. Mix it with yogurt and orange juice. Continuing to blend at low speed, add mango, protein powder, flaxseed oil and ginger.
Estimated Serving Content: 312 calories, 18 g protein, 40 g carbohydrates, 10 g fat.