If you have problems not only with excess weight, but also with the cardiovascular system, you can pay attention to the beach diet, developed by cardiologist Arthur Agatston. The Beach Diet is a very popular weight loss program around the world, also called the South Shore or South Beach Diet. Particular attention to her began to appear after it turned out that the Clinton family was fond of her.
The essence of the beach diet
The author of the beach diet is American cardiologist Arthur Agatston. Wanting to help his patients reduce the burden on their heart by losing excess weight, he has developed a program that guarantees effective weight loss of 3-6 kg in two weeks.
The beach diet cannot be called strict, it is easy to follow, which explains its popularity. The cardiologist's program can most likely be called a system of proper balanced nutrition. To achieve the desired results, the doctor recommends paying attention not so much to the amount of food consumed as to its quality, value to the body. Artut Agatston is sure that fast carbohydrates, which are hidden in sugary drinks, confectionery, juices, and wheat flour products, are the cause of weight gain. Instead of giving the body energy, fast carbohydrates lead to new fatty deposits. The author also recommends limiting food that has been deeply processed and, as a result, slows down the metabolic process.
The cardiologist, considering the methods of losing weight from other doctors, pays special attention to how the diet safely affects the work of the cardiovascular system. So according to the Atkins diet, for example, you can eat all animals and extremely unsaturated fats in any quantity, but an excess of these fats can lead to the occurrence of heart disease and vascular problems. Arthur Agatston's diet includes many animal fats and proteins. Studies have shown that lean meat does not have a negative effect on blood pressure. But chicken yolk is an indispensable element of nutrition, since it is a source of vitamin E, and also has a beneficial effect on the balance between bad and good cholesterol. The cardiologist's diet includes turkey and chicken, fish, including tuna, cod and salmon. Arthur Agatston recommends not forgetting about the use of low-fat nuts and cheeses. Introducing mono- and polyunsaturated fats into the diet reduces the risk of heart attack.
You should not switch to a "new" diet very quickly, let the body get used to the changes, thereby helping it to wean from the "wrong" foods. The diet in terms of the diet is similar to the Michel Montignac program and to the Kremlin diet.
What is the essence of the American cardiologist's diet? At first, a losing weight person quickly loses weight due to fluid loss. As a result of restrictions in the intake of sugar, the body begins to take up the use of its own sugar reserves, only water remains in the body, which is excreted in the urine. Keep in mind, at the first stage of losing weight, you will lose extra pounds, but if at the third stage of the program you will again "get carried away" with sugar and a lot of water, the lost weight will come back.
The American cardiologist recommends adhering to the following positions when choosing products:
- Decided to go on the South Beach Diet, be prepared to purchase lots of fresh vegetables.
- When visiting grocery stores, watch out for avocados, asparagus, artichokes, bell peppers, cabbage, broccoli, celery, mushrooms, cucumbers and tomatoes, zucchini, spinach, peas and radishes.
- In addition to vegetables, you will also need to add lean meat to the menu. Between Canadian and regular bacon, stick with the lower fat option.
- Milk, yogurt, cottage cheese, cheese - all this can and even should be included in your diet, but only if these fermented milk products contain a low percentage of fat (no more than 1-2%).
- Don't be lazy to read the composition of food. So much sugar is found in ketchup and various salad dressings. Mustard, salsa, tabasco and soy sauce are allowed.
- Choose vegetable juices as drinks. As for fruit juices, they are high in sugar, which is not acceptable for a beach diet. Coffee, tea and drinking water are allowed.
- For more effective weight loss, complex carbohydrates are needed, they are present in coarse oatmeal, brown rice, whole grain pasta.
Pros and cons of the beach diet
During the passage of the Agatston diet, there is no need to count the number of calories consumed. Weight is lost as a result of not being able to get energy from carbohydrates. Despite these advantages, this program still has its drawbacks:
- Increased risk of gallstones.
- Possible problems with stool due to lack of fiber.
- Great stress on the kidneys and liver
If you have serious health problems, including kidney problems, be sure to see your doctor before starting any diet.
The phases of the beach diet
The "Beach Diet" weight loss program is divided into three phases. The duration of the first stage is two weeks. During this time, a person comprehends severe restrictions on the food they eat, because it will be necessary to abandon foods that contain a large amount of sugar.
The second stage is not as difficult as the first, since the human body is already more or less accustomed to proper nutrition. At the third stage, the results are consolidated.
The first phase of the beach diet
The first part of the weight loss program is the most important and is aimed at rebuilding the body to a new diet without sweets, alcohol, juices and fruits. Products can be baked, boiled, steamed, but in no case fried. Eat three times a day with two small snacks. Allowed seafood, lean meats, low-fat cheeses, peanut butter and nuts, poultry, eggs, vegetables, unsweetened spices, sugar-free jelly, cocoa, olive and sunflower oil, lemon juice.
You can start the South Beach Diet by following the following menu:
- Monday … Start your morning with a glass of tomato juice and a hard-boiled egg. You can have a snack with two pieces of boiled lean meat and a coffee without sugar. After two hours, half a tomato, herbs and low-fat cottage cheese (up to 80 g) are allowed. For lunch, a salad of lettuce leaves, chicken breast, nuts, and garlic, seasoned with olive oil and lemon juice is suitable. For an afternoon snack, treat yourself to a small portion of the usual tomato and cucumber salad, as well as cottage cheese. Steam sea fish for dinner with broccoli and cauliflower, and make a vegetable salad. Eat a serving of low-fat cottage cheese with lemon zest before bed.
- Tuesday … Make scrambled eggs and tomatoes for your first breakfast, a slice of cheese and a mug of unsweetened tea are allowed. Later, drink a glass of vegetable juice and eat 100 g of cottage cheese or cheese. For lunch, enjoy grilled chicken breast with herbs and fresh cucumber. After a few hours, have a snack with stewed cabbage, after another 2 hours - fish with a vegetable side dish. To sleep well, eat 100 g of cottage cheese with cocoa powder before bed.
- Wednesday … You can start your first breakfast again with a soft-boiled egg. Eat 2 pieces of poultry, a protein source, and have a cup of coffee. After a few hours, have a snack with cottage cheese and drink a glass of vegetable juice. For lunch relies on tomato juice, boiled fish, vegetable salad or stew, for an afternoon snack - 100 g of cottage cheese or low-fat cheese. In the evening, fillet of pike perch with vegetables is allowed, and before bedtime - again cottage cheese or cheese in the amount of 100 g.
- Thursday … Start your morning with a two-egg omelet. You can take vegetable juice or unsweetened tea as a drink. For lunch, have a snack with half a tomato and cottage cheese. Boil lean meats and make a leafy salad or vegetable salad for lunch. After a while, enjoy sour milk products in the amount of 100 g again. In the evening, eat boiled sea fish with broccoli and salad, and before bed - lemon mousse.
- Friday … Start day 5 with chunks of meat, two soft-boiled eggs, and decaffeinated coffee. As a second breakfast, a glass of tomato juice and cottage cheese or low-fat cheese is allowed, lunch - fish soup and salad of tomatoes, olives, herbs and onions, afternoon snack - cottage cheese with herbs and tomatoes, dinner - boiled chicken breast and cucumber salad with lemon dressing juice and olive oil. Indulge in lemon mousse before bed.
- Saturday … An egg, two slices of bacon and a mug of tea or coffee with low-fat milk might look like a breakfast on the sixth day of the first phase of the beach diet. For lunch, you can drink a glass of tomato juice and eat 100 g of cottage cheese or cheese. Delight your body with asparagus soup and salad, which includes lettuce, tomato, garlic and low-fat cheese for lunch, and for an afternoon snack, eat one tomato and 120 g of cottage cheese. The evening menu can look like this - vegetable salad, stewed vegetables or fish, grilled or steamed. Do not forget to eat 100 g of low-fat cottage cheese before falling asleep.
- Sunday … You can start the morning of the seventh day of the first stage with an omelet with mushrooms and milk. Later, drink vegetable juice and eat 100 g of cottage cheese. Cook salmon with broccoli or cauliflower in the oven. Between this lunch and dinner, have a snack on cottage cheese with tomatoes and herbs. In the evening you can eat meat with vegetables, later - low-fat cottage cheese.
The second phase of the Arthur Agatston diet
Moving on to the second stage of the beach diet, you can dilute the diet with pasta, potatoes, porridge, fruits and berries. Alcohol is also allowed, but only in the form of dry red wine, pudding with a small amount of fat and dark chocolate as a dessert.
If you notice that the lost weight has begun to come back again, immediately exclude from the diet those foods that lead to an increase in extra pounds. Also, do not rely on the second stage of the South Beach diet to effectively get rid of fat. In any case, do fitness, sign up for the gym, or do physical exercises at home so that muscle mass does not go away with fat mass.
A sample menu for the second stage of the weight loss program may look like this:
- First breakfast: fresh strawberries, oatmeal cooked in low fat milk, with the addition of walnuts, herbal tea or coffee without sugar and caffeine. You can add milk to the coffee, only low-fat milk.
- Lunch: hard-boiled or soft-boiled egg.
- Dinner: Mediterranean salad with chicken breast, bell peppers, lettuce, olives, feta cheese and onions.
- Afternoon snack: fresh pear, cottage cheese or low-fat cheese.
- Dinner: vegetable salad, seasoned with olive oil, salmon with spinach.
- Late supper: strawberry with dark chocolate, instead of this dessert you can eat one apple or grapefruit.
The third phase of the South Beach diet
As soon as you step over the second stage and move on to the third, you will be faced with the task of not gaining pounds anymore. Your body has already been rebuilt, which means that it will be easy for you to adhere to the following recommendations from the American cardiologist Arthur Agatston:
- Standing in the store in front of a choice, leave your preference for the product that is most useful for your body.
- Try to eat fewer foods with easily digestible carbohydrates.
- Don't ignore breakfast, but don't overeat either.
- Maintain a temporary distance of 2-4 hours between meals.
- Limit your intake of preservatives and processed foods.
- Drink a glass of water in the morning on an empty stomach. Do not drink water during your meal.
- Never overload before bed.
If you start to gain weight again, move on to the first phase of the beach diet and do not forget to follow the recommendations of an American cardiologist.
Beach Diet Video Tips:
