Why is the diet of French nutritionist Pierre Ducant so popular and effective?

Not all people lose weight quickly and easily. Sometimes you have to fight for every kilogram for weeks or even months. It is for such options that the Ducan diet was created. On this system, everyone loses weight, regardless of their gender and age.

Choosing a diet food to lose weight

Who is Pierre Ducan?

A French doctor and nutritionist created the diet, named it by his last name. Pierre Dukan developed the system 30 years ago, but became known after the author's manual. In it, the author describes the mechanism in detail, describes the phases. Pierre Dukan himself lost weight thanks to this system. According to him, thanks to the four stages and the absence of dietary restrictions, absolutely anyone can lose weight.

After the publication of the book, Peter gained world fame, visited many countries, starred in television programs. Famous people have tried his way to lose weight, it has served as good PR. Later, similar ketogenic diets appeared based on this system, but they did not receive such popularity.

Basics of the diet

The French doctor's diet is based on protein nutrition with a clear restriction on carbohydrates and fatty foods. But this does not mean that the diet will be monotonous, consisting of a monotonous chicken with kefir. On the contrary, Ducan's protein diet is one of the few methods that allows you to consume sweets, various drinks, pastries, but with sugar substitutes and other diet products.

Lack of carbohydrates forces the body to actively break down protein foods and draw energy from its own fat stores.

As a basis, you can use the recipes given in the book, written here, or create your own dishes from the allowed list. From the start of the diet and after the end of the diet, Dr. Ducan strongly recommends taking oat bran. It is the fiber needed by the body, which cleanses the intestines, speeds up protein processing and brings variety to the menu.

Four phases with description

The system has been under development for a long time. Each phase is an important stage that you have to go through from start to finish. You cannot trade or shorten the duration. Only in this case, the Ducan diet will give a stable result. Neither in a year nor in ten years will the lost kilograms return.

The main stages of the Ducan diet and their duration:

  • Attack. This phase allows you to believe in yourself, because in a few days you can part with 3-7 kg. The Ducan Attack Diet menu is made up exclusively of light and low fat protein and bran. The maximum duration is 10 days, usually 3 to 7.
  • Alternation. Unlike the attack, this stage is quite long, the duration depends on the initial weight. If there are a lot of them, the alternation can be observed for 5, 7, 9 months. Vegetables and other permitted foods are added to protein foods, you can find them below. Protein and protein days with vegetables alternate in an equal ratio of 1: 1, 2: 2 or 3: 3.
  • Consolidation is also consolidation. The most important phase, without which it will not be possible to maintain the result. The duration is calculated as follows: 1 kg of lost weight takes 10 days. That is, if 7 kg is dropped, this stage will be equal to 70 days, a little more, but not less, is possible.
  • Stabilization. It is not even the stage of the Ducan diet, but the life afterwards. The main thing is simple: you need to organize 1 day on the attack menu once a week and continue to use sound. This will prevent weight gain and keep you in shape for many years to come.

Important! The duration of each period (phase) of the Ducan regime depends on personal data, an individual calculation is necessary.

How Much Can You Lose Weight?

Pierre Ducan's diet does not reveal the exact figures. Some people manage to lose 5 kg in a month, another can easily lose 15 kg. Much depends on strict observance of the system, the initial settings. If a person suffers from endocrine disorders, this diet may not work or the weight loss will be very slow.

On average, an attack loses 2-4-5% of the initial body weight. Alternately, it takes up to 2-3 kg per week. At 70% fixation, the weight loss stops, sometimes the result oscillates, the plumb bobs are replaced by small increases.

What determines the result:

  • From the starting weight. If a person only has 5-10 extra pounds, they certainly won't lose them in a month.
  • From the female cycle. There is no need to despair if at some point the weight does not drop. If you are on a diet, there will be a downside on the scale very soon.
  • From the work of the digestive tract. Constipation is a common occurrence in the Ducan diet. It is necessary to watch the chair, to act in time.

The Ducan diet is not suitable for people who need to shed a few pounds. But this system will become an outlet for a person who is over 20 kg of excess weight. There are many people who halved their weight, got rid of 40-60 kg with the help of this system.

The girl loses weight with the help of the Ducan nutritional system

Dukan's diet: where to start on the road to harmony?

Dr. Ducan recommends starting your diet by studying his book. As long as it is not read from start to finish, the system is difficult to understand. This may have been the case until recently. But now there is a lot of structured information that saves time.

Where to start:

  1. Decide. The diet is long. Holidays, vacations, nervous experiences, problems, must not spoil the road to the goal. It is important to choose the most comfortable time to lose weight.
  2. Study the Ducan diet, all phases, food lists, develop or find a suitable menu that should be clearly followed.
  3. Buy all the products. You have to take care of what will be in the diet tomorrow. Otherwise, disturbances cannot be avoided. If a person is working, with the Ducan diet, it is recommended to prepare a menu for each day in advance.
  4. Take action, weigh yourself. Visual evaluation of results is not always satisfactory, especially in the first few weeks of weight loss, and the numbers cannot be deceived.

Also, for the Ducan diet, it is important to purchase a kitchen scale that will help to dose the bran and other additional ingredients.

Diet rules

The diet is not balanced, the body will need certain substances. In order not to disturb the work of internal processes, from the very beginning you need to take a complex of vitamins and minerals. It will also help preserve skin, hair, nails with sudden weight loss.

Other diet rules:

  • Drink 1. 5 liters of water per day. This rule wanders from diet to diet, fluid is necessary for weight loss. Tea, coffee, all herbs are allowed, you can add sugar substitutes.
  • Do not fry food in oil. But you can do it in a dry pan. Most often, dishes are prepared by cooking, boiling, in the oven.
  • You should not get carried away with sugar substitutes, even if the diet allows it. The package will contain the maximum allowable daily dose. Too much can cause nausea, a problem with the gastrointestinal tract.
  • You have to be careful with homemade dairy products. They have a high fat content, which is not suitable for Dukan weight loss. The exception is the return and cottage cheese after separation of the milk.

The serving size is unlimited on the diet. But you don't have to overeat. Protein foods saturate well, to satisfy hunger, 150-200 g is usually sufficient.

Below are tables with menus for five meals, but there can be many more. Protein products do not need to be rationed, as well as the time of consumption.

"Attack" phase: authorized and prohibited foods

The most difficult phase of the Ducan diet is the attack phase, the menu is strict, it consists of the following foods. There are 72 of them plus 30 g of oat bran. It is important that they are alone in the composition, without additives and flour. Some people consume a tablespoon of bran, which is basically a mistake. Cereal husks are very light, so be sure to weigh them.

What can we eat:

  • all types of low fat meat and offal;
  • all birds, except geese, ducks;
  • fish of all kinds, including fatty varieties, canned, smoked meats;
  • all seafood (scallops, shrimp, squid and even crab sticks);
  • chicken, duck, quail eggs, but there is a restriction on the yolks (no more than a couple per day);
  • dairy products up to 1% fat;
  • hams, sausages, sausages with a fat content of up to 4%;
  • canned fish in its own juice;
  • Asian noodles, shirataki rice;
  • 1 teaspoon vegetable oil.

How to determine the fat content of sausages? You just need to see the amount of fat per 100g of product, this data is next to the calorie content. If the fat weighs up to 4 g, the product is suitable.

All products that are not on the list are prohibited. These are grains, fruits, vegetables, fatty milk and meat. The ban includes purchased nuts, sugar, mayonnaise and other sauces, beans, all baked goods and bread.

"Alternation" phase: authorized and prohibited foods

The alternating phase of the Dukan diet is often referred to as cruising because there are floating proteins and mixed days. During this period, all products from the previous stage of the attack are allowed, and a variety of vegetables appear.

Additional products (DOP) for work-study:

  • tomatoes, cucumbers, radishes, pumpkin and all other vegetables except potatoes;
  • mushrooms (fresh, marinated, baked, stewed);
  • greens of all kinds
  • 1 tbsp. l. sunflower, olive, milk thistle or any other type of oil.

Protein products can be used in any combination, use several types at once in one dish. But it is not recommended to make a wide range of vegetables, 2-3 types per day is enough. It is safer to add pumpkin, beets and carrots to the diet, as they contain starch and have an increased sugar content.

By the way, in some sources a green apple is allowed in the diet of Monsieur Ducan. This is wrong information, there has been no fruit in the development of the doctor.

Vegetables for the Rotation phase of the Ducan diet

Complementary products (DOP)

Not all authorized products are listed above. Dukan's diet is distinguished from other systems by an interesting and varied diet. There are additives to create interesting dishes. They can be used in baked goods, casseroles, main dishes.

What can be used in the diet:

  • up to two tablespoons of tomato paste (no ketchup);
  • 0 calorie soft drinks;
  • soy sauce, vinegar of various types;
  • garlic and onions;
  • 2 pickles per day;
  • yeast, soda, leavening agents, gelatin, thickeners;
  • lemon juice;
  • pickled ginger;
  • nori;
  • fragrant herbs, natural spices;
  • cocoa up to 12% fat
  • skimmed milk powder.

Particular attention is paid to sugar substitutes. They are the ones that allow you to cook pastries, cakes, jelly, ice cream and all other desserts. There are people who only eat protein without the frills. But for a long time to follow the monotonous menu of the Ducan diet will be bored. Therefore, it is recommended to immediately take care of purchasing high-quality sugar substitutes and baking ingredients.

Ducan's diet: menu for every day to attack

During the attack, the weight begins to actively disappear, but at the same time the person may experience weakness, mood swings, nervousness and intense thirst. It is very important that the menu of the Ducan diet every day on the attack is as varied as possible, meets the needs of the organism, and suppresses the urge to consume prohibited carbohydrates.

The serving size doesn't matter, but it's important to keep the yolks in mind. You cannot use more than two pieces; if necessary, it is allowed to add more protein or meat, fish products to the omelet.

Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday Sunday
Lunch Protein omelet Coffee, 30 g of low fat cheese Lightly salted salmon, boiled egg Pair of sausages, egg Mix of seafood with soy sauce Scrambled Eggs with Sausage Chicken omelet
Snack 30 g of bran, tea 30 g of bran, tea 30 g of bran, tea 30 g of bran, tea 30 g of bran, tea 30 g of bran, tea 30 g of bran, tea
Having dinner Baked Chicken Meat cutlets Liver stew Boiled meat Baked Chicken Hear Grilled fish
Afternoon tea Soft curd Kefir Natural yogurt Kefir Spicy protein omelet cottage cheese A glass of milk
Having dinner Fish cooked with lemon Protein omelet with crab sticks Beef stew Grilled lemon prawns Fish cutlets Baked Chicken Chicken hearts with kefir

In the following menu of the Dukan diet, bran is presented every day on the attack as a second afternoon snack. You can use them to make bread, pancakes, muffins, or other dishes with permitted ingredients. Below are some interesting recipes.

Menu for every day of the Dukan diet for the "Alternation" phase

It is from this moment that the real Ducan diet begins, the everyday menu impresses with a variety of dishes. The system allows you to eat like in a restaurant, while losing weight. Alternation can be carried out in any scheme, but most often they use 1: 1 or 2: 2, it is difficult to withstand more than two days of protein.

Monday Tuesday protein day Wednesday Thursday, protein day Friday Saturday protein day
Lunch Protein omelet with mushrooms, milk tea Chicken omelet, coffee Grilled zucchini, 1-2 eggs, 2 pickles Soft cottage cheese with garlic and dill Eggplant omelet, pickled ginger Scrambled eggs with mushrooms, cocoa
Snack Kefir bran Bran pancake with ham Bran, milk Bran pancake, sahzam, cottage cheese Kefir bran Bran products and coffee
Having dinner Cabbage soup with meat Beef stew Stew with vegetables, meat Chopped chicken cutlets with tomato Celery soup with chicken and vegetables allowed Fish in soy sauce
Afternoon tea Pumpkin puree, a glass of milk Curd dessert (there is a recipe below) Carrot salad, cottage cheese 2 eggs, kefir Cucumber salad, egg Milk
Having dinner Boiled fish (you can grill), coleslaw Chicken cutlets Coleslaw, boiled meat Squid cooked in kefir Pepper stuffed with meat, herbs Meat with onions and herbs

As the alternation always supposes a pair which is replaced, in the table with the menu for each day of the Ducan diet, a calculation is given over 6 days. Then you can continue by choosing the dishes already indicated or come up with your own options, taking information from other sources.

Consolidation phase (consolidation, consolidation)

At this point, the person has reached the ideal or desired weight, but it is impossible to return to a normal diet. The body is still vulnerable, it is important to prepare it gradually for the daily diet. The daily diet is based on mixed protein-carbohydrate days, plus the gradual introduction of bread, cereals, unsweetened fruit, fatty meat. Do not add more than 2 to 3 products per week.

Basic rules of the consolidation phase:

  • Oat bran continues to be consumed. You can substitute part of the rye for wheat fiber.
  • You can have a cheat meal once a week. It is called "Feast" on a diet. All dishes and products are allowed, including sweet fruits, cakes, ice cream, pastries. But in the size of a serving.
  • One day remains protein from the first phase. The author of the regime insists on Thursday, but it is not necessary.

For this stage of the Ducan diet, table recipes with an everyday menu are suitable. You can eat soups, vegetable stews, baked meat. You can still use sugar substitutes and other additives, limit potatoes, sweets, baked goods. They will not bring any benefit to the figure without diet.

Diet recipes

Losing weight on this diet is long term, so eating only boiled or cooked meat will not work. In the table with the menu of the week for the Ducan diet, simple recipes are given. All of them are easy to prepare, if desired, they can be supplemented with sauces, vegetables, spices. But sometimes you have to cook something delicious, similar to everyday people's food. This will help you not to succumb to temptations, to avoid breakdowns.

Cottage cheese dessert with jelly

Gelatin is allowed by the diet, thanks to which you can prepare wonderful protein desserts. The amount of sweetener to your liking. Low fat dairy products.

Ingredients:

  • 250 g of cottage cheese;
  • 100 ml of milk;
  • 1 teaspoon Gelatin;
  • Sugar substitute;
  • vanillin.

Cooking method

  1. Mix the gelatin and half the milk, let it infuse.
  2. Mix the rest of the milk with the sugar substitute. If it is tablets, knead it first. Pour into cottage cheese, beat or simply grind well, add vanilla.
  3. Heat the milk with gelatin to dissolve all the curds. Pour into cottage cheese through a colander.
  4. Whisk again, divide into two molds, refrigerate for 5-7 hours. The dessert should solidify.

If instant gelatin is used, it can be mixed with milk and melted after a few minutes.

Bran pancake

This pancake is a real godsend for this diet. It replaces baked goods, goes well with meat, salads, sweet and savory cottage cheese. At the same time, it cooks very quickly in an ordinary pan. It is this pancake that appears on the menu above for the week for the Ducan diet. It is often called a flat bread.

Ingredients:

  • 30 g of bran;
  • 1 egg;
  • 3 tablespoons of kefir;
  • salt, baking powder.

Cooking method

  1. Crush the sound.
  2. Beat the egg with the kefir, add the bran, a pinch of salt. Optionally, you can introduce a baking powder, enough at the tip of a knife.
  3. Make a paste, let stand for five minutes.
  4. Preheat a nonstick skillet. Bake a few thin pancakes or pour all the batter, bake a flat cake.

If you can not cook pancakes, they are torn, they do not want to turn over, then you can make pancakes from this dough.

Bran pancakes on the Ducan diet menu

Chicken ham

This ham is a great alternative to sausages and sausages, as it is not always possible to find the desired fat content in the store. The dish can be eaten during all phases of the diet.

Ingredients:

  • 1 kg of chicken breasts;
  • 15 g of garlic;
  • 15 g of sweet paprika;
  • 15 g of gelatin;
  • 12 g of salt;
  • 2 g of black pepper.

Cooking method

  1. Chop the breasts very finely, make 0. 4-0. 4 cm cubes and pour them into a bowl.
  2. Squeeze the garlic, add all the spices, including gelatin. Stir, cover with foil. Leave on for 2-3 hours. If it's hot at home, put it in the fridge.
  3. Stir again, put in a sausage-shaped cooking bag, twist well, tie with a thread, knot the edges. Make a few punctures in different places.
  4. Bake the ham at 180 degrees for 35 minutes.
  5. Take out, let cool, send to the refrigerator overnight. You can remove the bag in the morning.

It is not necessary to make such a ham from chicken fillet, turkey, any lean meat or mixture is suitable, but in this case, the baking time in the oven may increase.

Contraindications to the Ducan diet

There is still a lot of controversy over the dangers and safety of this weight loss method. The Dukan diet has a large number of contraindications. Before compliance, it is important to pass tests, check the functioning of the kidneys. Not everyone is able to consume large amounts of protein.

The main contraindications:

  • any disease of the gastrointestinal tract;
  • Diabetes;
  • hormonal disorders and diseases of the thyroid gland;
  • violation of metabolic processes in the body;
  • pregnancy, including the planning phase, breastfeeding;
  • menopause period.

This diet is ideal only for healthy people and young people between the ages of 20 and 35-40. If you are suffering from a chronic illness, you need to see a doctor. But each person decides for themselves whether or not to resort to ketogenic diets.

Reviews of people who lost weight with the Ducan diet

  • "On Dukan, I lost the first 20 kg, then I went to the PP with calorie counting. This diet was easy for me, but expensive. It is difficult to get high-quality meat, good cottage cheese and other products, the prices are too high, I could not afford such food. "
  • "This is the only diet I haven't been hungry on. I have bulimia. On Dukan, I ate in the morning, ate in the evening, I was constantly chewing something and the first week I threw 5 kg, then the plumb lines were small, suddenly, in 3 months, I lostweight from 77 to 58 kg. Now at the exit. "
  • "I lost weight according to this system easily, there were no complaints about the diet, as well as feelings of hunger. But after 2 weeks acne started to appear on my face and body. Apparently the body reacted this way to such a large amount of protein. I didn't immediately associate the skin issues with the diet, but after another week I had to see a dermatologist as the rashes got worse. The doctor said to stop the diet, as a result, after the drop of 7 kg, 3 kg came back ".