Japanese diet for 14 days: menu and advice from nutritionists

The Japanese are slim, long-lived, and retain a healthy appearance, good memory, and energy into old age. So the Japanese diet is the secret to health and longevity? All is not so rosy: we discover it together.

History of the Japanese Diet

Lose 7-8 kilos in 14 days: this is what the Japanese diet promises. Which, to be honest, has a very indirect relationship to Japanese cuisine and the food system. In any case, its respect requires the iron will of the samurai.

There are no traditional Japanese seafood in the diet, only fish. It includes a large amount of coffee without sugar, which is not a very popular way to serve the drink in Japan. It is recommended to cook food not only without salt, but also without seasoning, which is generally unheard of for the Japanese.

The traditional Japanese food system really has many advantages:

• A study showed that a grain- and vegetable-based diet with a small amount of soy and animal products reduced the risk of dying from a heart attack or stroke.
• Japan has the lowest obesity index in the world.
• Okinawa in southern Japan has the highest number of people over the age of 100 in the world.
• Japanese food, especially typical of Okinawa, is rich in antioxidants and flavonoids from vegetables and fruits of different colors and plant estrogens, which help prevent the development of hormone-dependent cancers (such as breast cancer).
• Japanese rituals related to the presentation and aesthetics of food and drink presentation are just as good for physical and mental health as the habits associated with another healthy diet, the Mediterranean - eating fresh, sharing meals infamily, eat lots of fruit and fish, allow pleasure, savor the food.

But the traditional Japanese diet has the same relationship to the two-week weight loss diet called the "Japanese diet" as the roller coaster to America.

Principles of the Japanese diet

The Japanese diet is very strict and does not allow any deviation. The main principle of its action is the gradual restructuring of attitudes towards nutrition in general and the reduction of the total caloric content of food. Light proteins become the basis of the menu, and carbohydrates are reduced. The fiber in fruits and vegetables helps you feel full.

The diet is claimed to help rebuild and normalize digestion and metabolism, but there is no scientific evidence for this. However, giving up sugar, salt, baked goods and alcohol changes the body and the brain. But it is important that the refusal is long-term, 14 days is not enough. And reducing the portions really brings the stretched stomach in large portions back to a normal state. But it cannot be reduced: this elastic organ cannot be reduced to a state below the physiological norm.

The Japanese diet only allows 3 meals, 4. 5-5 hours before bedtime, the last meal should be scheduled. Snacks are unacceptable, which can be a difficult ordeal: physiologically, a person is hungry every 3-4 hours, and meals split into small portions give him more energy than three meals a day.

During the day, according to the Japanese diet, you should drink at least two liters of water. Vegetable oils should be kept to a minimum. A cup of green tea is the only indulgence for hunger.

Nutritionists warn: It's best to prepare for any diet in advance and start small to minimize unavoidable stress. For 2 to 5 days, lighten your diet as much as possible. You can even buy Japanese chopsticks to eat more slowly and thoughtfully. Try to drink and sleep more, be less nervous.

List of prohibited foods in the Japanese diet

1. Salt, because it delays the elimination of fluids from the body and increases blood pressure.
2. Sugar, because it is a source of simple carbohydrates, which are quickly deposited in the body in the form of excess weight.
3. Alcohol in any form and quantity, as it slows down the metabolism and prevents the elimination of toxins from the body.
4. Bread made from wheat flour.
5. Semi-finished products, fast food, all sweet desserts and fatty dairy products.

Foods allowed in the Japanese diet

The basis of nutrition in the Japanese diet are vegetables and fruits (except sweet bananas, figs, grapes), cheeses, kefir, fish and meat, eggs. Meat and fish can be fried in vegetable oil. You can choose sunflower, olive, corn, sesame oil - the variety helps withstand tight restrictions.

Protein is the main nutrient in the diet, and this has the Japanese diet in common with other high protein diets like the keto diet and the paleo diet in their pros and cons. Fiber is the second most important nutrient for satiety. It is found in cereals, vegetables and fruits.

All desserts are prohibited in the Japanese diet. The sweetest food in the diet is fruit.

Can	It's forbidden
Vegetables Fruits Lean meat and fish Low-fat dairy products: cottage cheese, Greek yogurt, kefir, hard cheese Vegetable oil Eggs Black and green tea and coffee without sugar	Potatoes, corn, beets and other starches Bananas, figs, grapes Fatty beef and pork, salmon and other fatty fish Sauces, ketchup, mustard, spices, cream cheese Butter, animal fats, sugar and salt Preserves, ready meals, fast food, desserts, confectionery, breads and pastries Alcohol, sweet lemonades and soft drinks

Sample menu for 14 days

To eat lunch.Almost every 14 days of the Japanese breakfast diet should drink only one cup of black coffee without sugar. Sometimes it can be supplemented with crackers or replaced with green tea. Organic coffee is a staple of the Japanese diet because it contains beneficial natural antioxidants.

Having dinner.For lunch you can eat lean fish, chicken or meat with vegetables. You can make salads from fresh vegetables, fry vegetables with the main dish or eat salads from grated carrots, chopped cabbage, cucumbers. There are no calorie restrictions, but you do need a small portion.

Having dinneris the most varied part of the Japanese diet. You can eat fruits, boiled eggs, kefir, hard cheeses. If you wish, the Japanese diet allows you to eat fish or meat with vegetables for dinner, as for lunch, but the portion should be smaller.

First day	Black coffee. 2 boiled eggs, coleslaw in vegetable oil. Fried or boiled fish, tomato salad.
Second day	Black coffee and crackers. Boiled fish, vegetable salad. Boiled beef and a glass of kefir.
The third day	Green tea without sugar. A portion of boiled or fried fish and a glass of carrot juice. 200 g of any fruit, except grapes and bananas.
Fourth day	Black coffee. 500 g boiled chicken without salt with a salad of fresh cabbage and carrots. Fresh carrots and 2 boiled eggs.
Fifth day	Black coffee and a portion of fat-free cottage cheese. Stewed veal 200 gr, salad of grated carrots with butter. A glass of kefir.
Sixth day	Black coffee. 2 boiled eggs, coleslaw in vegetable oil. Tomato salad with fried or boiled fish.
seventh day	Black coffee. Brussels sprouts and green beans in the oven, boiled fish 200 gr. Tomato juice, fruit.
eighth day	Black tea. 200 g of boiled beef, 2 apples. 2 boiled eggs, grated carrots in vegetable oil.
Ninth day	Black coffee and Greek yogurt. 200 g of boiled fish, fresh cabbage salad. 100 g of boiled beef and a glass of tomato juice.
tenth day	Black coffee. Zucchini or eggplant fried in vegetable oil, in any quantity. 100 g of boiled fish and 2 boiled eggs.
eleventh day	Black coffee and crackers. Portion of boiled beef 100 gr, cabbage salad with butter. Tomato juice, apple.
Twelfth day	Drinkable yogurt without additives glass, green tea. Boiled chicken fillet 200 gr, Peking cabbage salad with butter. Stewed veal 200 gr, salad of grated carrots with butter.
Thirteenth day	Black coffee, whole wheat flour toast. Steamed fish 200 gr, zucchini compote. A glass of kefir.
fourteenth day	Black coffee, 2 boiled eggs. Boiled chicken breast 300 gr, cabbage salad with butter. Kefir, apple.

Subscriber Comments

• "I am still losing weight, my height is 167 cm, and the minimum weight was 56, the maximum was 73 after giving birth. So, I tried a lot of diets: Dukan, Protasov, etc. Japanese is the most effective, I throw 5-7 kg on it. Used 4 times.
• "Well, I can say that the results of the diet, of course, pleased me a little. I really lost weight, it can be seen both in the clothes and in the comments of others. But I don't want to repeatthis experience. Once again I was convinced that there is nothing good in strict diets. And as soon as I started eating in a more or less familiar way, the weight gradually increased.
• "This diet helped me to lose weight and start to change, but I cannot recommend it to anyone, because any diet is stressful for the body and can lead to sad consequences, it is better to listen to your body and change yourattitude towards food. "
• "The biggest and most valuable effect for me was that I didn't want to eat sweets and all kinds of nasty things like chips, crackers, etc. , but I always loved it! I alsoliked the fact that I started to taste food very strongly, taking much more pleasure in food.
• "They say this diet was developed in a Japanese clinic, which has a different name in different sources. There is also an opinion that there is no Japanese diet, and the name was invented simply for advertising purposes to attract attention. Indeed, among the Japanese one rarely meets a well-nourished person, we have also heard a lot about Japanese longevity. Conclusion: we trust the Japanese.

The effectiveness and benefits of the Japanese diet

Avoiding sugar and alcohol are perhaps the only healthy ideas in the Japanese diet. Even salt should not be completely abandoned.

Many note that the diet really helps with weight loss by restricting calories and, more importantly, changing taste preferences and falling in love with certain unhealthy foods. But it is difficult to speak of a change in internal processes: no serious studies have been carried out, there are only subjective sensations.

The diet is clearly contraindicated in children, pregnant women, breastfeeding women, people with gastritis and ulcers, heart disease, eating disorders and other chronic diseases. It is recommended to consult a doctor before starting a diet.

The evils of the Japanese diet

The harm is the same as with other fad diets: a sharp reduction in calories can cause stress to the body and vitamin deficiencies. A high protein content increases the load on the liver and kidneys.

In addition, nutritionists and those who lose weight note additional difficulties:

• Coffee with minimal additions for breakfast will not be appreciated by all. With stomach problems, this results in bloating and heartburn. Breakfast should give you energy for the whole day and a good mood, not make you dream of having lunch.
• Dry food without salt, spices, oils and sauces. It is physically difficult to eat this, and eating without pleasure leads to impaired nutrient absorption.
• Food bans and restrictions. In order not to go wild, you will need an iron will and weight gain after the end of the diet is almost inevitable.
• Sports incompatibility. Activity on an empty stomach is not a good idea, and a bad mood does not help you tune in to an active load.