The problem of excess weight today makes almost every representative of the fair sex wear out themselves with diets or constant physical exertion, and sometimes men are also among those “losing weight”. Not everyone has time for regular visits to the hall, so the restriction in food is still more popular. Among the thousands of different recommendations, far from all can be called affordable and safe, so many choose a 1200 calorie diet for themselves. Why? Yes, because such a menu is recognized by nutritionists as the most harmless and at the same time effective for many people.
Why such a rule?
A calorie diet allows you to correctly calculate the sufficient rate of energy consumed so that the metabolism does not slow down and less-received calories from food are consumed from fat accumulations in the body.
Experts estimate that for the normal functioning of the body of an average person, only 1,500 calories per day is required. To activate weight loss, the energy intake should be less than 300 calories. Thus, a diet of 1200 calories per day is obtained. At the same time, the body works stably, a person does not feel weakness and malaise, nervous breakdowns or an uncomfortable state, and weight is lost, and quite noticeably. If you follow all the recommendations and correctly compose the menu, you can lose 1 kg per week, and if the weight is initially large, then the weight loss indicator will be higher.
In this calculation of calories, it’s also good that such a norm does not allow the development of a plateau effect, when the weight loss process stops due to stress of the body.
Basic Rules
In addition to the constant calculation of calories during the diet, you will also need to monitor the daily ratio of carbohydrates, proteins and fats. Every day, their percentage should be respectively 50%, 30% and 20%. You can focus on your own weight - for example, a day for normal functioning of the body requires 0.6 g of fat and 0.7-1 g of protein per kilogram of weight. The rest of the norm should get carbohydrates.
The diet menu of 1200 calories per week should be varied so that the body regularly receives all the important vitamins, minerals and amino acids. To do this, it should include animal and vegetable proteins, complex carbohydrates and polyunsaturated fats. Simple carbohydrates and trans fats will have to be excluded.
To regularly maintain performance at a certain level, you need to eat at least 3 times in the form of basic meals and 1-2 snacks. Basic nutrition should enrich the body with more energy in the first half of the day and less in the second. Breakfast and lunch on average should go out at 300-400 calories, but for dinner it is better to leave only 200. The rest of the calories of the diet get snacks.
Adhering to such dietary norms is not recommended for too long. It is usually enough 14-30 days to gain the correct weight. After this, you should switch to a full-fledged usual diet and after a couple of weeks repeat the diet course if necessary.
Prohibitions to use
Since the calorie diet is practically not limited in the choice of dishes and products, it can be used by all healthy adults. The exception is children and adolescents who have not reached the age of majority, since their body is still growing actively and needs good nutrition. For similar reasons, dieting is prohibited for pregnant and lactating women, because during these periods a woman should consume nutrients for herself and the baby.
People with chronic diseases of the digestive system and other organs should adhere to therapeutic diets that a doctor can prescribe. With a cold, it is also worth increasing the calorie intake rate to at least 1,500, since the body needs forces to fight viruses.
After 50 years, people should refrain from stresses for the body, so any diet should be limited to abstaining from sweets in the evenings and excessively high-calorie foods.
You can not adhere to such a diet and people who are intensely involved in sports or just regularly visiting gyms. The rate of energy consumption is greatly increased, which means that for the body to work well, much more calories are required. In such situations, it is better to choose a fitness diet.
disadvantages
The main disadvantage of such nutrition is the constant calculation of the calorie content of dishes and the weighing of products during their preparation. In order to also receive all the necessary nutrients, you need to carefully prepare the menu for the week. The calorie diet at the first time of its use can cause a feeling of weakness and dizziness, especially in people who are accustomed to eating high-calorie foods regularly. In such cases, it is necessary to switch to a decrease in the energy value of food gradually.
Benefits
Of course, the benefits of such a diet are much more significant, because fractional nutrition avoids the feeling of hunger during the day, and the energy norm will be minimized. In addition, such nutrition does not slow down the metabolism and effectively reduces weight even in the absence of physical activity, and the loss of kilograms occurs stably and gradually.
Also, the diet menu of 1200 calories can be varied as you wish, according to your personal preferences, the main thing is that the selected dishes fit into the norm of energy consumed per day.
Expert Advice
Even the safest diet can adversely affect the body if you do not adhere to the rules of nutritionists. So, experts strongly recommend:
- drink 1.5-2 liters of clean water daily;
- replenish the diet with herbal teas;
- eat fractionally 5-6 times a day;
- plan the menu and cook food in advance for the whole day;
- take vitamins regularly;
- consume a minimum of carbohydrates;
- enrich the diet with fiber;
- Do not overeat and always get up from the table with a weak feeling of hunger;
- do not skip meals;
- eliminate the consumption of alcohol and sugary carbonated drinks;
- reduce the consumption of foods with high GI;
- go out of the diet gradually.
Performance
Of course, the number of kilograms lost for each person will be different, even if their menu is identical. The reasons are different body constitution, level of activity during the day and the amount of excess body fat. The more weight, the faster it leaves, at the same time, the less fat deposits in the body, the slower they will “melt”. High metabolism helps to accelerate weight loss, the level of which rises just with frequent consumption of food.
In general, depending on many factors, it is possible to lose an average of 0.5-1 kg per week. If this indicator is less, then you should review your menu and make certain adjustments to it.
Featured Products
Since the calorie diet menu should be based on complex carbohydrates and low-fat proteins, it is recommended that you familiarize yourself with the sources of these substances before compiling them. Proteins are found in:
- low-fat dairy products;
- quail and chicken eggs;
- chicken offal;
- turkey and chicken meat;
- low-fat varieties of sea fish;
- squid;
- mussels;
- shrimp.
Sources of complex carbohydrates are:
- carrot;
- zucchini;
- Tomatoes
- cucumbers
- Blueberries
- Strawberry;
- citrus;
- pasta and wholemeal bread;
- cereals - millet, wheat, buckwheat, oats.
Menu
For a balanced diet throughout the day, you should not only count calories daily. In the weekly diet menu, foods should also be distributed according to the percentage of energy value between meals. So, breakfast should account for 25% of the daily norm, for lunch - 35%, dinner - 20%, and for snacks leave 20% 2 times. Fans of sweets are allowed to treat themselves to marmalade, marshmallows, dark chocolate or honey.
So, breakfast can be prepared according to one of the following calorie diet recipes:
- Fruit salad with lemon juice, a cup of coffee and a wholemeal bun.
- Boiled egg and oatmeal.
- Corn porridge and omelet.
- Buckwheat porridge and boiled egg.
- Serving of low-fat cottage cheese with berries or dried fruits.
- Three egg omelet with asparagus and whole grain bread.
- Carrot and cabbage salad, a slice of bread, tea and a slice of chicken.
If you cook these dishes in standard serving rates for an adult, then their calorie content is 300-350 Kcal.
For lunch, it is recommended to cook:
- Cauliflower and chicken.
- Fresh tomato and cucumber salad, chicken soup and veal cutlets.
- Salad, boiled potatoes and low-fat fish.
- Bean soup and baked fish.
- Steamed salad, boiled rice and chicken cutlets.
- Boiled fish and stewed cabbage.
- Fresh vegetable salad, green cabbage soup with egg, boiled buckwheat with meatballs from turkey.
Calorie lunch on average is 400-450 Kcal.
Dinner:
- Pilaf made of chicken and brown rice with tea or compote.
- Fresh vegetable salad, boiled rice.
- Chicken chop and grilled vegetables.
- Chicken liver and salad or apple.
- Low-fat cottage cheese with dried fruits and honey.
- A glass of yogurt and baked fish.
- Serving of low-fat cottage cheese, coffee and vegetable salad.
Energy value is 300-400 Kcal.
Between the main meals, light snacks of 100-150 Kcal each are required. There should be no more than two of them on a day, so that there is always 2-3 hours of time between meals. So, to "eat", during the day you can eat:
- Fruit salad.
- Apple, pear, banana, grapefruit or orange. Choose only 1 fruit.
- Drink a glass of yogurt or fermented baked milk.
- Make a cabbage and squid salad.
- A glass of juice and a boiled egg.
- Tea without sugar and a little marshmallow.
- A glass of compote and a bun.
- A glass of juice and oatmeal cookies.
- Low-fat cottage cheese.
Kefir with baked apple and dried fruits.
To accurately calculate calories for the proposed options or your personal dish, it is recommended to use special applications and constantly record already tried recipes, so that later with ease and without any additional manipulations repeat them in the future.
Reviews
Most people notice the result of a calorie diet on the third day of its application. Weight starts to go away even when no other dietary restrictions help. All people really like the lack of strict restrictions and the ability to independently adjust their own menu. Moreover, no one feels irritability and a constant feeling of hunger. A nice advantage of this diet is its help in quickly cleansing the body of toxins. In addition to all this, the menu for a certain number of calories allows you to lose up to 5 kg of excess weight in just a week, and for some this figure reaches even 7 kg.
Among the shortcomings, people note only the need for constant control of calories and malaise in the early days of the diet. Weakness may appear due to the restructuring of the body and always disappears after a few days.
Conclusion
From the foregoing, it is clear that this diet has not been in vain received many approvals from both ordinary people and nutritionists. There are no strict restrictions on products, you can eat the usual dishes, simply reducing their calorie content by proper preparation and calculation of servings.