Celery lowers cholesterol and helps fight arthritis. Participates in weight loss, detoxifies the body, lowers high blood pressure and helps maintain overall health. It is rich in vitamin C and therefore extremely healthy.
What is celery?
Celery is a plant of the Apiaceae family and is a vegetable crop. It can be found all over the world, and it is an integral part of some traditional dishes.
It most likely comes from the Mediterranean and North African regions, since some types of celery were discovered in the tomb of King Tut, and a plant very reminiscent of it is repeatedly mentioned in Mediterranean myths and history.
Celery is now grown around the world. For cooking, it is most often used in soups and salads or as a side dish for certain dishes.
Celery Nutrition Facts
Celery contains minerals such as calcium, sodium, magnesium, iron, zinc and potassium. It contains fatty acids and vitamins, including A, K, C, E, D, as well as B vitamins (riboflavin, folic acid, thiamine, vitamin B6 and vitamin B12). It also has dietary fiber.
Health Benefits of Celery
The health benefits of celery are as follows: consumption of this vegetable every day will help reduce blood cholesterol (the so-called LDL or "bad" cholesterol). Phthalides also stimulate the release of bile acids, which work to lower cholesterol. Less cholesterol - less deposits in the walls of the arteries, and therefore, an overall improvement in the condition of the heart.
Celery acts as an antioxidant and, in truth, you can consume an entire vegetable, including seeds, roots and leaves. Drinking it regularly helps to avoid diseases of the kidneys, pancreas, liver and gall bladder.
Celery contains phthalides, which are organic chemical compounds that can lower the level of stress hormone. This allows the blood vessels to expand, giving the blood more room for movement, thereby reducing pressure.
Celery also contains potassium, which is a vasodilator and helps lower blood pressure. When blood pressure decreases, the load on the entire cardiovascular system decreases. Minimizes the chances of developing atherosclerosis, the occurrence of a heart attack or stroke.
Celery seeds help in eliminating uric acid. Vegetable is used as a diuretic, which is good for people with impaired bladder function. It can help those who have kidney disease, cystitis and other similar ailments.
Celery contains phthalides, flavonoids and polyacetylenes. These are cancer-damaging components that detoxify carcinogens. It also has coumarins that enhance white blood cell activity, which can also effectively prevent cancer. These antioxidant components look for free radicals and neutralize them before they can cause conditions like cancer.
Rich in vitamin C and antioxidants, celery significantly strengthens the immune system and makes it more active and effective. Eating this vitamin-rich vegetable regularly can reduce your risk of catching a cold, and also protect you from many other diseases.
The presence of coumarins in celery can provide relief of migraines. The exact mechanism of getting rid of this ailment is not fully understood. Studies indicate that special elements inhibit the release of nitric oxide in the brain, which causes headaches.
Celery leaves are also eaten to treat a variety of diabetic conditions. This is due to the high fiber content in vegetables, which, as has been confirmed by studies, helps to cope with diabetic symptoms.
Regular consumption of celery juice before meals can help reduce weight. It is very low-calorie, but saturates the body with useful substances, since it has a high content of dietary fiber. Such a drink helps to cope with the habit of overeating and maintaining weight without feeling hunger. Celery helps prevent many diseases and conditions that include neuritis, constipation, asthma, high blood pressure, mental exhaustion, anemia.
Not surprisingly, celery is used in many diets for weight loss. There are even celery diets. Here are some of them.
Celery Soup: Weekly Weight Loss
Essential Products for Soup:
- 6 onions;
- 1-2 jars of tomatoes in their own juice (without sugar and salt);
- cabbage (one head of medium size);
- 2 peppers (necessarily green);
- 1 bunch of celery;
- rosemary and tarragon for flavor;
- 1 hot pepper;
- 6 glasses of vegetable stock or water.
It is necessary to cut vegetables in small or medium slices, pour water. Allow to boil over high heat, then reduce it and continue cooking until the vegetables are soft. Spices such as rosemary, sage, thyme, tarragon or oregano can be added as desired at the end of cooking.
You can use this diet with celery soup for weight loss at any time, and you can eat a meal when you feel hungry. And you can eat as much as you want and when you want. This soup will not add weight. The more soup is eaten, the more weight is lost.
However, if there is only soup within 7 days of the celery diet, then you can begin to suffer from malnutrition. Therefore, in addition to soup, it is necessary to include other permitted products in the menu. Below is a detailed menu of celery diet for 7 days and what you can eat except soup.
Menu for the week
Day 1. You can’t eat anything but fruits (but you can’t bananas) and as much celery soup as you like. You should try to eat foods with a lower sugar content: apples, blueberries, etc. For example, you can eat baked apples in the morning, fruit salad and celery soup for lunch, as well as soup and fruit salad for dinner. Snack fruit during the day. You can also use frozen fruits or frozen juice like ice cream.
Day 2. Eat only vegetables (except corn or other starchy vegetables). Nevertheless, you can start the day with baked potatoes (1-2 pieces). Alternatively, cut it into cubes, sprinkle with olive oil and bake in the oven with a small amount of pepper and onion. For lunch - celery soup and salad. For dinner - stewed cauliflower or zucchini with carrots and sweet peppers.
Day 3. You need to eat fruits and vegetables (except bananas, corn and other starchy vegetables). Potatoes are also prohibited.
Day 4. You can only eat bananas and drink milk. For breakfast, you can make a cocktail (bananas and milk) or ice cream (frozen chopped pieces of banana).
Day 5. On this day, you can only eat tomatoes (6-8 pieces) and lean beef (can be replaced with fillet of turkey breast or chicken). Tomatoes can be eaten fresh, made from them salad or baked with meat.
Day 6. On this day, the menu should be meat and vegetables. Unlike yesterday, you can eat vegetables other than tomatoes. They can be cooked in a double boiler, stew, bake, eat fresh in a salad.
Day 7. The menu contains brown (brown) rice, fruit juice (unsweetened) and vegetables. As in previous days, vegetables can be eaten raw or stewed (baked in the oven).
By the end of the seventh day, if you adhere to a diet with celery soup (inspirational reviews about), you can lose 5-8 kilograms. If you follow the diet correctly, it will cleanse the body and give you good health. After seven days, you can feel lighter and get a lot of energy.
7 days of celery diet for soup are designed to quickly burn fat. The secret is that more calories are burned than consumed. Since the digestive system of each person is different, this diet will affect everyone in different ways.
Need to remember
- Do not drink alcoholic beverages. This is due to the removal of fat in the body. You need to abandon the diet at least 24 hours before drinking.
- You can not drink carbonated drinks (including diet). You can quench your thirst with water, unsweetened tea, black coffee, sugar-free fruit juices, cranberry juice or skim milk.
- Do not eat bread or fried foods.
You can eat baked chicken (without skin) instead of beef. You can also replace beef with fish on one of the days. On other days, you will need protein in the meat. In principle, 7 days on a diet of celery soup do not make you feel hungry.
Diet for 14 days
One of the most difficult methods of weight loss is a 14 day diet on celery. In particular, this diet will be difficult to observe for those who do not like the aforementioned product, and those who in every possible way avoid it in dishes. But when you learn about the gigantic benefits of celery, your opinion changes.
Principle of nutrition
Here, it seems, about what rules there can be a speech: eat celery every day and grow thin. But not everything is so simple, because the aforementioned celery diet for weight loss has a certain philosophy of nutrition. The desired result of weight loss will be obtained only with the strictest observance of the following rules:
- meals three times a day - breakfast, lunch and dinner;
- daily use of distilled water - from 1.5 to 2 liters;
- celery is allowed to eat both raw and processed: as soups and mashed potatoes;
- main course is celery soup;
- there are no restrictions on cooking;
- It is recommended to combine this product with vegetables, fruits and meat;
- before each meal you need to drink a glass of celery juice;
- the most acceptable period for a celery diet is 7 or 14 days.
In addition, a week before a diet for weight loss, you need to prepare your body, give up sugary, flour, carbonated and alcoholic drinks, as well as fatty, fried and smoked foods.
Indications and contraindications
Alas, this celery diet for weight loss has its own contraindications. In order not to further worsen the state of health, in no case should you lose weight in this way celery with:
- chronic diseases;
- an ulcer;
- malfunctions of the gastrointestinal tract;
- gastritis;
- high acidity;
- allergies
- problems with the thyroid gland;
- epilepsy;
- thrombophlebitis;
- pregnancy and lactation;
- significant age.
The benefits of celery
The plant has many positive properties:
- prevention or retardation of cancer;
- lowering blood pressure;
- improved sleep;
- getting rid of edema;
- prevention of nervous disorders;
- elimination of excess moisture from the body;
- metabolic management.
As mentioned above, the positive aspects of a celery diet for weight loss come two weeks later. Of course, you can reduce the duration of the celery soup diet to seven days. But the greatest accomplishments and outcomes for health and fitness will only be possible with a 14-day compliance course.
What can I eat?
Of course, in addition to celery, other dietary products can be used during the diet on the slimming menu. The main thing is that they combine well and have a low calorie content.
List of allowed celery diet products:
- vegetables - zucchini, tomatoes, cabbage, onions, cucumbers, peppers;
- fruits - apples, pears, peaches, plums, citrus fruits, pineapples;
- low fat yogurt;
- meat of chicken and beef;
- fish - tuna, cod;
- brown rice;
- vegetable oil;
- green and black tea, coffee.
The list of prohibited foods includes:
- sweets;
- bakery products;
- smoked products;
- hot sauces and spices;
- fast food.
Menu for 14 days
Based on the above list of acceptable products, you can make an approximate menu for two weeks. So, below is a diet with celery for weight loss and a menu for 14 days.
Day 1. Breakfast: grapefruit and green tea. Lunch: creamy soup with celery. Dinner: salad (vegetable), kefir.
Day 2. Breakfast: a cup of black coffee, an apple. Lunch: creamy vegetable soup. Dinner: 250 g of boiled rice.
Day 3. Breakfast: yogurt and green tea. Lunch: celery soup with broccoli. Dinner: stewed pepper with slices of beef meat - 250 grams.
Day 4. Breakfast: celery and cucumber salad, unsweetened black tea. Lunch: kefir and soup. Dinner: any kind of celery.
Day 5. Breakfast: coffee, orange. Lunch: celery soup with herbs. Dinner: citrus salad, a glass of low-fat yogurt.
Day 6. Breakfast: hot drink (coffee or tea) and fruit salad. Lunch: vegetable soup; dinner: baked beef meat - 150 grams.
Day 7 - Breakfast: black tea (with lemon, without sugar) and a green apple. Lunch: celery juice and 200 g of boiled rice. Dinner: two peppers baked in the oven.
Day 8. Breakfast: cocktails of green vegetables. Lunch: soup and yogurt. Dinner: a salad of 200 grams of cod (baked in the oven), cucumbers and herbs.
Day 9. Breakfast: yogurt and orange. Lunch: stewed vegetables, kefir. Dinner: 200 grams of baked chicken meat and celery juice.
Day 10. Breakfast: citrus fruits, green tea. Lunch: a salad consisting of cucumbers, radishes and celery. Dinner: vegetable soup.
Day 11. Breakfast: coffee with toast. Lunch: peaches and pears, celery juice. Dinner: Baked fish.
Day 12. Breakfast: citrus salad, seasoned with natural fat-free yogurt. Lunch: mashed soup. Dinner: beef stew (150 g) and kefir.
Day 13. Breakfast: celery and cucumber salad, unsweetened black tea. Lunch: kefir and soup. Dinner: Celery.
Day 14. Breakfast: a cup of black coffee, an apple. Lunch: creamy vegetable soup. Dinner: 250 g of boiled rice.
Celery Soup
Ingredients: 250 g celery, half a kilo of cabbage, one onion, two carrots, 100 g of beans, two large tomatoes, two peppers (green), a liter of tomato juice.
Cooking:
- Wash and peel all vegetables.
- Finely chop the vegetables and mix.
- Then pour tomato juice.
- Boil.
- Cook for 20-25 minutes on low heat.
Beef with celery
Ingredients: lean beef (500 grams), 2-3 celery stalks, onion, lots of parsley, three tablespoons of vegetable oil, a pinch of salt, 200 ml of water.
Cooking:
- chop beef and salt;
- lightly fry on all sides;
- chop celery and onion, dip in meat;
- to fill with water;
- sprinkle with chopped herbs;
- simmer for 45 minutes.
The right way out of the diet
Getting out of a celery diet to lose weight should be careful. Gradually introduce your favorite food into the diet: fish, meat, dairy and sour-milk products.
To avoid a quick return of lost kilograms, do not eat flour and sweets. You will also have to delete hot sauces, spices, salt and sugar from the diet. There is still plenty of drinking water, two liters a day. Celery soup should remain the main course for at least a week. Nutritionists recommend, after completing the diet, to devote themselves to sports in order to tone the body and strengthen the result.
7 Ways to Benefit from a 20 Day Celery Diet
In addition to losing weight, such a diet will help keep cholesterol under control, and also help fight inflammation and infections. Celery diet is easy to follow, it is useful, improves well-being and quality of life in just a few weeks.
It is worth noting that this is a non-limiting diet, where celery is the only ingredient in a weekly meal plan. What is offered as part of this diet is that this vegetable can be an excellent addition or to decorate any dish.
You can add it to cocktails, turn this ordinary ingredient into an integral part of a varied diet, free from harmful saturated fats and first grade flour.
Any healthy diet requires a lot of willpower, a little imagination and dedication to make well-being the only goal. Thus, you can lose weight, take care of your health and optimize metabolism. Using a celery diet is easy!
The essence of diet
Start your day with a healthy cocktail! Feel free to start each morning with a breakfast rich in fiber, protein and vitamins. You will feel great if you drink celery-based smoothies for breakfast 3 or 4 times a week. It cleanses and improves digestion, also helps to absorb nutrients, fight constipation, and prevent fluid retention.
It is recommended to start the day with this celery cocktail. Half an hour after that you can have breakfast. You can drink such a cocktail during the day: a glass before eating.
Follow these instructions to make a cocktail. Ingredients:
- Juice ½ lemon.
- Stick of green celery.
- 5 fresh mint leaves or 1 tablespoon dry mint (10 g).
- 1 liter of water.
You need to mix all the ingredients in a blender. Everything, the cocktail is ready. Drink one glass an hour before eating.
Easy recipes for a diet for 20 days
As stated at the beginning, this is not a strict diet. So, first of all, a little imagination is needed to make celery a regular addition to dishes.
Here are some simple ideas that might help:
- Celery, chickpeas, raisins and cubes of green apple for salad.
- Celery and carrot salad.
- Cod with celery and apple.
- Sliced stalks with tuna and ham.
- Cucumbers, celery, tomato, dried plum and chicken for salad.
- Stalks and pumpkin pie.
- Soup with celery and onions.
- Zucchini salad with stalks and slices of turkey.
- Mushroom soup with celery and apple.
Reviews of the celery diet say that after 20 days of the diet, excess weight will go away and a flat stomach will appear.
Most people, as a rule, always choose celery stalks for their recipes. Nevertheless, it is important to remember that the leaves and seeds of this vegetable are edible and healthy. Therefore, it is worth trying to include them in your dishes.
Celery diet is healthy and does not require long preparation. You can start it today. Celery alone will not make you lose weight. But it can help to achieve this thanks to some useful properties. Celery is low in calories. It improves metabolism and helps burn fat. It is a diuretic and anti-inflammatory. Helps optimize digestion.