When summer arrives, it’s time to run for cover to lose weight, get back in shape, and finally, be able to show off a perfect body; So what’s better than following the diet of the famous Mediterranean diet that we have managed to export and make known all over the world? Below, you will find an example of a low-calorie weekly menu for men and women (1000,1200,1300,1500 calories), food suggestions, and some recipes you can prepare if you intend to lose the extra pounds without. Give up on greedy and nutritious meals.
Pyramid Of The Mediterranean Diet
Before starting to bake diets, weekly, and recipes, we want to explain what the pyramid of Mediterranean nutrition is meant. It is a concept born in 1994 by food scholars and describes the diet of the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea (e.g., Greece and Italy). Such populations have been found to die less from heart problems. Heart disease has a much higher incidence in populations following other diets, such as the inhabitants of the United States. Here, we have seen people eat more meat and dairy products and introduce more saturated fats, which are harmful to our health. Instead, the Mediterranean diet favors carbohydrates at the expense of foods that contain a high percentage of saturated fat. From the figure, we see how meat, cured meats, and dairy products occupy the apex of the pyramid to find fish, dried fruit, fruit, vegetables, cereals, pasta, and bread.
Losing Weight With The Mediterranean Diet: Example Of A Weekly Menu
Everything for you, a balanced diet program from Monday to Sunday, for a varied and healthy Mediterranean diet with a slimming effect.
Monday: for breakfast, it is sufficient to drink a cup of unsweetened coffee or a cup of unsweetened tea with two rusks; better if wholemeal. At lunch, we move on to assimilate carbohydrates; in fact, it is possible to eat 60 grams of pasta seasoned with a simple sauce cooked only with salt and a drizzle of oil. Instead of pasta, it is possible to eat rice or wholemeal and fiber-rich pasta. At the end of the lunch, if you are still hungry, it is possible to eat seasonal fruit and continue the day by having a snack with a squeeze of fresh oranges. For dinner, two boiled eggs with a side of cooked spinach.
Tuesday: a bitter coffee or a glass of unsweetened skimmed milk instead; for lunch, a fillet of cod of about 150 gr cooked in foil with a side dish of cherry tomatoes and potatoes seasoned only with salt, oil, and black pepper. For a snack, a seasonal fruit, and a vegetable soup with wholemeal oats for dinner.
Wednesday: two rusks or two sugar-free biscuits with a cup of black coffee for breakfast; for lunch, 100 gr of veal fillet cooked simply in a pan and seasoned with a drizzle of olive oil to accompany a green salad or tomatoes seasoned with a bit of salt. You can drink orange juice or grapefruit juice as a mid-day snack, known for its purifying properties. For dinner, a cream of legumes of your choice to be served with croutons.
Thursday: a cup of black coffee and two sugar-free cookies; for lunch, two boiled eggs accompanied by a side dish of herbs or two slices of lean ham; a seasonal fruit or low-fat yogurt as a snack in the afternoon. Instead, for lunch, 120 grams of grilled chicken breast accompanied by a salad of your choice. At dinner, 150 grams of minestrone to be seasoned with a drizzle of oil.
Friday: black coffee for breakfast with two wholemeal rusks; for lunch, 60 grams of pasta to be seasoned with cauliflower to taste and with a drizzle of oil; as a snack, seasonal fruit or low-fat yogurt, while for dinner, a caprese to be prepared with a mozzarella (better if light) and a tomato seasoned with a bit of salt and oil.
Saturday: unsweetened tea or coffee together with two sugar-free biscuits; for lunch, 100 grams of fresh bluefish, such as anchovy or sea bream, to be grilled or baked in foil; as an afternoon snack, a freshly squeezed orange juice, and for dinner two boiled eggs with a side of cooked green beans.
Sunday: black coffee or unsweetened tea for breakfast; for lunch, 120 grams of grilled turkey breast to accompany a green salad; for a snack, a seasonal fruit, and for dinner, a 60 g sandwich to accompany two slices of bresaola or a mozzarella.
Recipes Of The Mediterranean Diet For Weight Loss: Ideas And Curiosities About Food
As we have seen, one of the cornerstones of the Mediterranean diet is the moderate use of olive oil, which contains oleic acid, an element capable of activating correct digestive activity by releasing bile acids.
Grapefruit juice is also mentioned in the weekly menu for weight loss, which contains: vitamin C, antioxidants, and fiber, all substances beneficial for the proper functioning of the body.
In addition, the Mediterranean diet does not lack dairy products, which, even if consumed in moderation, help ingest the right amount of calcium and phosphorus that man needs, as well as pasta and rice, which are essential foods to provide the right amount of energy to face a day.
Here are some recipes to be able to vary the weight loss diet, always maintaining a tasty menu:
Vegetable Minestrone – Losing weight with the famous minestrone diet is undoubtedly the latest trend among healthy diets, thanks to the Mediterranean diet. We have obtained some simple combinations of foods to combine with a healthy minestrone with celery, carrots, and fennel from the weekly menu shown on the Benessere Donna Online website. An example can be made from a dinner with minestrone, 150 grams of fresh ricotta, and 200 grams of roast turkey; otherwise, we can add grilled mushrooms, turkey, and spinach to our dear minestrone.
Neapolitan-style cauliflower pasta – Cauliflower is a food with a thousand beneficial properties; some do not like it, others love it for its intense and decisive taste, but at the same time, refined and gentle. This is a straightforward recipe to make with Mediterranean ingredients such as pasta, cauliflower, Parmesan, olive oil and parsley, and a clove of garlic. Here you will find the recipe for pasta with Neapolitan cauliflower.
Carbonara with zucchini: Ingredients for three people – 320 gr pasta, 300 gr zucchini, 2 eggs, 1 clove of garlic, 2 tablespoons olive oil, salt, and pecorino. Dice the courgettes and fry them in a little olive oil with the garlic clove cut in half. Cook for about five minutes with the addition of a glass of water. Apart from cooking the pasta. In another bowl, prepare the dressing with beaten eggs, pecorino cheese, and half a glass of water (or instead of vegetable cream). Once the pasta has been drained, season with the courgettes and the sauce previously obtained. Serve with a handful of pecorino.
Grilled Chicken Salad: Ingredients for 3 people – 400 grams of chicken breast, 2 tomatoes, 30 grams of Parmesan, salted capers, white vinegar, extra virgin olive oil, salt, and pepper. Cut the chicken into strips and grill it without any additional seasoning. In a large bowl, mix the diced tomatoes, a tablespoon of vinegar, a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, and the capers. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and add it to the prepared dressing. Stir, add the capers, and serve with grated Parmesan on top.
Cream of chickpeas: Ingredients for 4 people – 400 grams of chickpeas, olive oil, 1 clove of garlic, rosemary, parsley, salt, and pepper. Fry the garlic with rosemary and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil for a few minutes. Boil the chickpeas for about twenty minutes, and once drained, add them to the pan with the sauté. Add a glass of water and finish cooking for another ten minutes—season with salt and pepper. Once the chickpeas are cooked, it is necessary to blend everything with an immersion blender and serve with fresh parsley.