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What is Dukan Diet and its side-effects?

This article gives pertinent information about Dukan Diet and its side-effects

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Pierre Dukan, a French doctor and nutritionist, challenged with the case of obesity started to look for alternative ways in curing the illness. After 20 years of thorough research he published in the year 2000, a book called, “Je ne sais pas maigrir” or translated as, “I don’t know how to get slimmer.” It gained the best-seller in France after a year it has been published.
It was made a hit in UK when Kate Middleton, now the duchess of Cambridge, tried the Dukan Diet before her marriage to the beloved Prince William, she reportedly claimed a loss of two dress sizes. It also allegedly claimed to help five million French. The book is also gaining fame in the US in the year 2011 when actress/singer, Jennifer Lopez, lost pounds after her pregnancy by following this diet.
Dukan Diet: What is it? How does this work?
Dukan Diet is similar to the famous Atkins diet. Atkins and Dukan are much alike in terms of non-intake of carbs initially and do not require portion control or counting calorie consumptions. In Atkins, it requires net carbohydrate intakes and unlike Dukan, it suggests a daily intake of oats, increase water consumption and 20 minutes of everyday brisk walking. Dukan Diet adopts four phases namely: Attack, Cruise, Consolidation and Stabilization.
Four Phases of the Dukan Diet
Attack: In this starter phase, the dieter is only allowed take protein rich foods that are exquisitely low in fat. Dr. Dukan provided 72-item list of foods to be eaten, it excludes pork, lamb, poultry products and cheeses. Food should always be cooked but without adding any fat to it, it best to cook in grilling or roasting. It also requires you to eat 1 ½ tbsp. oat bran & 1.5 liters of water per day. This phase should be followed around 2-7 days or more. Results from this initial phase within 5 days may result in 4-7 lbs. loss. This phase promotes quick loss of weight since it is strictly based on a protein-only diet.
Cruise: Cruise, the second to the fourth phase of the Dukan diet scheme. During this phase dieters who were only allowed to eat protein-only foods can now alternate a 28-items of non-starchy vegetables. They may take attack phase diet for today and take non-starchy veggie diet for tomorrow, and so this phase must go on by alternating these two types of diet each day. This phase may last long enough as much as you want by reaching your desired weight and assuring 2 pounds per week loss.
Consolidation: As one achieves the desired weight, one has to go the next phase called Consolidation, this is the maintenance phase of this diet scheme where you have to prevent putting back excess pounds. The plan in this phase is less strict compared to the first two phases. During this phase you are permitted to eat protein-only and veggie diet along with a piece of low-sugar fruit, 2 slices of whole grain bread and a portion of hard cheese. In this phase you are allowed to have 1-2 serving of starchy foods and one celebration meal per week. The phase of consolidation does not expect to loss off pounds but rather it is steadily the maintenance process.
Stabilization: Stabilization is the final phase and a life-long phase of the diet scheme. In here maintenance of the life-changing diet may be a challenging and tempting. During this portion of the scheme, one is already permitted to allow any food intake that a person wants and by also sticking to the diet rule in the consolidation phase. As Pierre Dukan suggest, that staying on the phase 1 rule once a week and eat whatever you like for the rest of the week lowers the chances of regaining weight.
Pros and Cons of Dukan Diet
Pros: The fast results of this diet scheme is beneficially rewarding and motivating. It allows you to have protein and veggie meal plan diets and does not require you to count off your calorie intakes.
Cons: It is highly restrictive and can exclude healthy foods. Dieters can experience side-effects such as symptoms of headaches, nausea, lethargy, irritable and loss of concentration. Dieters may acquire halitosis (bad breath), metallic tasting mouth and strong smell in their urines. For those people who have problems with their kidneys and liver are not advised to follow this diet plan. It is not also recommended for pregnant and nursing mothers.

Views and Opinions by Health Experts on the Dukan Diet
There are lots of critics in this diet plan. Due to the restrictive type scheme of this diet, some fruits, grains and nuts which are healthy and have high amounts of vitamins and minerals that are vital to the nutrition of the body are eliminated. Keri Gans of American Dietetic Association, said that the lost amount of multivitamins that should be acquired from those restricted foods are not compensated in the Dukan diet. Experts have also criticized that experiencing such side-effects may not be healthy at all.

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A Quick Look at Some of Today’s Most Effective Diets

The idiot-proof diet is all about calorie shifting. That is, in this diet, you shift your food intake throughout the day instead of eating just 3 meals a day. The diet is popular because it’s actually very easy to follow and there are hardly any restrictions when it comes to the types of food you can eat.

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The Idiot-Proof Diet

The idiot-proof diet is all about calorie shifting. That is, in this diet, you shift your food intake throughout the day instead of eating just 3 meals a day. The diet is popular because it’s actually very easy to follow and there are hardly any restrictions when it comes to the types of food you can eat.

The ‘calorie shifting’ model takes place because you eat every two and half hours. The theory is that because your body is consuming calories (energy) constantly throughout the day, it’s always in ‘burning calories’ mode instead of the ‘saving calories’ mode.

When you sign up for the diet, you get access to a diet handbook, an 11-day diet-plan and a diet calculator. You get to pick what foods you like to eat so don’t think that you’ll be tarving in this diet!

NutriSystem

The NutriSystem way of dieting is all about proper meal planning. People love this diet because it takes away the burden of trying to figure out what to eat during their dieting phase. You see, a lot of people actually get confused as to what they can eat when they want to lose weight. That’s not really surprising because there’s so much information out there and for every yay sayer, there is a nay sayer so it’s really tough to know what to eat.

However, with NurtiSystem, they do all the meal planning and portion controlling for you. You just need to sign up to any of their diet programs (e.g., Women’s Program, Men’s Program, Vegetarian Program, etc.) and order a multi-day (usually for 28 days) diet program.

After you choose your diet program, a menu is presented to you and you simply choose what you want to eat. The meals are then delivered to your doorstep at various intervals during your diet program.

The South Beach Diet

The South Beach Diet is popular because the name alone conjures bikini-clad bodies! Add to that the fact that it was founded by a cardiologist, Dr. Arthur Agatston, then you have a sort of ‘doctor recommended, doctor approved’ seal on the diet as well.

At first glance, the South Beach Diet looks a lot like the Atkins Diet in the sense that it restricts carbohydrates during the initial phase of the program (there are 3 phases). The first phase (14 days) encourages ‘normal eating’ in the sense that you can pretty much eat whatever you want but you must NOT eat bread, rice, potatoes, pasta, or baked goods. Fruit is also not allowed. No sugar. No alcohol.

The second phase allows you to SLOWLY introduce these items back into your diet but at lesser levels that you consumed them before of course. The third phase is more about general maintenance.

Weight Watchers

Probably one of the longest running diet programs out there is Weight Watchers. It believes in the overall approach where food, exercise, behavior and support are addressed.

Weight Watchers is known for advocating a point system for foods. Using this system, one calculates the calorie intake of the foods he or she eats. The number of points you can have in a day varies depending on your weight. The beauty of the program is that there are no gut-wrenching food restrictions so you never feel deprived of anything. However, the point system teaches you how to balance your meals so that even if you indulge on one food item, you don’t go overboard and consume too much in a day.

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Maximum Of 2 Pounds Of Fat Loss Per Week Theory Debunked!

I’m sure you’ve heard countless times, again and again, that the ideal weight loss pattern is 1-2 pounds a week, right? Well what if that’s not ideal for YOU? Is there a way to lose more than that during the week?

Well, there are plenty of fat-loss companies out there who disagree with the above claim. These companies swear up and down that their product will rapidly melt the fat right off your body faster than you ever dreamed possible. So should you turn to one of these companies, and trust them to get you the results you want so badly? Definitely not!

The diet and weight loss industry has seemingly been taken over by dishonest companies more concerned with quantity of products sold than quality. Unfortunately, it’s easy for them to sell these pills, powders and gimmicks to people because most of them simply don’t know the facts. I pride myself on being an honest guy and will take the time in this article to tell you the honest truth about rapid weight loss.

The 1-2 lb weekly weight loss rule was actually created by the government by assessing the average amount of calories consumed, burned and easily limited by the average American. I agree with the mathematical way of thinking and also think that losing 1-2 pounds of fat a week is acceptable but I also think you can do a lot better. Let me show you how!

Losing one to two pounds of fat per week is the social norm in the weight loss world, so why is it that my clients lose more than that on a weekly basis? Simply stated we are all capable of losing more weight than the “reasonable” guidelines set out for us and if you want average results, read no further. If you DO want better results then you need better dieting and training methods so keep reading!

Before we get to the good stuff, we must make one critical distinction. We must clarify the difference between weight loss and fat loss. Weight loss includes: fat, lean muscle and water, primarily. Fat loss includes: just fat. For your body transformation to be healthy, sustainable and aesthetically pleasing, you MUST forget about weight loss and just focus on fat loss. It is easy to drop more than 2 pounds of weight per week. In fact, fighters can drop up to fifteen pounds of weight in one day before a fight! Im sure you have witnessed some of your friends lose an enormous amount of weight quickly while following some sort of extreme diet approach. But I can assure you that in all of these cases the weight eventually (usually sooner rather than later) comes roaring right back on as soon as any dietary normality is restored to their lives.

Enough about “Weight Loss”..How Do You Lose More Than Two Lbs of FAT in a Week?

To lose fat at a rapid rate will take some work but it is not impossible! Creating a “calorie deficit” is the best way to achieve fat loss. There is a catch though-and you must proceed with caution because if you do this incorrectly you will have the opposite results which can actually ruin your metabolism rather than shed those unwanted pounds of fat.

One way to create a large calorie deficit is to drastically decrease your food intake. But most people arent going to last long with little food. After all, its really not realistic (or fun) to cut calories so much. Even worse, plans that suggest this approach are almost always unhealthy.

So what’s the alternative? Simply stated the best way to do this is to follow a meal plan which forces your body to burn fat as fuel while maintaining lean muscle-easy, right? I suggest following a zigzag diet which is a little trick I’ve developed! Stick with the calorie deficit for about 4-6 days then have one higher calorie day to jump start your metabolism which will keep your body from going into starvation mode. Not to mention keep your sanity from the food deprivation you’re experiencing.

A different approach to the calorie deficit is to simply workout more often but who honestly has the time to spend hours at the gym? I know I don’t, and I assume if you have any sort of life you don’t either. Even if we could spend 5 hours a day at the gym this will eventually burn you out and the weight will come back once activity levels return to normal and what’s the poinin all your hard work if that is the end result?

Instead, you must engage in a training program that stimulates your lean muscle and revs up your metabolism. This is not your typical weights and cardio workout. In order to be supremely effective, this workout must burn fat during the training session AND persuade your body to continue burning fat long after the workout has ended.

The best way to do this is to workout three times a week engaging in high-intensity training which keeps your body constantly moving. The best exercises will stimulate all of your muscle groups at one time and burn maximum calories in very little time for quick and amazing results.

So is it Less Food or Harder Workouts?

Both! Ideally your body requires both less food and more training to achieve the best fat loss results but make sure to balance those out as training too much can lead to overuse injuries and/or overtraining which will be counterproductive.

On the other hand if you are burning all of your fat through eating less you’re doomed to lose muscle which in turn slows down your metabolism which is also counterproductive and you’ll also be hungry all day-and who really likes that?

For fast weight loss I suggest to my clients that they integrate training and nutritional dieting into their fat loss plans. This “synergistic effect” will decrease the aforementioned risks while maximizing your results.

With This Unique Approach:

We are all capable of doing things we may not know we can do–rapid fat loss included! If you can challenge yourself with this new diet and training program I can assure you that you’ll be the envy of your circle as the fat simply vanishes! Stick with me, I’ll help you achieve your goals.

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