Diet for the New Year for 90 days

The authors of this diet, Mojca Polyanshek and Breda Chrobat, published the book “The 20-Day Separate Food Diet” more than 90 years ago. The book quickly became a bestseller – still, in a short three months, the technique promised weight loss of up to 25 kg without harm to health.

The theory of separate nutrition was developed at the beginning of the twentieth century by the American physician Herbert Shelton and tested his principles on more than 10 thousand patients. He divided all products into groups: proteins (beans, meat, soybeans, fish, eggs), fats (butter, sour cream, lard), carbohydrates (cereals, potatoes, peas, bread, fruits). The main idea is to never mix proteins and carbohydrates in one meal (eat meat not with potatoes, but with vegetable salad, for example). These substances must be digested under different conditions: proteins – in an acidic environment, carbohydrates – in an alkaline one. Only one thing can be assimilated at a time, and the second will simply poison the body with decay products. Modern doctors are skeptical about the theory of separate nutrition, but this does not prevent its popularity.

The diet is divided into four-day cycles so that you don’t get tired of the monotony. Day one – protein, second – starchy, third – carbohydrate, fourth – vitamin. You cannot swap them, this is important. Every 29th day is a fasting day, when you need to drink clean water and green tea. Three meals a day. Breakfast (before noon), lunch, dinner (no later than 20:00). Eat plenty of the foods allowed on that day. Drink plenty of water and unsweetened tea. It is advisable to limit coffee and give up alcohol. Also, follow the principles:

• Avoid fried foods.
• Reduce salt to a minimum.
• Keep track of the calorie content of your daily diet so as not to go over 1500 kcal.

Protein day. Any meat, fish and seafood, boiled or baked, all dairy products (including cheese), vegetables (except potatoes), meat broth, a piece of bread and eggs. Season vegetables with lemon juice and a little oil.

Starchy day… Beans, peas, soybeans, lentils, rice, pearl barley, millet, buckwheat, any vegetables (and even potatoes), vegetable broth are allowed. You can eat one slice of bread a day. The dinner portion should be about a third smaller than the lunch portion.

Carbohydrate day. Holiday! Cereals, bread, pastries, vegetables are allowed. For dinner – one serving of cake or two scoops of ice cream (preferably before six in the evening), a quarter of a bar of dark chocolate. It is very important not to break into gluttony, try not to gain more than 1500 kcal per day.

Vitamin day. You can eat fruits and dried fruits, nuts and seeds (but not more than ½ glass a day), fresh vegetables and drink freshly squeezed juices (vegetable and fruit). The day should not be divided into breakfast, lunch and dinner. Fruit can be eaten every 2-3 hours in any form.

Fasting day. Only clean drinking water (at least 2,5 liters) and, if desired, green tea without sugar.

• The diet is easily tolerated – it is not hungry, decent portions of food are allowed.
• The diet is varied and sufficiently rich in carbohydrates, which means that there will be no headaches or irritability.
• You will lose weight smoothly enough, which means you will not harm your health, as is the case with fast diets.

• You need to weigh your portions and understand how nutritious they are, especially at first. On carbohydrate and vitamin days, a sweet tooth can easily lose control of themselves and go over the number of calories.
• You will have to give up treats and alcohol on holidays before the New Year, otherwise the diet loses its meaning.
• Keeping the right food ready can be tricky. Nutritionists recommend cooking on weekends, placing them in signed containers and freezing.

Nutritionist comment

Alexander Kalinin, psychotherapist, healthy eating consultant:

“It is believed that each portion of our food should contain fats, carbohydrates, proteins, vitamins, microelements. In “90 days” the approach is different, and it is not close to me. But if you are overweight, and this diet is comfortable for you, please. It’s much better than lying on the couch with a box of chocolates. I advise you to take a complex of vitamins and include physical activity so that the skin tightens better as you lose kilograms. “