Grapefruit diet: menus and results. How to properly keep a grapefruit diet

Grapefruit: nature’s gene experiment

Scientists still cannot agree on where the grapefruit came from on the planet. It was first described in botany at the end of the 18th century: grapefruit was brought from warm southern countries and was called “little sheddock” in honor of another citrus popular at that time.

Paradoxical at first glance, but the shorter name “grapefruit”, that is “grape fruit”, was invented for convenience by Jamaican traders – they resembled grape bunches loaded into the holds.

There is no reliable evidence that some unknown tropical “Michurin” was engaged in the selection of grapefruits – it is more likely that this type of citrus was created by nature. Research has shown that grapefruit appears to be the “love fruit” of the orange and pomelo. However, man nevertheless had a hand in the “evolution” of grapefruit: today there are more than two dozen grapefruit varieties in the world, differing in color, size, juiciness, and taste. Today grapefruits grow on an industrial scale even on the territory of the former USSR – part of the Georgian subtropics is occupied by the planting of grapefruit trees.

How to choose and eat grapefruit

Red and pink grapefruit varieties have the most pronounced and brightest taste – it is believed that from the point of view of nutritional value, such fruits are preferable, because they contain the antioxidate lycopene, which has an anti-carcinogenic effect.

To choose a good grapefruit, carefully examine the fruit: too “elegant”, shiny skin may indicate that the grapefruit was rubbed in a store or shop with wax-containing compounds. This grapefruit is not worth buying. Its more unsightly “comrade” with greenish and brownish “bald spots” may turn out to be more useful and natural when compared: such marks on the skin are formed from contact with other grapefruits or leaves during growth and do not affect the quality of the product.

Press down on the selected grapefruit with your finger – if the fossa persists when you have already removed the finger, it is likely that the fruit is overripe or has deteriorated. The grapefruit should not be too hard either – this means that the harvest was in a hurry to harvest.

The easiest way to enjoy grapefruit is to cut it in half and carefully select the pulp between the partitions with a spoon. It is important not to hook the septum itself – firstly, it is quite difficult to chew, and secondly, it contains a large amount of a bitter substance – the glycoside naringenin. This chemical compound is very useful for the prevention of cardiovascular diseases, but it surpasses the well-known quinine in bitterness, so you won’t be able to eat a lot of it even with an ardent desire to improve your health. However, naringinin is also found in the pulp of grapefruit, but in a more humane concentration.

There are special spoons with a sharp edge, which are especially convenient to choose the pulp. Such a cutlery will be an original gift for a friend who loves citrus fruits or for the start of a grapefruit diet!

Also, grapefruit can be peeled from the thick peel and its white inner part, divided into slices, removed from the film and eaten appetizing pulp.

In ordinary life, grapefruit pulp is often flavored with sugar, but this is unacceptable with a grapefruit diet. No sugar!

Those who normally tolerate the characteristic bitter taste like to cut the grapefruit into sections (in half and each half – into 4 more parts, after which the skin is cut off, and the pulp with small pieces of internal partitions is used for food). It is good to put the grapefruit processed in this way in a salad – the bitterness is balanced by other ingredients, and it takes less time to prepare.

If you want to try something unusual, bake grapefruit wedges on the grill: the sugar contained in the fruit caramelizes beautifully into a crunchy crust and you will get an original and healthy snack!

The grapefruit diet: 3 fresh pluses

1. The ingredients in grapefruit pulp reduce the production of insulin, a hormone whose increased production causes the body to store fat.

2. Grapefruit contains an easily digestible protein (about 1 gram in half a medium-sized fruit), is rich in liquid and fiber, all of which help you feel fuller for a long time.

3. Grapefruit “warm-up” before meals is often used by those who suffer from low acidity of the stomach: a tropical fruit increases the activity of gastric juice.

Dr. Fujoki’s Grapefruit Diet

The benefits of grapefruit for weight loss have been scientifically confirmed, although the results for a number of reasons can hardly be called sensational: a researcher from the American Scripps Clinic, Dr. Ken Fujioka, conducted a large-scale study in which 100 men and women suffering from different forms of obesity took part.

Three times a day, the volunteers drank freshly squeezed Florida grapefruit juice or ate half a grapefruit before meals. The experiment lasted 12 weeks. During this time, the participants, who did not change their eating habits, schedules and menus in any way, lost 2-3 kilograms in weight, and doctors recorded a decrease in the level of insulin in their blood.

The researchers noted that, of course, with an overall healthier diet and control of portions, the “grapefruit effect” would be much more noticeable. You can test this by trying one of the grapefruit diet options.

Short grapefruit diet: 5 days

• Duration: 5 days;

• Features: the daily presence of grapefruit in the diet;

• Cost: medium (less than 2 thousand rubles for the entire period);

• Result: minus 3-4 kg;

• Recommended frequency: no more than 1 time in 6 months;

• Additional effect: detox, improving skin condition;

• Doesn’t fit: pregnant women, lactating women, with allergies to citrus fruits and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, with the use of pressure-reducing medications. Before starting a diet, you should consult your doctor!

First day:

• Breakfast: 50 g ham, half a grapefruit.

• Lunch: fresh vegetable salad with 1 tsp. olive oil, half a grapefruit.

• Dinner: 100 g of boiled beef or chicken, green salad with 1 tsp. olive oil.

Second day:

• Breakfast: 2 boiled eggs, half a grapefruit.

• Lunch: 50 g 20-30% cheese, 150 g low-fat cottage cheese, half a grapefruit.

• Dinner: 200 g of stewed or grilled fish, vegetable salad with 1 tsp. olive oil, 1 slice of black bread.

The third day:

• Breakfast: 2 tbsp. muesli or oatmeal, 1 tablespoon raisins, 1 tbsp. nuts (except peanuts), low-fat yogurt or milk (mix everything), half a grapefruit.

• Lunch: 1 cup of vegetable or clear broth, 2 croutons, half a grapefruit.

• Dinner: 200 g of boiled chicken meat, 2 baked tomatoes, half a grapefruit for the night.

Fourth day:

• Breakfast: 1 boiled egg, 1 glass of tomato juice.

• Lunch: carrot or vegetable salad of celery, lettuce, broccoli. From 1 tsp. olive oil, 1 slice of black bread, half a grapefruit.

• Dinner: 400 g of boiled cabbage, beets, carrots or celery, half a grapefruit or grapefruit juice before bed.

Fifth day:

• Breakfast: salad of half a grapefruit, half an orange and one green apple.

• Lunch: 1 baked potato, cabbage salad.

• Dinner: 200 g of chicken, beef or fish, boiled or grilled, 2 baked tomatoes or 1 glass of tomato juice, half a grapefruit at night.

When following a short grapefruit diet, it is important to keep adequate fluid intake. It is allowed to drink plain clean non-carbonated water (at least 1,5 liters per day), unsweetened tea (4 cups per day), 1 cup of coffee (without sugar and milk).

• Duration: 2 or 4 weeks;

• Features: protein with a high fiber content;

• Cost: average;

• Result: from minus 10 kg;

• Recommended frequency: no more than once a year;

• Additional effect: successfully helps to fight excessive sugar cravings;

• Doesn’t fit: pregnant women, lactating women, with allergies to citrus fruits and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, with the use of pressure-reducing medications. Before starting a grapefruit diet, you should consult your doctor!

This is a strict diet plan for weight loss, calculated for a month (it is also possible to shorten the period by observing the menu of the grapefruit-egg diet for the first two weeks). It is a kind of chemical diet slightly modified in favor of grapefruits – a combination of predominantly protein products with a large amount of fruits, especially citrus fruits, allows you to “reprogram” metabolism to the mode of burning accumulated fat reserves.

This grapefruit diet can convert every half of the prescribed grapefruit into 230 ml of freshly squeezed grapefruit juice. Drink plain water (unlimited), coffee (one cup a day without sugar or milk), tea without sugar, including herbal tea (no more than five cups a day). Potatoes are prohibited from vegetables, preference should be given to lettuce, fresh cucumbers and tomatoes.

Grapefruit and Egg Diet: Week 1

Daily breakfast – 2 boiled eggs + ½ large grapefruit. And lunches and dinners are as follows:

Dinners:

• Days 1, 4, and 6 – grapefruit

• Days 2 and 7 – 200 grams of grilled or boiled chicken + 1 grapefruit + a serving of vegetable salad with 1 tsp. Olive oil

• Day 3 – 200 gr feta cheese, rye toast, 1 fresh tomato

• Day 5 – 2 boiled cucumbers, a portion of steamed vegetables.

Dinners:

• Days 1,3, 4, 6 – any amount of any lean meat (except lamb), grilled or boiled

• Day 2 – 2 boiled eggs, 1 grapefruit, 1 rye toast

• Day 5 – 200 gr of boiled fish + a portion of green salad + 1 grapefruit

• Day 7 – a portion of steamed vegetables

Grapefruit and Egg Diet: Week 2

Daily breakfast – 2 boiled eggs + ½ large grapefruit. Lunches and dinners are as follows:

Dinners:

• Day 1 – 2 boiled eggs + a portion of lettuce;

• Days 2 and 3 – 200 grams of grilled fish or meat + a serving of lettuce;

• Day 4 – 2 boiled eggs, 100 g of feta cheese, a portion of steamed vegetables;

• Day 5 – 250 grams of grilled fish or seafood;

• Day 6 – 200 grams of grilled lean meat + 1 grapefruit + a serving of lettuce;

• Day 7 – 200 grams of boiled chicken fillet + 2 fresh tomatoes + 1 grapefruit.

Dinners:

• Day 1, 2, 3 – 2 boiled eggs + 1 grapefruit;

• Day 4, 5, 6 – grapefruit in any quantity;

• Day 7 – 200 grams of grilled chicken or boiled chicken + 2 fresh tomatoes + 1 grapefruit.

Grapefruit and Egg Diet: Week 3

Mono-diet week! Each day, you eat only one food of your choice from the following list:

• grapefruit + apples, plums or kiwi

• boiled fish + lettuce

• steamed vegetables

• boiled chicken fillet

• steamed vegetables + lettuce.

“Product of the Day” can be eaten with no volume limitation. It is important to drink at least 1,5 liters of plain non-carbonated water per day.

Grapefruit and Egg Diet: Week 4

Each day corresponds to a certain set of foods in a certain amount, which must be independently divided into meals throughout the day.

• Day 1 – 400 gr steamed chicken or fish fillet, 2 cucumbers, 2 tomatoes, 2 grapefruits;

• Day 2 – 2 rye toasts, 4 grapefruits, cucumbers and tomatoes, unlimited;

• Day 3 – 2 rye toasts, 100 g of cottage cheese without additives, 4 grapefruits, 200 g of steamed vegetables, 2 tomatoes;

• Day 4 – 400 gr chicken fillet, 2 grapefruits, 2 cucumbers and 2 tomatoes;

• Day 5 – 2 boiled eggs, 1 grapefruit, lettuce, tomatoes, cucumbers, unlimited;

• Day 6 – 1 rye toast, 1 fresh cucumber, 100 g of feta cheese, 200 g of steamed chicken fillet;

• Day 7 – 1 rye toast, 2 grapefruits, 2 fresh tomatoes, 150 g of steamed fish fillet, 200 g of any vegetables except potatoes in any form.

Margaret Thatcher’s grapefruit diet

• Duration: 2 of the week;

• Features: protein low carbohydrate diet

• Cost: average;

• Result: minus 8-10 kg;

• Recommended frequency: no more than once a year;

• Additional effect: long-term preservation of the result;

• Doesn’t fit: Pregnant women, lactating women, with allergies to citrus fruits and diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, with the use of pressure-reducing medications. Before starting a diet, you should consult your doctor!

This variation of the grapefruit and egg diet is also known as the Maggi diet. However, the familiar name hides none other than the legendary ex-Prime Minister of Great Britain Margaret Thatcher. A weight loss diet in which Lady Thatcher ate 28 eggs a week and ate grapefruit eagerly was discovered in her 1979 diary! The determined Maggi could be said to have pioneered the low-carb protein diet, discovering its quick effects and benefits long before such diets became the trend.

A diet high in grapefruit and an egg is labeled in Thatcher’s diary as strictly two weeks. The meal plan is scheduled for seven days; after their passage, the scheme should be repeated.

Diet on grapefruit and eggs 

Breakfast is the same for all days: 2 eggs, 1 grapefruit, a cup of coffee or tea without additives. The rest of the diet is as follows:

Monday

• Lunch: 2 eggs, grapefruit

• Dinner: 2 eggs, mixed vegetable salad, 1 well toasted toast, 1 grapefruit

Tuesday

• Lunch: 2 eggs, any amount of fresh tomatoes, unflavored coffee

• Dinner: grilled beef steak, vegetable salad (tomatoes, cucumbers, cabbage, olives), coffee

Wednesday

• Lunch: 2 eggs, stewed spinach, coffee

• Dinner: grilled lean lamb steak, celery, cucumber and tomato salad, unflavored tea

Thursday

• Lunch: 2 eggs, stewed spinach, coffee

• Dinner: 2 eggs, some cottage cheese, 1 well-toasted toast, shredded cabbage

Friday

• Lunch: 2 eggs, stewed spinach, coffee

• Dinner: vegetable salad with fish, 1 well-toasted toast, 1 grapefruit

Saturday

• Lunch: any amount of fruit salad without dressing

• Dinner: any number of steaks, celery, cucumbers, tomatoes, coffee

Sunday

• Lunch: grilled chicken fillet, tomato, carrot and cabbage salad, grapefruit, coffee

• Dinner: cold boiled skinless chicken, fresh tomatoes, grapefruit.

Those close to the “iron lady” suggest that the prime minister used this “cheat sheet” from her diary at the beginning of her career to look good in front of cameras, which are believed to add visually about 10 kg. The grapefruit and egg diet apparently helps to solve this problem – Maggie Thatcher always gave the impression of a slender and fit lady …