The Dukan diet is a four-step diet, which, according to its creator, makes you lose approximately 11 pounds in the first week. During the first step, you will consume proteins and how long it will last depends on how much weight the person would like to lose.
The French doctor Pierre Dukan explain this in his book “I can’t lose weight”. It’s an option for people who would like to lose weight in a short period of time without needing to get hungry. The diet allows a fast loss of weight, since, during this period, you only ingest lean proteins until you satisfy your hunger.
The goal is to accelerate the metabolism and burn calories, preparing the organism for the next steps. Exercises are mandatory. You will have to go on a 25-minute walk every day, six days a week and increase the time to 40 minutes in the days after parties.
Dukan diet step by step
In order to know how many days each step will take, Doctor Dukan says:
- To lose approximately 11 pounds: 1 day in step one.
- To lose approximately 13 to 22 pounds: 3 days in step one.
- To lose approximately 24 to 44 pounds: 7 days in step one.
The durability time of the other steps of this process vary according to the weight loss. The only accessible candies in this diet are Doctor Dukan’s egg and condensed milk pudding and light sugar-free jelly.
1st step of the Dukan diet – Attack phase
The first step only allows the consumption of food that is rich in proteins. Sources of carbs and candies are prohibited.
It’s a short and intense step. In the step, you will lose approximately 6 pounds in 6 days, due to only ingesting lean proteins. This phase is responsible for preparing the organism to better adapt itself to the diet.
Allowed food:
- Lean meats, as well as grilled meat, roast meat and stewed meat without any fat.
- Kani.
- Boiled eggs.
- Turkey breast.
- Natural or skimmed yogurt.
- Skimmed milk.
- Cottage cheese.
You must always ingest the food alongside a tablespoon of oat bran every day, since it’s responsible for satisfying hunger, as well as a tablespoon of Goji berries, due to its purifying power.
Prohibited foods: All those who have carbs, such as bread, rice, pasta, fruits and sweets.
This phase lasts from 3 to 7 days and 6 to 11 pounds are lost during it.
Example of a menu for the attack phase
During the attack phase, the diet is based on foods that are rich in proteins.
Breakfast:
1 glass of skimmed milk or skimmed yogurt + 1,5 tablespoon of oat bran + 2 slices of cheese and ham or 1 egg plus 2 slices of cheese. You may add coffee to the milk, but no sugar.
Morning snack: 1 low-fat plain yogurt or 2 slices of cheese + 2 slices of ham.
Lunch/Dinner: 250 grams of red meat in a 4 cheese sauce, prepared with skimmed milk or 3 chicken fillets with cheese topping and ham or shrimp in a cheese sauce.
Afternoon snack: 1 low-fat yogurt or 1 glass of low-fat milk + 1 spoon of Goji berries + 1 boiled egg or 2 slices of tofu + 3 slices of ham or 1 soy burger + 1 slice of cottage cheese.
It’s important to remember that you can only eat 2 eggs a day.
2nd step of the Dukan Diet – Cruising Phase
In the second step, Doctor Dukan adds some vegetables to the diet, but the consumption of carbohydrates still isn’t allowed.
Vegetables and greens must be eaten raw or cooked in salted water, and the only allowed sweet is light jelly. The spices used must be olive oil, lemon, herbs such as parsley and rosemary or balsamic vinegar.
Allowed foods:
- Tomato
- Cucumber
- Radish
- Lettuce
- Mushroom
- Celery
- Swiss chard
- Eggplant
- Zucchini
Prohibited foods: Foods rich in carbohydrates, sweets and fruits.
Attention: in the second, phase, you must alternate by eating only proteins one day and, on the other, proteins and vegetables, until you complete 7 days.
On the days that you will only eat protein, you should also eat 1 tablespoon of Goji berries and, on the other days, 2 tablespoons.
Example of a menu for the cruising phase
You should stick to the attack phase menu for protein days. The following menu will give you examples of meals to be eaten during the days when you eat protein and vegetables:
Breakfast: 1 glass of skimmed milk or skimmed yogurt + 1,5 tablespoon of oat bran + 2 slices of baked cheese with tomatoes or an egg and tomato pancake.
Morning snack: 2 slices of cheese + 2 slices of ham.
Lunch/Dinner: 250 grams of meat in tomato sauce with cucumber, lettuce and eggplant or 2 slices of salmon in mushroom sauce + tomato, zucchini and Swiss chard salad.
Afternoon snack: 1 low-fat yogurt + 1 tablespoon of Goji berries + 2 slices of cheese or 1 boiled egg..
This phase can last up to 1 week, and 0,5 to 0,9 pounds are lost.
3rd step of the Dukan diet – Consolidation Phase
In the third step of the Dukan diet, in addition to meats and vegetables, you may also eat 2 servings of fruit a day, 2 slices of whole wheat bread and one 40 grams serving of any kind of cheese.
In this step, you can also eat a serving of carbs twice a week, for example, brown rice, brown noodles or beans, and you are allowed to eat two free full meals.
You can eat any allowed food in this diet, combined with a glass of wine or even beer. If you lost all the weight you needed to, in this step you will be ready.
This phase is totally calculated according to the weight that was lost.
Some other good news is that gala meals are mandatory once a week until the middle of consolidation phase and, two weeks later, you will be able to eat whatever you want, but without repeating the same meals.
These additional foods make up to Thursdays, when you can only eat proteins and must be followed strictly.
The menu below isn’t valid for Thursdays, when you can only eat protein, including whole wheat bread and whole grain pasta, vegetables and fruits, besides 2 tablespoons of oat bran a day, a serving that must be taken into consideration during this phase.
Allowed foods:
- Protein
- Greens
- Vegetables
- 2 fruits a day
- Brown bread
- Brown rice
- Brown pasta
- Beans
- Cheese.
Prohibited foods:
- White rice
- White pasta
- All other sources of carbohydrates.
Prohibited fruits:
- Banana
- Grape
- Cherry.
This phase should last 10 days for each 0,45 pounds that the person wants to lose. Example: if the person wants to lose exactly 4,5 pounds, they will need to stick to this phase for 100 days.
Example of a menu for the consolidation phase
In this consolidation phase, food consumption is more liberated, allowing the person to eat whole grain bread daily. In this case, the menu consists of:
Breakfast: 1 glass of skimmed milk or skimmed yogurt + 1,5 tablespoon of oat bran + 1 slice of whole wheat bread with cheese, tomato and lettuce.
Morning snack: 1 apple + 1 slice of cheese and ham.
Lunch/Dinner: 130 grams of turkey breast in tomato sauce + brown rice + raw vegetables salad or 1 can of tuna with whole pasta in pesto sauce + raw vegetables salad + 1 orange.
Afternoon snack: 1 low-fat plain yogurt + 1 tablespoon of Goji berries + 1 slice of whole wheat bread with cheese.
4th step – stabilization phase
The recommendations for the 4th phase of the Dukan diet are: once a week, stick to the first week’s protein diet.
Practice physical exercise twice a day, use stairs instead of elevators and ingest 3 tablespoons of oat bran a day.
Allowed foods: All kinds of foods are allowed, but you should give preference to whole products and it is mandatory to eat 3 servings of fruit per day.
Prohibited foods: Nothing is prohibited and you are able to have a normal diet.
In this diet, it’s mandatory to drink at least two liters of water per day, to ensure proper intestinal functioning and the elimination of toxins.
Other allowed liquids are tea, coffee without sugar or sweetener and zero soda, that should be consumed in moderation.
Example of a menu for the stabilization phase para a fase de estabilização
In the stabilization phase, you can have a normal diet. For example:
Breakfast: 1 glass of skim milk or skimmed yogurt + 1,5 tablespoon of oat bran + 2 slices of wholemeal bread with minas light cheese..
Morning snack: 1 pear + 4 water and salt crackers or 3 nuts + 1 slice of watermelon.
Lunch/Dinner: 120 grams of meat + 4 tablespoon of oat bran + 4 whole toast with ricotta.
It’s extremely important to remember that the Dukan diet is restrictive and might cause discomfort, dizziness and weakness, due to not taking into consideration food reeducation, which makes it easier to gain weight after this diet. .
So it’s recommended to seek for professional help.
Grocery lists
The foods allowed on the attack and cruising phases aren’t enough, so a grocery list should be added.
Fruits and vegetables:
- Fresh fruits, dried fruits and oilseeds.
- Cassava or potato
- Cheese with up to 40% fat, preferably cereals and pasta;
- Brown rice
- Chickpea or corn
- Lentils or beans
- Whole pasta
It’s recommended that, after ending each phase, from the moment that you aren’t prohibited to eat some foods, you may have a normal diet.
Once a week you should stick to the phase 1 menu, consisting only of proteins, for the rest of your life. This is the secret not to gain weight.
Another recommendation is to eat 3 tablespoons of wheat bran and oat bran every day.
Those are foods that provide a considerable amount of soluble and necessary fibers to satisfy hunger, keeping a healthy intestine, which is also a strategic way to keep the balance between you and the scale.
Reasons why help you lose weight
It drastically reduces you weight in a fast way, due to consisting of carbs, which lead to weight loss, that’s why removing carbs becomes the body’s main source of energy.
The organism will use glycogen, storing some energy that is found in the muscle and in the liver.
