Let's consider the most popular and delicious dietary dishes made from pumpkin for weight loss and the benefits of this vegetable for the human body.
What can you eat that is so tasty and healthy and at the same time not gain extra pounds? Pumpkin would be a great option!
Benefits of pumpkin for weight loss
The composition of pumpkin simply surprises with its variety and amount of substances beneficial to the body. This includes iron, potassium, magnesium, calcium, pectin, organic acids, poly- and monosaccharides, and resinous substances. The composition contains vitamins K, B, PP, as well as:
- vitamin D. Allows you to activate metabolic processes and strengthen bone tissue;
- vitamin C. Helps improve immunity;
- vitamin A. Its content in pumpkin is 5 times higher than in carrots;
- vitamin E. Prevents cell aging;
- Vitamin T. Is a rare vitamin. Allows you to speed up metabolism, prevents fat deposition, and is useful for iron deficiency anemia.
Pumpkin consists of 95% water, a large amount of fiber is found in the seeds of the plant. Seeds improve the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract and are a real source of vitamins, oils, proteins and saturated acids Omega-3 and Omega-6.
Pumpkin oil contains almost the entire list of beneficial vitamins and minerals, actively affects intestinal function, normalizes blood flow, has a positive effect on internal organs, promoting weight loss.
Pumpkin contains a large amount of zinc, which allows the culture to be used for liver diseases and helps with problems with the production and drainage of bile.
Pumpkin has antisclerotic, antiulcer, antiparasitic, antioxidant, and hepaprotective effects. The vegetable is successfully used for hepatitis, gastritis, pathologies of the duodenum, stomach, atherosclerosis, psoriasis, eczema, stomatitis, and for problems with women's health.
Pumpkin is used for weight loss, since it has a calorie content of 22 kcal in its raw form, and 25 kcal after heat treatment. In 100 g of pumpkin pulp the percentage of fat is very small, however, pumpkin contains a significant percentage of proteins and carbohydrates necessary to maintain a stable state of the body and to saturate.
Pumpkin seeds and pulp are used to prepare dishes (soups, cereals, salads and desserts). The fiber in the seeds helps cleanse the intestines and stomach, quickly remove accumulated fluid, resulting in extra pounds disappearing day after day.
Why do pumpkins make you lose weight?
Pumpkin pulp contains vitamins E, A, C, which help speed up metabolism. But the most valuable element in this culture for weight loss is carnitine. It provokes active breakdown of fats and significantly increases the body's endurance. That is why with the help of pumpkin you can quickly lose weight without leaving you hungry. Athletes and fitness enthusiasts especially love carnitine.
In addition, pumpkin has the following benefits:
- 92% consists of water;
- Contains 7.7 g of carbohydrates and 1.3 g of vegetable protein per 100 g of product;
- There are only 22 kcal per 100 g of pumpkin;
- Pumpkin is rich in calcium, potassium, iron, zinc, magnesium, pectin, and vitamins (including vitamin T).
Important: experienced nutritionists assure that with a two-week pumpkin diet you can lose up to 6 kg of weight. If you add active physical activity to proper nutrition, the result will be even more noticeable.
Pumpkin has the following positive effects on the body:
- Reduces the level of harmful cholesterol in the blood;
- Cleanses the liver of toxins;
- Speeds up metabolism;
- Stimulates a mild diuretic effect, thereby removing excess fluid;
- Normalizes stool.
Fasting day on pumpkin
It is recommended to lose weight using pumpkin in different ways. It is popular to hold a fasting day once every 10 days (or once a week). After such a day, the weight often decreases by 1 or 2 kg. If you unload the body for a longer period of time (10 days), you can get rid of 5 kg of excess weight. You can organize a wellness procedure according to one of the options proposed below.
Classical
During the day, you need to eat up to 2 kg of pumpkin in any form (raw, boiled, stewed, baked) at regular intervals, dividing the portion into 6 meals.
Raw reception
During the day you need to eat 500 g of raw vegetables and 1 kg of heat-treated vegetables.
Baked pumpkin
2 kg of pumpkin pulp is divided into small slices and baked without sugar or other seasonings. Use in small portions throughout the day. Oven-baked pumpkin retains the greatest amount of nutrients.
Pumpkin with cottage cheese
A puree (600 g) is prepared from low-fat cottage cheese and pumpkin and eaten throughout the day, after dividing the portion into 4 parts, 150 g each. Between meals, hunger can be satisfied with a glass of green tea or rosehip decoction.
Pumpkin with apples
The diet should consist of 1 kg of pumpkin and 500 g of apples.
The consumption of products must be alternated; combinations are not allowed.
The fasting day should be carried out in compliance with certain rules:
- The day before unloading the body, it is not recommended to eat heavy food for dinner. The last intake can be replaced with a glass of yogurt or kefir.
- It is necessary to exclude any snacks.
- During the fasting day, you need to use 2 liters of water, exclude tea, coffee, and cocoa from the diet.
- After leaving the diet, the next day it is better to limit yourself to low-calorie dishes.
pumpkin juice
During fasting days, it is recommended to use pumpkin juice, which is prepared from the pulp of the vegetable, is not subjected to heat treatment and retains all the beneficial substances and vitamins. Pumpkin juice is well absorbed by the body, has a pleasant taste and beautiful color, helps burn calories, and gives a feeling of fullness for a long time. It is better to make juice from small pumpkins with a bright orange color, which are sweeter than other varieties.
The juice is prepared from grated pulp or using a juicer. Freshly squeezed juice is useful if you get more of a drink that will need to be taken later; before drinking, you need to shake the drink if it is in a container, or mix it with a spoon if the juice is in a glass. Juice cannot replace clean water; while drinking pumpkin juice, you should also drink water, which will allow you to activate the removal of toxins and lose weight.
Raw pumpkin
You can make salads and juices from raw pumpkin; the vegetable in this form can be successfully combined with apples, carrots, and celery. Eating raw pumpkin is a very effective option for weight loss.
Pumpkin seeds on a diet
Pumpkin seeds are a heavy product, which is why they are not digested. After them, you don’t feel like eating for a long time, which allows you to take less food and reduce the intake of calories in the body. The fiber contained in pumpkin seeds improves intestinal function, promoting weight loss. Pumpkin seeds have a low glycemic index, which allows you to increase blood sugar levels and replace sweets and candies during the diet. Pumpkin grains are considered natural fat burners; calories are burned as a result of increased metabolism under their influence. Due to the significant amount of protein in their composition, pumpkin seeds help maintain muscle mass during the diet.
Pumpkin seeds are high in calories; 100 g contains 540 kcal. 1 tablespoon of pumpkin seeds contains about 60 kcal. Therefore, during the diet it is recommended to consume no more than 1 - 2 tablespoons. The seeds can be added to raw and boiled pumpkin dishes.
Positive and negative impact
Benefits:
- digestion (pumpkin pulp is very easily digestible, due to which weight stabilizes and does not gain again);
- metabolism (acceleration of metabolism);
- for obesity (a huge amount of fiber, which cleanses the stomach and intestines, eliminating toxins);
- for constipation (raw pumpkin pulp is an excellent laxative);
- diuretic effect (removal of excess fluid).
Harms:
- if low acidity of gastric juice is diagnosed (you can get gastritis);
- tooth enamel (seeds only);
- serious alkalization of the body.
Pumpkin diet
During the period of using the pumpkin diet, certain rules must be observed, without which it is impossible to achieve the desired result and lose weight:
- The duration of the diet should be no more than 12 days;
- During the diet, pumpkin can be consumed in any form;
- You can combine pumpkin dishes with apples, citrus fruits, celery, carrots, and spinach. For breakfast, you can add oatmeal to pumpkin dishes;
- The inclusion of flour products and meat in the diet is not allowed;
- You need to take food 4 times a day, dinner should be organized no later than 18 hours;
- The use of salt and sugar should be limited;
- You should only drink green tea with honey and lemon. Once a day you can drink a glass of low-fat kefir.
The method is suitable for almost everyone who wants to use it. The pumpkin diet is not allowed for pregnant women, during lactation, and for adolescents. This diet can be carried out no more than once every 3 months. After leaving the diet, it is advised to introduce various vegetable dishes into your diet, since this will help maintain your weight loss results for a long time.
Who is prohibited
Even such a seemingly harmless vegetable as pumpkin can be contraindicated. It should not be consumed without permission if you have diagnosed diseases of the digestive system. If you have problems with the gastrointestinal tract, you should consult your doctor. Maybe you will be lucky and he will allow you to eat pumpkin.
The presence of this orange vegetable in the diet will have to be minimized during pregnancy and breastfeeding. This is done to avoid allergic reactions in the child. In addition, extreme caution should be given to children under 1 year of age and to elderly people.
Sample pumpkin diet menu for four days
The most popular diet based on the use of pumpkin is the 4-day diet. This diet involves limited consumption of other foods, for example, rice, apples, and vegetables. The diet helps you lose weight quickly and through minimal portions throughout the day. If for some reason it is impossible to follow a strict diet, it can be made easier by adding an egg for breakfast, an unsweetened fruit or a glass of fermented milk product (yogurt or kefir) for an afternoon snack.
A sample menu for 4 days is as follows.
Lunch should always consist of 300 g of pumpkin soup - puree.
First day
Breakfast – 250 g of oatmeal and pumpkin porridge, salad with pumpkin and fruit;
Dinner – 200 g baked pumpkin, 1 apple.
Second day
In the morning - 250 g of brown rice and pumpkin porridge;
Dinner – 200 g of pumpkin salad with vegetables.
The third day
Breakfast – 250 g of pumpkin stew with the addition of vegetables;
In the evening – 200 g of baked pumpkin.
Fourth day
In the morning – 250 g of fruit and pumpkin smoothie;
Dinner - 200 g pumpkin cutlets.
Pumpkin recipes for weight loss
Dietary pumpkin dishes are good for health and help you lose weight as part of your diet. All dishes are low-calorie and nutritious. When cooking, it is important to adhere to the basic set of products and cooking plan.
Soup
A cream soup is prepared from pumpkin, which contains 1 kg of vegetable pulp, 0.5 kg of carrots, 1 zucchini, 4 cloves of garlic, 2 hot peppers, allspice, 50 ml of olive oil and 5 pieces of ginger. The carrots are peeled, cut into rings, placed in a saucepan and filled with water, placed on low heat and left to simmer for 15 minutes, covering with a lid. Chopped vegetables, garlic and ginger are fried in a frying pan. Afterwards, the contents of the frying pan are added to the pan, boiled until tender, salted and the broth is drained. The resulting mass is whipped in a blender. Add broth to taste until the desired consistency is achieved.
Porridge
Prepare pumpkin porridge using 500 g of vegetable pulp, 50 g of butter, 100 g of millet, 100 g of brown rice, 1.5 liters of low-fat milk, salt and sugar to taste.
The pulp is cut into small cubes, placed in a slow cooker, water and butter are added. Cook in the “Stew” mode for 30 minutes. After the time has elapsed, knead the pulp until smooth and add cereal and salt. Pour in milk and set on the appropriate mode for 1.5 hours.
Salad
The salad is made from raw pumpkin. In this form, the vegetable retains a pleasant sweetish taste and specific aroma. Salads can be enriched with various vegetables, nuts, fruits, and pumpkin seeds. You can season pumpkin salad with lemon juice, kefir, honey, green apples, carrots, and vegetable oils.
The vegetable pulp is first chopped into slices, then grated on a medium grater, the selected ingredients are added, and seasoned. Salad can be consumed in unlimited quantities for weight loss and cleansing the body.
The use of pumpkin is recommended by nutritionists. During the pumpkin diet, you need to eat right and exercise, which will allow you to achieve the desired result without harm to the body.
