The carbohydrate diet is based on the book ” Lose weight with carbohydrates ” or Carbs Lovers Diet (diet for those who love carbohydrates).

After seasons in which they screamed in our ears that to lose weight we had to say enough to carbohydrates, here is the revenge of the rigatoni, the curse of the muffin .

According to the authors of the book, Ellen Kunes and Frances Largeman-Rot, you can lose up to one pound per week on average by eating pasta, bread and pizza. But be warned: the carbohydrate diet includes friendly carbohydrates and carbohydrates to be kept away. 

In fact, it seems that the principle for losing weight lies in resistant starch , a substance present in some carbohydrates, which would resist the digestive juices and produce enzymes useful for metabolism, as well as keeping us satiated. Furthermore, said starch would reduce caloric absorption.
This is all correct.
Resistant starch is a type of fiber which by saccharolytic fermentation produces short-chain fatty acids which have a proven effect on:
– the improvement of metabolism, because they stimulate the production of ATP
– the reduction of cardiovascular risk
– the reduced absorption of calories extra
– a lower risk of colon cancer

Let’s go back to the carbohydrate diet. By eating these foods with resistant starch , you will lose weight over the long term without regaining it.  The secret, according to the authors of the book, is to add at least one carbohydrate-based food or other foods that contain resistant starch to each meal , roughly a quarter of the plate. The rest are lean proteins (, fruit or vegetables, and a small percentage of good fats. In this way you will lose at least one kilo per week , with an average of 4/6 meals a day and the advice to drink at least one liter and half of water or two to avoid fiber constipation.

Let’s look at an example of a carbohydrate diet with a scheme that helps you understand, but first a list of foods that contain resistant starch . 

DIET OF CARBOHYDRATES: FRIENDLY FOODS
– green plantains and unripe bananas
– boiled potatoes and then cooled in the fridge (then heated)
– white rice or basmati to which we added a teaspoon of coconut oil or butter during cooking
– cooked rice and pasta al dente and cooled in the fridge (then reheated)
– konjac shirataki
– beans and other legumes such as lentils and peas (from boiled)
– oat flakes (from raw)
– bread frozen and then heated or thawed

DIET OF CARBOHYDRATES: THE DIETARY SCHEME
Rule of the dietary dish: for breakfast, lunch and dinner you eat a single dish that contains one quarter (by eye) of these carbohydrates, one fourth lean proteins (egg whites, chicken, turkey, veal defatted, bresaola, tofu, tempeh, seitan, lean fish, crustaceans, molluscs, skimmed dairy products such as skimmed Greek yogurt, skimmed milk flakes, skyr, low-fat quark).
The other half of the dish should be a quarter of fruit and a quarter of a vegetable or half of a vegetable.
Fat is a teaspoon or two of oil or butter per meal.

SCHEME:

BREAKFAST: pancakes with a not very ripe banana (green), a grated carrot or a portion of boiled pumpkin and 150 grams of egg whites, plus stevia, cooked in a teaspoon of butter + 100 grams of prunes or other slightly sour fruit (but not too sugary) + coffee or tea. Or:

– a previously frozen 50 gram wholemeal sandwich with 40 grams of avocado and a teaspoon of honey, 200 ml of skimmed milk with coffee and stevia, a 100 gram kiwi. Or:

– 150 grams of skimmed Greek yogurt with 3 tablespoons of raw oat flakes + cooked apple or a 100 gram cooked pear,
a carrot and cucumber juice with ginger, coffee or tea, 3 almonds.

LUNCH: 60 grams of pasta or rice as per instructions, 200 grams of vegetables of your choice, 100 grams of grilled tofu or chicken, 2 teaspoons of oil, a small 80 gram fruit, or:

40 grams of pasta as per instructions with 100 grams of boiled legumes, 200 grams of vegetables of your choice, a boiled egg, a teaspoon of oil, an 80 gram fruit, or:

200 grams of cooked potatoes as per instructions, in a salad with 150 grams of green beans and two teaspoons of oil, 60 grams of bresaola or a large box of natural tuna, one 80 gram fruit.

DINNER: a portion of konjac shirataki with 100 grams of tempeh or grilled seitan, 200 grams of mushrooms or bean sprouts, 2 teaspoons of oil, a 100 gram fruit. Or:

green plantain couscous (boil the plantain in doses of 100 grams, let it cool and then pass a few seconds in the blender until you get a couscous-like grain) with 100 grams of squid or other fish, 250 grams of grilled vegetables, a teaspoon of oil, a cube of dark chocolate. Or:

150 grams of boiled legumes, 200 grams of vegetables, 100 grams of shrimp, two teaspoons of oil, one mandarin.

Snacks : snacks do not have to follow the rule of resistant starch, the important thing is not to overdo it and keep below 100 calories.

Two snacks a day between:
a toast with a tablespoon of light ricotta and a teaspoon of honey
a jar of fruit yogurt of 125 grams lean
150 grams of fruit not too sugary of your choice
smoothie of 50 grams of fruit also sugary + 150 ml soy or skim milk
100 grams of skimmed Greek yogurt with a teaspoon of honey and cinnamon
5 almonds or 5 grams of extra dark chocolate plus 100 grams of peach, orange, pear or red fruits