The banana diet or more exactly the morning banana diet has distant origins since it is a diet who comes from Japan. promises of lose 3 or 4 kilos in just one week. It was developed by Sumiko Watanabe, a pharmacist, and her husband, Hitoshi Watanabe, an expert in traditional Chinese medicine. The couple proposed the diet in a popular Rising Sun forum. Indeed, this diet has been talked about since 2008 when his wife Sumiko Watanabe managed to make her husband lose 16 kilos, it would seem thanks to banana diet. Over the years it has enjoyed consistent popularity on the web, especially in 2016 it was the most searched diet by users on the internet. But before talking about the diet itself, let’s highlight some nutritional characteristics of this fruit.
Banana: nutritional properties
Banana compared to other fruits contains a good amount of carbohydrates and sugars, especially 100 grams contains 23 grams of carbohydrates and 12 grams of sugars. To balance this significant presence of carbohydrates and sugars, it is the fiber content that helps us feel full sooner and promotes bowel activity. Regarding the caloric aspect, on average a banana brings us about 100 calories. Bananas contain a good amount of tryptophan, an amino acid that stimulates the production of serotonin in the brain, a hormone that gives us a feeling of well-being, improves mood and is also useful against insomnia. Another important element for our psycho-physical well-being contained in this fruit is potassium, a fundamental trace element for the muscles, it is no coincidence that the foods containing it cannot be missing in the diet. sportsmen.
Banana diet: rules
Compared to others weight loss diets it’s freer to follow as it doesn’t include calorie counting, but it does suggest stopping eating before you feel full. It is also advisable to drink two liters of water a day at room temperature, to fall asleep early in the evening, in any case no later than midnight. As a general rule, you should eat bananas in the morning, while you are free to choose the other meals of the day. In short, this is a diet suitable for those who are not obsessed with losing weight that provides an easy-to-follow diet plan to lose 4-5 pounds. Physical activity is recommended but not mandatory.
Banana diet: menu
It starts with the banana for breakfast, the important thing is that it is fresh, never frozen or unripe or in the form of ice cream or juice, there is no quantity limit, just do not achieve complete satiety. To complete the breakfast, we can add low-fat yogurt or ricotta or wholegrain crackers to the banana.
Lunch and dinner
There is no list of recommended foods because the choice is free. The banana diet born in Japan, to make it appetizing it should also be said in the West, in addition to rice and raw fish typical Japanese foods, it can be accompanied by foods that are part of our food tradition: meat, legumes, yogurt, cheeses and vegetables. As far as pasta and bread are concerned, the complete one is to be preferred.
The the price it must be consumed before 8 p.m. After dinner, if we are still hungry, we can eat fresh fruit, but this should not become a habit.
Only one snack is allowed in the afternoon, approximately the hour is at 3 o’clock. This is the only occasion where sweets are allowed, but the green light is only for wholemeal dry biscuits and not for packaged goods, ice cream, snacks and the like.
Banana diet: sample menu
breakfast: one or more bananas (4 if small) plus a glass of skimmed milk or water
to taste: a cup plus a banana
lunch: whole pasta 80 grams plus 150 grams of chicken accompanied by vegetables of your choice
the price: 200 grams of baked or steamed fish plus vegetables and 50 grams of wholemeal bread
For the banana diet it is also essential to seek the advice of an expert, in this case a nutritionist or a dietitian.