The Dukan diet is latest of a long line of wonder diets that appear every year or two. In the past we have had the F Plan, The Beverly Hills, Cabbage, Atkins and many more diet plans that were going to make us all slimmer and fitter. The fact that so many of us are still over weight seems to question the long term effectiveness of some of these diets.
So how does the Dukan Diet score on the achievability scale? At first glance it has a lot going for it, having been developed by doctor and weight loss expert Pierre Dukan. The diet like its author originated in France where we are told over more than 1.5 million French woman swear by this diet. Amongst its keenest fans are Jennifer Lopez and Giusele Bundchen.
Dr Dukan claims that his diet is intended for those who need to lose a considerable amount of weight. So if you need to lose less than 20 lbs the diet is probably not for you. However, with its promise of quick weight lose in the early stage and a steady lose as you pass through the four stages of the diet it has some appeal.
For the first week you are restricted to a protein only diet and in this respect it may sound very much like the Atkins diet but there are some very marked differences. When it says “protein only” that is exactly what it means, you cannot even look at a lettuce leaf or a broccoli floret. Also this is very much a time limited phase of the diet which you should only stay on for a week to 10 days.
As with the Atkin’s diet I think that such a high protein diet will give you some social problems such as flatulence and bad breath in the early stages. So your friends may stay away from you during this period. You may also feel tired and drained whilst you are on this phase of the diet.
The good news is that you should loose up to 10 lb in weight during this period. The Dukan Diet was devised for people with serious weight problems who needed to lose a considerable amount of weight. There are better ways if you are just looking to drop a dress size or get into an old pair of jeans.
If you do undertake this first phase of the diet you are advised to drink 3 litres of water a day. A typical days’ diet in what is called the Attack Phase would be eggs for breakfast, a piece of fish for lunch and a lean steak for dinner. As you will already be able to see the Dukan Diet is not going to be for everyone but if you want to lose a considerable amount of weight reasonably quickly then this could be what you are looking for.
