To maintain good physical shape, correct weight, or cleanse the body, high-calorie foods are eliminated from the diet: fatty, fried, flour-based, sweet foods, and fast food. It might seem that walnuts should be included in this list due to their nutritional value. Nevertheless, some dietary programs include walnuts in their menus. Moderate consumption of the kernels will benefit health without harming your figure; the key is to ensure a negative energy balance in the body.
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Can You Eat Walnuts for Weight Loss
It's hard to imagine walnuts as a main component of a diet, as they are nutritious, high in calories, and take a long time to digest. But it is precisely these properties that make them helpful during a diet.
Walnuts for weight loss, in moderation, are even beneficial. They serve as an additional source of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, and healthy fats, which are important for maintaining vital processes and well-being. Weight loss with nuts is not accompanied by hunger pangs, as they provide quick and long-lasting satiety and fill the body with energy.
Caloric Content and Useful Properties for Weight Loss
Of all types of nuts, walnuts are the most caloric — 640 kcal per 100 g. The content of proteins, fats, and carbohydrates is as follows: 15.23 g, 65.21 g, and 7.01 g respectively. But it is the walnut kernels that have the richest set of beneficial substances, including:
- vitamins A, C, E, K, PP, beta-carotene, B vitamins (B1, B2, B3, B4, B5, B6, B9);
- macroelements: potassium, calcium, magnesium, sodium, sulfur, phosphorus;
- microelements: iron, manganese, copper, selenium, zinc;
- sterols;
- omega-3 and omega-6;
- fatty acids: arachidic, stearic, linoleic, palmitic, gadoleic.
Despite their high caloric content, the product's glycemic index is low — 15 units. This means that glucose enters the bloodstream gradually, the pancreas is not overloaded, energy is expended evenly, which prevents the accumulation of fat deposits.
Walnuts are valued for weight loss due to their high omega-3 content. This polyunsaturated fatty acid activates metabolism, accelerates the process of fat breakdown, and reduces the content of bad cholesterol in the blood.
The benefits of omega-3 for the body are not limited to this. Its functions are diverse:
- normalizes the cardiovascular system;
- improves vascular tone;
- stimulates the functions of the immune system;
- stabilizes blood pressure;
- accelerates the regeneration of tissues and mucous membranes;
- slows down the aging process;
- inhibits inflammation;
- maintains healthy skin condition.
The kernels saturate the body with protein, which carries out metabolic processes, binds toxins and removes them from the body, strengthens the immune system, and serves as a source of energy.
The kernels contain dietary fiber. They gently cleanse the intestines, stimulate their work, reduce the absorption of harmful substances, regulate metabolism, and normalize blood glucose levels.
For reference. Dietary fibers are not digested and, swelling under the action of gastric juice, occupy free space, thereby providing a long-lasting feeling of fullness and avoiding additional snacks.
Polyphenols in walnuts have diuretic and choleretic properties, thereby reducing the content of excess fluid in the body and relieving edema. Vitamins C and E, responsible for endurance and performance, stimulate motor activity, leading to additional calorie burning. B vitamins have a beneficial effect on the nervous system, reduce the consequences of stress, helping to endure the diet more easily, and normalize night sleep.
Weight loss is facilitated by organic acids in the walnut kernels. They regulate lipid metabolism, improve digestion, maintain normal microflora in the intestines, restore the balance of microorganisms, and prevent the development of dysbiosis, which is important for weight loss. It is the disruption of the intestinal microflora that contributes to many diseases of the digestive organs and obesity.
Walnut Diet
There are several ways to lose weight with walnuts: a fasting day, a strict mono-diet, and a balanced one with the addition of other food products.
One-Day Fasting Day
The daily diet consists of 150-200 g of any nuts, including walnuts, and an abundant drinking regime (at least 2 liters of water). The kernels are consumed fresh, roasted without adding salt, sugar, or spices. After a fasting day, it is important to return to the usual diet gradually, without overeating. This version of the diet allows you to control weight and get back in shape after a period of overeating.
On average, you can get rid of 1-1.5 kg per day. Weight loss occurs mainly due to the removal of excess fluid. Due to the low caloric content, nutritionists recommend doing such a cleanse no more than once every 2-3 weeks.
Strict Mono-Diet
The basis of the diet is walnuts and plenty of fluids. This can be green tea without sugar, herbal decoctions, at least 2 liters of still mineral water. As a rule, the diet lasts no more than 2-3 days. During this time, you can lose 2-3 kg, cleanse the intestines, and change eating habits.
According to nutritionists, this is not the safest option for body correction for health. The fact is that the deficiency of micro- and macronutrients adversely affects overall health. A more optimal choice is a one-day fasting day once a month.
Gentle Diet
It takes 3, 5, or 10 days. Daily, you can consume 50 g of walnuts and other products from the list of permitted ones (more on that later).
Depending on the strict adherence to the plan of the chosen diet, metabolism, and duration, you can lose 3-7 kg; with the addition of physical activity — 8-10 kg. The drinking regime is also important — 2 liters or more of fluid per day.
Basic Rules for Losing Weight with Walnuts
For safe weight loss, it is important to have all components in the diet — proteins, fats, carbohydrates, vitamins, minerals — and their quantitative ratio. Thus, the basis of the fat component should be fats of plant origin, the source of which is walnuts. Due to their high caloric content, they are consumed in limited quantities and combined with low-calorie foods.
Allowed products:
- dried fruits: prunes, dried apricots, figs, dried apples, dates, raisins;
- nuts: pistachios, pine nuts, cashews, almonds, hazelnuts, pecans, Brazil nuts, hazelnuts;
- low-fat dairy and fermented milk products: sugar-free yogurt without additives, kefir, cottage cheese, cheeses;
- lean cereals;
- fresh vegetables and fruits (except bananas and grapes);
- garden greens;
- lean meats, poultry, and fish;
- freshly prepared fruit and vegetable juices.
Completely or partially restricted products:
- smoked meats;
- animal and cooking fats;
- semi-finished products;
- spices, high-calorie sauces, mayonnaise;
- fatty meat and poultry, lard, offal;
- pastries, sugar, jam, chocolate;
- high-fat dairy products;
- white flour and pasta made from white wheat varieties;
- alcohol, beer;
- sweet carbonated drinks, store-bought juices.
For the diet, it is important to use only high-quality nuts. When buying at the market, in a store, or supermarket, pay attention to their appearance. The shell of proper quality has a uniform light brown color, without signs of damage, stains, or foreign odors. The edible kernel is firm, elastic, ranging from light yellow to brown.
Nutritionists recommend buying nuts fresh, not roasted, and certainly not salted, as salt retains fluid in the body, provoking edema. If you really want to, you can roast them at home in a dry frying pan for about five minutes without salt and spices.
Important! Fresh kernels are the most beneficial for health and weight loss, as the content of valuable substances decreases during heat treatment, and the addition of salt or sugar can cause weight gain.
A mandatory condition of the diet is sufficient fluid intake, at least 2 liters per day. In addition to drinking water, you can have unsweetened green tea, herbal and rosehip decoctions, and still mineral water.
Meals are fractional — 4-6 times a day in small portions. To increase the effectiveness of weight loss, it is advisable to prepare the body. 4-6 days before starting the diet, exclude or limit alcohol, smoked meats, fried and fatty foods, bakery and confectionery products, pickles, oils, and fats.
Equally important is the correct exit from the diet. To prevent the lost kilograms from returning, it is necessary to adhere to the general recommendations:
- Introduce previously prohibited foods gradually, in small portions and one per day.
- If possible, limit fried dishes, fatty foods, pastries, smoked meats, white bread, confectionery, and baked goods, sweet carbonated drinks, and alcohol in the diet.
- Choose gentle methods of heat treatment of products — do not fry.
- When preparing any dish, try to make it less caloric. For example, vegetables, fish, meat, and poultry can be baked, boiled, or steamed instead of fried in vegetable oil.
- Constantly monitor weight.
- Keep a food diary and do not exceed the allowable energy value of the daily diet (more on that below).
- Consume from 1.5 to 3 liters of water per day.
The duration of the exit from the nut diet should correspond to at least the duration of the chosen dietary regimen. To avoid undesirable effects during weight loss associated with a deficiency of micro- and macronutrients, nutritionists recommend additionally taking multivitamins.
Diet and Rules of Consumption
Weight loss is achieved through a negative energy balance. If more energy is expended than is supplied with food, the body begins to spend fat reserves, and body weight decreases. The average caloric content of the daily diet for women for weight loss is 1200-1400 kcal, for men — 1600-1800 kcal. Knowing your calorie norm and the energy value of food products, you can create a menu for the day.
The menu depends on gastronomic preferences, financial capabilities, and the duration of the regimen. When following a diet for 1-5 days, meat can be replaced with a handful of nuts. If you intend to follow the dietary regimen for a longer time, it is advisable to include lean meat, poultry, and fish in the diet. Nuts for weight loss are consumed as an independent dish for breakfast or lunch, as a snack, or added to fruit and vegetable salads, meat and fish dishes.
Sample Menu for Three Days
First day:
- Breakfast: salad of baked pumpkin, fresh carrots, chopped walnuts with the addition of lemon juice.
- Lunch: a portion of vegetable soup, a handful of nuts.
- Dinner: low-fat fish steamed, unsweetened green tea.
Second day:
- Breakfast: a handful of nuts, kefir, unsweetened cracker.
- Lunch: vegetarian soup, vegetable salad of fresh tomato and cucumber.
- Dinner: baked apples with cottage cheese, rosehip decoction.
Third day:
- Breakfast: 50 g of nuts, 2 boiled eggs, unsweetened green tea.
- Lunch: boiled beef with baked vegetables, freshly prepared orange juice.
- Dinner: a portion of steamed buckwheat, herbal decoction.
The nut diet can be practiced by absolutely healthy people in the absence of pathologies, especially from the gastrointestinal tract, and allergies to this product. It is not recommended to follow a strict mono-diet for more than three days, as unbalanced nutrition and nutrient deficiency can worsen overall well-being and provoke an exacerbation of chronic diseases.
Attention! Weight loss on walnuts is contraindicated for pregnant and breastfeeding women, children and adolescents, and elderly people.
Conclusion
Despite their high caloric content, walnuts in moderation are effective during a diet. They promote intestinal cleansing, stimulate metabolism, and accelerate the process of fat breakdown, which is necessary for weight loss.
When following a diet, it is not necessary to completely refuse food. There is a variety of regimens, so everyone can choose the optimal option for themselves in terms of duration and diet, taking into account the desired results. The main thing is to correctly count calories and not exceed the daily energy value of the diet — 1200 kcal for women and 1600 kcal for men.