We’ve seen numerous fad diets that target consuming one particular meals — the cookie food plan, the cabbage soup food plan, the grapefruit food plan. All of them declare that will help you lose a major quantity of weight in a short time, and the cucumber food plan is not any completely different.
The cucumber food plan is a quick-fix weight-loss food plan that’s mentioned to assist individuals shed kilos rapidly by consuming — you guessed it — an entire lot of cucumbers. However does it work?
Listed below are the foundations, the advantages, and the downsides of the cucumber food plan.
What Is the Cucumber Food regimen?
Cucumbers are naturally low in energy — an entire cucumber has simply 45 energy — so it’s no shock they’d find yourself on the middle of a fad food plan.
Whereas there are completely different variations of the cucumber food plan, there’s one widespread thread: You eat quite a lot of cucumbers. We’re speaking cucumber shakes, salads, sticks, and slices.
What Are the Guidelines of the Cucumber Food regimen?
The particular guidelines of the cucumber food plan can differ relying on which supply you reference. Whereas there’s a ebook aptly titled The Cucumber Food regimen: The Energy of Aware Consuming, you’ll find a number of variations of the food plan on-line.
The principle guideline of the food plan is that this: Eat cucumbers whenever you’re hungry, together with a handful of different “accredited” meals. As a result of cucumbers are so low in energy, the concept is that you simply’ll probably create a calorie deficit by noshing on largely cucumbers.
What Meals Can You Eat on the Cucumber Food regimen?
For sure, you may eat cucumbers. Most diets haven’t any limitation on the way you eat them and the way a lot you eat, though some stricter variations of the food plan do restrict the quantity of cucumber you may have.
A number of different meals are usually integrated, together with:
- lean proteins like fish, rooster, and eggs
- Greek yogurt
- cottage cheese
- olive oil
- brown rice
- low-calorie greens like spinach, celery, and tomatoes
There’s additionally one 10- to 14-day protocol that entails consuming as a lot cucumber salad as you need, together with:
- two boiled eggs or 150 grams of tuna with out oil or 150 grams of rooster breast
- two large boiled potatoes or three slices of whole-grain bread
- 500 grams of natural fruit
What Meals Can’t You Eat on the Cucumber Food regimen?
One advantage of the cucumber food plan: Other than whole-grain bread, which is permitted on some variations of the food plan, the food plan cuts out most processed meals together with chips, baked items, and sweetened drinks.
However in case you had been to observe the protocol talked about above, you’d additionally omit quite a lot of wholesome fare — like fruits and any non-approved veggies.
Can I Lose Weight With the Cucumber Food regimen?
Sure, however it can almost certainly be non permanent.
You possibly can shed pounds on any model of the cucumber food plan, as a result of there merely aren’t that many non-cucumber meals you’re allowed to eat — and meaning you’ll probably slash your day by day calorie consumption.
By filling up on largely cucumber at each meal, which has a excessive water content material, it might be powerful to eat sufficient of the opposite permitted meals.
“You’re placing a lot bulk into your digestive system that you simply’re not going to have quite a lot of room for the rest,” says Andrea N. Giancoli, MPH, RD.
However the cucumber food plan isn’t designed to be adopted for greater than two weeks — so it’s not a sustainable food plan for long-term weight reduction. Any weight you lose on the cucumber food plan will probably be gained again when you return to consuming usually.
And there are many different, more healthy methods to eat cleaner with out slicing out so many meals teams.
The Downsides of the Cucumber Food regimen
You don’t want us to let you know that cucumbers are low in energy and might be part of a wholesome, balanced food plan.
“There’s no hurt in consuming cucumbers with each meal, so long as it’s a average quantity,” Giancoli says.
However there are a couple of downsides to creating cucumbers your major meals supply. Right here’s why it’s best to assume twice earlier than following the cucumber food plan:
1. It’s low in vitamins.
Should you eat largely cucumbers, you’ll miss out on quite a lot of essential micro and macronutrients. In comparison with different fruit and veggies, Giancoli says, “Cucumbers aren’t precisely swimming in nutritional vitamins and minerals.”
2. You gained’t get the range you want.
Consuming quite a lot of meals helps make sure you’re getting all of the vitamins you want.
“We’re alleged to be consuming all kinds of meals — a spread that offers us a steadiness of macronutrients, fiber, nutritional vitamins, and minerals and all types of different issues that our our bodies want,” Giancoli says.
3. It might gradual your metabolism.
Extreme calorie restriction can truly get in the way in which of your weight-loss objectives.
On the cucumber food plan, Giancoli says, “It’s going to be very laborious to achieve your calorie wants — and when you go under your basal metabolic price with energy, you’re not giving your physique the energy it wants simply to remain alive at relaxation.”
Which means your metabolism will probably decelerate to preserve power.
What’s extra, you in all probability gained’t have the power to hit the health club, and figuring out repeatedly goes hand in hand with wholesome weight reduction you may preserve.
4. You’ll probably acquire the burden again.
As is the case with loads of different very low-calorie fad diets, you’re in all probability going to place any misplaced weight proper again on.
With extended calorie restriction, the human physique can go into hunger mode: “Your physique’s like, ‘You’re not giving me what I would like; I have to do one thing about that and use much less power and burn fewer energy,’” Giancoli says.
When you go off a restrictive food plan, analysis exhibits that physique weight usually returns to and even exceeds what it was initially.
The Remaining Verdict
So does the cucumber food plan work? Within the brief time period, perhaps — nevertheless it’s not the healthiest method to weight reduction, and it’s undoubtedly not sensible or sustainable.
However you may nonetheless get pleasure from cucumbers as a part of your wholesome consuming plan — like in a crudités platter or a Greek salad.