Hormones diet: lose up to 2 kilos a week! – GOOD SHAPE

Cortisol. Of course, you’ve heard of (horrors, say) this hormone. A serious – and unforgivable – accusation weighs on it: that it helps to gain weight. It’s fact. Under orders from the hypophysis, a gland located in the brain, this infamous substance conspires against lean forms.

Better known as the stress hormone, cortisol, produced in the adrenal glands, floods the bloodstream in situations of intense pressure – physical or psychological – and causes a serious metabolic mess. For starters, it turns glycogen, a type of carbohydrate stored in the liver, into sugar. This causes an accumulation of adipose tissue (yes, the famous fat) right there, on the waist line. And, to make matters worse, hunger sets in.

The mechanism, by the way, is already well known: under stress, detonated on those days when the agenda is full of commitments or when they crash into the car that has just left the dealership – just to name two situations that make you want to pull your hair out -, the Anxiety levels skyrocket. That’s because we are endowed with a gene that, in these hours of emotional turbulence, pumps a protein produced in the brain and makes us feel like eating exactly the prohibitive sweet and fatty foods.

The role of cortisol

In normal amounts, this hormone is no villain. On the contrary. In the face of imminent danger, it puts us in a state of alert both to face a situation that threatens us and to escape from it. It’s just that our brain doesn’t distinguish between real and imaginary threats. Thus, in stressful situations, cortisol rises considerably, in addition to reducing caloric burning to save energy in case of any danger. Elevated cortisol does us another huge disadvantage: “It helps to retain water and salt because tension makes the adrenal glands work twice as hard”, says dermatologist Amilton Macedo, who is also a specialist in orthomolecular practice. That is, you become so swollen that you can only zip up your jeans in a lying position. There’s more: when it’s high, cortisol lowers the level of serotonin, the neurotransmitter associated with pleasure and well-being.

Good Fighting Amino Acids

Lucky for us, there are amino acids (pieces of protein) such as phenylalanine and tryptophan, present in foods that are not necessarily fattening, which are precursors of noradrenaline and dopamine, another double that, alongside serotonin, is also involved in the state of happiness Natural.

Nutritionist Leandra V. Freire, from São Paulo, explains: “The first group, that of phenylalanine, includes fish, chicken, eggs, brown rice, beans and fruits in general. Foods full of tryptophan are lentils, soy, brown rice, potatoes, almonds, nuts, milk, skimmed yogurt, white cheese, avocados, bananas, vegetables, chickpeas -beak and honey.” Rich in both, is the double beans and brown rice, in addition to milk.

Amilton Macedo recalls another amino acid present in these foods: 5HTP, or 5 hydroxytryptophan. “This substance leaves the bloodstream and goes to the brain, acting on the central nervous system, just like tryptophan”, he says.

Together, the action of tryptophan, phenylalanine and 5HTP causes cortisol levels to drop dramatically. The result is more good mood and less hunger. “Without this trio, the organism goes into disequilibrium and desperately seeks the can of condensed milk, the chocolate cake, the lasagna… Amilton Macedo speaks.

See also: Fast metabolism diet: you can lose up to 10 kilos in 28 days!

According to the doctor, hunger triggered by high levels of cortisol begins in the late afternoon and continues into the night. “When the organism is out of balance, cortisol increases during the night and causes serotonin to fall. That’s why so many people wake up at dawn to attack the fridge ”, he explains.

In his clinical practice, Amilton Macedo observes that high levels of cortisol are responsible for the failure of so many weight loss attempts. “In high doses, this hormone makes the desire to eat carbohydrates much greater than the desire to lose weight”, he explains. The way out, therefore, is to balance cortisol with the help of foods rich in amino acids that raise the mood, stop anxiety and calm the appetite. The nutritionist Leandra V. Freire, who works in partnership with the doctor Macedo, created a diet that reduces the fattening hormone and helps to lose up to 2 kilos per week.

Lean body menu:

Breakfast

Option 1: 1 glass of detox juice (see recipe below) + 1 slice of light wholemeal bread with unsweetened fruit jelly

Option 2: 1 glass (250 ml) of soy milk smoothie with ½ papaya and 1 banana + 1 slice of light whole wheat bread with + 1 tbsp. (dessert) from cottage cheese

Option 3: 5 strawberries + 1 glass (200 ml) of light soy milk + 2 col. (soup) whole grain breakfast cereal without sugar

Option 4: 1 mashed banana with + 1 col. (dessert) of oatmeal and 1 col. (tea) honey (preferably organic)

Option 5: 1 glass (200 ml) of green juice (see recipe below) + 1 scrambled egg (2 whites and 1 yolk)

Morning snack

Option 1: 1 banana

Option 2: Oilseed mix (1 almond, 2 cashews, 1 walnut and 3 pistachios)

Option 3: Mix of dried and oilseed fruits (1 prune, 2 apricots, 2 cashews, 2 almonds and 4 raisins)

Option 4: 2 walnuts + 1 cup (250 ml) light yogurt

Option 5: 3 almonds + 2 walnuts

Lunch

Option 1: 1 plate of assorted leaf salad + 1 tbsp. (serve) cooked vegetables + 1 col. (serve) brown rice + 1 small bean shell + 1 large grilled beef fillet + 1 slice of melon

Option 2: 1 plate of dark green leaf salad (arugula, watercress, kale) + 2 tbsp. (soup) of lentil salad + 1 portion of grilled zucchini and eggplant + 1 roasted drumstick + 1 slice of pineapple

Option 3: Crispy iceberg lettuce salad, arugula, radish, cucumber, carrot and 1 boiled egg + 2 scoops of wholegrain pasta + 1 tbsp. (serve) minced meat + 1 cup (200 ml) unsweetened fruit juice

Option 4: Assorted leaf salad with tomato, 2 bunches of cauliflower and 2 bunches of steamed broccoli + 1 medium baked potato + 1 large grilled fish fillet + 1 glass (200 ml) of berry juice

Option 5: 1 plate of assorted leaf salad + 1 tbsp. (serve) cooked vegetable selection (broccoli, carrots and green beans) + 1 tbsp. (serve) brown rice + 1 small shell of beans + 2 fillets of meat on a roll

Afternoon snack

Option 1: 1 sandwich: 2 slices of light whole wheat bread, 2 slices of turkey breast, 2 slices of light white cheese, lettuce, tomato and arugula + 1 glass (200 ml) of cashew juice with sweetener

Option 2: 2 slices of Swedish bread + 2 slices of light white cheese, tomato slices, a drizzle of olive oil and basil leaves (optional) + 1 glass (200 ml) of lemonade with sweetener

Option 3: 1 cup (200 ml) energy juice (see recipe below)

Option 4: 3 wholemeal toast + 3 col. (dessert) mashed tofu with parsley and soy sauce drops + 1 glass (200 ml) of acerola juice with sweetener

Option 5: 1 sandwich: 2 slices of light whole wheat bread, 2 slices of lean ham, 1 slice of light cheese, lettuce and tomato + 1 glass (200 ml) of red fruit juice with sweetener

To have lunch

Option 1: 1 plate of assorted leaf salad + 1 tbsp. (serve) sauteed escarole + 1 fillet of tilapia or white hake grilled

Option 2: Lettuce and chard salad with tomato + 1 tbsp. (serve) steamed spinach + 1 salmon fillet with lemon sauce

Option 3: 1 plate of mixed leaf salad + 2 tbsp. (serve) cooked vegetable selection (broccoli, cauliflower, zucchini and peas) + 1 grilled chicken fillet

Option 4: Assorted leaf salad with 5 cherry tomatoes + 1 small heart of palm and cucumber + 2 col. (soup) of carrot puree + 3 col. (soup) of grilled chicken strips with braised okra

Option 5: 2 slices of eggplant or zucchini lasagna with ground beef

Supper

Option 1: 5 almonds

Option 2: 1 light yogurt

Option 3: 2 red plums

Option 4: 1 pear

Option 5: 1 small apple

Juices, why do I want you

Easy to prepare, these recipes kick-start the day and still do some internal cleaning…

Detoxifying juice

Ingredients
2 squeezed oranges
· 1 slice of papaya
· 3 prunes soaked overnight in ½ glass of water
· 1 col. (soup) flaxseed powder
· 1 col. (tea) organic honey
· Water

How to do it: Blend everything in a blender, including the plum water.
Yields: 1 cup (250 ml).
Calories per serving: 138 cal.

Green juice

Ingredients
1 kale leaf
1 squeezed orange
· ½ squeezed lemon
· 1 sprig of mint
· ½ cucumber
· 1 apple

How to do it: put the cabbage, cucumber and apple in a juicer (or blend it in a blender) and mix with the squeezed fruit. Add mint.
Yields: 1 cup (200 ml).
Calories per serving: 173 cal.

energy juice

Ingredients
1 cup (250 ml) green tea (home brewed)
· 1 slice of pineapple
· ½ apple
· 1 col. (dessert) ginger

Way to do: beat everything in the blender.
Yields: 1 cup (300 ml).
Calories per serving: 90 cal.