Dried fruits for weight loss

How do prunes help you lose weight?

Dried fruits contain B vitamins, beta-carotene, tocopherol and ascorbic acid. Plums are rich in carbohydrates, but contain virtually no protein or fat. Their pulp contains pectin substances and a large amount of fiber (7-7.5 g per 100 g). Microelements are represented by zinc, selenium and iron, and the content of macroelements potassium, calcium and magnesium is the best balanced for the human body.

But the calorie content of dried fruits cannot be considered low: for every 100 g of product there are about 239-245 kcal, depending on the sweetness of the variety. But when the stomach swells, fiber and pectin quickly create a feeling of fullness. Several dried plums (5-6 pieces) serve as a complete meal between main meals, enriching the body with essential minerals and helping not to feel hungry.

Beneficial properties of prunes

Due to their high fiber content, dried fruits have a positive effect on the gastrointestinal tract, normalizing its peristalsis and removing toxins. The result is the absence of constipation and related problems in various diseases, complete digestion and assimilation of food.

By eating a few prunes during a diet 10-15 minutes before the main meal, it is easy to reduce the amount of food consumed. The product contains substances that have a sedative effect. This allows you not to experience irritation due to restrictions during the diet, to eat with positive emotions and without rushing. The signal of satiety comes from the brain late, so leisurely eating promotes weight loss. An additional effect is associated with an increase in the volume of eaten prunes in the stomach during breakfast or lunch.

Prunes contain many vitamins and substances beneficial to the human body.

Prunes for weight loss

Compared to factory-made sweets (meaning confectionery), even high-calorie dried fruits can be considered useful during weight loss due to their naturalness and less negative effect on glucose surges. However, it cannot be denied that eating prunes in large quantities during a diet can cause weight gain, since the body will receive an excess amount of calories and sugar, albeit natural. Doctors insist on observing the measure - the daily norm of prunes for weight loss is 4-5 pieces, which is equivalent to 35-40 grams or 96 kcal.

Anyone who cares about their own kilograms is recommended to choose from the following methods of consuming prunes when losing weight:

Mix with your morning portion of porridge (it goes well with rolled oats, millet and rice).
Drink with kefir, fermented baked milk or yogurt (buy options without additives) during a late dinner.
Make cottage cheese casserole or cheesecakes (with egg whites and whole grain flour), replacing sugar with prunes.
Cook compote (do not add sweeteners, but you can add other fruits).
Prepare a mixture of dried fruits (try to add as few raisins as possible, if using), almonds/cashews/pistachios for snacking - even a small portion will perfectly satisfy your hunger.
Drinking an infusion of steamed prunes when losing weight is also useful - it has minimal calorie content, but it suppresses appetite well. Similarly, you can specially prepare a decoction of this dried fruit.

Kefir with prunes

A glass of this drink is an effective means of normalizing intestinal function, which results in visual weight loss: a person loses kilograms by cleansing the body. In the future, there is also an effect on body fat, but for this you need to mix prunes with kefir every day, and the result will be visible in a month. It is advisable to do this closer to the night, and not prepare such a mixture for yourself in the morning if you plan to go somewhere. Please note that for a laxative effect, the fermented milk drink must be as fresh as possible (made today or yesterday).

When losing weight, you can mix prunes with kefir (ryazhenka, sourdough, etc.) as follows:

Leave 200 ml of fermented milk drink + 30 g of chopped dried fruit for an hour.
150 ml kefir + 50 g steamed (!) chopped dried fruit.

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Prunes at night

A small portion of this dried fruit (steamed) eaten before bed can also help you lose weight. However, this method will be correctly practiced only in case of acute hunger that occurs after dinner, because... All fruits, especially dried ones, are recommended in the evening only as an exception and a replacement for harmful foods. Prunes are consumed at night in the amount of 3-4 pieces, you can mix them with a couple of nuts. A larger volume is allowed only by a mono-diet per day, where up to 100 g of this product is allowed in the evening.

Oatmeal with prunes

Porridge with fruit for breakfast is a great recipe for a sweet start to the day, but without the risk of gaining weight. When losing weight, prunes go well with all nuts, although they are mainly combined with walnuts and almonds - the latter is recognized as the best of its group in terms of weight loss. Oatmeal with prunes provides a long-lasting satiety effect because there is no sugar spike. How many pieces to put is up to you, but it is advisable not to cross the line of 40 grams, and if nuts are used, then 30 grams. You can complement the dish with dried apricots.

Cottage cheese with prunes

This option for breakfast, afternoon snack or even dinner, if you need to eat after a workout, is attractive due to its low calorie content, but good nutritional value. It is not necessary to mix only low-fat cottage cheese with prunes for weight loss - similarly, you can use a 2% or 5% product. However, nutritionists remind that the presence of lactose in dairy products makes them not the safest for weight loss, therefore, in order not to gain weight, physical exercise is needed before consuming them.

Methods of use

Using proven folk methods of losing weight, you can stay slim with the help of dried fruits, even without limiting yourself to sweets. You just need to replace cookies and tea buns with dried fruits in your diet, as is done in Central Asia and Eastern countries. Plums, dried apricots and raisins are no less tasty, but much more useful both as a way to get rid of extra pounds and as a means of obtaining the necessary substances and minerals.

In its purest form

If you follow a regime with dietary fasting days, it is convenient to use dried plums as a product allowed during this period. Every 2-3 hours you can eat 100 g of steamed prunes. To steam it, pour boiling water over it and leave for 1-2 hours. The infusion can be drunk without adding sugar.

Dry or steamed prunes are convenient for snacking. Even when dried, plums have a pleasant elastic consistency, which allows you to chew them for a long time. In combination with tea or another drink, dried fruits become a complete replacement for confectionery products.

A mass of dried fruit pulp passed through a meat grinder or blender fully replaces sugar in desserts.

Dried apricots and prunes

Prunes and dried apricots are often combined in recipes that help you lose weight without harming your body. Both components have a mild laxative effect, accelerate metabolism and are high in fiber and pectin. To enhance the fat-burning effect, other components are added. You can use the following recipes:

Pass 400 g of dried apricots and dried plums through a meat grinder. Grind 1 package of Alexandria leaf (100 g) into powder, mix it with dried fruits and add 200 g of honey. Take 1-2 tsp. daily before bed.
Peel rose hips (100 g) from grains, mince them with 400 g prunes, 100 g dried apricots, 200 g figs and 100 g nuts to taste. Mix and add honey to the mixture, achieving a viscous consistency of the mixture. It can replace jams or preserves, but has the beneficial properties of dried fruits and promotes weight loss when consumed 1-2 tsp. 2-3 times a day.

By mixing dried fruits with honey, you can get a healthy and nutritious mixture

Raisins and prunes

Raisins contain high amounts of fructose and glucose, so adding them to recipes allows you to create sweeter dishes than those that include only prunes. You can prepare mixtures for weight loss according to the above recipes with dried apricots, replacing or supplementing them with raisins. It is advisable to use dark varieties made from black grapes: they contain many bioflavonoids and antioxidants that affect the metabolic rate.

In addition to recipes for cleansing mixtures, you can make a delicious compote from dried fruits. There is no need to add sugar to it, because it will turn out rich due to the content of raisins and prunes. Required:

100 g raisins;
150 g prunes;
5 glasses of water.

If desired, you can add dried apricots or other types of dried fruits (but not candied ones) to the compote mixture. When adding other components, you need to reduce the amount of raisins and prunes.

Place the ingredients in a saucepan and add water. Bring to a boil, simmer for 5-7 minutes and remove from heat. Leave for 1 hour and drink in equal portions over 2 days. Use the berries as an addition to dishes or eat between meals.

Kefir with prunes

The combination of kefir and prunes can be used for a 3-day mono-diet for rapid weight loss or included in a diet that includes other components.

You can lose weight in 2-3 days with just 2 products. The diet for 1 day consists of 1.2 liters of low-fat kefir and 100 g of prunes. It is better to steam dried fruits and mix with kefir, preparing cocktails with plum pieces, or turn the fruits into puree, sweetening a fermented milk product with them.

The energy value of such a diet is only 1000 kcal per day. The daily intake of products should be divided into 6-7 meals in equal portions. A single amount of kefir with dried fruits should be drunk slowly over 30 minutes. The method cannot be used often and for problems with the gastrointestinal tract.

The 7-day diet includes low-calorie foods (whole grain cereals, vegetables, lean meat, fish) and kefir with prunes. You can create a menu from them according to the following principles:

breakfast: 100 g whole grain porridge without sugar, 1 pc. prunes, green tea without sugar;
You can have a snack with 1 glass of kefir and 1 dried plum;
lunch: vegetable lean soup, 100 g of meat or fish with a cereal or vegetable side dish and compote or kefir cocktail;
afternoon snack: 1 glass of kefir and 1 pc. prunes;
dinner: fruit and vegetable salad with prunes, 1 glass of kefir or vegetables and 100 g of meat (fish) with a cocktail of plums and fermented milk drink.

During the diet, it is possible to reduce weight by 2-4 kg. Unlike the previous strict diet, you can include a combination of fermented milk products and dried fruits in your diet after 1-2 weeks, alternating the method with other types of low-calorie nutrition.

Oatmeal with prunes

To prepare the dish you will need:

250 ml water or skim milk;
0.5 cups of Hercules oatmeal;
20 g prunes (2-3 pcs.);
salt to taste.

Bring water or milk to a boil and add cereal. Once boiling, add salt and cook for 5-7 minutes (depending on the type of cereal, it may take longer), and then remove from heat. Chop the dried fruits and add to the hot porridge so that they steam a little and add sweetness and aroma to the oatmeal. If desired, some of the prunes can be replaced with raisins or dried apricots.

Prune decoction

The decoction is prepared as a means of removing toxins and waste from the body. It is more concentrated than compote and is used in small portions (2-3 tablespoons) for 1 day. The next day it is better to prepare a fresh portion. Berries can be used in dishes instead of sugar.

To take during the day you will need 100 g of prunes and 1.5 cups of boiling water.

Rinse the berries, put them in a container and pour boiling water over them. Place the dishes in a water bath and leave for 1 hour.

Drain the infusion and take 4-5 times during the day.

The benefits of prunes

The value of this dried fruit is not only in its active effect on constipation - even in relation to the figure, it is two-faced: you can hear about the use of prunes for weight loss, and about introducing it into the menu for people who want to gain weight. The reason for this is the property of this product to increase appetite and stimulate the production of gastric juice. The latter property is actively used by cooks, serving fatty meat with it: this improves the absorption of a heavy product.

The benefits of prunes also lie in:

a large amount of potassium, which has a beneficial effect on the functioning of the heart;
improving the condition of an anemic patient due to iron content;
reducing the level of “bad” cholesterol and, as a result, preventing thrombosis;
antibacterial properties (an additional reason to eat a little of this dried fruit for infectious diseases);
choleretic effect on the body;
stabilizing mood swings (therefore, prunes on a diet are also necessary to reduce the likelihood of a breakdown);
help of bone tissue.

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For the intestines

Doctors call the main property of this product its ability to weaken the intestines, so it is introduced into the diet of people who struggle with constipation. This point is determined by the presence of phenol complexes and sorbitol, and fiber stimulates the functioning of the gastrointestinal tract. This effect of prunes on the intestines has led to its appearance in mono-diets and fasting days for weight loss, when you need to lose a couple of kilograms very quickly. Weight loss is achieved by cleansing the intestines, but such a prune diet for weight loss has no effect on fat deposits.

Prune diet

The effectiveness of the 4-day diet is due to the use of low-fat foods that are healthy for excess weight (vegetables, cereals, black bread) and dried fruits. Its peculiarity is that each meal ends with a dessert of 3-4 berries.

A sample menu might look like this:

Breakfast: soft-boiled egg, 200 g grapefruit, tea or coffee without sugar and dried fruits. Lunch: vegetable soup without potatoes, 100 g of bread, prunes and 2 walnuts, tea. Dinner: boiled fish with vegetable side dish, tea and 3-4 dried plums.
Breakfast: 30 g of hard cheese, tea, dried fruits. Lunch: vegetarian cabbage soup, 100 g of bread, 100 g of boiled lean meat, prune compote. Dinner: fruit salad with dried fruits, tea or compote.
Breakfast: 100 g of bread with a slice of lean ham, coffee and dry plums. Lunch: vegetable puree and medium tomato, dried fruits with tea. Dinner: 1 glass of kefir or yogurt (no more than 1.5% fat), toast with steamed berry jam, tea.
Breakfast: oatmeal with 2-3 berries, coffee or tea with dried fruits. Lunch: chicken broth with croutons, cucumber and tomato salad, compote with raisins and prunes. Dinner: 100 g of lean meat, a slice of bread and tea with dried fruits.

The diet can be carried out approximately once a month, it fully meets the body's nutritional needs and complies with the principles of proper nutrition, but contains few calories (about 1200-1300 for each day).

How to choose the right one

What dried fruits can you eat while losing weight? Of course, fresh and high quality. To choose the right dried fruits, you need to pay attention to their appearance. The dull color of the shell, a “dusty” coating and fragility indicate that this product has been stale and was prepared for quite a long time. Too intense a bright color indicates that dyes or chemicals have been added to the product.

Dried fruits should be elastic, have a natural shell color, and retain a pleasant aroma. Since dried fruits are intended to replace those products that inhibit weight loss, you should not save on purchasing them. It is advisable to choose the best ones, and then eating them will bring you joy.

Contraindications and harm

Excessive consumption of prunes or dishes containing them can cause frequent stools or intestinal upset. A diet based on it is not recommended for people with gastritis and peptic ulcers, irritable bowel syndrome and inflammatory bowel diseases.

Women during lactation should not eat dried fruits. Substances contained in plums pass into breast milk and cause diarrhea in the baby. This condition is dangerous for infants due to severe dehydration.

People suffering from diabetes should consult their doctor before starting to use prunes. Sugar contained in berries can lead to hyperglycemia.

Contraindications

After finding out why prunes are useful for weight loss and why a person loses weight from this product, it is worth assessing the possible negative consequences associated with it. The laxative and choleretic properties of this dried fruit require caution in people who have problems with the liver and bile ducts or suffer from diarrhea. Contraindications for prunes include stomach diseases. You should not supplement your diet with them and:

When breastfeeding, because You can provoke intestinal upset in your baby.
Persons with diabetes (only after talking with a doctor);
Hypotonics.

Results and reviews

Marina, Petrozavodsk : Often you need to quickly lose a couple of kilograms in a short period of time. A mono-diet of kefir and plums helps: within 3 days the weight returns to normal. But it is believed that such a load on the body is undesirable, so I lose weight this way no more than once a month.

Victor, Voronezh : I try to watch my figure and am interested in different types of diets. I tried to lose weight using nutritional mixtures of dried fruits. They replace sweets for tea; a single dose can be spread on grain toast. The result is pleasant sandwiches that don’t make you feel hungry and won’t give you extra calories.

Marina Sergeevna, Leningrad region : In the summer I live in the village, on vegetables from my own garden. But in winter you have to fight excess weight at home. I found out about mixtures of dried fruits and nuts, I take them, adding either honey, kiwi puree or fresh apples. Tasty, healthy and helps save your waistline.

Recipe box

Dried plums add a special flavor to the dish. The fruit goes well with porridge, cottage cheese and dried apricots.

There are many options for recipes for delicious dietary dishes made from prunes.

On the second

The recipes from this section will fit perfectly into a low-calorie menu.

They can be served for lunch or dinner.

Red salad

Ingredients:

500 g beets;
100 g prunes;
low-fat sour cream.

How to cook:

Buryak can be boiled or fresh. Peel the root vegetable and grate the pulp on a coarse grater.
Steam dried fruits in boiling water for 7-10 minutes.
Grind the fruits.
Mix all ingredients in a salad bowl, season with sour cream.

With cottage cheese

What do you need:

150 g low-calorie cottage cheese;
5 pieces. prunes;
1 tsp. honey

Cooking steps:

Chop the fruit with a knife.
You can rub the fermented milk product through a sieve.
Combine the ingredients and mix.

If desired, add berries to the curd dessert.

Dietary buckwheat

Recipe:

350 g buckwheat;
200 ml water;
1 carrot and onion;
5 pieces. prunes;
nutmeg, black pepper.

Step-by-step technology:

Heat the cereal in a frying pan, then pour boiling water over it.
Leave the porridge for a couple of hours to allow it to swell.
Fry the vegetables in a small amount of oil.
Season the roast with spices.
Chop the plums, add them to the mixture, add a little water and simmer for 10 minutes.
Then mix all the ingredients, add boiling water again, and keep on low heat until the buckwheat becomes soft.