You may want to lose 5 kg for several reasons: because the clothes of last summer do not stay the same, because you have a wedding or an important event that is approaching, because the doctor has scared you with the result of the latest analytics, for a New Year's purpose ... or even because the good weather is coming and you want to lose those pounds that you have gained during the winter. For all those reasons, there are many people who, to lose weight, join the striking OPERATION BIKINI and are willing to follow a miracle diet to achieve it. Well, with this article I am going to try that you are not one of them.


 I put you in context, what is a miracle diet?
Follow diets that have one or more of these characteristics: they have no scientific endorsement, they have a strict restriction according to what food (such as the fearsome carbohydrates, for example), is based on a single food: in shakes, complements that promise you being Elsa Pataki in 3 weeks ... They promise you rapidity in achieving the objectives, omitting the consequences that they can entail, and a host of other examples. Although the latter may catch your attention, do not get carried away by impatience.

When these recommendations are followed, the goal in 99% of cases is pure weight loss, without worrying about tomorrow, for that October that will also come and if you have followed a process of nutritional education, all the mistakes you made before starting the bikini operation, they will return and the balance will go back up (known as the yo-yo effect of unhealthy diets). It does not make any sense to go on a diet every May, to recover it in September and then go back to doing bikini operation the following year, and so every year ... It is very important that you have clear the objective and this must be to improve the alimentary habits and that these changes keep forever. We must love more our body, that after all we only have one and it should last forever. In short, no operation is more effective than the one that combines a healthy and varied diet during the 365 days of the year and sports practice with continuity.

Losing 5 kilos in 3 days or in a week
Internet and YouTube are full of videos with tips to lose 5 kilos in 3 days or in a week. But is it possible to lose 5 kilos in so few days? The answer is that it can be done but it goes against your health. If you are looking to lose weight very fast, you will do it fundamentally in the form of water and at the cost of losing muscle. Losing more than half a kilo of fat a week is very rare, especially if you do not take an active lifestyle and practice sports. To look for this type of losses so fast, are usually done with diets of envelopes of less than 1,000 calories or broths or drinks that provide very few calories (and nutrients)

So if you propose to lose weight very fast, you know that as soon as you return to eat normally you will catch "at least" these kilos. And that your health and your metabolism will not be the same again!

In the following video, my colleague Carme Ferrer and I tell you some of the keys to losing these 5 kilos.

Everything in what the bikini operation consists of is what you have to avoid if you want to lose weight in a healthy way and, above all, if you want to maintain that weight loss. So I'm going to give you 12 keys so you can lose 5kg in a healthy way:
  •  Do not skip breakfast. Try to have breakfast when you get up or after an hour at the most. If you can not have a big breakfast, nothing happens, you can save your sandwich for mid-morning, but when you wake up you eat something (like a glass of milk with oat flakes or cereals without added sugar). Do not leave the house without breakfast.
  • At meals and dinners, keep the Idea dish: All meals and dinners must have the right proportions, that is, if you eat a dish: as the main part the vegetable (cooked or salad), half dish, for example. The dish must also contain a portion of protein, about a quarter of the dish: meat, fish, eggs or vegetable protein (tofu, tempeh, seitan, textured soy protein ...) and the other fourth of the dish that we need would be the hydrates (pasta, rice, legume, potato, bread). These will always be better to consume them whole. With these references I am talking about proportions, not quantities, the amount will vary according to your needs and objectives. To lose those 5 kgs, keep in mind that the carbohydrate part should be a smaller amount (I'll exemplify it at the end of the article), but they should always be present at both meals and dinners.
  • Eat every 3-4 hours: If you spend many hours without eating, you can appear anxiety and with it, much desire to eat foods not recommended. The number of recommended intakes varies according to your schedule, customs, and lifestyle, but I recommend that you have an order in your diet and that you do a mid-morning and a healthy afternoon, and thus you will avoid arriving hungrier at lunch and dinner.
  • Do not skip any food: If you do it often in order to "compensate for an extra", stop doing it or else your body will react and will defend itself. How? You will be hungrier in the following hours or even the next day and this will make you eat more or chop. Hunger is accumulated, therefore, skipping meals can cause the opposite objective of what you are looking for.
  • Base your diet on healthy foods such as white fish, blue fish (minimum 1 day a week), fruit (2-3 pieces a day), vegetables, legumes, whole grains.
  • Limit the fats in your diet. Controls the amount of olive oil (used in cooking and raw) to 2-3 tablespoons per day. Above all, it limits the consumption of foods that give you unhealthy fats (sausages, processed or smoked meats, light cheeses ...). Do not underestimate fats coming from light foods (they can be up to 30%). Instead, you can use healthy fats such as olive oil that you commented, avocado, nuts, blue fish ... Leave the red meat for 1 day a week and choose lean meats like chicken or turkey.
  • Avoid processed, packaged foods such as potato chips, snacks, cookies ... Instead, you can make celery and carrot crudités with hummus, cherry tomato skewers with fresh cheese, anchovies, pickles or nuts (as long as they are not fried neither salty and in small quantities).
  • Drink 1'5 liters of water daily and avoid alcohol, soft drinks, and juices. Hydration should be done basically with water. Avoid sugary drinks, soft drinks, packaged juices, and alcohol, which do not stop being a great contribution to calories and sugars. Occasionally you could consume a soft drink, but there are other healthier options, such as cold tea, sparkling water.
  • Organize yourself in the purchase: Having the fridge and the pantry full of healthy foods is key to being able to carry out a healthy diet. Plan your weekly menus and make the purchase accordingly.


How to lose 5 kilos 
Losing 5 kg can be more difficult to achieve than losing a considerably larger amount, this happens because as you get closer to your healthy weight, the body does not lose weight so easily. But, even if it is a bit more difficult, do not leave it, do not think that you do not need to diet because "they are only 4 kg". If you do not have good habits, your tendency with the passage of time may be to gain more weight and can be converted, even if slowly, in 7 or 10 kg more. Remember the importance of maintaining these changes in habits once you have achieved the goal of losing weight.

Example of a day's feeding
I'm going to give you an example of a menu that meets all the points I mentioned earlier:
BREAKFAST: a coffee with skimmed milk (200ml) + 60g of wholemeal bread with avocado and sliced tomato.
MIDDLE MORNING: a bowl of strawberries
FOOD: Salad with lettuce, arugula, carrot, red cabbage, onion, tomato + lentils (130 g cooked). Grilled salmon with lemon with a tablespoon of oil. For dessert a yogurt 0.0%
SNACK: 2 pineapple slices
DINNER: Zucchini mashed potatoes (80g). Mushroom omelet (1 egg + 1 light). Whole wheat bread (30g) A tablespoon of oil. And a Yogurt 0.0%


Examples of recipes 
MACARRONES WITH SHRIMPED TOMATO AND CHOPPED MEAT

In a large pan add a tablespoon of olive oil, chopped tomatoes, and two finely chopped onions. Cook over very low heat until the tomato is cooked.

On the other hand, boil the macaroni and cook the lean ground beef.

Once everything is cooked together with the ingredients and you can serve.

Pure of Zucchini and Onion
In the pot put to bake 4 zucchini and 3 onions previously peeled, washed and chopped. Add a little salt and water to cover and cover. Cook in the pot until the vegetables are tender. Then adjust the amount of water, add one or two tablespoons of olive oil and crush it.


Sepia Estofada with Potato and Vegetables
Cut a potato and vegetables into julienne or thin slices (for example, onion, tomato, mushroom).

In a large pan add a tablespoon of olive oil and first fry the cuttlefish (do not cook just mark), remove it in a few minutes. Then add the potatoes and vegetables, sauté them for a few minutes over high heat and then add one or two glasses of water or vegetable broth and let them simmer for about 20 minutes. When the vegetables are practically cooked add the cuttlefish and cook for 3 or 4 minutes (until it is at its point). At this moment you can serve.

Take the first step and get into the hands of registered dietitians-nutritionists
It is important that when you want to achieve some goal related to food and weight (lose weight, gain weight, improve performance or health, learn to eat) or want to know more about nutrition, go to a true qualified professional, i.e., to dietitians nutritionists. In short, our goal is to educate and teach to have a varied and healthy diet. But also, in a balanced way, without miracle diets or unhealthy promises. With personalized and individualized nutritional plans, making an assessment of nutritional status, setting realistic and achievable goals. At Alimmenta we can help you to achieve it.