CRASH DIET
CRASH DIET
M o n t go m e r y B o o k s
Crash dieting is a civilised approach to a nice compromise – between the pleasures of the moment and the pleasures of the future. Crash diets are ideal for quick pound loss, especially before some special occasion, and are harmless to a healthy person. It does not mean you will never put a spoon in a dessert again: It simply means compensating at the next meal and using common-sense.
... looking good is not a piece of cake
CRASH DIET is three of Monica’s most popular and asked-about diets.The Egg and Grapefruit Diet, The Fruit and Nut Diet and The Banana and Milk diet. Each has a seven day diet plan, a maintenance plan and recipes.You have the choice in how to lose those pounds discreetly and quickly, so people will be saying ‘I wish I had a figure like yours!’ Monica Grenfell has been a nutritionist for twenty years and is the author of 8 best-selling diet books. She has been Britain’s most-read and most popular national Sunday newspaper diet columnist since 1996.
9 780952 600428
MONICA GRENFELL
BY MO NIC A GRENFE LL
It’s a reassuring thought that even effortlessly pretty, elegant women have figure problems. A beautiful figure is the basis of great fashion and for most of us, long-term, intelligent eating is the ideal solution to a love of food and hectic social life.When the problem is a small one, however, and you want to lose a few ‘vanity’ pounds, a crash diet is a joy.
CRASH DIET
MONICA GRENFELL’S
s b l 7 Lose days in 7 xx
MONICA GRENFELL’S
CRASH DIET
... looking good is not a piece of cake
© 2007 Monica Grenfell ISBN 9780952600428 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying and recording, without the written permission of the copyright holder, application for which should be addressed to the publisher. Such written permission must also be obtained before any part of this publication is stored in a retrieval system of any nature. The right of Monica Grenfell to be identified as author of this work has been asserted by her in accordance with the copyright Designs and Patents Act 1988.
Acknowledgements To Charlotte Hoping you will never need a crash diet I would like to thank all the people who have made this diet book a reality, especially Sonia Faustino at FBA Group, Abby Knight and Christina Panayi who are just wonderful friends, and all the test dieters who made it all seem such fun.
Photographs of Monica Grenfell © 2007 Mark Bourdillon All other photography © 2007 Francis Balsom Associates Limited
Designed and produced by FBA PR & Design www.fbagroup.co.uk Printed in Wales by Cambrian Printers, Aberystwyth
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Foreword Without being rich, young or naturally beautiful, you can still look stunning. No matter how your look is achieved, it has to start from discipline, from a sense of your own uniqueness, knowing your bad points and accentuating your good ones. Only you can know if you like your size, but the way you look and present yourself to the world reveals your attitude to life. It’s a reassuring thought that even apparently flawlessly, effortlessly pretty women have figure problems. At least I have never met anyone, not even a model, who did not have something she wanted to put right. A small bulge here, or a few rogue pounds there are a cross most of us have to bear. Carelessly letting the pounds creep on, allowing your waist to billow and hips to spread, means you have let go of one of life’s great pleasures: the satisfaction of feeling and looking your best. Major lifestyle changes towards a better diet might be the best answer, but when the problem is small, a crash diet is a joy. It would be wonderful to believe that our shape and size are of no consequence and the only consideration is health, but we don’t do things that are only good for us – we need other motivations. It is incredible to think that twenty or thirty years of happiness and satisfaction with your shape can be bypassed for the lack of a little willpower, and many women spend years in the misery of a weight problem they can’t or won’t address. Pounds have a tendency to creep on.When those pounds reach double figures, getting rid of them becomes a chore. Sad to say, it is often a matter of carelessness, rather than the diet itself. Then of course, the problem of shifting them is daunting. It’s far better, I think. to tackle the pounds as soon as they appear. A crash diet is a helpful part of every woman’s regime and women should never wear their diets on their sleeves, announcing to the world (dare I say boring the world?) that they have a problem. Far better to keep some midpoint in your weight so that a few pounds either way is not noticed and the enduring effect is “she’s so lucky; she never puts on a pound.” Only you know the truth of that statement!
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In this weight-conscious world probably the first thing we think when we say ‘diet’ is deprivation and sacrifice. But there are diets for many purposes: diets for long-term everyday eating, diets for sports endurance, diets for diabetes or pregnancy. For most of us, the best diet is lifelong, intelligent eating: keeping meals low-calorie, getting out of the habit of sugar in coffee or mindless snacks. It does not mean never putting a spoon into a pudding. It simply means compensating at the next meal and using common-sense. Crash diets might have had a bad press but they are practical and let’s be honest, none of us is so famished that a week of restriction will cause harm. Crash dieting is merely civilised, a nice compromise between the pleasures of the moment and the pleasures of the future.You know you need to take steps by little signals; feeling uneasy in your clothes and bored with your look.You suddenly see the picture you present to the world and it doesn’t fit with your idea of yourself.The effect of reaching this crossroads and taking the first step with diet comes from others, as they exclaim,“I wish I had a figure like yours!” The mistake some people make is to start a diet as if it is the end of all the good times and the beginnings of a hard time. Yet if you are overweight you are already depriving yourself: not being able to wear what you want to wear or feel confident. So instead of thinking of what is denied to you, translate that thought to a positive one of “At last I can wear that pencil skirt…!”
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What is a crash diet? A crash diet is a diet that restricts calories while not compromising nutrients. It achieves results by reducing energy so your body needs to dig into your existing fat stores and thus you lose weight. Fifty years ago, crash diets were all the rage. It is a fallacy to believe that women were more voluptuous and curvaceous, and diet obsession is a new fad: indeed, the fuller figures of the 1950’s were a result of the gradual return to normality after wartime rations. With the restoration of food supplies, the propaganda machine went into action. It was a brave new world. A world of plenty. People were encouraged to enjoy food they could have only dreamed of during the six years of war. Milk, butter, cheese and cream were promoted for their ‘natural’ qualities and the same went for meat, bacon and eggs. Bananas, unseen for many years suddenly came on the scene again.Women’s figures blossomed and the famous curves we all associate with the era were, in fact, an aberration. Women began to gain weight and they certainly did not celebrate the fact. Suddenly young women were cinching themselves into full-body girdles and long-line bras. Magazines of the era were jam-packed with special slimming breads, artificial sweeteners and biscuits and weird diets like the Gelatine diet. I have a 1959 copy of VOGUE’s NEW BOOK OF BEAUTY – SLIMMING AND HEALTH magazine, which was published four times a year for decades. In a feature entitled New Ways to a Waist Line it says “Just now, with fashion at waist level, a lot of women will be interested in losing an inch or so quickly before they level out to an everyday plan that will maintain their leaner waist. Crash or fad diets are harmless for quick results, especially for quick pound loss in three to five days before some gala occasion.We know several models and actresses who swear by them.When carried out for a few days a crash diet is harmless to a healthy person – though it may be boring.” I could not have put it better myself. Fifty years ago, you could not go shopping for another outfit the minute something didn’t fit; money was in short supply and clothes bigger than a size 14 were unheard of for young women. On the whole it made economic sense to look after your weight and it was also not the done thing to ‘ lose your waist to a custard tart’, as my mother used to say.This was the generation that invented extreme dieting.Three to five days of discipline is all it takes and I hope you will find my diets work for you as well as they worked back then. 6 CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
Crash diets are brilliant for anyone with poor willpower. For these people, a slow and steady approach is useless. It might be desirable to lose weight gradually, but who wants to do that? It is like digging a hole with a spoon. But a couple of pounds weight loss is barely discernable when you have fifty pounds to lose. Dieting feels like torture. It is important to embrace the fact that slimming means you miss out on some things but you gain in other ways. Crash dieting gives good psychological weight loss and requires enough discipline to make the slimmer feel she is doing something positive – and this makes her keen to continue and not lose the benefits she has just worked for. In the final analysis, our figures are the basis of great fashion.We all want to look good in our clothes. As a nutritionist, I know that weight gained quickly is usually lost quickly, given the right frame of mind and a reasonable attention span.This is how Crash Diet was born, to bring back the fun and the élan into dieting that says “yes, it’s not ideal to diet and in many ways it’s boring – but I would rather be bored than fat!”
Tried and tested In the past eleven years I have been the health columnist for the country’s two leading Sunday newspapers, the Sunday Mirror and the News of the World Sunday magazine. I have written a total of 563 columns of diet and exercise. I have written for numerous magazines both here and in America and have produced eight diet books.The diets in this book are the three most popular and asked-for diets from all those years. I still get letters about them. Of course, people kept asking “have you a book with this diet in it?” The diets are intentionally niche.They rely on one or two key foods which compliment one another nutritionally, so if you do not like one diet the next might suit you perfectly.You can pass the book on to your friends to sample the other diets. These are the diets and I am sure you will have great success on one – or all of them! 1 The Egg and Grapefruit diet 2 The Fruit and Nut diet 3 The Banana and Milk diet
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Nutrition – the cornerstone of a good diet Your body only requires nutrients in certain amounts. It does not recognise where those nutrients come from. Remember that people in other countries eat food very different from our own, food that will never pass our lips, and yet they still manage to thrive and lose weight. People get very hung up on the idea that they cannot lose weight because they hate fish or fruit or cottage cheese.This is nonsense. All that matters is that the body gets enough proteins, fat, carbohydrates, minerals and vitamins, from whatever sources, along with fibre and fluids for inner cleanliness.Whether you get your starch from a cassava plant or a potato is neither here nor there. So on these diets you have a balance of foods that provide what you need, and if there is a deficiency I recommend a supplement. Here are the basic nutrients we all need for a good diet. I have included all these nutrients in your Crash Diets, so your health will not suffer even though calories are reduced.
Carbohydrates The body relies on carbohydrates for quick energy. I must emphasise that carbohydrates aren’t essential to the functioning of the body, they are simply very good at providing quick, efficient energy mostly because of the economic way they use oxygen for their metabolism. Excess carbohydrates are converted to fats to be distributed round the body as storage for leaner times!
Proteins You would not die if you did not eat carbohydrates, but you would die without protein. Proteins are essential because they build cells and repair our bodies. All these crash diets contain plentiful protein so whichever diet you choose you will have the right amount your body needs for health, maintenance and repair.
Very low calorie diets - the effective way to lose weight Our bodies are feeding machines. Some people claim that the best diets are low-fat or glycaemic index or high protein, and I have read endless, ill-informed articles proclaiming that the only way to burn fat and boost metabolism is to cut carbohydrates.This is not true.The only way to lose weight through diet is to cut calories to fewer than your body needs. Some people lose weight the exercise method, eating a reasonable daily amount and burning several hundred calories a day in exercise.There is something to be said for this, but too much exercise has other downsides, like wear and tear on joints and muscles and stressing the body so the brain thinks you are running from danger. It is never a good idea to exercise for hours on end simply to use calories. Far better to do a half-and-half method, where you do moderate cardio every other day then tone and stretch for shape and firmness and eat a few hundred calories less than you need. As long as your body is fed and nourished, as it will be in your Crash Diet, you have no need of more calories.
The crash diets contain carbohydrates in the form of fruit, milk, yoghurt and vegetables.
Fats Fats provide two and a half times the energy of carbohydrates but their energy can’t be metabolised quickly. Fats are essential to the body, but because of their high calorie content, they must be eaten sparingly. As always, too many calories will turn to fat and unlike muscle, fat is dead weight.These diets contain fats in their main ingredients nuts, eggs and milk.
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Your questions answered How much weight will I lose? My test slimmers lost an average 7lbs in a week and 4-5lbs in the first three days. If the weight is of the stubborn-bulge variety, and has been plaguing you for some years, it might go from where on the body it chooses – usually the places that don’t get disturbed, such as the hips and abdomen. Exercise always helps, but I am confident that you will love your weight loss and will feel and look far healthier and lighter than you have done for a long time. Fluid is held within fat and if you have been constipated, you will lose fluids as your system clears and feel magically lighter. Please don’t listen to any of that nonsense about dehydrating and starving: if you have fat to lose you certainly won’t starve. I am worried about feeling hungry all the time If you have been used to a bad diet with lots of stodge, you are bound to notice the change in food intake. But this is like anything: a change of pace in a new job, a change of air on holiday; a change in time zones or temperature… you can’t ignore change and you will feel it. But do remember what I said about looking at the positive side: instead of thinking of what you can’t do and what you are missing, remember that you have been missing out on a lot of things while you have been overweight.You have been deprived of confidence, self-assurance and pride in your figure. Instead of being worried about being hungry, try to feel bright about moving nearer to the day when you can zip up the dress again and feel it thrillingly loose around your waist. After a few days on your crash diet you will acclimatise to your new way of eating and trust me, your body will thank you for it and you will wonder how you ever managed to eat all that stodge before. What if I don’t like something on the diet? If it is one of the main elements, like bananas in the Banana and Milk diet, or nuts in Fruit and Nut, this is the wrong diet for you. Slimming is not meant to be torture and you should enjoy it as much as possible.
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What can I snack on if I get very hungry? Hunger is only a sign that your stomach is empty. It does not mean your energy supplies are empty, as energy is stored in the liver and muscles and remains there for some considerable time; long after your stomach is empty. I always recommend trying not to snack as this is a bad habit. Mealtimes should be enjoyable and an occasion.You should be aware of your food, conscious that you are feeding your body and enjoying the feeling of doing the right thing. Make meals colourful and enticing: a salad is one of the most attractive meals there is. I sometimes get dizzy and light-headed when I go too long without a snack – this really worries me. This is a natural reaction, cause by the release of adrenaline when your blood sugars get low. Blood sugars go up and down all the time.When we get very low, however, when we are hungry, your brain sends a signal to release fat cells into the bloodstream to provide emergency energy. Briefly, you might feel light-headed but many people feel quite normal. Don't imagine your 4pm slump or feeling tired all the time is necessarily helped by eating extra food. Sometimes this is true, but mostly, it's not. Energy from food does not necessarily make you energetic; it simply gives you the potential for being energetic. It is like filling your car tank with petrol and then leaving the car parked outside.The car has the potential for travel, but the crucial factor is the driver. Feeling energetic, I would suggest, is a state of mind and if you are feeling dull, depressed, anxious or bored, no amount of ‘energy food’ or calories will make a jot of difference. As long as you are in good health, this should not be a problem. Of course, if you are worried you must see your GP straight away. I feel sure the lightheadedness will wear off very quickly. If not, try a glass of skimmed milk or just a cup of tea or coffee with milk. Tell me, Monica; do you diet? Yes of course I do - I have a diet and its purpose is to keep me slim and healthy. There are not many women who would spend money on nice clothes and run the risk of not fitting into them.To feel the buttons straining and everything showing would be a feeling I dislike intensely. I’m not
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fanatical, but the right amount of effort to keep everything slim, firm and toned is worth it and no woman who considers herself organised and successful should find her diet a mystery or a chore. I certainly crash diet now and again. I love the freedom it gives me. Far from feeling obsessed, crash and restricted dieting releases you from that endless poring over recipes, wondering what on earth you can eat tonight. As long as the diet is nutritious, you really have nothing to lose.
Should I weigh myself each week? Yes, you should. How else will you know if you have gained weight? It is not always possible to know until you have seven or ten pounds on your frame, and then it is easy to get depressed and give up.Weigh yourself once a week, write it down and if you are a little heavy for more than two weeks, do your Crash Diet for a couple of days. Always keep tabs on your weight. It is no more obsessive than checking your hair daily, looking for spots or tweezing your eyebrows. It also means you can take steps when you have a tiny problem, rather than a big one. I suggest you record your statistics on the next page, as we all forget what we weighed and you can keep tabs, not just on this diet but the weeks and months ahead.
Your personal statistics. Week 1 Date Weight Bust Under armpits Waist Hips Navel Top of R thigh Top of L thigh
ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/
cms cms cms cms cms cms cms
ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/ ins/
cms cms cms cms cms cms cms
Week 2 Date Weight
Week 3 Date Weight Bust Under armpits Waist Hips Navel Top of R thigh Top of L thigh
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A word about motivation
Golden rules
Motivation has been hard in recent years because of the barrage of anti-diet press and praise of bigger, fatter, more curvaceous figures. Now however, your motivation will get a helping hand I hope, because recent research into the causes of cancer have revealed overwhelming evidence that being slightly thin, with low bodyfat, will protect us from at least six forms of cancer. And despite the media’s endless insistence that there is pressure to be size zero (UK size 4) how many people do you know who are very underweight? I have been a nutritionist for a long time and have personally met about three women who are a size 4.There is a saying that goes “those that can, do, and those who can’t, criticise.” Many critics of slim figures and crash diets are overweight themselves and resent the success of others. So please, refuse to allow yourself to be sidetracked. It is now official: it is healthier to be on the thin side.
1 Never eat thoughtlessly. 2 Never eat walking along the street, in the car or at your workplace (Desk). 3 Eat at designated mealtimes. 4 Eat at a table, using proper cups, glasses, plates etc. 5 When you have finished your meal, however small it was, clean your teeth, wash your hands and signal that your meal break is now over. You should not be tempted to eat outside these times (at any time, not just on your Crash Diet).
Never be ashamed of being overweight however: whatever you weigh today, you will never be this weight again.Tomorrow and the day after and the next day, will all contribute to losing a few more ounces and they all add up. Soon those ounces become pounds. Starting a diet and staying with a diet are different things, however, and this is where determination and discipline come in. Many people will tell you that you look fine as you are, even though you know that you’re unhappy with your size. But just because they sympathise, doesn’t mean they understand.This constant fighting with your true feelings is stressful and upsetting. My advice is to listen to your inner voice. In the final analysis, an adult woman’s bodyfat should not be higher than about 28% and although you feel healthy, if you are higher than this, we now know that this is not healthy. Unfortunately, no amount of bravado is going to change this. Crash dieting is important for the body and the mind. Losing a few pounds is thrilling and tells you it’s possible. Most of the testers wanted to stay on their crash diet either for a few weeks or for three days every week.They enjoyed the freedom from decision-making and enjoyed feeling disciplined.Whenever you want to give in, remember how you feel when you do. I have never met anyone who ate a massive dinner, three times what they really needed, and felt better the next day. I have never met anyone who waved away the pudding and woke up next day sorry.
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How to manage your Crash Diet Do not rush out and buy half the supermarket. Obsession with food is a bad thing, and it is possibly what brought you to this place. Instead, the first thought should be ‘I’m free from all that expense and all that shopping!’ Try and put the whole idea out of your head. Relax into your diet. You normally reach without a care for the cereal packet, so reach for the grapefruit or the omelette pan instead.This is only for a few days. Try to be rigorous. Don’t start adding a little extra dressing here or an extra tablespoon of something there, just because a few days have elapsed and your waistband is feeling loose.You need to be firm and focussed.
Substituting one food for another
the DIETS
Most people will have some problems.You might not care for shellfish, for example, or be able to eat it.Tomatoes might disagree with you.You might find chicken unpalatable or white fish bland.What I would say is, never give up or change anything simply because you find it dull or tasteless: you can add seasoning and let’s face it, exciting, tasty food might be what got you to this place. I do see the problem, however, when you cannot eat something, for example being allergic to prawns. If this is the case, I would ask you to exercise sensible caution and look for a dinner you can eat.The menus in all three diets are strictly calorie controlled, so you will still lose weight. Just make sure to keep the basic elements in place, which usually means eating the correct breakfast and lunch for your chosen diet.
Swapping between diets I do not recommend swapping between diets because it becomes chaotic. Stick to one plan for three days and if you want to change, this is the point to do it.
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Supplements The diets are sound. However, as food intake is generally greatly reduced from what you may be used to, I recommend you have the following every day: • 1 multivitamin tablet with iron or a good iron tonic (ask at the pharmacy) • Omega 3 and 6 fish oil tablets
Exercise Exercise is a vital component of any woman’s life, and you will use more calories if you do exercise. I do not want you burning energy as if there were no tomorrow, so you should concentrate on figure-firming and streamlining moves. I will talk a little about this later in the book. Now on to the diets;
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the EGG and GRAPEFRUIT DIET
The beauty of the Egg and Grapefruit Diet Eggs and grapefruit are a good nutritional combination. Eggs are an important part of the diet and iron is better-absorbed in the presence of vitamin C – which is why grapefruit and oranges, whether as whole fruits or fruit juice, should always be taken when eating eggs. They are also good for a diet because eggs are filling and high in protein. All fruit provides a healthy dose of sugars for energy, giving you the right amount of sweetness to offset any cravings for sugar. Do not worry that you will be eating eggs and grapefruit to the exclusion of everything else. The first three days are firm, but thereafter I will introduce more interest so you have something to do in the kitchen if you want to, and you will be able to join others in your diet without necessarily making them aware that you are on a different regime.
Eggs Eggs are one of the best foods in the nutritional and diet larder.They contain the full complement of eight essential amino acid protein building blocks.These are important for growth and development and, especially in the interests of this diet, they are packed full of vitamin B12, B6, folate, selenium, vitamin E and iron. Forget the health scares about cholesterol – cholesterol in foods does not have a significant effect on cholesterol in your blood.
Grapefruit Grapefruit are the perfect complement to eggs. Grapefruit are a carbohydrate, almost totally fat-free (0.1mg per fruit) and protein free, but the most marvellous thing is that grapefruit juice helps you absorb the iron from your eggs (or from meat etc: you should always drink grapefruit juice with an iron-rich food.) which will stop you feeling maintain your alertness and energy levels.
The science behind the grapefruit diet Research carried out by scientists at the Nutrition and Medical Research Centre at Scripps Clinic in San Diego, America, has found that adding grapefruit and grapefruit juice to your diet really helps weight loss. The study included 100 obese people who were divided into three groups. The first group ate half a grapefruit before each meal three times a day. The second group drank grapefruit juice before each meal.The third group received no grapefruit. No other changes were made to their diets. After 12 weeks, those who ate grapefruit with each meal lost, on average 3.6lb. Meanwhile, those who drank grapefruit juice three times a day lost 3.3lb in the 12 weeks. By comparison, the grapefruit-free participants lost, on average, only 0.5lb. But weight loss wasn't the only health benefit.The research also found the grapefruit-consuming participants had lower levels of insulin, a hormone that regulates blood sugar levels and fat metabolism.
Suggestions for success Egg white Try to eat mostly egg whites with the addition of one whole egg to omelettes and scrambled eggs.This keeps the calorie content very low, even with the addition of a little oil for cooking as an egg white has only 10 calories The white of an egg contains more than half the egg's total protein, niacin, riboflavin, chlorine, magnesium, potassium, sodium and sulphur.
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1 Start each meal with a glass of ruby grapefruit juice or half a grapefruit - it's virtually fat free and contains just 35 calories. 2 Make a Florida cocktail and serve as a starter - peel and segment half a grapefruit and one orange and mix with a little unsweetened grapefruit juice. 3 Add grapefruit to salads - it goes well with crab, prawns, chicken, avocado, red onion, celery, radicchio and spinach. CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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DAY 1
To drink
The diet
• You may drink a glass of fresh, unsweetened grapefruit juice (200ml) any time you feel hungry, but do remember that it contains calories so must not be drunk with abandon! • 6 glasses of plain water with lemon or orange slices should be drunk each day. • A little alcohol may be drunk on days 4-7 but it is not compulsory and if you do have a glass, remember that you had just drunk 100 calories.
Phase 1 This phase is the most successful for your body. After an overload of food and drink, the first three days of the diet will cleanse your system and reduce the fat load.
Day 1 BREAKFAST • Half a ruby grapefruit or small dish ruby grapefruit segments (in juice) • 1 boiled egg • Tea or coffee, black or with skimmed milk, no sugar (but you may use artificial sweetener) LUNCH • Glass of grapefruit juice • Mixed, colourful salad including peppers, one carrot, grated, tsp sweetcorn. Spinach and watercress. Other vegetables to suit • Creamy salad dressing* DINNER • Half a ruby grapefruit • Omelette made with 1 whole egg and 3 egg whites* • Mixed colourful salad or mixed vegetables OR • Seared scallops or king prawns with grapefruit served on dark greenleaved dressed salad (use 6 scallops or prawns, sear in a pan with a little butter or oil to the consistency you prefer, take off the heat, thrown in a handful of grapefruit,with the juice, and warm through, turn immediately onto your salad, garnish with parsley and serve) To drink: Water. Coffee or tea, skimmed milk, no sugar SUPPER Mug of skimmed milk, hot or cold, 1 tsp honey
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DAY 2
DAY 3
Day 2
Day 3
BREAKFAST • Half a grapefruit or tinned grapefruit segments in fruit juice • 1 boiled egg • Tea or coffee, black or with skimmed milk, no sugar
BREAKFAST • Glass of grapefruit juice or grapefruit segments • 1 boiled egg • Tea or coffee, black or with skimmed milk, no sugar (but you may use artificial sweetener)
LUNCH • Glass of grapefruit juice • Prawn and grapefruit salad (Make as you would a prawn cocktail, shredding iceberg lettuce and watercress leaves, mix 100g prawns with broken ruby grapefruit segments and add tbs creamy dressing, a sprinkle of parsley and paprika) OR • Mixed colourful salad, which should include a grated carrot, tbs sweetcorn and peas with 6 broken walnuts and grapefruit segments scattered over DINNER • Half a ruby grapefruit or glass of grapefruit juice • 4-egg omelette as day 1 • Mixed salad with creamy salad dressing OR • Roasted or stir-fried mixed vegetables (e.g. courgette, carrot, onion, baby corn etc). Use 1 dsp oil to cook, or use a spray of oil. Herbs and spices to taste, a little sea salt and black pepper are fine SUPPER • Mug of skimmed milk, hot or cold, tsp honey
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LUNCH • Glass of grapefruit juice • Large mixed, colourful salad, including French beans, peppers, peas, sweetcorn and plenty of dark green salad leaves • Add 1 hard-boiled egg, sliced • Creamy salad dressing OR • Crabmeat and grapefruit salad. Use either 84g (3ozs) fresh white crabmeat or tinned is fine too. Mix with a few grapefruit segments and serve with mixed salad DINNER • Half a ruby grapefruit • 160g (6ozs) cod fillet, (baked in skimmed milk) • 1 carrot and a few florets of cauliflower, steamed, tbs peas OR • 4-egg omelette (1 whole egg and 3 whites) • Filled with dsp cottage cheese • Green salad with creamy dressing DESSERT • Grilled grapefruit* with crème fraîche
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DAY 4
DAY 5
Phase 2
DAY 5
This phase is slightly more relaxed.You do not need to go into this phase, but it is not advisable to repeat days 1-3. If you would like to continue crash dieting, continue for the next 4 days of the diet.
BREAKFAST • Dsp each grapefruit segments and 6 prunes topped with tbs low-fat plain bio yoghurt
DAY 4
LUNCH • Glass of grapefruit juice or half a grapefruit • Small portion of soft cheese (30g) such as Brie or Camembert, served with crudités (carrot, celery, courgettes) and a dsp unsalted nuts OR • Mixed colourful salad with either 2 slices (100g) cold meat, ham or chicken or one hard-boiled egg, sliced
BREAKFAST • 1 glass of fresh squeezed grapefruit juice • 1 poached egg and 2 rashers bacon OR • Dish of Grapefruit and orange segments mixed • Two eggs, any style • Tea or coffee, black or with skimmed milk, no sugar LUNCH • Florida Salad* or Waldorf salad* • Creamy salad dressing DINNER • Steamed or poached fillet of cod, served on a bed of steamed spinach with 3 baby carrots OR • Spinach soufflé* served with small mixed salad and dsp peas DESSERT • Grapefruit jelly* To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional).Tea or coffee
DINNER • Glass of grapefruit juice • Oven-Baked cod* (baked in milk) with mixed roasted or steamed vegetables, no sauces. Salad. Seasoning to taste OR • Mixed vegetable stir-fry with pine nuts DESSERT • Spiced, poached pear and apple with honey* To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional) SUPPER • Mug of warm or cold skimmed milk with honey
SUPPER • Mug of skimmed milk with honey
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DAY 6
DAY 7
DAY 6
DAY 7
BREAKFAST • Half a grapefruit • Omelette made with 1 whole egg and 2 whites • Tea or coffee
BREAKFAST • Half a Ruby grapefruit • 2 rashers bacon • 1 poached egg • 1 Multigrain crispbread spread with unsalted butter
LUNCH • Glass of grapefruit juice or half a grapefruit • Waldorf salad* OR • Scallop or prawn salad with grapefruit, as before • Tea or coffee DINNER • Glass of grapefruit juice • Grilled small fillet steak • Grilled tomatoes and mushrooms • Salad OR • 4 egg omelette, as before* filled with 30g grated cheddar, mixed salad and creamy dressing or steamed spinach DESSERT • Grapefruit jelly with dsp half-fat crème fraîche To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee SUPPER • Mug of warm or cold skimmed milk with honey
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LUNCH • Glass of grapefruit juice or half a grapefruit • 100g prawns mixed with tbs ruby grapefruit segments, piled onto salad base as before OR • 2 Multigrain crispbreads topped with cottage cheese or 30g grated Edam cheese and 2 sliced tomatoes • Apple DINNER • Half a ruby grapefruit • 1 pork or lamb chop, grilled served with steamed vegetables (no potatoes) and very small amount of thin gravy OR • 2 poached eggs on 1 slice of wholemeal toast, no spread or butter but you may use a small amount of tomato ketchup or brown sauce DESSERT • Grilled grapefruit with crème fraîche or portion of grapefruit sorbet To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional).Tea or coffee, little skimmed milk if desired SUPPER • Mug of warm or cold skimmed milk with honey CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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Recipes
Grapefruit sorbet
Creamy yoghurt dressing
Sorbet is very easy to make.The additional sugar adds calories of course, but if you keep portions small, it is still a lovely low-calorie dessert for your Crash Diet. 55 Calories per scoop INGREDIENTS: • 1 pint (550ml) Water • 6 oz (175g) Sugar • a large tin of ruby grapefruit segments
Remarkably tangy, this dressing contains about 20 calories per tablespoon. 1 In a small bowl, add 5 tbs of low-fat bio yoghurt. 2 Add tsp grain mustard. 3 Measure 2 tsp balsamic vinegar (or wine vinegar is fine if you would prefer the dressing not to look brown in colour). 4 Grate over this the rind of a lemon and then squeeze the juice of the whole lemon into the mix. Alternatively, for a sweeter dressing, use grapefruit juice instead of lemon. 5 Combine everything well, put into a jar with a screw top and refrigerate. You can adjust the ingredients to taste. For example, you might like a little more or less lemon, mustard or vinegar. Experiment!
Grapefruit jelly This jelly is easy to make, and a nice sweet end to a savoury meal. Makes 2 servings, 35 calories a serving 1 Put 500ml fresh ruby grapefruit juice into a clean bowl. 2 In a small dish, pour a packet of gelatine and add 2 tbs cold water. 3 Place the small dish in another dish or a pan, containing boiled water. The gelatine should start to dissolve, but keep stirring until the liquid becomes clear and there are no crystals. 4 Add the gelatine to the grapefruit juice. Stir well, then refrigerate. It should take anything from an hour to 4 hours to set. For the first hour, stir every ten minutes. 5 For variety, try adding some grapefruit segments or red grapes to the jelly as it is setting, say when half set.This will prevent the fruit from sinking to the bottom. Serve with a small dollop of half-fat crème fraîche or yoghurt.
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METHOD: Put the Water, Sugar and grated rind from one Grapefruit in a saucepan and gently dissolve the Sugar. Rapidly boil for about 5 minutes. Allow to cool. In the meantime, put the ruby grapefruit segments in a food processor and process for a few seconds until you have a pulp. Add the pulp to the Sugar & Water mixture when cool. Pour into a shallow (preferably plastic) container and put in the freezer. Stir occasionally so that lumps of ice do not form. Serve the sorbet in grapefruit halves or simply use a scoop. A serving is one scoop.
Spinach soufflé This is much easier to make than it sounds, and quite impressive! Needs to be eaten straight from the oven. Serves 2-3, Calories per serving: about 140 You will need: • 30g strong cheese • 2 large eggs • cornflour • bag of spinach or frozen spinach • skimmed milk 1 Set the oven to HIGH – 220C, gas mark 7.
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2 Put a bag of young spinach leaves into a saucepan with a tiny amount of water to stop the bottom of the pan burning. Put the lid on tightly and on a high heat, steam through for a minute or so until the spinach ‘falls’ and becomes a mush. 3 Alternatively, you might wish to buy frozen spinach. If so, use 3 tablespoons. 4 In another pan, put 1 tablespoon of cornflour with a little skimmed milk. Stir to a thin paste. Put on a medium heat and add 150ml skimmed milk. Keep stirring with a wooden spoon and the sauce should begin to thicken. 5 Remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper and add the cheese, grated and the spinach. Combine well. Allow to cool a little. 6 Separate 2 eggs. Add the yolks to the cooled sauce and beat well. Set aside. 7 In another clean bowl, whisk the egg whites until they are stiff but not dry. 8 Add the sauce to the egg whites, NOT THE OTHER WAY ROUND. Fold in gently – do not beat, as this will knock the air out of the mixture and the soufflé will fall flat. 9 Grease a soufflé dish or any ovenproof dish. 10 Pour the sauce into the soufflé dish and place in a roasting tin, into which you have out an inch of water. Place in the oven. The soufflé should be ready in 10-20 minutes.
Honey-coated pear You can use either whole pear, peeled or slice the pear first, leaving the skin intact. 80 calories a serving: 100 calories with crème fraîche or yoghurt You need one pear per person, a jar of runny honey and one whole orange. 1 Slice the pear lengthways, discarding the core.
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2 Place the slices in a small ovenproof dish and squeeze the orange juice over. 3 Squeeze or spoon over a dsp runny honey until the pear slices are coated. It might help to warm the honey first and pour over the pear slices, turning so everything is coated. 4 Add 2 tbs water and cover the dish tightly with tinfoil and put in a medium to high oven. 5 Bake until soft when tested, serve with crème fraîche or yoghurt.
Spiced, poached pear in red wine 55 calories a serving: 75 calories with a dsp half-fat crème fraîche 1 Peel the whole pear, leaving the stalk in and slice off a little of the bottom. 2 Place in a small ovenproof dish which covers the pear completely. 3 Pour a glass of red wine over the pear, and add tbs water. Put a couple of cloves into the dish and sprinkle over a dsp brown sugar. 4 Cover the dish tightly with tinfoil and put in a medium to high oven. Bake for about 30 minutes, but check that the pear is soft when a fork is inserted. 5 Discard the cloves. Serve with crème fraîche or yoghurt.
Florida salad 110 calories a serving Make a colourful mixed salad with plenty of dark green leaves, and add grapefruit and orange segments. Before serving, sprinkle over a handful of toasted pine nuts.
Waldorf salad 195 calories a portion (with dressing) You need: • 6 walnut halves, broken • 1 stick of celery, chopped into 2cm pieces • one small red apple, cubed CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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• 10 grapes, halved • creamy salad dressing • chopped Iceberg lettuce and watercress leaves 1 Put the lettuce and watercress into a clean salad bowl. 2 In another bowl, combine the chopped celery, cubed apple, walnuts and grapes, using the creamy dressing (amount to taste). 3 Pile onto the lettuce, decorate with chopped parsley and serve.
Grilled Grapefruit 50 calories per half Cut a grapefruit in half and loosen the segments with a grapefruit knife. Sprinkle with a teaspoon of brown sugar and pop under a hot grill until bubbling. Serve with a dollop of half fat crème fraîche or yoghurt, or on its own.
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the FRUIT and NUT DIET
The Fruit and Nut Diet I devised this diet when writing about the Stone Age. It’s a tricky area, because the truly Stone Age diet had no dairy food, cultivated vegetables or grains, and relied on seeds, nuts, fruit, some roots, meat and fish. However it is a very healthy regime and without a lot of starch, it will certainly kick-start your weight loss.This was one of the most recommended diets of 2007. * I have added dairy food here, but only in small amounts.
Fruit nutrition All fruit is good for you, with fluids and fibre and a wide range of micronutrients. Fruit is good in a diet, but always be aware that fruit is high in natural sugars and therefore contains more calories per portion than vegetables. Yellow fruits like mango, apricots • One of the richest sources of alpha and beta carotene which help fight cancers, wrinkles and ageing • High fibre
Nuts Why they’re good for you • High protein, but peanuts are the highest • Very high in beauty minerals selenium and vitamin E • High fibre • Walnuts have linoleic acid which lowers cholesterol • Cashew nuts have highest iron and zinc content • Almonds are high in calcium
Six reasons to eat fruit
4 Bursting with vitamins – A, C and E 5 Fruit digests in 30 mins; meat takes 6-8 hours 6 Almost zero fat
Diet rules It is easy to grab a piece of fruit and munch into it hungrily, and which perfect person has never done this? It is important, however, to respect your food.When there is a smaller amount of food than you are used to, now is the time to shine in your artistic skills and learn to present each meal as if it were being served in a Michelin-starred restaurant. After all, such establishments never serve massive quantities of food, but they have the knack of presenting meals so they look substantial. 1 Never eat until you are full.This is a bad habit. If you feel full, you might be eating too quickly, not chewing properly or swallowing a lot of air. Stop immediately. 2 Eat all your fruit on a place or in a bowl, cut or sliced up and presented nicely. 3 Sit down to eat. 4 The exception is when eating your nuts.You have to eat those with your fingers but again, eat each nut separately. Never just bring a palmful of nuts to your mouth and tip your head back! Make the most of each morsel. 5 Try to eat at the same times each day. 6 Drink orange-flavoured water with each meal and between meals. Simply fill a jug with tap water, add a whole orange, sliced, and leave to ‘marinate’ until needed. Drink chilled or at room temperature. Some people feel a little flatulent on this diet.This is because certain fruits, apricots and apples in particular, contain the natural sugar sorbitol, which is slightly laxative. Don’t let the initial bloating put you off: this will disappear when your system has been cleared of any old waste products, and your body gets used this amount of fruit.
1 It is the most natural food 2 High in fibre so naturally detoxes the body 3 High in carbohydrate, so gives instant energy
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DAY 1
DAY 2
Phase 2
DAY 2
DAY 1
BREAKFAST • Fruit platter with half a banana.Top with a sprinkling of toasted hazelnuts and water, tea or coffee as day 1
BREAKFAST • Make a nice dinner-plate of sliced fruit, beautifully arranged • Include half a banana, sliced • Top with a dsp of slivered almonds • Black coffee or tea, no sugar. OR water or herbal or fruit teas LUNCH • Half a melon • Make a salad of 1/2 sliced banana, 1oz mixed, broken nuts and 2 strips mango, cubed DINNER • Start each dinner with half a melon • Fruit salad of pineapple, mango, half an apple, sliced, a few blueberries and • 1oz chopped nuts as before.Top with a large tbs natural low-fat yoghurt OR • Crunchy Winter Salad with fruit and nuts* BEFORE BED • Glass of hot or cold skimmed milk with tsp honey
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LUNCH • Half a melon filled with raspberries or • Half an avocado, sliced, mixed with dsp toasted pine nuts and piled onto a green salad • Tea, coffee, water etc DINNER • Half a melon • Fruit salad of pineapple, mango, half an apple, sliced, a few blueberries and • 1oz chopped nuts as before.Top with a large tbs natural low-fat yoghurt OR • Crunchy Winter Salad with fruit and nuts To drink: water, coffee or tea BEFORE BED • Glass of hot or cold skimmed milk with tsp honey
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DAY 3
DAY 4
DAY 3
Phase 2
BREAKFAST • Half a melon, filled with fresh fruit eg strawberries, grapes etc • Coffee or tea as before
DAY 4
LUNCH • Half a melon filled with prawns and a little creamy dressing OR • Half a melon, followed by half an avocado filled with dsp tuna fish • Mixed salad DINNER • Half a Melon • Baked cod or haddock fillet • Green vegetables OR • Crunchy Winter Salad with fruit and nuts
DESSERT • Fresh fruit salad with yoghurt BEFORE BED • Mug of skimmed milk, hot or cold, with honey
BREAKFAST • 150ml fresh pineapple juice • Smoothie made with 150ml milk, 10 strawberries, 6 almonds, tbs plain yoghurt and 2 tsp honey OR • 6 prunes and 6 figs, topped with tbs natural low-fat yoghurt • Coffee and tea, as before, black or with skimmed milk, no sugar LUNCH • Orange filled with cottage cheese • Take the top off an orange and scoop out the flesh. Fill with cottage cheese. Surround the orange with a sliced banana OR • Mixed melon chunks mixed with 100g fresh prawns DINNER • 200ml glass of tomato juice • Chicken escalope, pan-fried, served on spinach with carrot purée (Flatten a small chicken breast. Fry in a little oil for a couple of minutes each side, testing the middle to make sure all pinkness has gone and the meat is white. Make a bed of spinach and carrot purée and serve the chicken on top.) OR • Quorn fillet in black pepper and lemon (bought variety) Sliced and served with a mixed colourful salad and creamy dressing. • Baked apple* with yoghurt To drink: water glass of champagne, dry white wine. Tea or coffee, little skimmed milk if desired BEFORE BED • Glass of hot or cold skimmed milk with tsp honey
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DAY 5
DAY 6
DAY 5
DAY 6
BREAKFAST • Fresh fruit platter • 1 slice of Multigrain Crispbread spread thinly with peanut or almond butter
BREAKFAST • 200ml fresh orange juice • Bircher Muesli - Put 30g oats into a bowl and add100ml skimmed milk and 1 tbs plain yoghurt, leave overnight or for at least an hour (it is therefore best to make this in advance). Grate one apple and crush 85g (1/2 oz) hazelnuts. Mix into the oats mixture so the whole is a thick, slightly crunchy paste. Put into serving bowl and top 1 tsp runny honey • Coffee and tea, as before
LUNCH • Half a melon filled with raspberries OR • Crunchy Winter Salad with fruit and nuts* DINNER • Half a melon or 200ml tomato juice • Tuna fish salad with hard-boiled egg* OR • Slice of Nut roast* served with mixed roasted vegetables
DESSERT • Roasted pineapple* with fromage frais To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee, little skimmed milk if desired BEFORE BED • Glass of hot or cold skimmed milk with tsp honey
LUNCH • 30g slice of hard cheese, 1 apple and palmful of peanuts OR • Mango, pineapple and grape salad with yoghurt • Orange water, coffee or tea DINNER • Small, (185g/6oz) fillet steak cut into strips and sautéed. Add tbs crème fraîche to make Beef Stroganoff. Serve on a bed of mashed sweet potato and add broccoli and peas DESSERT • Stewed, spiced apple* fromage frais To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee, little skimmed milk if desired
BEFORE BED • Mug of skimmed milk, hot or cold, with honey
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DAY 7
DAY 7
Recipes
BREAKFAST • Half a banana, a cup of skimmed milk, 6 almonds and 6 prunes as a smoothie OR • Melon, grape and mango platter
Crunchy Winter Salad with fruit and nuts
LUNCH • Half an avocado filled with crab meat, tuna or prawns. Salad OR • Cottage cheese and fruit platter – place scoop of cottage cheese on a plate and surround with half a banana, 10 grapes, blueberries, raspberries and sliced strawberries DINNER • Omelette made with 1 whole egg and 3 whites. Cook in dsp oil. Season to taste and serve with a mixed salad including 1 tbs each sweetcorn and peas OR • Vegetable and cashew nut stir fry Serve with soy sauce
DESSERT • Poached pear in red wine served with fromage frais or a baked apple with sultanas To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee BEFORE BED • Mug of skimmed milk, hot or cold, with honey
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About 270 calories a serving You will need: • white cabbage • red cabbage • grated carrot • dsp sultanas • 6 broken walnuts • 1 grated apple • 1 stick of celery, chopped finely • creamy dressing • finely chopped onions (optional) This is a lovely crunchy salad which, when you are relaxing from your crash diet, you can eat with a nice jacket potato. 1 Simply grate some red and white cabbage into a bowl – the amount does not matter, but don’t be too generous. 2 Grate a small carrot and add. 3 Throw in the broken walnuts and sultanas. 4 Grate a small red apple into the mix. 5 Add the celery and any onions. 6 Mix thoroughly. Add 2 tbs creamy salad dressing and mix together well. Serve immediately.
Roasted pineapple with fromage frais 70 calories a slice Roast pineapple is very easy. Take either a whole pineapple, if you are serving a number or people, or one ring cut from a fresh pineapple. Brush with a little melted butter sprinkle a tsp of brown sugar over and place in an ovenproof dish. Pour over 1 tbs fresh pineapple juice. CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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Cover tightly with foil. Bake in hot oven for 20 minutes, remove foil and cook for a further 10 minutes. Serve with fromage frais or yoghurt.
Spiced, Baked apple with yoghurt 110 calories each Cut the top off a large baking apple and remove the core with a sharp knife or s special apple corer. Gently score a line right round the apple, not too deeply, just to open the skin to stop it splitting during cooking. Fill the space with raisins or sultanas. Add half tsp butter, a little brown sugar mixed with cinnamon. Cover with foil and bake in a medium oven for 30 minutes, open the foil for the last ten minutes. Serve with yoghurt.
Stewed, spiced apple 35 calories a tbs This is very easy. Simply stew a few baking apples and add artificial sweetener after cooking. Add a tbs sultanas and half a tsp cinnamon.
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the BANANA and MILK DIET
The banana and milk diet Once known simply as the Banana diet, this is an old favourite which I have jazzed up a little to make it palatable for modern tastes. For example, the original Banana diet had quite a lot of liver in it during the second half of the week. It also had much less milk, and fluids generally, which we would not think desirable today. I first published this diet in 1995, to great enthusiasm from readers. The Banana and Milk diet supplies all the nutrients you need over 7 days. Methods of cooking: Your bananas and milk can be taken as I suggest, made into smoothies or baked. Dinner menu; Fish must be poached in the oven or steamed, with all vegetables either eaten raw or steamed without any butter. Salads must not have standard dressing, but the creamy Yoghurt Dressing recipe will be found on page 30.
DIET BONUS POINTS ✔ 45g protein (first 2 days, then 60g) ✔ 20g fat ✔ 700mg calcium, your entire day’s recommended amount
Cow’s milk is one of the most complete of all foods. It contains nearly all the constituents of nutritional important to humans. Unlike most foods from animals, milk contain a significant amount of carbohydrate, which makes it useful on a weight-loss diet as it provides energy and a sense of fullness from the protein content. Typical amounts of the major nutrients in a pint of whole and semi skimmed milk are given in the table below. Milk from Jersey and Guernsey cows have rather more fat as well as more betacarotene and calcium (due to the pasture they graze on). Recommended daily intakes: (adult women 19-50+) Protein 45g Fat: 71g (no more than 21g Saturated) Calcium 700mg
Calories Protein (g) Carbohydrate Fat Calcium (mg)
Whole (pint)
Semi
Skimmed
385 18.7 28.0 22.8 673
272 19.4 29.0 9.4 705
190 19.4 29.0 9.4 705
Supplements * One iron tablet or general tonic such as EFFICO
NOTE Milk left on the doorstep, exposed directly to sunlight for more than an hour lose a great amount of riboflavin (vitamin B2) and vitamin C.
Milk
Bananas
Star Nutrition points Milk helps the constant renewal of cells in the skin and therefore helps a glowing complexion. Magnesium, plentiful in milk, helps regenerate skin nerve endings and every 7ozs of milk gives you 6ozs of water, thereby topping up your fluid levels.
Bananas are very nutritious. They provide fibre (to aid digestion and cleansing of the insides) carbohydrate for energy, vitamins (especially vitamin B6) potassium, calcium, iron, zinc and folic acid.
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Ripe bananas contain enzymes that help digestion.
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DAY 1
Star nutrition points • 23g carbohydrate for energy • High in potassium which means they help rid you of water retention naturally • High fibre • Help reduce blood pressure • 95 calories per fruit
Which banana? Ripe bananas (with spots) Provide 23g sugar and 2g starch, meaning they give a fast rise in blood sugar. Unripe Bananas (green at both ends) Contains 2g sugar and 23g starch. This means they are SLOW release energy. NOTE Drink 2 pints of skimmed milk every day. Drink the milk as: • All-milk coffee • Warm milk and honey • Smoothie with a banana and tsp honey • Plain glass of milk
Phase 1 DAY 1 BREAKFAST • All-milk (latte) coffee or steamed milk on its own • Banana and pear sliced SNACK • Latte, cappuccino or glass of milk LUNCH • Banana and 300ml milk in a smoothie drink • 10 grapes SNACK • Latte, cappuccino or glass of milk with an apple DINNER • Whole Banana with apple, blueberry and strawberry salad • 1 120ml pot plain yoghurt SUPPER • 200ml Warm milk with tsp honey • 2 oatcakes
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DAY 2
DAY 3
DAY 2
DAY 3
BREAKFAST • Banana and milk smoothie with 1 tsp honey
BREAKFAST
SNACK • Latte, cappuccino or glass of milk LUNCH • Small carton of low-fat cottage cheese (or 2 dessert spoons) Arranged on a plate with a sliced banana, apple and grapes • Glass of water SNACK • Latte, cappuccino or glass of milk with an apple DINNER • Banana, strawberry and mango salad • Top with tbs fromage frais or raspberry coulis • 200ml milk SUPPER • 200ml warm milk with tsp honey • 2 oatcakes
• Banana and milk smoothie OR • Banana and raspberry salad (tbs raspberries) • Latte coffee or 200ml glass of milk SNACK • Latte, cappuccino or glass of milk LUNCH • Glass of milk • Mixed colourful salad with creamy yoghurt dressing SNACK • Latte, cappuccino or glass of milk with an apple DINNER • Glass of tomato juice • 6ozs cod or haddock Baked in a little skimmed milk to cover Add parsley, salt and pepper to taste • Serve on steamed spinach with 1 carrot, sliced and steamed OR • 4 Scallops (cooked), 2ozs prawns and 2ozs crabmeat in a salad • Creamy dressing • Salad greens including watercress • Baked banana* Serve with dsp half fat crème fraîche • Tea or coffee, little skimmed milk if desired SUPPER • 200ml Warm milk with tsp honey
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DAY 4
DAY 5
Phase 2
DAY 5
DAY 4
BREAKFAST • Latte, cappuccino coffee or Banana smoothie with honey OR • Banana, 6 strawberries, dsp blueberries and 150ml fresh orange juice whizzed into a smoothie
BREAKFAST • Banana and milk smoothie OR • Latte coffee, 1 boiled egg LUNCH • Cottage cheese and banana OR • Banana, strawberry, mango and grape salad • Tea or coffee and orange flavoured water DINNER • Glass of tomato juice • 6oz skinless, boneless baked, grilled or roast chicken breast • Serve on steamed spinach and add 1 carrot, steamed a little thin gravy OR • Cottage cheese filled omelette (1 egg, 3 egg whites) • Mixed green salad including watercress • Creamy yoghurt dressing
DESSERT • Portion of rice pudding To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee SUPPER • 200ml warm milk with tsp honey
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MID MORNING • Glass of milk • Apple LUNCH • 120g pot of low-fat yoghurt with added sliced banana • Tea or coffee and orange flavoured water DINNER • Glass of tomato juice • 180g (6ozs) cod or haddock, (or plaice, sea Bream etc) grilled or baked in milk • Mixed colourful salad including sweetcorn, peas and a carrot OR steamed cauliflower and puréed carrots OR • Mixed vegetable stir-fry with • Tbs pine nuts DESSERT • Baked banana* with yoghurt or crème fraîche
To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee SUPPER • 200ml Warm milk with tsp honey CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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DAY 6
DAY 7
Day 6
DAY 7
BREAKFAST • Sliced banana in yoghurt with handful of raspberries and blueberries. Add a tbs toasted wheatgerm (from supermarkets)
BREAKFAST • Put 1 dsp oats into a blender and add 200ml skimmed milk. Leave for 20 minutes if possible • Add one banana, 1 dsp yoghurt, 6 almonds and 2 tsp honey. Blend and drink OR • 2 Multigrain Ryvitas spread with mashed banana and topped with dsp half fat crème fraîche • Tea or coffee and orange flavoured water
LUNCH • Cottage cheese and banana salad with grapes OR • Tuna fish salad • Tea, coffee or orange flavoured water DINNER • Glass of tomato juice • Chicken breast, pan-fried, add tbs half-fat crème fraîche and a few pinches of fresh or dried tarragon before servings • Serve on a bed of mashed sweet potato and a side serving of French beans OR (Light tea) • Grilled banana on 1 slice granary toast • Mash a whole banana and spread it on the untoasted side of a slice of bread which has been toasted one side. Sprinkle with 1 tsp brown sugar and add tsp cinnamon. Toast until bubbling. Serve with a little fromage frais
DESSERT • Small portion spiced rice pudding or ground rice* served with stewed apple To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee, little skimmed milk if desired
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LUNCH • 2 slices ham • Serve with a large mixed colourful salad with walnuts, sultanas and creamy dressing and mustard if desired OR (Sunday lunch) • 2 slices any roast meat or 1 chop, steamed vegetables, no potatoes • Fresh fruit salad including half a banana. Dsp yoghurt DINNER • Glass of tomato juice • Escalope of chicken or veal, pan-fried, served with 3 tbs mixed ratatouille • *Courgettes, onions, tomatoes, carrots, in a garlic tomato sauce DESSERT • Baked banana* To drink: Water. Glass of champagne or dry white wine (optional). Tea or coffee, little skimmed milk if desired
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Recipes Rice pudding About 100 calories a serving • 4 tbs brown pudding rice • 2 pints semi-skimmed milk • Honey or artificial sweetener Method 1 This is so simple! Set the oven to 180C. Grease a pudding bowl. 2 In a pan, warm the milk until nearly boiling. Pour into the bowl. 3 Add the rice and stir well. Put into the oven and bake for 2-3 hours or until the rice is soft when tested. Stir a few times during cooking to prevent the rice sticking. 4 Remove and leave to cool a little. Add artificial sweetener to your own taste, stirring well. Or you can add a little honey and mix in. When on a maintenance diet add a few sultanas. Eat this with stewed fruit or take to work as a nice lunch.
Nut Roast
• • • •
2 tbsp dried thyme 4 large eggs, lightly whisked 4 tbsp olive oil a little oil for pouring on roast
Method 1 Place the bulgar wheat in a mixing bowl and pour on the boiling water and soy sauce. Cover and let swell for 25 minutes. 2 Grind nuts and seeds to a medium fine consistency. Mix together with the wheat. Stir in the parsley, thyme, onions, eggs and oil. Mix well and allow to stand. 3 Oil a large baking sheet and line with greaseproof paper. 4 Form a loaf shape with the nut mixture, about 10cm/4in wide, press firmly together and prick the top with a fork. 5 Pour on a little oil and sprinkle with some extra nuts (optional) and cap loosely with a foil hood. 6 Bake in oven 190C/375F/Gas 5 for 40 minutes. 7 Take off hood, baste with oil on baking sheet and continue to bake for a further 10 minutes. 8 Place in a large serving dish, then cool, easing off the paper as you do so.
210 calories a 100g slice Ingredients • 225g/8oz bulgar wheat • 330ml/11fl oz boiling water • 3 tbsp soy sauce • 175g/6oz pistachio nuts • 175g/6oz pine nuts • 225g/8oz blanched almonds • 175g/6oz cashew nuts • 110g/4oz hazel nuts • 110g/4oz sunflower seeds • 110g/4oz poppy seeds • 250g/9oz onion, finely chopped • 4 tbsp fresh and finely chopped parsley 58 CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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Not every woman is a beauty But you can delight everyone who sees you with your figure, poise and self-assurance. Confidence in your diet will help to give you these attributes; you will feel good about yourself, well-nourished and healthy. Crash dieting now and again will keep your figure slim the easy way, without the anguish and depression that inevitably results from not keeping a check on your eating habits and letting others decide how you should look. Forget the reasons you could not lose weight in the past; they are gone. Crash diets are a simple answer to a few vanity pounds, but I have several other diets you can follow for longer-term weight loss. I recommend Revenge Diet if you would like to lose weight a little more slowly, with slightly more substantial meal plans.
What now?
My book 5 days to a Flatter Stomach specialises in beating the bloat and helping you lose inches off your abdomen in time for a special occasion. But right now you will want to manage your figure and ensure you don’t go too far up the scales while enjoying your full and enjoyable life. I have to be truthful with you: I know of no models or actresses or socialites, to whom a good figure in designer clothes is a part of daily life, who suddenly splurge when their few pounds are lost. They might allow a few drinks here and there; the odd canapé or chocolate. But be assured (and I know this because many of them divulge their secrets and anxieties to me) that they are always aware of the calorie values of everything that passes their lips, and compensations are made elsewhere. They know that looking good takes effort, and you get out of a good figure what you put in. Is this obsessive and unnatural? Not in my view. Effort is required in all areas of life. To make progress at work you have to take exams, pass assessments and be competent. You cannot hope to become a doctor but say you would prefer to study for four years instead of seven. Standards exist wherever you look. If you make your living by looking good, watching your figure is not so much obsessive as necessary. it is more a case of vigilance and care than constant effort. I must admit that I live my life this way too: as a diet writer I cannot get fat. I need to look as if I take my own advice and show you that it works. I watch my diet, but I am not taken over by it. And of course, food is just as delicious whether you eat from a 6” plate or 10” plate.
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We are all human and it is natural to have a good appetite and enjoy your food. Food is one of life’s great pleasures. Luckily, some of the most delicious things to eat are also good for you, and natural beautifiers. Good eating is a good idea! I don’t think it is ever too late – or too soon – to get a proper diet in place. Here are my suggestions: 1 Losing weight is about calories. If you eat fewer calories than your body needs, you will lose weight. HOWEVER … Never choose low-calorie cereal bars, cakes or snacks, just because you looked at the packet and it said “only 94 calories” If the item is not fresh and natural, it has no place inside your body. The calories you eat must be from fresh food only.
6 Make others respect you. Being made to ‘work through a lunch hour’ is unacceptable and meal times are easily incorporated into a working life. I stop for lunch every day and it has never harmed my career. 7 Make the best of things. If you are on a journey and you simply can’t get out of buying a sandwich at a service station, don’t worry about it. Find an apple somewhere, or a banana. Buy a pint of milk, perhaps. With a bit of common-sense, imagination and determination, you can manage your diet and not become the victim of someone else’s idea of what you should eat.
2 Eat bite-sized portions of food. Think of finger-buffet portions. 3 A meal should be no more than ten mouthfuls. Count them. Hunger passes with the first mouthful. Nourishment is satisfied after about ten mouthfuls. If you have counted twenty mouthfuls and are still only halfway through your food, you are eating too much. 4 Successful weight loss and body maintenance depends on nutrition. Your body needs certain nutrients and vitamins and minerals in small amounts, and it does not know where they came from. Feed yourself – forget the notion of eating. Eating is the process of putting food into your mouth and chewing it. Feeding is how you maintain your body in perfect health, by giving it what it needs for growth, maintenance and repair. 5 Choose only natural food. Every minute you are reading these words, your hair is growing, cells are dying and new ones made, your heart beats and so on. It cannot do these vital tasks on a packet of crisps and bag of sweets. Never get hung up on the food you choose, but make sure it is something that feeds you and is natural. For example, we know what a fish, an apple, a piece of meat, a slice of toast is. We do not know what went into a bag of fizzy fish sweets or microwaveable curry. If you do not know what is in it and it was cooked before you bought it, DO NOT EAT IT. 62 CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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Some suggested menus to manage in future ALL DIETS The daily calorie counts still allow for the odd glass of wine and half a pint of milk daily in tea and coffee. Breakfasts – 200 - 300 calories Start every breakfast with half a grapefruit, juice or grapefruit segments.
Maintenance Diets
• 2 Eggs or bacon and eggs, with tomatoes and mushrooms • Porridge made with water – make sure you get 30g or buy sachets of Easy-Oats which are small portions. Add skimmed milk and a little honey • Scrambled eggs (2) on 1 slice wholegrain toast with butter • Omelette made with 1 egg and 2-3 whites • 1 banana, cup skimmed milk, tbs yoghurt, tsp honey and 6 almonds, blended as a smoothie • Mixed fruit platter and 1 slice wholegrain toast with butter • Melon filled with raspberries. 1 slice wholegrain toast with butter • 2 fried eggs and mixed fruit salad • Bircher muesli: 2 tbs oats soaked in skimmed milk, raspberries, hazelnuts and grated apple, mixed together and topped with yoghurt • 30g Special K or All Bran, skimmed milk, topped with half an apple, grated No between-meals snacks Lunches: 400 – 500 calories Always start lunch with either a glass of grapefruit or tomato juice, or a green salad. If eating out, ask for a salad. Always have a mixed, colourful salad with lunch with either: • Half an avocado • 2 slices cold meat or ham • A hard-boiled egg • Very small tin of tuna fish
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• • • •
A small wholegrain roll with butter Omelette and salad Wholegrain sandwich with tuna and watercress and tsp mayonnaise Cup of fresh lentil, vegetable or spinach soup with slice of wholegrain bread • Eating out - ask for plain grilled fish and vegetables • Pizza establishments - DO NOT CHOOSE THE PIZZA. Most have a pasta menu, so opt for pasta with vegetables. Follow the 10-mouthful rule. Then stop Finish with fruit or a banana
Weekends: Allow 3 glasses alcohol and no more. You may have a slice of cake or some biscuits or ice cream/ sorbet etc, but not all of these. Be discriminating: you know that each high fat, high starch item like cake adds a good 350-500 calories.
Dinners 500-700 calories When maintaining weight, always have your starch meal here. Keep high protein portions low or non-existent; for example, do not eat meat for dinner as it takes 6-8 hours to be fully digested. I suggest: Start each dinner with half a grapefruit or grapefruit juice. This takes the edge off your appetite. • • • • •
Jacket potato with tbs filling and salad Fish pie with fresh vegetables and potato topping Seafood paella with rice Pasta with vegetable sauce Small portion (size of a playing card) vegetable lasagne. Make up the plate with a salad, peas and carrots or spinach • Baked or roasted salmon fillet with vegetables • If you must accept chips, remember the 10 Rule and extend this to chips – no more than five. Reserve your first five mouthfuls for the main ingredients • If eating out, never accept tuna and sweetcorn filling which has been made up in advance – that mushy appearance owes much to salad dressing and oily mayonnaise. If you must accept this filling, go back to the 10 Rule and eat your vegetables or salad first
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Your good looks start at the beginning – with your body, how you use it, keep it, carry it and use it for what it is: the basis of great fashion. Both men and women agree about a beautiful figure. It is not your weight they notice (and who would tell them?), but the general impression you make. Modern living is death to a good figure. We sit too much, drive too much, walk and run too little. Many of the muscles in our body are never used. Our circulation slows, muscles and fibres grow slack. However rigid you are about diet, lack of exercise causes severe figure defects. It follows, therefore that some exercise will correct these defects.
Exercise the finishing touch
Whether your figure is a fraction out of proportion or seriously astray, there’s no excuse for apathy. Don’t console yourself with the thought that your face or your hair are your fortune and people won’t notice your body. They do. Don’t excuse yourself on the grounds that you can’t improve your figure anyway.You can. Perhaps you’ve had no results from occasional dieting or exercises done for a few weeks a year. Spasmodic attacks on your figure get you nowhere and no wonder: it takes steady, systematic work to make and keep your body beautiful. The media often describe exercise in misleading terms. Celebrities who stay trim and gorgeous are said to ‘endure’ hours of exercise or to be put through a ‘gruelling’ routine with a trainer. Who says it is either endured or gruelling? Maybe these women enjoy it and find it fulfilling and easy, not gruelling. I exercise a huge amount, naturally, by cycling or walking as much as possible, often going for day-long hikes or several days’ mountain climbing. This is neither gruelling, punishing or in any way detrimental to either my mind or body: quite the opposite. Millions of women who might be contemplating adding a fitness plan into their lives could be put off, imagining that a good figure automatically entails torture. I hope you are not one of those people, and will know the difference between exercising through guilt and exercising for pleasure. My message to you is get trim, lose the fat with diet and maintain your figure with careful attention to muscle tone, flexibility and strength, to keep everything firm and bulge-free.
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The truth about fat-burning Never, ever use exercise for weight control. Cardiovascular exercise is essential for health and our hearts, lungs and entire blood-pumping mechanism should be put through its paces a few times a week, for about 45 minutes to be effective. Our insides are a series of working parts, and I like to think of it as giving the car a run or taking the dog for a walk. Bodies should be kept in good condition, and testing our hearts and lungs is a priority whether you are fat or thin.
Tone
a good circulation. My advice is to get out and walk a fast mile every morning the minute you are out of bed, and at any spare opportunity, as often as possible, throughout your week.
To conclude Exercise, as I can’t say often enough, gives you your shape. No one today who believes in beauty can deny the importance of exercise, so try to make it part of your life rather than something you tack on like a chore. Treat yourself properly, and your figure and self-confidence will pay you back richly in terms of compliments.
You can change the shape of your body through toning. This goes in degrees, from general movement to weight training, which increases muscle size. I weight train my shoulders twice a week for ten minutes, because they have always been on the narrow side. Some women weight train their thighs or calves to increase the size of the muscle and produce a pleasing shape. Never weight train to lose weight or size however: to lose size, you must diet. To maintain a lean, supple and slender appearance, you should also do yoga, Pilates, toning classes and pay attention to posture. You will find animated exercises for all muscle groups on my website www.monicagrenfell.co.uk Weight aside, the good figure is not just firm but articulate. To be beautiful and noticeable, behave like a beauty. Give your body the care and attention it deserves. Have a long bath twice a week. Massage yourself with oils. Have a long stretch session. Sit well. Remember that when you slump in a chair or twist yourself this way or that, even the slimmest of figures will look lumpy.
Fresh air Try to take most of your exercise outdoors. This is what those movie stars like Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn used to do. There were no gyms in those days and they loved the fresh air and took long walks as often as possible. Fresh air makes you feel fresh, with the clear skin that comes from 70 CRASH DIET MONICA GRENFELL
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Finally... You only have one life, and it is a shame to spend half of it in tears and depressions about your weight. Lose weight now and carry in losing it. Get to a healthy weight and wear those wonderful clothes you long to see yourself in. Good luck and please let me know how you are getting on. Email
[email protected] and tell me. Write to Montgomery Books, PO Box 64, OXON, OX12 9GA Visit www.monicagrenfell.co.uk
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Also by Monica Grenfell
5 Days to a Flatter Stomach
Beat Your Body Chaos
Cellulite Buster
Get Back Into Your Jeans
Fabulous in a Fortnight
Revenge Diets
Monica’s Body Plans
www.monicagrenfell.co.uk
