Chrono diet was invented in 1986. by a French doctor Alain Delabos. Whole foods is subordinated to the proper functioning of the pancreas and the secretion of insulin and cortisol, as well as to enzymes that are needed for food digestion, non of which are secreted equally at the the same time during the day.
The basic rule of this diet means to eat every 4 hours. It applies to the basic principles of chrono nutrition. In the restrictive period you need to eat on every 5 hours. There are 3 meals, Do not include eating snacks between meals.
How Does Chrono Diet Work ?
According to Dr. Delabos, inventor of this diet, there is certain times of day when our body naturally secrets hormones and enzymes that burn the nutrients in various food groups for energy instead of storing them as fat. Not only are you supposed to lose weight while never feeling hungry with the Chrono diet, but your fat is supposed to miraculously re-arrange itself and your cellulite disappear!
Dr. Delabos has analyzed the dependence of the digestive system of a person on the level of hormones and the production of enzymes, as well as the fluctuations of their indicators during the day. The result of his research has shown that if you eat at certain hours, the body is ready to absorb almost any food without harm to health. At the same time the metabolism is on the proper level, and the lipids are not deposited in reserve.
Complete diet is adjusted to secretion of hormonesinsulin and cortisol as well as enzymes required for digestion. Insulin is one of the most important hormones in human body and it controls how the body uses nutrients from the food, mainly fat and carbs. Cortisol affects these as well, but also our metabolism rate, blood pressure and other important functions. Level of these hormones and enzymes is not constant; it fluctuates throughout the day.
Eating certain food during certain time of day helps target the high level of these hormones and achieve better “combustion” rate. By doing this, chrono diet makes the body store less energy as fat in the body.
Chrono Diet Meal Schedule
Time for meals is a strict daily schedule. Only then the chrononutrition brings results and benefits.
Breakfast – from 6:30 to 9:30
Lunch – from 12:00 to 13:30
Afternoon snack – from 17:00 to 18:30
Dinner – not later than two hours before bedtime.
It is important to have three meals and between them should be a gap of approximately five hour to regulate blood sugar and insulin levels in the body. Additionally, with chrono diet it is recommended to have a walking interval workout. You should train in the morning or during the day; not at night.
Skipping meals is forbidden, especially dinner, which is in the other diets often avoided. Foods you should avoid when you reach your target weight are milk sugar, white flour and yogurt, which often contain starch. Unlike the hard and restrictive diets, the chrono diet is not demanding that you renounce yourself of foods you like. All you have to do is to correctly combine groceries in the given time periods. The interesting thing about this diet is that you can eat candies, which represent a bright and fun fact that motivates you to proceed on with it.
The correct intake of food sorts in a given time period is a fact that many nutritionists give comments about and the thing that complements that same fact is the regulated daily schedule of food intake which is provided in the chrono diet.
Chrono diet is becoming popular fast because it does not take into account the calorie intake. The good thing is that the pounds are not coming back if you continue to follow the easy rules.
The three main principles on which the program is based chrono diet
- Creating an alkaline environment in the body because acidification causes chronic inflammatory and degenerative diseases (cancer, heart attack, diabetes, etc.).
- Correct timing of daily meals. Required are three main meals a day (breakfast, lunch, dinner) with a time span of 4-6 hours in between, when you do not need to enter any food. Permitted water intake and herbal teas (no fruit).
- Carbohydrate index . The speed with which a particular food increases the level of blood sugar (glucose), that application of the so-called slow sugars,complex carbohydrates in the diet.
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Rules You Must Follow in Chrono Diet
- Rule number one is that you do not need to measure how much you eat. You should consume food until your feel hungry. You have three meals everyday with 4 to 6 hours between them. Five hours is the ideal number of hours. Just remember to eat slowly because it takes time for the information that you are full to reach your brain. When you eat too fast, by the time your brain registers the information that you are full, you overeat;
- In the morning the first thing you do is drink herbal tea (not fruit tea) or warm water with lemon. At least thirty minutes must pass before you eat your breakfast. Fifteen to thirty minutes after your breakfast, you can drink coffee without sugar (you can use stevia though);
- You cannot combine two types of protein (example: eggs and fish), two types of meat (example: beef and pork), two types of dairy (greek yogurt and cheese) and you cannot combine eggs with dairy;
- Pancakes, muffins and waffles are allowed, but only from allowed ingredients;
- Must drink up to 2 liters of fluids (water, tea, lemonade) but, not thirty minutes before and after your meal;
- You can drink coffee 2 times a day, fifteen minutes after breakfast and lunch;
- You must exclude fruit while losing weigh except lemon and avocado;
- Coffee is allowed 2 times a day, fifteen minutes after breakfast and lunch;
- The only things you need to count are: eggs (8 whole eggs per week, whites as much as you want); three tablespoons of seeds three times a week; only 4 glasses of red wine per week (the only alcohol allowed); you can consume dairy 4 times a week; 20 grams of butter per day-four days a week only;
- You cannot eat fruit while losing weigh except lemon and avocado;
- The use of sugar is forbidden until 17:00 (this applies to both sweet tea and cakes, as well as sweet fruit);
- The menu should be maximally varied and balanced. Thus, you should alternate the products, so that the body receives the necessary vitamins and minerals;
- Use of alcoholic and carbonated beverages is prohibited. However, red wine is an exception to this rule. You can afford to drink a glass at dinner two or three times a week.
Breakfast
For breakfast you can eat pork, ham, etc. just choose low fat. You can consume dairy only with breakfast. Additionally, you can eat all sorts of dairy except yogurt. Also, for breakfast only, you can eat bread made out of: rye, buckwheat, oats, spelt. Additionally, you can add sunflower seeds, chia seeds and sesame. You can eat whole eggs made the way you like (scrambled, omelet, boiled etc.) and for lunch and dinner you can only eat the whites. Basically, you can eat animal fats and whole grain carbs. Delabos explains that out bodies produce plenty of enzymes that handle fats and protein when we wake up. So, your breakfast can be rich and greasy meal. This meal is very important because it fills you up and you are less hungry during the day. You should finish your breakfast by 9:30 a.m.
Lunch
For lunch you can eat any sort of red meat (if you can, choose healthier cuts) and vegetable salad. You cannot eat bread, peas, corn, potatoes, beans, rice and green beans. If you eat carbs, take them with vegetables. On the other hand, you can eat beet, carrot and celery fresh only. It is best to eat lunch between 12:00 p.m and 13:30 p.m.
Also, in this diet, afternoon snack is included. You can eat small bit of healthy fats from: avocado, olives, nuts, peanut butter, honey or 30grams of dark chocolate. You can consume some fruit also. In addition, if you want some sweets this is the time to have some. Remember to have them in moderation. Best consumed between 17:00 p.m and 18:30 p.m.
Dinner
For dinner, you can eat chicken, turkey, fish or shellfish (lean meats); egg whites; and green and white vegetables. Also, you can eat butter, lard and olive oil. On the other hand you cannot consume vinegar and margarine. This is the lightest meal of the day. It is best to finish this meal two hours before going to bed.
CHRONO | Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner |
Monday | Bread, butter, ham and cucumber | Pork and salad | zucchini, tuna and green salad |
Tuesday | Muffin, eggs and tomato | Lamb, mushrooms and green salad | Fresh peppers with chicken meat |
Wednesday | Whole wheat bread with seeds, butter and ham | Beef, mushrooms and green salad | Turkey meat and kohlrabi |
Thursday | Muffin with millet flour | Salmon and green salad | Peppers and chicken meat |
Friday | oatmeal | Pork chops and salad | Omelet with egg whites and cucumber |
Saturday | Muffin | Pork tenderloin and salad | Kale and chicken meat |
Sunday | Leek bacon and eggs | Lamb and green salad | Mackerel and zucchini |
CHRONO | Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner |
Monday | Bread, bacon, butter and cucumber | Pork and tomato salad | Grilled mushrooms and green salad |
Tuesday | Muffin, scrambles eggs and tomato | Carp and fresh salad | Mackerel with veggies |
Wednesday | Bread, hummus and ham | Veal and salad(must) | Peppers, chicken meat and salad |
Thursday | Bread and greaves | Beef and veggies | Omelet with egg whites and zucchini |
Friday | Millet muffin and tomato | Kale and pork | Hake and cauliflower |
Saturday | Whole wheat bread and bacon | Catfish with veggies | Broccoli and tuna salad |
Sunday | Whole wheat pancakes and spinach | Lamb, mushrooms and green salad | Trout and green salad |
CHRONO | Breakfast | Lunch | Dinner |
Monday | Muffin (rye flour), scrambled eggs and tomato | Zucchini with ground beef and salad | Mushrooms in red wine and green salad |
Tuesday | Bread, butter, ham and dairy | Salmon with veggies and green salad | Grilled chicken and salad |
Wednesday | Millet with bacon and fresh pepper | Pork and two whole eggs | Broccoli and tuna salad |
Thursday | Muffin with 4 types of flour and eggs | Filled eggplant and salad | Hake salad |
Friday | Bread, eggs, ham, fresh tomato | Beef and salad | Omelet from egg whites and cucumber |
Saturday | Bread and greaves | Carp and fresh salad | White meat, horseradish and green salad |
Sunday | Bread, butter and ham | Pork and green salad | Turkey meat and green salad |