The Watermelon Diet is a mono diet not without risks despite the benefit of rapid weight loss; read on to know all the details involved with this diet both at the time of doing it and to maintain the benefits obtained and minimize its possible consequences for the Health. A fruit rich in water, watermelon also helps to satisfy hunger quickly while being excellent for eliminating toxins from the body with a good diuretic effect. Hence it is used to lose weight. With these principles in mind, the watermelon diet was created and is recommended as an effective plan to lose weight and detoxify the body naturally without feeling hungry. It is presented as a healthy diet since, in addition to the good results for losing weight, it is a complete weight loss plan because it includes in each menu foods that provide the necessary energy for the day-to-day but without contributing many calories.
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Watermelon properties
Watermelon, also known as watermelon or patella, is diuretic and detoxifying, helping reduce high cholesterol levels and providing the body with vitamin A, beta-carotene, Vitamin C and potassium, with a high satiating power that it contributes to the body water and fibre. Poor in sodium and low in carbohydrates, this watermelon diet is also suitable for those who have diabetes, and with a low caloric value, every 100 grams provides 32 calories to the body. The high potassium content makes watermelon a recommended food for regulating blood pressure and cardiovascular functions, while the fruit seeds are also beneficial and are good to eat. In addition, due to its diuretic properties, watermelon helps eliminate fluids and toxins, which is the main reason it enables you to lose weight. Let’s see what the Watermelon Diet consists of and how to do it, a quick plan with which it is possible to lose up to 3 kilos in five days quickly.
What is the watermelon diet?
The Watermelon Diet is an eating plan of about 1200 calories daily, and you can lose up to 2 kilos per week. It is a diet based mainly on replacing some foods in the daily menu with watermelon; in this way, it is possible to take advantage of its low-calorie intake and the incredible power of satiety, which finally helps to lose weight. However, it is not necessary to substitute food for watermelon at all meals; just once or twice a day will be enough, even many people do replace desserts with this fruit, and as it is a natural source of water, it is excellent to implement this eating plan in the summer. Although the Watermelon Diet helps to lose weight quickly and in a healthy way, it is advisable and essential not to do it for more than five days since doing it for a longer time can cause the unwanted “rebound effect” that is to regain the kilos lost and even some more as soon as you start eating normally.
How to do the Watermelon diet
The important thing is to follow the recommendations and prepare each menu with the indicated foods, in addition, of course, to be willing and committed to making some changes in eating habits that will serve after doing the diet. Remember that the watermelon diet should not be done for more than five days as it can cause unfavourable health effects. The idea is to follow the food plan step by step and, after this time, continue with a healthy, balanced diet, free of foods that provide a lot of fat to the body, avoid pastries and “junk food” in general and complete the weight loss plan with an exercise routine at least three times a week. It is essential not to exceed the five days of diet and not consume in that period, cereals, sugars, eggs or fat, but if it is possible to vary the type of meats, fruits and vegetables that the daily menus propose, an excellent way to don’t get bored. With the Watermelon Diet, you can quickly lose weight by eating five meals daily to avoid starving and enjoy weak digestion. Among the allowed foods are vegetables, lean meats, fish, poultry and always portions of watermelon or watermelon juice, which in addition to being delicious, is ideal to quench thirst.
Menus for the Watermelon Diet
DAY 1 Breakfast
- One cup of unsweetened coffee or tea with sweetener.
- Two whole wheat crackers.
- One yogurt
- One slice of watermelon.
Midmorning
- Two pieces of watermelon.
Lunch
- One grilled or grilled beef steak.
- One serving of broccoli steamed with one tablespoon of olive oil.
- One natural yogurt without sugar.
Mid-afternoon
- One glass of watermelon juice.
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- 1 grilled hake fillet.
- One portion of artichokes sautéed with garlic.
- One slice of watermelon.
DAY 2 Breakfast
- One cup of coffee without sugar and with sweetener.
- One whole wheat toast spread with light cheese.
Midmorning
- Two slices of watermelon.
Lunch
- One serving of steamed cauliflower.
- Two chicken thighs baked or grilled with lemon juice.
- One plain yogurt without sugar or a watermelon sorbet.
Mid-afternoon
- One glass of watermelon juice.
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- One bowl of fat-free mixed vegetable soup.
- One fish fillet baked with lemon.
- One slice of watermelon.
DAY 3 Breakfast
- One cup of coffee or tea without sugar.
- One whole wheat toast or two rice crackers.
Midmorning
- One slice of watermelon.
Lunch
- Two pieces of York ham or turkey.
- One serving of steamed spinach with garlic and one teaspoon of olive oil.
- One piece of watermelon.
Mid-afternoon
- One glass of watermelon juice.
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- One portion of squid or grilled fish.
- One serving of grilled mushrooms or a serving of steamed vegetables.
- One natural yogurt.
DAY 4 Breakfast
- One cup of tea without sugar and with sweetener.
- Two whole grain cookies.
- One natural yogurt.
Midmorning
- Two slices of watermelon.
Lunch
- One grilled or grilled beef steak.
- One serving of brown rice.
- One natural yogurt.
- One watermelon lolly or watermelon sorbet.
Mid-afternoon
- One glass of watermelon juice.
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- One serving of pureed vegetables.
- One tortilla stuffed with asparagus or spinach.
- One slice of watermelon.
DAY 5 Breakfast
- One cup of coffee with milk without sugar and without sweetener.
- Two whole wheat crackers.
- One slice of watermelon.
Midmorning
- Two slices of watermelon.
Lunch
- One serving of pureed zucchini or carrots.
- a Portion of the grilled breast or three skewers of watermelon, peppers and pickles.
- One watermelon sorbet.
Mid-afternoon
- One glass of watermelon juice.
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- One portion of pureed leeks with a bit of grated cheese.
- 1 grilled hake fillet.
- One slice of watermelon.
Contraindications of the Watermelon Diet
There is no perfect diet, and for that reason, in all of them, we will find contraindications or side effects that in this watermelon diet, or diet of the leg in particular, occur if you eat a lot of this fruit since large amounts can cause intestinal discomfort or stomach. Watermelon is fat-free and is a good source of vitamins A, B6 and C, in addition to potassium and also provides the body with the beneficial natural chemicals of the plant, such as lycopene, more than those contained in tomato and citrulline. In addition, 1 1/2 cups of watermelon contain 9 to 13 milligrams of lycopene, which has the red pigment of watermelon, an excellent antioxidant. But be careful; even watermelon is a fruit, and consuming it in excess can bring cardiovascular problems and even nervous disorders. Some gastrointestinal problems can appear when watermelon is consumed in excess, despite being a fruit with many health benefits. However, 30 milligrams of lycopene in watermelon can cause adverse side effects. The American Cancer Society has researched this and looked at the harmful effects of a supplement rich in lycopene, including problems such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, indigestion, and bloating. Also, high consumption of foods with potassium, such as watermelon, can adversely affect people diagnosed with hyperkalemia or who have too much potassium in their blood. In addition, it is also possible to see people with dangerous cardiovascular effects such as weak pulse or tachycardia.
Advantages and disadvantages of the Watermelon diet
As with other weight loss plans, many people wonder if it works before starting to do it. There are testimonies of people who claim to have lost a lot of weight with this diet, and they did it in a short time, did not starve, and did not have any undesirable effects.
Advantages of the Watermelon diet
One of the advantages of the Watermelon Diet is that being a natural diuretic helps eliminate fluids and toxins. In the first days, you will notice a more significant weight loss that later becomes slower since fats are harder to lose. But, it goes without saying that with the Watermelon Diet, not only is fluid and toxins lost, but it is also possible to dissolve accumulated fats since the food plan is low in calories, and what watermelon does is create a caloric deficit in the body. The Watermelon Diet is generally well tolerated. It helps reduce body fat, detoxifies the body, and reduces the kidney burden thanks to its diuretic effect, a normalizing fruit for metabolism. On the other hand, this is a good diet for those who suffer from hypertension, infections and allergic diseases, kidney, gout, liver or biliary tract problems.
Disadvantages of the Watermelon diet
It is a contraindicated diet for those who suffer from kidney stones, severe pancreatic diseases, prostate cancer and pyelonephritis. Losing weight is healthy when you have extra kilos, but a diet such as watermelon is only designed to be done for five days, then returning to a balanced diet that is low in calories but provides the nutrients that the body needs. Something interesting about this diet is that you can eat sliced watermelon and fruit juice, but without forgetting to drink water, tea and coffee daily or green tea that helps burn fat. Suppose after doing this diet it is necessary to continue losing weight, it will be required to rest for a week, with a different diet, although low in calories. In that case, it is possible to follow a unique plan for the next ten days with a breakfast that includes oatmeal and a slight lean cheese—Fish, meat, seafood, and vegetable salads with a bit of salt and olive oil.
Watermelon diet recipes
Many recipes can be prepared using watermelon as the main ingredient, including sorbets and other light, fresh desserts that can be eaten even when the watermelon diet is not followed. Here are some ideas for new, light and delicious recipes with this refreshing fruit; some are on the menus of the watermelon diet, while others are not part of that food plan, but all are low-calorie.
Watermelon sorbet With a refreshing taste, this watermelon sorbet is not only easy to prepare but also delicious. Ingredients (for four people)
- Five hundred grams of clean and seedless watermelon.
- 125 ml of water.
- Two tablespoons powdered confectionery sweetener.
- Two tablespoons of lemon juice.
- One teaspoon of unflavored gelatin.
Place the water and powdered sweetener in a bowl, mix well, and add the unflavored gelatin and reserve. Clean the watermelon, remove the seeds and rind, cut into cubes and blend. Add the lemon juice and the sweetener diluted in water and unflavored gelatin to the watermelon puree, and mix well. Place the preparation obtained in a container serving the freezer and freeze for a few hours, stirring occasionally until it has the right texture. To start the mixture, use a fork. Once it has taken the consistency of sorbet, it can be served.
Watermelon, pepper and pickle skewers Ingredients ( for four people)
- Watermelon.
- Pickles.
- Roasted peppers.
- Natural yogurt.
- Mustard.
- Shall.
- Lemon.
- 10 cm skewers.
Preparation With the pulp of the watermelon, make small balls using the Noisete Potato Machine Cut the gherkins into 5 mm slices. Cut the roasted peppers into 5mm pieces. Take the skewers and insert watermelon, pickles and peppers alternately, always ending with a watermelon ball. To accompany the skewers in a bowl, beat the yogurt until it is very liquid, add a few drops of lemon juice, mustard to taste and salt. Serve the skewers and cover them with some natural yogurt sauce.
Pickled watermelon Ingredients
- ¼ cup of peeled and seeded watermelon.
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder.
- Two tablespoons of cherry honey.
- Two tablespoons of vinegar.
- One tablespoon of olive oil.
In a bowl, place all the ingredients, mix well and place in a jar with an airtight seal. Store in the refrigerator and serve as a snack or garnish to accompany a beef, fish or chicken fillet.
Watermelon salad: The secret to making this watermelon salad tasty is that it should be served immediately after being prepared. Ingredients (for four people)
- Two cups of seedless watermelon cut into small cubes.
- ½ cup crumbled low-fat cheese.
- ½ cup of finely chopped onion.
- Six cups of chopped spinach.
- Pepper.
In a bowl, mix the cheese, spinach, watermelon and onion. At the moment of serving, add vinegar and pepper to taste.
Watermelon and tomato juice Ingredients
- One watermelon is peeled and cut into cubes.
- Two tomatoes without skin and cut into cubes.
Preparation Place the watermelon without the shell, without seeds, cut it into small cubes, cut the tomatoes into medium cubes, and possibly remove the seeds until obtaining a thick and homogeneous juice. Take to the refrigerator for an hour and serve very cold.
Watermelon popsicles These watermelon popsicles also have orange, and in addition to being delicious, it only provides 25 calories, which is why they are perfect for the diet to lose weight. Ingredients
- 250 grams of watermelon.
- One large orange
- juice of one lemon.
- One tablespoon of sugar (optional).
Preparation Remove the peel from the orange and the white skin that covers it and gives a bitter taste to the practice; cut into cubes and place in the blender glass. Add the watermelon, peeled and cut into small cubes, and the lemon juice to the previous preparation. Process everything for 1 minute at medium speed. If you want to add the tablespoon of sugar and process for five more seconds, Pour the mixture into the special ice lolly moulds and place in the freezer for 2 or 3 hours.
Conclusions
The Watermelon Diet is similar to many other fast diets to lose weight. The only difference is that instead of eating a variety of fruits, they are replaced by watermelon or juices of this fruit. The best or most helpful thing that can stand out from this Watermelon Diet, also known as the pin diet, is its diuretic effect. Therefore it is recommended for people who suffer from fluid retention and must eliminate toxins and cleanse their organisms. In any case, we must never forget that it is a fast diet and should not be done for more than five days, but if any symptoms of discomfort appear immediately, it should be suspended and consult with the doctor.
Sources and References
- Uanl (Autonomous University of Nuevo León, Mexico)
Diet supplemented with watermelon to reduce weight in obese people
- Spanish Nutrition Foundation
Watermelon
- University of Granada
Lifestyles and diet
My name is Ellie Lauderdale, MD and I am USA based professional Nutritionist .
I am a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and board certified specialist in sports dietetics who is trained in integrative medicine. I have worked with hundreds of clients, from those suffering with chronic disease to professional and olympian athletes. My goal is to help optimize you from the inside so that you can feel, perform, and look your best on the outside.