Get started on your weight loss journey with our Mediterranean diet meal plan with recipes.
The Mediterranean diet pattern is followed not only by the individuals who live in Italy and Greece but all of the countries surrounding the Mediterranean Sea, including Spain, France and northern Africa. In addition, the principals of the Mediterranean diet can be applied to many other cultures and cuisines.
People who have historically enjoyed a Mediterranean diet, including the Cretans studied by the American social scientist Leland Allbaugh in the 1940s and physiologist Ancel Keys in the 1950s, are lean and largely free of heart disease and cancer. They also have longer telomeres – a measure of aging – and lower levels of inflammation throughout their bodies.
Why Choose a Mediterranean Eating Plan
There are many health benefits to following a Mediterranean eating plan. A few include:
- The whole-grain-rich diet provides plenty of fiber, which reduces the risk of heart disease, Type 2 diabetes and colorectal cancer. It’s also associated with a lower BMI, blood pressure and cholesterol.
- The consumption of plants, including greens, onions and tomatoes, has been credited for the low rate of premature deaths in the region. People who eat more produce also have lower rates of depression and anxiety.
- Research has proven that people who eat seafood twice a week have a significantly lower risk of death and are more than a third less likely to die of heart disease.
- The healthy fats encouraged in the Mediterranean diet reduce the risk of stroke.
- Most of the protein consumed in the Mediterranean comes from plant protein sources – beans, lentils and nuts.
It isn’t just the Mediterranean region that incorporates these healthy eating patterns. All of the blue zones follow similar eating patterns and are designated as such for the remarkable longevity of their residents.
Losing Weight on the Mediterranean Diet
In a large systematic review of five randomized controlled trials, the Mediterranean diet was equivalent to the low-fat, low-carbohydrate and American Diabetes Association diet in terms of weight loss. It bears repeating that the best diet for you if you’re trying to lose weight, is the one that you can enjoy and stick with. Most people enjoy the Mediterranean diet, which is certainly a feather in its cap compared to some more restrictive plans.
Although in some studies, such as this one comparing the Mediterranean diet to a low-carb diet, other diets fare better in terms of pounds lost, there are a few caveats to keep in mind. While it’s true that the low-carb diet resulted in a greater weight loss within the four-week period – 5.7% body weight vs. 3.6% – low-carb diets result in a great deal of water loss in the early weeks. The study would need to be longer to get a true picture of which diet fared the best in the long run.
Similarly, in this study comparing the vegan diet to the Mediterranean, the vegan diet did encourage a substantially greater amount of weight loss. However, the vegan participants ate a diet consisting of 1,315 calories, while the Mediterranean group consumed 1,855. Therefore, it is impossible to say whether the positive changes to the gut microbiome brought about by the vegan diet were truly responsible for the increased weight loss.
Keeping an eye on your portions of full-fat dairy products like cheese, oil, pasta and red wine consumption will allow you to both follow a Mediterranean diet and shed pounds in the process. “When it comes to losing weight and – more importantly – keeping it off, it’s really important to find an eating pattern that you actually enjoy. Diets that are very low in carbohydrates or very low in fats can be effective in promoting weight loss, but, in my experience, people get tired of the restrictions. I’ve found that a Mediterranean diet pattern is one that people find easier to adopt as a long-term behavior change,” says Monica Reinagel, a licensed nutritionist, host of the Nutrition Diva podcast and co-founder of the Weighless program.
What Specific Foods Are Included in the Mediterranean Diet?
There are no specific foods off limits when it comes to the Mediterranean diet. However, if weight loss is your goal, some foods are better choices to have in your pantry. The Mediterranean diet doesn’t have to be complicated or time consuming. By relying on canned and dried lentils and beans, frozen vegetables and seafood, and prepared whole grains, you’ll be able to keep costs down and get food in your belly before you become hangry and reach for a candy bar.
Here are some key tips to get started on a Mediterranean diet:
- Most Americans need to double their fruit and vegetable intake, so don’t be shy about adding colorful produce to every meal. The Mediterranean diet typically contains up to nine servings of vegetables and two servings of fruit daily.
- There is no need to drench all of your food in olive oil, even though you may have seen some famous TV cooking show hosts do just that! Using plant-based oils, such as safflower, olive and canola oil, sparingly will add flavor and healthy fats to your food without racking up calories.
- When you stop relying on salt, sugar and butter to make your food taste good, you have to learn to use high-quality spices and herbs and flavorings such as fresh lemon zest or canned tomato paste to add intrigue to your meals. Be brave and experiment!
“With food prices trending higher, the Mediterranean diet can also be very wallet friendly, with budget-friendly beans and grains often at the center of the plate. Prepared and “lightly processed” foods like hummus, veggie burgers, frozen vegetables, and canned beans are also real time-savers,” points out Reinagel.
