Semolina diet: is it possible to eat porridge for weight loss, is the diet effective if cooked in milk

Just 30–40 years ago, no one thought that semolina porridge could bring not only benefits, but also harm to the body. It was very popular as it was quick to prepare and perfectly satisfied hunger. It is also widely used in other dishes: cakes and pies, puddings and cutlets.

Children loved semolina porridge with milk with the addition of jam, berries and sugar. This turned an ordinary dish into a sweet dessert. And young mothers fed their infants with it. The news about possible health problems forced many people to reconsider their attitude towards it and called into question the statement about the benefits of semolina for the body.

Is it possible to eat semolina porridge and lose weight?

Contrary to stereotypes, a nutritious dish is not high in calories. If you cook semolina in water, without adding sugar and butter, its energy value will not exceed 80 kcal. This is even less than buckwheat and porridges from other cereals.

In addition, the finished dish has a very pleasant consistency. It is not dry, so there is no temptation to flavor it with something to make it easier to “chew.” In addition, it is well tolerated by the stomach and intestines and does not cause digestive disorders even during a semolina mono-diet.

It turns out that this product can help you get rid of excess weight if you make it the basis of your diet. The main effect will be achieved by reducing the nutritional value of the menu. And so much so that the method of losing weight using semolina can be compared to hard and low-calorie.

We recommend reading about the oatmeal diet for weight loss. You will learn about the benefits and composition of oatmeal, the advantages and disadvantages of an oat diet, a sample menu, and healthy recipes. And here is more information about the rice diet for weight loss.

What is semolina

Semolina is a by-product of the production of wheat flour. The color can range from light cream to pale yellow depending on the type of grain used in production.

What are they made from?

Semolina porridge made from wheat is more familiar to us, but there is also corn and rice semolina. It all depends on the crops growing in a particular country. Because of this, the health benefits and harms of semolina may vary.

Compound

In our country, this porridge is made from wheat grains by grinding. The grinding is fine, the diameter of the grains on average is no more than half a millimeter. Three varieties of wheat are used for production:

hard (T);
soft (M);
mixed (TM).

The nutritional value

In terms of BJU ratio, this cereal cannot boast of being balanced, since with a high content of carbohydrates, there is clearly not enough protein in it. Because of this, the question arose about what the actual benefits of semolina porridge are.

Per 100 grams of product there are:

protein - 12.68 g;
fat - 1.05 g;
carbohydrates - 72.83 g.

Semolina

Calorie content

In dry and cooked states, this wheat by-product differs in calorie content.

The energy value per 100 grams in raw form is about 350 kcal, in a finished dish - about 100 kcal.

Semolina cooked in water is not as harmful to the figure as is commonly believed.

Glycemic index

Semolina porridge is classified as a product with a high glycemic index (hereinafter referred to as GI). Its level depends on what kind of wheat the cereal is made from. If hard varieties were chosen for production, it will be 60, from soft ones - 65.

Does it contain gluten or not?

For people with gluten intolerance, semolina porridge is harmful. It contains a large concentration of this substance.

Vitamins and microelements

Not many people know what vitamins are present in semolina porridge. These are mainly B vitamins, with the highest concentration being B3 (3.31 mg). The rest do not exceed 1 mg per 100 grams of product.

The dominant microelements are phosphorus and potassium. Calcium, iron, magnesium, sodium and zinc are present in small quantities.

How effective is the diet?

Unlike other schemes that involve severe dietary restrictions, the semolina menu will not harm the stomach. And it will not require special “exits” from the diet after its completion. However, like any strict program, it will reduce the intake of nutritious protein and fat into the body, since there is not so much of its “richness” in the composition of this cereal.

The value of semolina, compared to other cereals, is small. But her calories are not “empty” at all. In addition to enveloping starch, it contains vitamins B and E, as well as manganese, magnesium, potassium, fluorine and copper. They will help protect the skin from loss of elasticity and “support” the nervous system. In addition, low-fat semolina menu:

will reduce blood cholesterol levels;
improves the condition of blood vessels and heart function;
will facilitate the work of the kidneys;
will prevent the appearance of swelling.

Physical activity will be an additional incentive for losing excess weight during the semolina diet. Since porridge consists mainly of carbohydrates, the necessary energy for sports exercises will be available. And although it is unlikely that you will be able to achieve high results and records, visiting the gym three times a week or jogging in the fresh air will speed up your metabolism, enrich your blood with oxygen, improve your mood and help cope with stress.

Is semolina porridge healthy or harmful?

Like all things, porridge is neither healthy nor harmful. She is food, a source of calories, carbohydrates, a small amount of protein, and for some pleasant, but for others terrible memories. It all depends on the purpose and dosage. Let’s say, for a beginning healthy lifestyle practitioner who is not yet able to dose “comfort food” for psychological reasons, it is better, of course, not to eat semolina yet. Since the soft texture is very conducive to eating not 100 g, but, say, 400 g of porridge.

For a person with gastrointestinal diseases or a banal indigestion, semolina can serve a good purpose - it can provide energy without the risk of additional irritation of unhealthy organs with such fiber, which is useful from the point of view of mass consciousness.

For a marathon athlete, porridge, horror of horrors, with sugar will provide the necessary glycogen for normal training. An athlete-bodybuilder preparing for a competition has unnecessary and even excess glycogen. In general, you can eat porridge, especially if you really need these carbohydrates at the moment. And “demonizing” certain foods and making avoiding them the goal of life is a direct path to orthorexia, which is recognized as an eating disorder.

Is it possible to cook with milk?

Weight loss will occur faster if semolina porridge is cooked only in water. In this case, the duration of the mono-diet should not exceed three days. The diet will be very meager, so there is a high risk of getting exhaustion and loss of consciousness instead of the desired slimness.

To make the weight loss process smoother and gentler, you need to stick to a special diet for about a week. In this case, semolina porridge will have to be cooked with the addition of low-fat milk or the menu will have to be expanded with other permitted products. For example, like this:

fruits (except bananas and grapes);
“dried fruits” (except for candied fruits);
vegetables and herbs;
honey (no more than one teaspoon per day).

About the semolina diet, watch this video:

Diet porridge recipes

During a three-day mono-diet, you need to prepare a fresh portion of semolina before each meal. This is due to its taste. After cooling, the porridge will turn into a dense, frozen paste that you are unlikely to want to try. The recipe for the dish is:

Pour a glass of water into the pan.
Gently pour a tablespoon of semolina on top without a “slide”. This must be done so that the grains remain on the surface and do not fall to the bottom.
Leave without stirring for five minutes.
After the semolina swells, put the pan on the fire.
Stirring constantly, bring the porridge to a thick consistency.

For a longer period of the diet, water for porridge can be mixed with milk in a ratio of 1:1 or 1:2. The remaining stages of preparing porridge will remain unchanged.

How to prepare dietary semolina porridge

Time: 15 minutes.
Number of servings: 1 person.
Calorie content of the dish: 190 kcal.
Purpose: dietary dish.
Cuisine: Russian.
Difficulty: easy.

The basis of a diet based on semolina porridge is properly cooked cereal, without salt, sugar, or butter. The secret to preparing the dish is to constantly stir the porridge while cooking, so that lumps do not form in it, which can cause discomfort. Served in beautiful plates, appetizingly decorated with fruits, berry sauce, honey, condensed milk, a semolina dish for weight loss will evoke pleasant emotions and reduce the feeling of severe limitation and the burden of dieting.

Ingredients:

water – 120 g;
semolina – 35 g;
milk with 1.5% fat content – 160 g.

Cooking method:

Mix milk with water and bring the liquid to a boil over low heat.
Add the semolina in a thin stream, stirring vigorously to avoid the formation of lumps.
Cook for two minutes, stirring.
When the porridge begins to thicken, remove from heat and cover the pan with a towel for 10 minutes.
Serve garnished with dried fruits or jam.

Example of a semolina diet menu

There are several options for losing weight using “baby” porridge. Each of them requires a different duration, so the methods of preparing semolina and its volumes will vary. It is not recommended to independently change the order and composition of main meals. Any changes, both smaller and larger, will affect the final result or cause harm to health.

Mono-diet for three days

This is the most stringent type of dietary semolina food. It is very monotonous and “hungry”, and is only suitable for fasting days. Porridge should be cooked in water and consumed three to four times a day in portions of 200. In between, you can drink tea or coffee without sugar and milk, and drink a sufficient amount of clean water. All other products are prohibited.

Mono-diet for five days

The main dish during this eating plan will be semolina prepared with the addition of milk. For all five days you need to eat like this:

Breakfast – a portion of semolina porridge with a spoon of honey and coffee without sugar.
Lunch – 250 g of cooked semolina and a teaspoon of jam.
Afternoon snack – one unsweetened fruit.
Dinner – a portion of semolina porridge.

Be sure to drink clean still water and herbal teas throughout the day. And if you have problems with stool, be sure to include another fruit or a teaspoon of bran in your diet.

Diet for a week

This type of nutrition is the most gentle. During this period, semolina porridge can be prepared either with the addition of milk or without it at all. It all depends on taste preferences and tolerance to the combination of fresh and cooked foods. It is recommended to create the menu for each day yourself, but adhere to the following scheme:

Breakfast – a portion of semolina porridge and an unsweetened hot drink.
Lunch – a plate of semolina and a portion of stewed vegetables.
Afternoon snack – 100 g of semolina with a teaspoon of honey or one fruit.
Dinner – 100 g of semolina porridge and a salad of fresh vegetables.

Oatmeal

It has a low calorie content, contains quite a lot of protein, and saturates with healthy carbohydrates, vitamins and minerals. And what is very valuable is that it has a large amount of coarse fiber, which removes harmful substances, that is, it performs the function of cleansing the body. But, again, everything said applies to whole grains. The porridge in the instant bag has already been cleaned and processed. Unfortunately, there will be practically no useful properties in it. Almost just starch. Therefore, the best choice is traditional cereal, which needs to be cooked for 15-20 minutes.

Oatmeal, sir. Why has this porridge become the most popular Read more

Result

By following the semolina diet, you can lose two or more kilograms in one

well.
But repeating it more often than once a month is not recommended. The weight lost too quickly will return at the same speed if you do not change your lifestyle and diet.
Therefore, this method of losing weight is more suitable for those who need to “lose weight for the weekend” or prepare to switch to proper nutrition.

Semolina diets are especially popular among nursing mothers who want to get rid of the pounds gained during pregnancy. Despite the absence of contraindications, it is better to postpone this type of weight loss until the end of the lactation period. A sharp reduction in caloric intake can affect the quality of milk and hormonal levels, as a result of which the baby’s digestion may suffer.

In addition, nutrition throughout the entire period of any version of the semolina diet will be quite monotonous. Therefore, there is a high risk of “breakdowns” and attacks of hunger. You need to be mentally prepared for such sensations and motivate yourself with the end result.

We recommend reading about the cereal diet for weight loss. You will learn about the benefits of a porridge diet, contraindications, rules for brewing porridge while maintaining maximum benefits, and a menu. And here is more information about the Grossman diet.

Like many nutrition systems based on one type of product, plans with semolina for weight loss are suitable for those who really love this porridge. The short duration and high effectiveness of the diet will help improve your figure without excessive physical effort. However, if you have poor tolerance to cereals, allergies or other individual characteristics, you will have to abandon this method of combating excess weight.

Semolina

The most controversial. We are accustomed to perceive it as porridge for dietary and baby food. Cereals are made from purified wheat, which means that almost all the shell, vitamins and minerals are removed from the grain. In fact, only starch remains. Nevertheless, semolina contains wheat protein, which is very well and easily digestible. Therefore, semolina can be considered dietary and suitable for feeding children, especially those with digestive system problems. And also for elderly, weakened people, whose digestive enzymes also work less well. But the glycemic index is high, so it is not suitable for diabetics.

Useful video

Watch this video about the benefits and harms of semolina porridge:

What are the benefits of semolina porridge, vitamins and minerals?

The main benefit of semolina is obtaining an energy reserve and a long-lasting feeling of fullness, thanks to the rich phosphorus content.
It helps keep the heart and kidneys in good condition. Calcium helps maintain bone mass in tone, and zinc improves immune strength. Dietary fiber prevents the development of cancer, vitamin E has a beneficial effect on brain function and reduces the amount of “bad” cholesterol. The product is useful after long-term gastrointestinal diseases. The minimal amount of protein makes semolina an ideal product for people with kidney disease.