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Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan – An Ideal Way to Lose the Fat

The Mediterranean diet meal plan might be just what the doctor ordered, if you want to lose weight the healthy way.

The diet is easy to implement, has many health benefits, and incorporates the traditional cooking style of the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea.

Most healthy diets include fruits, raw or steamed vegetables, fish, whole grains, and limiting fats. Variations in the proportions of certain foods can make a positive difference in the way you look and feel.

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Benefits of the Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan

The Mediterranean diet reduces your risk of heart disease. In fact, a 2007 study found that both men and women who consumed a Mediterranean diet had a lower risk of both heart disease and cancer.

Key Components of the Mediterranean Diet Meal Plan

Get plenty of exercise and eat meals with family and friends

Consuming a generous amount of fruits and vegetables

Adding more healthy fats such as olive oil and canola oil to your foods

Use herbs and spices instead of salt to flavor foods

Eat small portions of nuts at least twice a day, four times a week

Drink red wine, in moderation

Consume very little red meat

Eating fish or shellfish at least twice a week

Adding Fruits, Vegetables, Nuts and Whole Grains

The traditional Mediterranean diet includes fruits, vegetables, pasta and rice. People who live in Greece eat very little red meat but average nine servings a day of antioxidant rich fruits and vegetables daily. The Mediterranean diet is associated with a lower level of oxidized low-density lipoprotein cholesterol (LDL, the bad cholesterol) that's more likely to build up plaque in your arteries.

Nuts are another part of a healthy Mediterranean diet. Nuts are high in fat (approximately 80 percent of calories come from fat), but tree nuts, including walnuts, pecans, almonds and hazel nuts, are low in saturated fat. Nuts are high in calories, so they should not be eaten in large amounts but generally no more than a handful a day. For the best nutrition, avoid processed nuts and eat them raw.

Grains in the Mediterranean region are typically whole grain and usually contain very few unhealthy trans fats, and bread is an important part of the diet there. However, throughout the Mediterranean region, bread is eaten without butter or margarine, which contain saturated and/or trans fats. Instead, bread is typically dipped into cold pressed olive oil and eaten.

Consuming Healthy Fats

The focus of the Mediterranean diet meal plan doesn’t limit total fat consumption. Instead, it focuses on the wisest choices of the fats you consume. Fats consumed in the Mediterranean Diet include monounsaturated fats, such as olive oil, and polyunsaturated fats, which contain beneficial linolenic acid (an omega-3 fatty acid). These fats come from food sources which include canola oil and nuts, particularly walnuts, and fish.

Fish is eaten almost daily in the Mediterranean diet. Omega-3 fatty acids lower triglycerides and may improve circulatory health. The Mediterranean diet discourages saturated fats and hydrogenated oils (trans-fatty acids), both of which contribute to heart disease.

The Mediterranean diet meal plan emphasizes using olive oil as a primary source of fat, rather than animal or dairy fats. All types of olive oil provide monounsaturated fat, which helps reduce LDL cholesterol levels when it’s used in place of saturated or trans fats.

Cold pressed olive oils are the slowest and best processed oils that contain the highest amounts of protective plant compounds, which are the healthiest for you.

Consuming Wine

The health effects of alcohol have been debated for many years, and some doctors are reluctant to encourage alcohol consumption because of the health consequences of excessive drinking habits. However, moderation of the intake of alcohol has been associated with a reduced risk of heart disease.

Red wine is a blood anticoagulant and also contains antioxidants. The Mediterranean diet includes red wine, but only in moderation. This means no more than 5 ounces (148 milliliters) of wine daily for women and men over age 65, and no more than 10 ounces (296 milliliters) of wine daily for men under age 65. Any more than these amounts actually increases the risk of health problems, including the risk of some types of Cancer.

If you're unable to limit your alcohol, have a family history of alcohol abuse, or have heart or liver disease, refrain from drinking red wine. Instead, substitute with a good red grape juice or Acai Berry juice, which are both rich in flavanoids and antioxidants. Red wine may also trigger migraines in some people.

Mediterranean Diet Food Chart

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Read Food Labels

Eat natural peanut butter.

Use butter sparingly.

Eat 10 servings a day of fresh fruits and vegetables.

Use canola or olive oil in cooking. Try olive oil for salad dressings. Add olive oil, garlic and spices for flavor in your dishes. Dip breads in olive oil.

Season your meals with herbs and spices rather than salt.

Substitute fish and poultry for red meat. Avoid high-fat meats.

Limit higher fat dairy products such as whole or 2 percent milk, cheese and ice cream. Switch to skim milk, fat-free yogurt and low-fat cheese.

Eat fish once or twice a week. Water-packed tuna, salmon, trout, mackerel and herring are healthy choices. Grilled, broiled, or steamed fish are good cooking choices.

Keep raw walnuts, almonds, pecans or Brazil nuts for a quick snack.

Drink a glass of red wine at dinner with your pasta or fish. If you don't drink alcohol, you don't need to start. Drinking purple grape juice or Acai Berry juice may be a healthy alternative to wine.

Another benefit of a Mediterranean diet meal plan is that it can save you money at the grocery store. Instead of spending your money on processed foods and exorbitant amounts of meat, you will instead be choosing fresh fruits and vegetables, limiting meat, and choosing to purchase fish or fish oil supplements.

Fried fish or fish that’s served with butter or heavy sauces isn't part of the Mediterranean diet meal plan though. Use healthy fats, such as cold pressed olive oil and canola oil, when you cook but only in moderation because of their high calorie content.

Consider nuts as a snack or an addition to eating more healthy salads. Finally, reduce or eliminate saturated fat and trans fats (hydrogenated or partially hydrogenated oils) from your diet. Once you experience the delicious and healthy choices the Mediterranean diet meal plan has to offer, it just might become your favorite diet for life.

Related Pages

The Raw Foods Diet

Omega 3 Fatty Acids

Best Programs to Lose Weight

Related Products

Mediterranean Diet Books

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