Scarsdale diet: what it is, how it works, what to eat and what to avoid, example of menu
The Scarsdale Diet is one of the many low-calorie, low-carbohydrate, high-protein diets that are all the rage on the Internet. What makes it different from other diets? How does it work?
The Scrsdale Diet food program lasts 14 days and is very restrictive. The daily energy intake does not exceed 1000 kcal, regardless of gender, age, weight or level of physical activity. In addition, the food choices allowed are very limited. In this article you will find an example of a weekly menu.
The Scarsdale Diet promises to lose up to 20 pounds in 2 weeks, but what do nutrition experts say? Is it a healthy choice for you?
Scarsdale diet: what is it?
It is a diet aimed at rapid weight loss. It consists of a low-calorie , low-carbohydrate (low-carb) and high-protein (high-protein) diet plan .
The macro-nutrients are distributed as follows :
How is it different from other weight loss diets?
Almost all diet programs aimed at weight loss are low-calorie, i.e. with a reduced kcal content. The energy you need to face the day is equivalent to the so-called daily energy requirement.
Food contains this energy, which is measured in calories. Low-calorie diets simply provide fewer calories than your daily energy needs.
This allows your body to tap into fat (energy) reserves. Typically, low-calorie diets provide a total amount of food of 1200-1500 kcal/day for women and 1500-1800 kcal/day for men, taking into account the level of physical activity.
The Scarsdale Diet is a very strict diet plan. It allows you to consume only 1000 kcal/day without taking into account individual parameters such as weight, height, gender and daily physical activity level.
The Scarsdale Diet is also very low in carbohydrates (<100 g/day). However, it is not a pure low-carb diet like ketogenic diets. In fact, the latter categorically exclude carbohydrates and derive energy from good fats and proteins (they are also high in fat and protein). Scarsdale doesn't exclude carbohydrates entirely, but it does allow them in a limited way.
In addition to being low in calories and fat, Scarsdale emphasizes protein. Other high-protein diets include the Zone Diet, the Dukan Diet, the Atkins Diet, and the Metabolic Diet. These diets, each with its own eating pattern, encourage the consumption of protein foods. In fact, proteins represent more than 20% of kcal/day.
In Scarsdale, however, the program is fixed and defined: 2 weeks of diet (14 days) + 2 weeks of maintenance (Keep Slim program). There is no room for error, either during the 14 days of diet or during maintenance, although the latter is more permissive.
How the Scarsdale diet works: between weight loss and maintenance
Scarsdale is a low-carb and high-protein slimming program which is divided into two distinct phases : the actual diet, lasting 14 days, and the maintenance phase (Keep Slim), also lasting 14 days.
Scarsdale Diet Phase, 14 days
The Scarsdale program is aimed at rapid weight loss and promises to lose up to 9 kg in 14 days . To achieve this goal, severely limit daily calories to a maximum of 1000 kcal/day, divided into 3 main meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner).
In fact, this diet is very restrictive and does not allow mid-morning or mid-afternoon snacks . However, it does allow you to munch on a few vegetables (celery, cucumber or carrot) in case you feel hungry between meals.
Choice of foods in the Scarsdale Diet is severely limited . Not only are alcohol, sugar, fats and fast foods, commonly considered non-dietary foods, excluded, but "harmless" foods with a high nutritional value, such as lentils or beans, are also prohibited.
Instead, he prefers low-carb foods with a high protein content , such as meat, fish, eggs, or low-fat cheeses (in fact, the diet recommends that 43% of daily calories come from protein).
Given the strong caloric restriction and the limited variability of foods, it is strongly discouraged to continue the diet beyond the 14 days indicated . The advice is always to consult your doctor or a nutrition professional before approaching this type of drastic diet.
Keep Slim maintenance phase, 14 days
At the end of the 14 days of the Scarsdale diet, the Keep Slim maintenance period will follow . Although more permissive in terms of daily calories, this phase continues to limit the choice of foods allowed.
The objective of these 2 additional weeks is to get the body used to diets with a more normal energy intake. What changes in the Keep Slim phase? You can:
Exceed 1000 kcal/day, without exaggerating.
Add carbohydrates from bread, pasta, or rice (preferably wholemeal).
Abound with the portions (always choosing from the allowed foods).
The Scarsdale Diet has very low energy content and limited food choices making it unsustainable in the long term. To lose weight in a healthy way, what you should do is rely on a nutrition expert.
A properly balanced diet plan from a nutritional point of view, studied on your metabolic needs, will allow you to achieve lasting results.
Scarsdale diet: what to eat
Recommended and permitted foods
Few foods are allowed on the Scarsdale diet. Reaching 1000 kcal a day is really very easy. That's why it's essential to control portions, as well as respect the list of allowed foods.
What Can You Eat on the Scarsdale Diet?
Lean meats : chicken breast, turkey, lamb, rabbit, beef, veal, pork (lean parts), lean cold cuts (removed cooked and raw ham, turkey breast, bresaola).
Fishing products : lean fish (plaice, sea bream, sea bass, sea bass, cod, sole), anchovies, tuna, salmon, but also molluscs (octopus, mussels, clams, cuttlefish, squid) and crustaceans (prawns, crab).
Low-fat cheeses : low-fat ricotta, cottage cheese, light spreadable cheese.
Fruits (not all fruits are allowed!): Citrus fruits (grapefruit, lemon, orange, lime), green apples, peaches, cherries, strawberries, blueberries, black grapes, mangoes, papayas, watermelon and melons.
Non-starchy vegetables : celery, carrots, cucumbers, radishes, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, green beans, collard greens, artichokes, spinach, chard, chicory, rocket, radicchio, lettuce, romaine, lamb's lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, eggplant.
Protein bread , or with wholemeal flour (1 or 2 slices a day).
Other foods : artificial sweeteners (stevia), vinegar, spices, purifying herbal teas, coffee, tea.
In this diet there are really numerous foods that are forbidden or not recommended. Even healthy foods with a high nutritional value, such as lentils and beans, are in fact abolished in this diet.
Here is a list of prohibited foods :
Fast food and snack food.
Fats and oils : butter, cream, lard, margarine, seed oil, but also olive oil.
Sugar and sweets : candies, ice cream, pastry products, including both milk and dark chocolate.
Processed meats : sausage, porchetta, "fat" cured meats such as lard, salami and mortadella.
Wheat and cereals : pasta, rice, flours and baked goods (if not prepared with high protein flours).
Dairy products : whole milk, yogurt and aged cheeses.
Starchy fruits and vegetables : bananas, figs, prunes, raisins, pears, squash, potatoes, tubers.
Legumes: lentils, beans, chickpeas, peas, lupins and broad beans.
Sweetened drinks : fruit juices, sodas, sweetened teas.
The Scarsdale diet allows the consumption of some foods in moderation. These are foods to limit :
Dried fruit and avocado , because they are a source of fat: even if they are good fats, mostly omega 3, they should still be limited in this diet.
Semi-skimmed or skimmed milk.
Scarsdale diet: example of a weekly menu
The Scarsdale Diet doesn't offer many ways to spice up your daily meal plan. He recommends having a protein breakfast , which also includes a carbohydrate component.
The ideal breakfast in the Scarsdale diet therefore consists of 1 slice of wholemeal or protein bread (without the addition of spreadable cream, peanut butter, or other), a grapefruit, or a seasonal fruit, tea or coffee without sugar.
The main meals are composed mainly of protein foods (meat, fish, eggs, low-fat cheeses) and non-starchy vegetables. As a condiment it allows you to use spices, lemon, or vinegar. In fact, oils or other fats are not allowed in the diet as a condiment. Sugar-free tea or coffee is always allowed at the end of a meal.
Snacks are forbidden , but if you really can't resist between meals, the diet allows you to eat carrots (2-4 carrots), cucumbers (1-2 cucumbers), or some celery sticks (4 ribs) , hide yourself.
It is important to drink plenty of water throughout the day, at least 2 litres.
Here is a sample menu for the first week of Scarsdale diet.
At this point you may be wondering if this diet works for weight loss? Assuming that everyone reacts differently to drastic dietary changes like the one the diet promotes, chances are you'll lose weight within the first 2 weeks. Let's see how.
The strong calorie restriction, below your daily requirement, will cause your body to use energy reserves. These are mainly contained:
In adipose tissue, as fatty acids
In the muscles, in the form of glycogen.
Glycogen is the form in which carbohydrates are stored in muscle. It provides quick energy for muscle fiber work, but can be used as an energy molecule in conditions of calorie restriction. Glycogen is a chain of glucose molecules. It is a carbohydrate (carbohydrate), therefore rich in water molecules. When your body uses glycogen, therefore, it releases water.
Even water has weight. Some of the pounds lost in the first two weeks of the diet will be due to water loss.
For healthy weight loss, it is not important how many pounds are lost, but how the weight loss occurred. Losing weight quickly is unlikely to lead to good, long-lasting results.
Losing weight well means losing fat mass without losing lean mass (in fact, increasing the muscle component of lean mass). Achieving this goal requires a balanced diet based on individual metabolic needs that does not provide energy below the basal metabolic rate.
The Scarsdale Diet, on the other hand, suggests an energy intake of up to 1000 kcal/day, which could be less than your basal metabolic rate.
What is the Basal Metabolic Rate?
Basal metabolic rate (BMR) is nothing more than the amount of energy your body needs to carry out its vital functions (breathing, heart rate, circulation, digestion), without taking into account your level of physical activity or the energy expended in everyday activities (shopping, driving, cleaning the house, etc.). It's different for everyone. In fact, it depends on factors such as weight, height, gender and age, as well as body composition.
Let's take an example: a 27-year-old male, 1.70 m tall, weighing 85 kg (overweight) will have a basal metabolic rate of about 1100 kcal.
What happens when you eat less than your basal metabolic rate?
The Scarsdale diet is an example. The 1000 kcal/day is not even enough to meet the basal metabolic rate of the boy in the example.
Without going into too much detail about the physiological processes involved, when the body eats below the basal metabolic rate, it makes a series of metabolic changes. It is a survival defense mechanism. In order to carry out vital functions with the few calories allowed, it does nothing but reduce energy expenditure.
In other words, it reduces the basal metabolic rate. This change remains even after the diet is finished. That's why, after a crash diet such as the Scarsdale Diet, it's easier to regain the pounds lost (even if you eat "normally").
In fact, healthy low-calorie diets never go below the basal metabolic rate. That's why it's important to consult a nutritionist. Only a professional will be able to correctly assess your BMR and show you a dietary but balanced diet that will provide you with the nutrients you need for healthy and lasting weight loss.
Does the Scarsdale Diet Work? Contraindications and risks
This diet program, which is very popular today, was actually born in the late '70s, in Scarsdale (New York), in the United States.
Its creator, cardiologist Herman Tarnower , studied it with the aim of making overweight or severely obese heart patients at Scarsdale Medical Center lose weight quickly .
He reached the pinnacle of success with the publication of the book: "The Complete Scarsdale Medical Diet Plus Dr. Tarnower's Lifetime Keep-Slim Program", in 1978. There is also a vegetarian version of the diet (Scarsdale vegetarian diet).
Since its publication, Dr. Tarnower's diet has attracted quite a few controversies from nutrition experts. In fact, nutritionists consider it an unbalanced diet with too drastic a calorie restriction. It is therefore not a healthy diet, but it hides many health risks.
The Scarsdale diet has many limitations, in many respects. It does not instill proper food education, proposing an unbalanced diet from the point of view of macronutrients and little variety.
We have already made some mention of its real effectiveness. Although it promises great weight loss in a short time, the results are not long-lasting. Rapid weight loss is in fact mainly due to the strong caloric restriction of the diet, while the pounds lost are mainly attributable to the loss of fluids and muscle glycogen reserves.
In addition to facilitating the recovery of the lost kg ( yo-yo effect ), this type of fast diets, or "flash diets", bring with them many health risks and contraindications.
Let's analyze the most important aspects.
Reduction of the basal metabolic rate : regaining the lost kg is not just an aesthetic problem. We have seen that a diet that provides an energy intake lower than one's basal metabolic rate leads to a reduction in metabolic activities. The body activates the "energy saving" mode and this continues even after the diet, lowering your metabolism.
Production of ketone bodies (Ketoacidosis): in the absence of carbohydrates (in fasting, or in drastic high-protein diets such as the Scarsdale diet) the body draws energy from proteins and fats. In other words, it forms glucose from amino acids and fatty acids. To do this, however, it produces some molecules called ketone bodies (acetone, acetoacetic acid and β-hydroxybutyric acid). The excessive accumulation of ketone bodies in the blood creates imbalances for the body.
Insulin Stimulation : Excess protein in a single meal triggers insulin release. This hormone directs cells to the glucose formation pathway (gluconeogenesis) and the accumulation of fatty acids in adipose tissue.
Unbalanced nutrient intake : the Scarsdale diet attaches great importance to the protein content (43% protein) to the detriment of carbohydrates (34.5%) and fats (22.5%). This split is not sustainable in the long term. In addition to the low caloric intake, nutrients (except proteins) are also scarce. In fact, a limited choice of foods does not allow you to fill up on all the vitamins, minerals and essential fatty acids necessary to carry out your metabolic activities. Olive oil, for example, is a no-no on the Scarsdale diet, but it's an important source of vitamin E and good unsaturated fats.
Hepatorenal damage : introducing too much protein into your diet puts some organs under strain, primarily the kidneys and liver. You will have the production of uric acid in abundance, catabolite of protein metabolism. If not properly disposed of, this is toxic to the body. High-protein diets like Scarsdale's increase the risk of developing kidney or urinary tract stones.
Not everyone can, therefore, follow this diet without putting their health at risk. The Scarsdale diet is not suitable for children, adolescents, the elderly, pregnant or nursing women , individuals who are underweight, hospitalized patients, or those with gastrointestinal, kidney, or liver-related conditions. Adult individuals in good health should however consult a nutrition expert before approaching such diets.
Depending on the level of physical activity and work performed, a caloric reduction at this level could in fact cause loss of strength, nausea, headache, general malaise, dizziness, or fainting. Is it really worth it?
Correct guidelines to follow for a healthy weight loss diet
Here are the correct guidelines to follow for a healthy and balanced slimming diet according to the principles of the Mediterranean diet:
Vary your diet as much as possible, preferring seasonal foods.
Never go below your basal metabolic rate with calories.
Follow the directions of the food pyramid.
It is good to choose foods rich in fibre, such as legumes, vegetables and whole grains, limit the consumption of simple sugars (sugary drinks, sweets) and saturated fats (butter, fast food). Consume red meat once a week, while you can give more space to oily fish, legumes, low-fat cheeses and white meats (chicken, turkey, lamb).
Don't miss out on carbohydrates and proteins , but also good fats (extra virgin olive oil, or omega 3 from dried fruit and oily fish)
Respect the proportions of macronutrients.
In a healthy and balanced diet, the distribution of calories should be as follows: 55-60% carbohydrates, 25-30% fat, 15-20% protein.
Drink at least 2 liters of water a day.
Practice physical activity.
For a low-calorie diet that is both healthy and balanced, contact a nutrition expert. Only a food plan studied on your metabolic requests can help you lose weight in the right way, not by eliminating liquids, but excess fat. A nutritional program based on the principles of the Mediterranean diet, rich in fiber and low in saturated fat, but with the right amount of protein, carbohydrates and good fats, is ideal for approaching a diet in the correct way. Varying your diet as much as possible, following the foods and colors of the season, will also allow you to fill up on vitamins and minerals.
If you are trying to lose weight and want your results to last for a long time, follow a low-calorie but healthy and balanced diet based on the principles of the Oatmeal Diet, the model which inspired diet .
A properly balanced nutritional plan is the first step in maintaining a correct metabolic state of health, but remember: good rest, reducing stress levels and practicing physical activity are just as important for a successful diet.