What is the 80/20 diet plan? Is it really effective or just a fad diet?

The 80/20 diet plan is easy to follow, you have freedom to choose your food, and it is a balanced diet.

If you are searching the web for the right diet for you to lose weight or increase your energy level or just to eat healthy you may have come across the 80/20 diet. We all know how hard to stick to your diet every single time this is the reason why 80/20 diet was created. It's very flexible and is very simple: Eat 80% healthy food and the 20% is for your happy meals or less healthy food that you love to eat.

What are the 80% healthy food composed of?

In the 80/20 rule diet meal plan, the 80% will be composed of green leafy vegetables, fruits, nuts, whole grains and beans. This will fill up the three-quarters (3/4) of your plate. One-quarter (1/2) of your plate will be meat or lean protein. Of course if for Vegans and Vegetarians you can use
protein substitute for meat.

According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s federal diet guidelines, the best way for a healthy diet and for you to lose weight is fill half of your plate with fruits and vegetables. To maximize nutritional value of fruits, try to consume a wide choices of fruits and vegetable the more color the better. In the guidelines, they also suggest that the other half of your plate will composed of whole grains and lean protein. You can also add a side of low-fat dairy (milk or yogurt) to your meal. Limit your consumption of salt(the recommended level of less than 5 g per day), saturated fat, and sweets.

Vegetables: Fresh vegetables are the best however if you have little time to go to the market frozen and canned will also do. You can boil, steam, blanch, roast, stir-fry and grill vegetables.

Fruits: You can eat any fruits that you like, however it's best to eat a wide variety of fruits so you can benefit taking different nutrients from different fruits. Fruits like apples, blueberries, bananas, oranges, dragon fruit, mango, avocado, lychee, pineapple, strawberries, cherries, watermelon, kiwi, peaches, guava, grapes, pomegranates, and grapefruit are readily available in your nearby grocery store.       

Whole Grains: When you want to keep your weight in check but want to fight off hunger you can always rely on healthy carbohydrates and fibre-rich foods like whole grains. Examples of healthy whole grains to fill your tummy are brown rice, buckwheat, barley, ragi, and quinoa.  

Dairy: Yogurt, soy milk, nut milk, cows milk, sour cream and cheese. According to the American Heart Association, it is recommended to consume "2–3 servings of fat-free or low-fat dairy products for adults. Children should have two or more servings, teenagers and older adults should have four."  

Here’s an example of the 80% part of the 80/20 diet menu plan (80/20 diet plan recipes):

Breakfast:
- Your choice of fruits
- Yogurt or cottage cheese
- 100% whole wheat bread
- hard boiled egg

Lunch:
- Salads: Chicken Caesar salad - romaine lettuce and croutons dressed with lemon juice, olive oil, egg, Worcestershire sauce, anchovies, garlic, Dijon mustard, Parmesan cheese, and black pepper, and pan fried boneless chicken breasts.
- Your choice of fruits

Dinner:
- Your choice of fruits
- Pan fish fillet, steamed broccoli or brussel sprouts and brown rice.

Snacks: Fresh carrots, grape tomatoes and cucumbers with yogurt, hummus or salsa for dipping.

80/20 Plant based diet meal plan

Breakfast:
- coffee or tea
- Bowl of "Cascadian Farm Organic Puffs Cereal" or "Swiss Style Muesli Cereal"

- Almond milk
- Banana or any other fruits

Snack:
- Orgain Organic Plant Based Protein Bar


    

Lunch:
- meat free burger



- Fluffy Quinoa (just cook it in water, without cover at a low settings. When all the water evaportes place a cover on top and let it steam so it does not get soggy.)
- Cucumber and tomato salad with chickpeas.
  Vegetables: cucumbers, tomatoes, red onion, and chickpeas.
  Dressing: lemon, olive oil, vinegar, agave nectar, vegan parmesan, salt, and pepper.

Snack:

    Crunchy Roasted Edamame


Dinner:

- Vegetarian Sausage (2 pieces)
- Mashed potatoes
- Green beans
- tea

Now for the 20% of your diet! (80/20 rule diet meal plan)

Since 80% of the time you are eating healthy food that are good for your mind and body, this time it's your choice. However, keep in mind you need to approach it caustiously do not overeat and do not eat all that you want at the same time. You can eat a pizza for dinner on day one and eat some cake the next day. This is a nice technique since the more unhealthy foods that you take off the more likely you overeat them.

There are no set of rules in the 80/20 diet plan. So you can make your own adjustments that will fit your schedule. Since most of us with nine-to-five job have weekend off where we go out with our loved ones we can plan to eat less healthy over the weekend.

What are the benefits of the 80/20 diet?

What makes the "80/20 rule diet meal plan" sustainable is that you are being satisfied by eating your favorite food which helps you keep following your diet, which means you’ll maintain the benefits they provide. The benefits of the 80/20 diet plan includes:
1. More energy during the day
2. Better sleep at night
3. Boost mental well-being
4. Healthier digestion
5. Lower risk of a lot of illnesses.
6. Not a restrictive diet, you can eat the less healthy foods
7. No tracking or counting
8. Flexible that can fit easily in your lifestyle



FREE 80/20 diet plan pdf - you can get a free 80/20 diet plan pdf here.