The Dukan method has grown out of Doctor Pierre Dukan's 40 years of experience working with patients. He has devised a weight-loss method structured around 4 phases, two for losing weight, two for stabilising the weight you get down to, using a list of 100 permitted foods from which you can eat as much as you want.
This method, based on natural proteins, is nowadays acknowledged as one of the most effective tools available for tackling obesity worldwide.

The original method: a diet structured around 4 phases

les quatre phases DukanThe Dukan diet was the first to offer a structured, rigorous  approach with real results in 4 phases: 2 phases for losing weight and 2 phases for maintaining and stabilising your True Weight.

The attack phase: rapid and highly motivating weight loss
72 foods, high in natural proteins, to kick-start your dieting.

The cruise phase: gradually get down to your True Weight 
 You alternate NP days (Natural Proteins) with PV days (Proteins and Vegetables) as you reintroduce the 28 recommended vegetables.

The consolidation phase: re-educate your body to avoid putting weight back on. 
You gradually reintroduce higher calorie foods and celebration meals. Each week your NP Thursday, your day of Natural Proteins, helps you readjust your True Weight if necessary, so that you avoid any rebound effect.
Consolidation is made up of the 100 unlimited permitted foods (proteins and vegetables), and you now add to them 1 portion of leg of lamb and pork fillet per week. You are no longer restricted to extra-lean ham without any fat or rind, you are now allowed to eat traditional cooked ham.
With this as your base, the following are added in ascending order:

Extras in the 1st half of consolidation

Extras in the 2nd half of consolidation

1 portion of fruit per day*

2 portions of fruit per day*

2 slices of wholemeal bread per day

2 slices of wholemeal bread per day

40 g (1 1/2 oz) hard cheese

40 g (1 1/2 oz) hard cheese

1 x 220 g (7 3/4 oz) portion of starchy foods per week

2 x 220 g (7 3/4 oz) portions of starchy foods per week

1 celebration meal per week**

2 celebration meals per week**

*Except bananas, grapes, figs and cherries
**Celebration meal = a "free" meal comprising an aperitif (wine, etc,), a starter, a main course and a portion of cheese  OR a dessert. During the meal the only thing you must do is serve yourself just once for each course.


The stabilisation phase: you are free to eat how you wish, with 3 simple rules you must follow for the rest of your life 
• NP Thursdays: one day of natural proteins every week
• 20 minutes of walking every day and never use lifts or escalators
• 3 tablespoons of oat bran every day

100 permitted foods - the cornerstone of the system

100aliments autorisés

  Get used to eating freely in a controlled way. As long as you stick to the permitted foods, you don't need to check how much you're eating. The Dukan Diet is firmly based around 100 permitted foods that you can eat as much as you want: 72 Pure Proteins, fish, meat, seafood, vegetable proteins, fat-free dairy products and 28 vegetables.

  And let's not forget the foodstuff that is such a vital part of the Dukan method: oat bran. 

  Dieting while there is such food abundance all around us is unnatural, terribly trying and often a distressing experience. The Dukan method allows you to lose weight naturally by going back to those foods that mankind was built on, the very foods that the first men, the hunter-gatherers, ate.

Exercise: vital to the method

l'activité physique

Physical exercise is included in every phase of the method and has to be adapted to suit each individual. The minimum requirement is to walk every day. You are recommended to take other exercise that you enjoy such as aerobics, cycling, swimming, dance and fitness classes and so on. The important thing is to be active.

By taking exercise you use up calories, burn up your fat reserves and tone and firm up your skin.

The Dukan method: 35 years of innovation

Pierre Dukan was aware very early on of how people were suffering from weight problems and how the existing methods just didn't work. He made up his mind to offer a totally unique and innovative solution to tackle obesity and make his method even more effective: personalised and interactive online coaching.



Key dates:

1975: the first two phases were created: attack and cruise
1980: the consolidation and stabilisation phases were developed
1990:  the list of 100 permitted foods
1995: oat bran is the mainstay food
2000: "je ne sais pas maigrir", the French version of the Dukan Diet, is first published.
2007: the Dukan True Weight is successfully developed
2008: the online personalised, interactive coaching website is available
2009: a range of health food products goes on sale
2014: the nutritional staircase

For further information, please refer to or our FAQ section

Losing weight is a serious decision. Ask your GP to supervise you.

 

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Dukan Diet 2: Nutritional Staircase

The new Dukan diet
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Online coaching is dieticians at your disposal to help you daily. More than 800 tasty recipes for any day of the week.