Lose weight quickly with the Thonon Diet: 10 kilos less in two weeks, is that healthy?

Summer is approaching and the perfect summer figure is still a dream for you? Especially at the start of the season, there is hardly any time to lose. Cycling and jogging are not enough for the results to be seen quickly and for us to be fit and slim at the start of the holiday. A change in diet also helps to shed a few pounds quickly. There are many crash diet plans, but not all of them keep their promises. The new Thonon diet, for example, should guarantee that you lose 10 kilograms in less than two weeks. The fans of the diet swear by weight loss success. The opponents of the extremely low-calorie eating plan warn that it can lead to a yo-yo effect. We take a closer look at the Thonon Diet and summarize the most important advantages and disadvantages.

The Thonon Diet: The two-week nutrition plan was developed in France

But where does the Thonon Diet come from and who developed it? It is believed that the nutrition plan was drawn up by doctors at the hospital of a French spa town, Thonon-les-Bains. However, the hospital staff has not yet confirmed these assumptions. The diet itself has certain similarities to the keto diet: Carbohydrates are completely avoided, instead you eat a diet high in fat and low in calories. A very precise nutritional plan for a period of two weeks can be found on the official website of the diet. You can choose between a vegetarian variant and a variant with meat.

The menu includes three meals, and the total daily amount of calories must not exceed the upper limit of 800 calories. As for drinks, coffee and tea are allowed as long as you avoid sugar and milk. On the other hand, alcohol consumption should be limited for two weeks. An exception could be made on the seventh day and a glass of wine could be drunk in the evening.

Even if the dream weight has not yet been reached after the end of the two weeks, you should definitely not continue with the diet. Instead, the so-called stabilization phase begins, which is supposed to protect against a yo-yo effect. During this phase you can consume a maximum of 1200 calories per day. How long this phase lasts is closely related to the weight loss. As a rule of thumb, you need to plan a week’s stabilization phase for every kilogram you lose. For example, if you weigh 5 pounds less after the diet, you should be consuming 1200 calories a day for five weeks after that. Only after this stabilization period is over could you go on a two-week Thonon diet again.

The Thonon Diet: What’s on the plate?

Compared to other crash diets, the Thonon Diet’s nutrition plan is very specific. We offer you the menu for the first seven days. In the second week the menu starts again with day 1.

Thonon Diet Plan:

Day 1. / day 8.

Breakfast: coffee or tea without sugar

Lunch: 2 hard-boiled eggs, spinach without salt

Dinner: 1 medallion steak 300 g or 3 vegetarian meatballs. If desired, serve with celery or lettuce (optionally also iceberg lettuce).

Day 2. / Day 9.

Breakfast: coffee or tea optionally with milk, but without sugar

Lunch: 1 medallion steak 300 g / 3 vegetarian meatballs, tomatoes and fruit

Dinner: Boiled ham / tofu sausages

Day 3. / Day 10.

Breakfast: coffee or tea without milk and sugar. A slice of whole wheat bread

Lunch: 2 hard-boiled eggs, lettuce or iceberg lettuce and tomatoes

Dinner: Boiled ham and lettuce / lettuce and tofu sausages

Day 4. / Day 11.

Breakfast: coffee or tea without milk and sugar. A slice of whole wheat bread

Lunch: 1 hard-boiled egg, carrots (raw or boiled), a slice of cheese

Dinner: 1 cup of yogurt, fruit

Day 5. / Day 12.

Breakfast: coffee or tea without milk and sugar. Grated carrots

Lunch: fish soup or fish in broth / salad made from boiled carrots and celery / two medium-sized tomatoes

Dinner: 1 medallion steak 200 g / vegetarian celery steak, salad

Day 6. / Day 13. 

Breakfast: coffee or tea without sugar. A slice of whole wheat bread

Lunch: Grilled chicken at will / vegetarian celery steak

Dinner: 2 hard-boiled eggs, carrots (raw or cooked)

Day 7. / Day 14. 

Breakfast: coffee or tea with lemon, without milk and sugar

Lunch: 1 medallion steak 300 g / 3 vegetarian meatballs

Dinner: eat what you feel like eating. No alcohol

Thonon Diet: The Stabilization Phase

This diet is followed by a stabilization phase during which the calorie intake for men is a maximum of 1500 calories and for women 1200 calories. Here is the recommended menu for this period:

Breakfast:

Cup of tea or coffee without sugar

Low-fat yogurt or 3 thin slices of sheep’s cheese or a glass of milk

1 slice of wholemeal bread topped with butter

fruit

Having lunch: 

200 g salad 1 teaspoon olive oil

150 g steak / fish or 2 hard-boiled eggs

Seasonal vegetables and fruits

For in-between:

Low-fat yogurt, coffee, tea or other refreshing drinks without sugar

Dinner:

vegetable soup

1 small potato, cooked

150 g meat, fish or vegetarian meatballs

200 g of lettuce drizzled with olive oil

1 slice of whole grain bread

fruit

What are the disadvantages of the Thonon Diet?

The Thonon Diet has one advantage: it works. It is really possible to lose 10 kilograms in two weeks. However, losing weight this quickly can have health implications. The nutrition experts warn that the nutrition plan can slow down the metabolism in the long run. Anyone who goes on the diet for longer than two weeks can also expect a vitamin deficiency, as not enough vegetables and fruits are consumed every day. And the sports fans will probably have to forego exercise completely during the two weeks, because the body is simply too weak during the diet. Since the daily calorie intake is very low, the body will not only convert fat into energy. Lean muscle mass is also lost during crash dieting. If the yo-yo effect leads to rapid weight gain, then we weigh more at the end of the summer than at the beginning.

Since the diet plan is too strict, we strongly recommend that you seek advice from your doctor first.