The Thailand Diet: Lose Weight Fast with Thai Food
The Thai people have a history of being quite skinny and not struggling with their weight. However, this is changing as Western foods have been introduced, as well as highly processed food.
If you are in Thailand and struggling with your weight, or are looking for the Thai secret to weight loss and maintaining a slender figure, there is good news. The diet wisdom of Thailand’s ancestors has been preserved, and we are going to share that with you today.
Thailand Diet Plan: The Middle Way
Ancient Thais believed that one of the secrets to a healthy life was not to be too thin or too heavy. In keeping with their Buddhist heritage, they felt that “the middle way” was something to be applied to every aspect of their lives, including their diets.
A “middle way” diet of old Siam (Thailand) meant that one should primarily eat only food that had been boiled or pounded, such as Som Tam, Tom Yam, and Curries (like Gaeng Pa Gai).
Thai stir fried dishes such as Pad Gaprao and fried eggs should be avoided, and eaten only as a rare special treat.
In the morning, you should eat food that is sour and hot with spices, such as Tom Yam Gung. This is opposite the common Thai practice today of eating a mild dish in the morning like Jok (rice porridge).
Then, during the day, eat food that is mellow and not spicy, such as Guay-tio Gai (Thai chicken leg, noodle soup). If you skipped breakfast, you can eat a hot and sour dish.
In the evening, eat spicy food (but nothing too sour). And don’t eat after 8pm.
Also be consistent with your meals. Eat at the same time every day (within a 30 minute window). But if you are not hungry, then skip that meal! Eat breakfast, lunch, or dinner only if you are hungry.
Avoid snacking between meals, but if you must, make it raw fresh vegetables, fresh fruit, dried fruit, or nuts. Eat no more than a small handful. Experiment with the wide variety available in Thailand, and we can guarantee you’ll find something you love just as much as potato chips, cookies, or candy.
If you find yourself getting heavier as you grow older, it helps to drink a Thai health tonic to assist with digestion. No, this does not mean alcohol!
You should take a couple tablespoons of something like Strong Ginger Tincture or Ya That Nam Daeng (ยาธาตุน้ำแดง), which is a combination of Ginger, Rhubarb, and Peppermint Tincture. These are great after meal tonics, which also help prevent heartburn.
Now, let’s talk about where to buy your food. Avoid all modern shopping stores and shop exclusively at traditional Thai markets.
The great thing about these markets is that if you have a hectic lifestyle and can’t find the time to always cook a wholesome homemade Thai meal, you can purchase fresh, pre-made Thai dishes from the vendors (while avoiding the heavily processed pre-made meals of stores like Tesco, Macro, Big C, and 7-11).
Buy fresh juices at the Thai market and mix with club soda for refreshing drinks that are better than any Diet Coke, Pepsi, or other soda loaded with sugar.
That wraps up the food advice. Now, onto the lifestyle advice! It’s easy in a hot climate like Thailand, not to walk around too much and relax in the A/C. But you should be walking at least 90 minutes a day.
If you want to avoid the sun, then do most of your walking before the sun rises and/or after the sun sets — much like many rural Thai farmers still do when tending to their fields or engaging in other hard labor.
How to Lose Weight Fast the Thai Way
If you are looking for the Thai secret for losing weight fast, then you should try the 13 day diet created by Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn (the 3rd child of King Bhumibol the Great).
The Princess and many women in Thailand have said they lost up to 9 kg (almost 20 pounds!) using this 13 day diet plan. It also has been suggested that this diet will reset your metabolism levels for up to 2 years. So, it would be wise to repeat this diet once every 1-2 years. Some people in Thailand use just the first 7 days of the diet plan to lose weight fast for some special occasion.
We believe this is the first time HRH Princess Sirindhorn’s diet plan has been translated in English.
Thai Princess Weight Loss Formula
To help you lose weight fast with this Thai diet plan, you must drink at least 2 glasses of water before meals. Also avoid all kinds of fried foods, alcohol, and sugar (except as directed).
Diet Day 1
Morning: 1 cup of squeezed fruit juice or yogurt.
Lunch: 2 boiled eggs
Dinner: Cold Thai vegetable salad
Diet Day 2
Morning: 1 cup of squeezed fruit juice or yogurt.
Lunch: 2 boiled eggs
Dinner: Cold Thai vegetable salad
Diet Day 3
Morning: coffee without sugar or 1 cup of yogurt.
Lunch: 1 bowl of Chinese noodle soup (pork, beef)
Dinner: Cold Thai vegetable salad
Diet Day 4
Morning: squeezed fruit juice or black coffee and 1 slice of bread.
Lunch: Thai vegetable salad and 1 piece of grilled chicken
Dinner: 1 cup cold yogurt
Diet Day 5
Morning: squeezed fruit juice or coffee without sugar 1
Lunch: Som Tam and 1 piece of grilled chicken.
Dinner: Cold Thai vegetable salad
Diet Day 6
Morning: 1 cup of squeezed fruit juice or coffee without sugar.
Lunch: unlimited steamed fish or grilled fish
Dinner: Cold Thai vegetable salad
Diet Day 7
Breakfast: 1 ladle of rice and 1 piece of meat or 1 boiled egg.
Lunch: 1 bowl of Chinese noodle soup (pork, beef)
Dinner: 1 piece of cold pineapple
Diet Day 8
Breakfast: 1 cup black coffee (1 sugar cube)
Lunch: 2 hard boiled eggs, 3 bunches boiled cabbage, 1 tomato.
Dinner: 200 grams of baked chicken, Thai vegetables in clear soup with lemon juice.
Diet Day 9
Breakfast: 1 cup black coffee (1 sugar cube)
Lunch: 200 grams of roast pork, 1 cup of yogurt.
Dinner: 200 grams of baked chicken, Thai vegetables in clear soup with lemon juice.
Diet Day 10
Breakfast: 1 cup black coffee (no sugar added), 1 slice of toast.
Lunch: 2 hard-boiled eggs, 1 piece of roast pork, Thai vegetables in clear soup with lemon juice.
Dinner: 3 stalks boiled celery, 1 tomato, 1 fresh fruit.
Diet Day 11
Breakfast: 1 cup black coffee (1 sugar), 1 slice of toast.
Lunch: 1 glass of orange juice, 1 cup of yogurt.
Dinner: 1 hard boiled egg, 1 fresh carrot, 1 box of plain milk.
Diet Day 12
Breakfast: 1 fresh carrot topped with lemon juice.
Lunch: 200 grams of sea bass (steamed with lime juice and 1 stalk of celery)
Dinner: 200 grams of baked chicken, Thai vegetables in clear soup.
Diet Day 13
Breakfast: 1 cup black coffee (1 lump sugar), 1 slice of toast.
Lunch: 2 hard boiled eggs, 1 fresh carrot.
Dinner: 200 grams of baked chicken, Thai vegetables in clear soup and lemon juice.
We hope these Thailand diet plans will help you achieve your weight loss goals and maintain a healthy weight over the long term.
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