Fasting is a great time to improve the health of your body. And in order to achieve precisely this goal, and not the opposite, it is necessary to take nutrition seriously during this period. Nutrition during fasting should also be balanced. It must contain the required amount of useful substances.

If you do not consider fasting from a religious point of view, then it is something between a raw food diet, vegetarianism, and a low-protein diet. The task of those practicing fasting is to ensure that all the necessary nutrients harmoniously enter the body.

Many people believe that church fasting mainly differs from ordinary eating in that it abstains from meat. But it is not so.

Here are the basic rules that apply to all church posts:

1. During fasting, you cannot eat eggs, meat, or dairy products.
   Fish dishes can only be consumed on certain days, namely on Palm Sunday and the Feast of the Annunciation. It is allowed to add a little vegetable oil to food on holidays and on weekends.
2. Smoking and drinking alcohol are prohibited during this period.
   Only on weekends and holidays can you drink a small amount of red wine, which symbolizes the blood of Christ.
3. During fasting, one meal is practiced.
   That is, you can only eat once a day. The exception is holidays and weekends, when you can eat twice a day.
4. A ban is imposed on the use of substitute products.
   For example, you cannot cook soybeans in an attempt to replace meat products.

The benefits of the Lenten menu

And if we consider fasting as a diet, then how will such a diet be beneficial for the body? Proper lean nutrition means, first of all, limiting yourself to protein foods.

The temporary absence of animal protein foods in the diet helps normalize metabolism. It becomes easier for the body to get rid of waste and toxins. This leads to the fact that a person generally feels better.

Proper lean nutrition is very useful for diseases such as pancreatitis and cholecystitis, such food reduces the load on the digestive organs. But at the same time, there are groups of people for whom lean foods are contraindicated.

For whom is fasting not beneficial?

Such restrictions are undesirable for:

• pregnant women and nursing mothers;
• for children;
• for people who have diseases such as: diabetes mellitus, duodenal ulcer, stomach ulcer, chronic gastritis;
• elderly people;
• people who are in poor health, for example those who are going through a post-operative period, or those who have had an infectious disease.

How to fast correctly?

Meal in Lent

In order to fast correctly and turn fasting into the most beneficial diet for the body, you should adhere to the following rules:

1. It is correct not to overuse raw foods so that you do not have problems with the digestive system.
   Food can not only be boiled, but also baked, stewed, and steamed. You can also eat pickles.
2. How to compensate for the lack of animal protein?
   To ensure that your body does not starve for protein, it is correct to eat more plant protein. It is found a lot in beans, lentils, peas, sunflower seeds, pine nuts, and pumpkin. These are all great alternatives to animal protein.
3. How to make up for the lack of fat?
   Here again, plant foods come to the rescue. Healthy fats can be found in foods such as walnuts, pine nuts, avocado, sunflower and sesame seeds. It will also be very useful to enrich your diet with different types of oils.
4. How to compensate for calcium deficiency?
   With dairy products, which are prohibited during fasting, we limit the intake of calcium into the body. Calcium can be found in the following plant foods: legumes, green vegetables, seeds, nuts, and various types of cabbage.
5. How to compensate for iron deficiency?
   Iron can be found in foods such as yeast, red and white cabbage, dark chocolate, and rye bread.

Christmas post

For example, let’s look at one of the posts, namely the Nativity Fast. The Nativity Fast is needed in order to cleanse yourself before the start of the new year, this is preparation for the Nativity of Christ.

Saints compare the Nativity Fast with Moses' forty-day journey through the desert. It is believed that during the Nativity Fast a person can be cleansed of all the bad things that he has had during the whole year. The Nativity fast fills a person with a feeling of humility and love. The Nativity fast does not have the strictest rules - in its diet you can find dishes that contain butter or fish.

Here is the fasting meal by day:

1. First day:
   The Nativity fast involves eating vegetable foods without oil on the first day.
2. Second day:
   It is allowed to eat fish, as well as drink a small amount of grape, apple or rowan wine. It is allowed to eat plant foods and add vegetable oil to it.
3. The third day involves dry eating.
   You are allowed to eat bread, fruits, dried fruits, honey, vegetables, and nuts.
4. On the fourth day, you are allowed to eat fish, drink a small amount of wine, and eat plant foods with the addition of oil.
5. The fifth day involves dry eating.
   On this day you are allowed to eat fruits, dried fruits, raw vegetables, honey and nuts.
6. On the sixth day, you are allowed to eat fish dishes, drink a small amount of wine, and eat vegetable foods with oil.
7. On the seventh day it is allowed to eat fish dishes, also drink a small amount of wine, and vegetable food with oil is allowed.

This is approximately what the correct Lenten menu looks like during the Nativity Fast. It's only the last week before Christmas that the rules become stricter.

Summer post

Perhaps everyone knows about the Nativity Fast. Not everyone knows about the existence of Petrov’s summer fast. Petrov's summer fast always begins on Monday, a week after Trinity. And Petrov's fast always ends on July 12, in the name of the memory of the apostles Peter and Paul.

This post, like others, is designed to cultivate will in a person. A will that can defeat egoistic desires and subordinate the desires of the body to its spirit.

The post was not invented for fun and gastronomic delights. But this is not a reason to eat fried potatoes with pickles and pasta with ketchup for forty days. They will not make your soul happier, but your health will be seriously undermined. There is a great variety of healthy and very satisfying food that meets the strictest Lenten rules! In addition, Lent is an ideal time to revive forgotten recipes and find new delights in long-familiar products.

Our Porridge is the best option for a Lenten menu

Russian porridge- this is not food, this is philosophy. It includes our entire history, starting from pagan times; hints at long-suffering and frugality, not to mention hospitability and hard work... For centuries now we have seen porridge in pots, we have to eat it with a large family with wooden spoons - and the instructions are funny to us " pour boiling water over and eat immediately". What kind of philosophy is this, if immediately? Porridge is a leisurely thing that pays for patience a hundredfold. The main idea here is this: porridge is never tasteless. It just needs to be cooked correctly.

Here is the clearest example: pearl barley. Or “pearl”, barley from which noble whiskey is made.

Rinse it, pour plenty of boiling water, wrap it in a blanket and let it stand for 8-10 hours. Then drain the water, pour boiling water over the cereal again and cook for about fifteen minutes. Let's turn to our Middle European brothers, the Lithuanians, for experience - they love " glass porridge"Fry onion rings in vegetable oil, and then add grated potatoes. Add prepared pearl barley and spices.

A similar story happens with buckwheat porridge, which for some reason is eaten exclusively with cutlets or milk. Did you know that in the fashionable West, buckwheat (kasha, as they say) is a newly discovered organic product, along with the ancient Aztec amaranth and quinoa? There, however, for some reason it is believed that buckwheat must be mixed with whipped egg white before cooking - otherwise, they say, it will not turn out crumbly. You can simply fry good buckwheat with vegetable oil - even on a baking sheet - and then let it try not to crumble! I don’t know if it’s necessary to say that buckwheat is very good with fried onions, extremely good with carrots, peppers, eggplants, and just very, very good with mushrooms?

But you probably have no idea that buckwheat is eaten with great pleasure in Korea! It is used to make sae me duk - steamed buns. To do this, take buckwheat flour, a little salt and enough water to make a stiff dough.

It is kneaded, rolled out a centimeter thick and cut into small squares, which must be greased with vegetable oil and placed in a double boiler for 10 minutes. This amazing dish is served warm on major holidays.

The Japanese make noodles from buckwheat, and porridge is extremely popular in Jewish cuisine." Varniškės": you need to fry a little onions (in the original - in chicken fat), cook porridge separately, separately - twice as much fusili type pasta. Combine all this, heat it up, eat it and be surprised. In general, if you get tired of it (and for a long time you can easily get bored during fasting) the usual taste of porridges, mushrooms and vegetables, get yourself a spicy one" berber mixture", which can be sprinkled anywhere.

Go to the market and enrich the spice merchants there by buying 2 tbsp. l. cumin seeds, 1 tbsp. l. cardamom seeds, black peppercorns, fenugreek (aka fenugreek or shamballa) and coriander, half a spoon of allspice, a couple of dozen clove buds, 5 tbsp. l. red pepper and a tablespoon each of dried ginger, turmeric, paprika and cinnamon. Place the first seven spices in a dry frying pan and fry for 2 minutes, stirring. Then add everything else (and more salt) and put it in the coffee grinder. This wonderful powder will bring you happiness.

We eat fruits dry during Lent and don’t complain

By definition, there can be no fresh fruit in Russia at this time of year. Sauerkraut, of course, is an excellent source of vitamins - but, alas, you can’t make compote from it. We can only rely on summer preparations.

Producers (both branded and Asian brothers) have been doing their best lately: any market is ready to offer at least 10 varieties dried fruits. With the exception of pineapples, which cannot be dried without the use of sugar, other fruits - even kiwi! - simply dry in special drying machines.

The amount of natural vitamin in them, of course, decreases, and sugar increases, but the benefits of dried fruits are still undoubted, because all microelements are retained in the required quantities. In the markets, dried fruits are much cheaper, but branded fruits guarantee freshness and complete integrity of all benefits. Chewing dried fruits just like that, even with tea, is not a very exciting activity.

Any dried fruits, especially figs, cherries and large prunes, combined with red berry juice can turn into a very delicious dessert. To do this, various spices are added to the juice: cinnamon, vanilla, cardamom, cloves, black pepper, nutmeg, sugar- and actually dried fruits. All this is boiled over very low heat: first without a lid for about forty minutes, then under the lid for another half hour - until the syrup becomes very thick. Can be served with porridge. In addition, many amazing things are done with dried fruits: for example, they stuff tomatoes, sweet peppers or eggplants with them. Or stewed with onions and red beans.

The main meat is mushrooms

If you don't take into account the newfangled soybeans, mushrooms- the main meat during fasting. They are in winter for most - this mushroom soup. For the especially advanced - mushroom julienne. It's not fair. What about mushroom caviar? A potato cutlets stuffed with mushrooms, with mushroom sauce? What about mushroom risotto? What about dumplings with mushrooms?

All this, of course, can be made from dried mushrooms, lovingly collected with your own hands in the distant summer... But it makes sense to pay attention to the counters with frozen foods. Honey mushrooms, chanterelles, boletuses, white...

Japanese ones are also common shiitake mushrooms- world champions in the fight against cancer cells. Even giant portobello mushrooms (which taste like pure chicken) are quite common in supermarkets. This fantastic variety of mushrooms gives rise to almost daily experiments.

Here are some options. You can make sandwiches with tapenade from wild mushrooms: grind capers with olive oil and lemon juice in a mortar and season with salt and pepper. The result is a paste that is wonderfully spread on toasted slices of bread - and between them, impressive slices of mushrooms fried to a crisp.

From oyster mushroom The salad appears as if by itself: fried mushrooms, apples, celery stalks, lettuce leaves and dark seedless grapes. You can top it with a dressing made from lemon juice with crushed pine nuts, salt, pepper and a pinch of cinnamon. For variety, champignons can be fried in a wok with soy sauce, honey, sesame seeds and green onions (serve immediately).

During Lent, eat nuts

Nuts in our diet they play a completely inappropriate role. Either they sprinkle them on cakes, or on beets with garlic... And it seems that everyone only eats peanuts, pine nuts and walnuts. Meanwhile, during Lent, when every protein counts, nuts are an irreplaceable thing. If they are fresh, this is practically a panacea for all the problems of the spring-winter period. And not at all as boring as it seems. They can be sweetened - or, conversely, sharpened.

In the first case, you collect different unroasted nuts: almonds, hazelnuts, cashews, walnuts, pine. In addition, you will need orange juice, sugar, cinnamon and orange zest. From all this a thick syrup is boiled, to which nuts are added. There they need to be mixed thoroughly so that the syrup has time to stick to each, and then transferred to oiled paper and separated with a fork while they are warm.

Spicy nuts ( almonds, pistachios without shell, peanuts) are done in approximately the same way - you just need salt with pepper, chili, cumin, coriander, ginger, garlic powder... with whatever you want - plus delicious vegetable oil. And still a little bit of honey, otherwise the nuts will be separate and the spices will be separate.

Can you make the same mixture from seeds - pumpkin and sunflower. It makes sense to keep spicy nuts and seeds in the refrigerator for a couple of days - let them smell the spices.

Another option for enthusiastically consuming nuts is in a paste or sauce. Peanut butter, a cult product of American teenagers, has long been known to fans of the TV series. It’s easy to make at home: take roasted and peeled peanuts, put them in a meat grinder and grind them with a little water and salt. It is better to store in the refrigerator. Spread this paste on your cookies every morning, because nuts make you smarter - it’s been proven. Healthier snack option: sesame seeds, honey, cinnamon and salt.

If guests are going to come over and everyone is fasting, ask them to bring fresh apples, carrots and celery stalks with them. While they're running around town looking for these scarce items, calmly grab your stash of raw almonds, lemon juice, honey, fresh basil, salt, garlic and ginger. Proportions are up to your taste. Pass it all through a meat grinder, adding water as needed to get the consistency of thick sour cream. When guests show up, cut the fruits and vegetables they brought, and let them dip them in your sauce themselves. Soon they will have enough to eat, become kinder and begin asking you about the secrets of mastery...

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First of all, you should realize: fasting is not about the body, but about the spirit. It implies “pacification of the flesh,” from which all restrictions follow: in the set of acceptable foods, in the number of meals, and so on. Eating during Lent is not a diet aimed at losing excess weight, but an opportunity to find inner balance and develop spirituality.

What to eat during Lent

“From a nutritional perspective, focusing on food during fasting may lead to increased fat mass,” says Anton Feoktistov, fitness director and nutritionist PRO-TRENER. — Refusal of animal protein causes loss of muscle tissue. Therefore, people who were able to lose weight thanks to a lean “diet” most likely lost pounds due to muscle, not fat. And, for sure, they have developed a calcium deficiency, because the best source of it is dairy products.”

If you have acute or chronic illnesses, consult your doctor before starting fasting. If you have kidney failure, diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, cardiovascular and endocrine systems, following nutritional rules during Lent can be dangerous. The diet of pregnant women, nursing mothers, children and adolescents during puberty should not be limited in animals - they need it as a “building material” for full growth and development.

So, you have decided to fast. In order not to lose the substances your body needs in seven weeks and not gain extra pounds, follow the recommendations of our specialists.

Eat small, frequent meals and drink more water

On some days of fasting, complete abstinence from food is prescribed. Only very healthy people can afford this - even with banal gastritis, which every second person has, this is not worth doing. In addition, it can provoke an appetite, and it will be very difficult to maintain the fast until the end. Nutritionists do not recommend eating once a day (on weekdays) and twice a day (on weekends), as required by church canons - too infrequent meals during Lent can lead to stomach ulcers. In order to avoid constipation, eating mainly plant foods, it is important to follow a regimen. “Eat small meals every three hours or so, and drink at least two liters of fluid a day,” says Marina Studenikina, nutritionist, deputy chief physician of the Weight Factor clinic. — Plant foods are rich in fiber, which absorbs a lot of water in the stomach. As a result, the resulting soft food bolus, bypassing the stomach, enters the intestines and helps cleanse it. If there is not enough water, the lump becomes dense and constipation occurs.”

Don't overuse fruits and nuts

On dry days of fasting, you can only eat thermally unprocessed plant foods - vegetables, fruits, pickles, pickles, nuts, seeds, etc. “Sweet fruits such as grapes and bananas are rich in fructose, which are light carbohydrates, the excess of which is stored in fat stores,” says Evgeniy Belyanushkin, nutritionist, fitness trainer. — Nuts and seeds are quite high in calories: 50 g of almonds or sunflower seeds contains about 25 g of fat and 300 kcal. So it’s better to eat no more than 75-100 g of them per day.” Also, on days of dry eating, bread and cereals prepared in a “cold” way are not prohibited when eating during Lent. You can, for example, pour water over oatmeal, let it swell, add a finely chopped apple and eat it for breakfast instead of porridge. Salted mushrooms can be a low-calorie source of protein at this time. But people predisposed to edema need to be careful with them: protein from mushrooms is only partially absorbed by the body.

Eat carbohydrates in the morning

Nutritionists recommend consuming bread and cereals in the first half of the day, and after three - non-starchy vegetables (green beans, zucchini, various green salads) and legumes (lentils, chickpeas, beans). “Pay attention to barley cereals,” says Elena Tikhomirova, nutritionist at the SM Clinic. — Barley (polished barley) contains reduced carbohydrates that are not absorbed by the body and pass through “transit”. And barley groats (crushed barley) are rich in fiber, which improves digestion and removes cholesterol. One more point: be careful with special “lenten” products that appear in stores at this time (vegetable oil, bread, cookies) - they are no less high in calories than regular ones.”

Add seeds and nuts instead of butter

On days of fasting when consumption is prohibited, nuts and seeds can be sources of healthy fats. “Walnuts contain no less healthy Omega-3 fatty acids than red fish,” says Marina Studenikina. — And on weekends, when oil is allowed, use different types: olive, flaxseed, pumpkin. These oils have different compositions of essential and non-essential fatty acids.”

Don't overeat on holidays

On holidays, according to the nutritional rules of Lent, you can eat fish, seafood and caviar. “It is better to eat caviar and fatty fish no more than once a day,” says Evgeniy Belyanushkin. “Have caviar with bread for breakfast, and have fatty fish for lunch. For dinner, choose lean fish and seafood. Remember: the serving size of caviar is 1 heaped tablespoon (20 g), fatty fish - 100-120 g (up to 13 g of fat). You need to be careful with wine on holidays and weekends - alcohol weakens attention and can lead to overeating.”

“Get out” of fasting correctly

Nutritionists notice that “entering” a fast is easier than “exiting” it correctly. “It is wrong to overeat on Easter Day with eggs and Easter cakes, washing down with a lot of wine - this is a serious test for the digestive tract,” comments Marina Studenikina. — You should expand your diet gradually. First, due to low-fat dairy products (1%), then medium (up to 5%). Include cream, sour cream, and butter in your menu literally a teaspoon at a time, especially in the first week after fasting. Next, add fish, seafood and poultry. And last of all, break your fast with strong broths, beef, lamb, pork.”

Example of a 1400 kcal Lent menu for a dry day

Breakfast: oatmeal in water (soak 50 g of oatmeal in 150 ml of water); 20 g nuts; apple; glass of water.

Snack: big orange; glass of water.

Dinner: cold gazpacho sprinkled with flax seeds; salad of Chinese cabbage, cucumbers, salted mushrooms with flax seeds.

Afternoon snack: oatmeal muesli (soak 50 g oatmeal in 100 g water); 1 orange; glass of water.

Dinner: salad of turnips, carrots, Chinese cabbage and any herbs; 20 g pistachios.

Example of a Lent menu for 1600-1800 kcal on weekdays

Breakfast: pearl barley porridge with prunes (2 pcs.); small apple; tea with 50 ml soy milk.

Snack: 20 g nuts, tea.

Dinner: lentil soup with lean bread croutons; 100 g of boiled lentils with fried champignons and onions (on days without oil, stew mushrooms in vegetable broth) or 120 g of boiled rice with 1 tsp. linseed oil; lettuce leaves; Cherry tomatoes.

Afternoon snack: dried apricots (3-4 pcs.); orange; tea.

Dinner: carrot cutlets (on days without oil, bake them in the oven with sunflower seeds); lettuce leaves.

Advice: on days when oil is allowed, try to cook without it, use nuts and seeds.

Example of a Lent menu for 1600-1800 kcal for a fish day

Breakfast: buckwheat with fried mushrooms; soy yogurt; tea with honey.

Snack: 30 g nuts, tea.

Dinner: bean soup, steamed salmon steak; 130 g barley, seasoned with 1 tsp. linseed oil; white cabbage salad with cucumber.

Afternoon snack: apple; tea with milk.

Dinner: 150 g cod; steamed zucchini, a piece of lean bread.

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Fasting, by its definition, is a strict prohibition or restrictions on the consumption of food or only certain products, for example, meat or dairy products.

Great Lent is the path to the Bright Feast of Great Easter, through which a believer must go through, keeping himself in strictness. The ban is imposed not only on eating food, but it is also prohibited to spend this time in fun and pleasure. Great Lent is one of the strictest fasts in the church calendar; it begins seven weeks before Easter and consists of forty days (Quentary Day) and a week before Easter (Holy Week). Pentecost is celebrated in honor of the fact that Jesus Christ fasted in the desert for forty days, and Holy Week commemorates the life of Christ in the last days of his life, His crucifixion and resurrection.

Lent in 2018- from February 19 to April 7

During Lent, it is not recommended to eat food of animal origin - meat, eggs, milk. However, it is allowed to eat fish, but only on the holidays of Palm Resurrection and the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Eating seafood such as squid, shrimp, and mussels is not prohibited during Lent.

But we should not forget that Great Lent is not an Orthodox diet, and the purpose of fasting is not so much to cleanse the stomach as to cleanse the human soul.

According to church regulations, Lent is a tribute to the memory of the Lenten feat of the son of God - Christ. After his baptism, Jesus wandered through the desert in thought for 40 days without water or food. This act marked the beginning of his great saving deeds in the name of all mankind. And in order to thank the Savior and honor him, the church introduced the strictest restrictions on the entire Lent, preceding Easter.

However, there is another version of the origin of the ritual of long pre-Easter fasting. At the dawn of Christianity, before the baptismal rite, future “children of the church” were ordered to pray fervently for 40 days and strictly limit food and water. The christenings themselves took place only 1-2 times a year on major holidays, most often on Easter. Everyone who wanted to join the religion was called catechumens. And being in solidarity with them, the rest of the Christians adhered to 40 days of abstinence in the period before the ritual (that is, before Easter). As a result, the post known to us today was established not all at once, but rather gradually. True, over hundreds of years, the conditions of fasting have undergone changes more than once.

The main rules of modern Lent:

1. Rejoice in everything and thank the Lord;
2. Visit the temple during Lent 2018;
3. Repent at Pentecost and you can be cleansed during Holy Week;
4. Take care of your health. In case of illness, soften the conditions of fasting;
5. Don't think about food;
6. Look at your plate;
7. Hasten to do good;
8. Remember why you entered into fasting;
9. Give up temptations and imaginary pleasures in favor of tireless prayers to the Lord;

As for the meal, according to the Church Charter, there are some rules:

• During the first and last weeks of Great Lent, a particularly strict fast is observed.
• Meat and dairy products (butter, cheese, cottage cheese, milk), eggs, are excluded. That is, all products of animal origin.
• You can eat only once a day, in the evening, however, on Saturdays and Sundays you are allowed to eat twice a day, at lunch and in the evening.
• On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, eat cold food, without vegetable oil. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, hot food without oil is allowed.
• On Saturdays and Sundays it is allowed to add vegetable oil to food, and it is also allowed to drink grape wine (except for Saturday of Holy Week).
• On Good Friday (this is the last Friday of Lent) you should abstain from food altogether.
• On Saturday, many who observe fasting also abstain from food until the onset of Great Easter.

How to fast correctly for Orthodox laypeople and what to eat on different days

The annual pre-Easter Lent is flexible in the calendar and in 2018 it falls from February 18 to April 7. The ritual of fasting lasts 49 days, of which 40 are the days of the Fourth Day, two twelfth holidays (the Annunciation and the Entry of the Lord into Jerusalem) and the ascetic 6-day cycle of Holy Week. According to the church charter, Lent 2018 is as follows:

• first week - February 18-24, 2018;
• second week - February 25 - March 3, 2018;
• third week - March 4-10, 2018;
• fourth week - March 11-17, 2018;
• fifth week - March 18-24, 2018;
• sixth week - March 25-31, 2018;
• Seventh “Holy” Week – April 1-7, 2018.

In addition to the church charter, it is important to know how to fast correctly and what Orthodox laity can eat by day in the 2018 Lent calendar. According to strict conditions, there can be no more than two meals per day. The first traditionally occurs around lunchtime (after church liturgy), and the second in the evening (i.e. after Vespers). If there is only one meal, its time is 15.00 Moscow time. In terms of nutrition, the first and last “passion” weeks are the strictest. They include days of dry eating and complete fasting. On certain days in other weeks, hot dishes with or without butter are allowed, sometimes fish caviar, and on the twelve holidays - wine and fish. The Orthodox calendar of Lent for 2018 will help you understand each week and its meaning in more detail: what can the laity eat by day, read further in our article.

What foods are allowed to be consumed during fasting?

If you approach your diet wisely during Lent, then, firstly, you will not have to go hungry, and secondly, even during the period of strict fasting, nutrition can be quite varied and balanced.

So, the main products allowed during fasting:

• Black bread, cereal crispbread.
• Cereals (oatmeal, buckwheat, rice, corn, wheat, barley)
• Salted and pickled vegetables, berry and fruit jam.
• Mushrooms of various preparations.
• Legumes (beans, lentils, peas)
• Dried fruits, nuts, honey.
• Seasonal vegetables (potatoes, beets, carrots, onions, cabbage, radishes, etc.)
• Fruits in season (apples, bananas, grant, oranges, etc.)
• Fish is allowed to be consumed twice during the entire fast. On the feast of the Annunciation (in 2016 it falls on April 7) and Palm Sunday (April 24, 2016)

Nutrition calendar by day (menu)

The first week of fasting (the most strict). It is important to enter the fast correctly on the eve of the start. It is also important to know the personal contraindications, who should not fast.

Above we described one week, how, according to all the rules and canons, fasting should be observed; this is more acceptable for monks, or for people who strictly observe all the regulations of the church. If you decide to fast for the first time, then you should not take on excessive loads! It is quite possible, for example, to eat oil.

Here is a sample menu that you can use as a basis, adding or replacing certain dishes:

In the subsequent fifth and sixth weeks After fasting, you can repeat your menu as in the second and third weeks.

The seventh (Holy Week) week of Great Lent is as strict as the first.

The sixth Sunday of Great Lent falls on the celebration of the Lord's entry into Jerusalem, or it is also called Palm Sunday. On this day you can eat fish, food with butter, and consume a little Cahors.

On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday - dry eating. Thursday you can eat warm food, but cooked without oil, and only once a day. On Friday only bread and water. Eating is prohibited on Saturday.

And finally, Sunday, the end of the strictest fast falls on the celebration of Easter.

It is important to watch this video for your safety!

It is worth noting that if you decide to fast for the first time, it is recommended to talk with a priest and decide for yourself the severity of fasting, because you need to understand the very important truth that the main purpose of fasting is not food restriction, but humility and repentance, prayer!

Fasting is a strict prohibition or restriction on eating food or only certain foods, such as meat or dairy products.

Great Lent is the path to the Bright Feast of Great Easter, through which a believer must go through, keeping himself in strictness. The ban is imposed not only on eating food, but it is also prohibited to spend this time in fun and pleasure. Great Lent is one of the strictest fasts in the church calendar; it begins seven weeks before Easter and consists of forty days (Quentary Day) and a week before Easter (Holy Week). Pentecost is celebrated in honor of the fact that Jesus Christ fasted in the desert for forty days, and Holy Week commemorates the life of Christ in the last days of his life, His crucifixion and resurrection.

During Lent, it is not recommended for people to eat food of animal origin - meat, eggs, milk. However, it is allowed to eat fish, but only on the holidays of Palm Resurrection and the Annunciation of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Eating seafood such as squid, shrimp, and mussels is not prohibited during Lent.

But we should not forget that Great Lent is not an Orthodox diet, and the purpose of fasting is not so much to cleanse the stomach as to cleanse the human soul.

As for the meal, according to the Church Charter, there are some rules:

• During the first and last weeks of Great Lent, a particularly strict fast is observed.
• Meat and dairy products (butter, cheese, cottage cheese, milk), eggs, are excluded. That is, all products of animal origin.
• You can eat only once a day, in the evening, however, on Saturdays and Sundays you are allowed to eat twice a day, at lunch and in the evening.
• On Monday, Wednesday and Friday, eat cold food, without vegetable oil. On Tuesdays and Thursdays, hot food without oil is allowed.
• On Saturdays and Sundays it is allowed to add vegetable oil to food, and it is also allowed to drink grape wine (except for Saturday of Holy Week).
• On Good Friday (this is the last Friday of Lent) you should abstain from food altogether.
• On Saturday, many who observe fasting also abstain from food until the onset of Great Easter.

What foods are allowed to be consumed during fasting?

If you approach your diet wisely during Lent, then, firstly, you will not have to go hungry, and secondly, even during the period of strict fasting, nutrition can be quite varied and balanced.

So, the main products allowed during fasting:

• Black bread, cereal crispbread.
• Cereals (oatmeal, buckwheat, rice, corn, wheat, barley)
• Salted and pickled vegetables, berry and fruit jam.
• Mushrooms of various preparations.
• Legumes (beans, lentils, peas)
• Dried fruits, nuts, honey.
• Seasonal vegetables (potatoes, beets, carrots, onions, cabbage, radishes, etc.)
• Fruits in season (apples, bananas, grant, oranges, etc.)
• Fish is allowed to be consumed twice during the entire fast. On the feast of the Annunciation (in 2016 it falls on April 7) and Palm Sunday (April 24, 2016)

Nutrition calendar by day 2019. Menu.

The first week of fasting is the most strict. It is important to enter the fast correctly, as well as to know personal contraindications.

Above we described one week, how, according to all the rules and canons, fasting should be observed; this is more acceptable for monks, or for people who strictly observe all the regulations of the church. If you decide to fast for the first time, then you should not take on excessive loads! It is quite possible, for example, to eat oil.

Here is a sample menu that you can use as a basis, adding or replacing certain dishes:

In the subsequent fifth and sixth weeks After fasting, you can repeat your menu as in the second and third weeks.

The seventh (Holy Week) week of Great Lent is as strict as the first.

The sixth Sunday of Great Lent falls on the celebration of the Lord's entry into Jerusalem, or it is also called Palm Sunday. On this day you can eat fish, food with butter, and consume a little Cahors.

On Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday - dry eating. Thursday you can eat warm food, but cooked without oil, and only once a day. On Friday only bread and water. Eating is prohibited on Saturday.

And finally, Sunday, the end of the strictest fast falls on the celebration of Easter.

It is important to watch this video for your safety!

It is worth noting that if you decide to fast for the first time, it is recommended to talk with a priest and decide for yourself the severity of fasting, because you need to understand the very important truth that the main purpose of fasting is not food restriction, but humility and repentance, prayer!