What if you knew some foods that will boost fat loss potential, foods that actually helped fire up your metabolism and eating them would help you keep your weight under control or even help you reduce your body fat?
I don’t know anyone who wouldn’t want to know more about foods that will boost fat loss.
Here are a few simple ways you can incorporate these foods into your daily diet, turning your body into a fat-burning furnace and help reduce fat loss.
Eating Protein
Protein has the same amount of energy per gram compared to carbohydrates; however, the protein will fill you up for longer and requires more energy to process into glycogen than simple carbohydrates. Simple carbs (like processed baked goods, white rice, sugar, etc.) are absorbed straight into your bloodstream quickly, as sugars; leaving your stomach empty and feeling the needs to be filled. You don’t need the energy because your blood glucose levels are high, but you still feel empty, and so you will tend to eat again.
If you choose lean foods, higher in protein like lean meats, fish, beans and legumes, tofu, eggs etc., they will take longer to enter your bloodstream as glycogen, and you will feel fuller for longer. Just remember that a calorie is a calorie, so make sure your food choices always remain within your energy needs for the day to avoid energy storage (aka fat gain).
Eating vegetables & fruit
Vegetables and fruit may be a little higher in carbs than high protein foods, but it’s the fibre in them that slows down the absorption and can keep you feeling fuller for longer. They are also generally high in water content, and low in calories, which means you can have larger portions sizes which will make you feel more satisfied. Green vegetables are usually the lowest in calories, but like all foods, you still need a variety.
When it comes to fruit, it is berries that are the hero with lower sugar levels and high nutritional content.
Vegetables and fruit also are an excellent source for consuming vitamins and minerals, which will boost energy levels and the immune system.
Quite often your body can be starved of vitamins and minerals, especially after a big weekend of pizza, chips and ice cream. Your body will be craving nutrition but doesn’t know how to tell you, so it signals hunger. It will look for an immediate source of fuel, but because it’s tired and depleted of nutrition it finds the easiest way to get it which usually is through simple carbohydrates or sugar. This can be why you are having so many cravings for junk food!
Drink lots of Water
Water is essential for our body to function, and it can fill you up if your stomach feels empty. More often than not, when we think we are hungry, we are actually thirsty and consume calories unnecessarily. There are a lot of biological reasons why we often crave sugar and carbohydrates when we are dehydrated. That’s another topic altogether, but trust us when we say you don’t want to risk getting dehydrated. For your body’s sake, keep your fluid intake up, and your consumption of alcohol, coffee and energy drinks down. Try sipping water flavoured with a citrus slice, mint or fruit teas this will still give your body what it needs and is delicious. When we are adequately hydrated, it is easy for our bodies to convert our existing fat into energy. Therefore, we will be more inclined not to feel hungry and use our fat stores for fuel, leading to fat loss.
By applying these strategies above into your daily diet, a lot of your unhealthy cravings will die down, you will have energy overflowing and you’ll reduce fat loss.
