Food is everywhere.
I mean, when you think about it, you're never too far from something you can sink your teeth into. Almost every store sells it. Your kitchen is bound to be full of it. It very well could be in your hand now reading this.
The way food is constantly advertised, it's almost like it was just discovered. Television commercials. Billboards on your way to work. On the side of buses. Constant, in your face advertising.
Food does interesting things to our bodies. Eating too much of the wrong ones can lead to many problems: diabetes, cardio vascular disease, and obesity, to name a few.
On the other hand, there are many foods that do wondrous, super things for our bodies. Like...
Apples
An apple a day, keeps the doctor away
~ Benjamin Franklin
I know what you're thinking, I didn't know Benjamin Franklin said that either.
But he was right.
Apples are a good source of fiber. Containing about just 4 grams of fiber, for a medium-sized apple.
Fiber does a lot for us. It's what helps make us feel fuller longer. Increasing the amount of fiber in your diet will help you eat less throughout the day, helping prevent weight gain.
At just 95 calories (medium-sized apple) too, you'd be foolish not to include more apples into your diet.
Almonds
This is one of my favorite snacks! They're packed with fiber, and just a handful is all you need for a good snack.
A study on almonds was also done that shows, chewing your almonds over 40 times helps release more healthy fats and vitamin E. As well as giving you a longer, more full feeling.
Almonds are a healthy, very slow digesting nut. Almonds give you a much more sustained type of energy compared to the high and low, of carbohydrates; like sugars, or grains.
Almonds are packed with monounsaturated fats. These are healthy fats, that have been associated in reducing LDL cholesterol levels (bad cholesterol), as well as lowering the risk of breast cancer in women.
Oatmeal
I love having this for breakfast. I always add chopped fruit in my oatmeal; Blueberries, bananas, apples, sometimes even strawberries.
Occasionally I'll add a bit of cinnamon, not cinnamon sugar, cinnamon. (Yes, there's a difference) Adds great flavor.
Adding oatmeal up to 3 hours before a workout, can help you burn more calories compared to not eating anything before.
So, take my advice,
- cook yourself a bowl of some steaming delicious oatmeal.
- Wait a couple of hours,
- Jump on to the best stationary bike you have,
- and burn those calories!
Who wouldn't want to add a food to their weight loss that can help them burn MORE calories while working out?
Oatmeal's a slow releasing carbohydrate.
This means, unlike most carbs (like white bread), there is no high, then low spike in your blood sugar. Oatmeal breaks down gradually, allowing blood sugar levels to stay stable over time.
This is important because it means your insulin levels don't spike as high either.
Insulin is a key component in signaling your body to store fat in and around your body.
Keeping insulin levels lower by eating foods like oatmeal, may help your body burn more fat, then store it.
Brown rice
Brown rice is like the duct tape of the food world.
It can be used in some many ways, by itself or being paired with. It's extremely versatile.
The best part is, it's easy and quick to prepare.
Brown rice is a whole grain. Whole grains have a lower energy density compared to many refined grains, like white bread or white rice.
It's consider to have low energy density because of all the water and fiber it has.
Low density foods make you feel full longer, and it helps that it contains far few calories than higher energy density foods.
Fewer calories, in combination with exercise will result in weight loss. Adding brown rice to your normal diet will yield you no significant results. Only when your body burns more calories than you take in, will you lose weight.
But selecting a low-density food like brown rice, it will help.
Pears
I've mentioned how important fiber is many times so far, and as you might have guess it, pears are full of fiber.
In fact, pears are full of over 20% of your daily recommended fiber intake. All that, and still just 100 calories for a medium-sized pear.
Besides from being a great source of fiber, pears are also a great source of vitamin C and potassium.
Instead, they contain natural sugars; Fructose and glucose. High energy components, that naturally help aid in stabilizing blood sugar levels.
It easy to see why pears are a great natural weight loss companion.
Dark chocolate
Unlike most other kinds of chocolate, dark chocolate doesn't contain saturated fats (unhealthy fats).
Dark chocolate is special in the sense it has proven to help lower blood pressure, increase circulation, as well as, helping prevent arteriosclerosis.
Dark chocolate aids in reducing the absorption and digestion, of unhealthy fats and carbohydrates in the stomach.
A component in dark chocolate, flavonoids cut the body's insulin resistance. Including these prevents blood sugar levels from spiking.
Like I mentioned before, this encourages you to not over-eat, and stay fuller longer.
Weight loss is a challenging but rewarding battle. And the endless options of delicious food sometimes gets the best of us, but weight loss is achievable, and you can try the six great choices mentioned above.
If you put the hard work in at the gym, and use these foods into your meals and snacking, the weight not only will burn right off you, you'll be amazed how you feel and how much energy you have.
What could be better?