Top Super-Foods for Weight Loss

Rules of thumb for finding super-foods

• Try to have lots of color in your diet, in general avoid white and brown/tan colored foods, they tend to have less vitamin/ mineral value, less antioxidants and less super healthy phytochemicals.
• Try to eat less processed foods. Factory processed foods are often loaded with man made trans-fats or animal fats for texture as well as full of unhealthy preservatives, some of which have even been linked to cancer. You don’t have to cut out all your processed food, but try to make little changes over time. Get into the habit of things like packing yourself a healthy snack in the morning and cutting back on soda.
• Vegetables are your ally! They tend to be low in calories, cholesterol free, high in fiber and high in phytochemicals which are a large group of compounds (we now know of more than 900) that we know do great things for our bodies (but are still being studied in detail) and only come from vegetables.
• Know your good fats from your bad fats! Unsaturated fats are more healthy than saturated and trans-fats. Unsaturated fats are always liquid at room temperature and come from plants. In general animal fats and solid fats (saturated and LDL cholesterol) should be avoided. Examples of saturated fats are lard, butter and cheese.

Food Rich in Fiber: fiber has tons of health benefits including helping to lower cholesterol, keeping some of the fat in your diet from being absorbed into your small intestine (a huge help when your trying to cut calories) and keeping your digestive system healthy. It may even help with the prevention of colon cancer. An extra benefit is that many high calorie foods (particularly vegetables) are also high in vitamins and minerals and low in calories!

Lettuce! Surprised? maybe not but this super-food combines high fiber and vitamin A with low calories. Substituting lettuce as a wrap instead of tortilla or bread can make tons of everyday meals like a ham sandwich into a much lower calorie meal or snack.

Colorful vegetables. One of the best ways to fight hunger and get more nutrients into your diet is to buy bags and/or a tray of pre-washed and cut vegetables. Then in the morning simply fill a zipplock bag or two with these colorful veggies to snack on throughout the day. This will fight cravings (ultimately saving you tons of calories), add in extra fiber to your diet and give you plenty of healthy vitamins, antioxidants and phytochemicals you can only get from plants.

Brown rice and Whole grains! Although they may not taste like their white alternatives they are so much healthier. The process in which brown rice and grain are turned into white products includes getting rid of the outside shell which includes the majority the fiber, vitamins and minerals, leaving only the starch. Eating the “brown” versions of these products means you get the healthy fiber, vitamins and minerals. This is also great because brown grains have a much lower glycemic index than whit grain products which means they are absorbed into the blood stream as glucose slower and trigger less drastic spikes in blood sugar.

Flax seeds: These healthy little seeds are loaded with omega-3 fatty acids and can have positive impacts on your hormones. They can be eaten as a seed (best case), eaten as a powder (for baking/ cooking etc) or in a liquid or pill form (which is still good for you.

Power Fruits: Load up on antioxidants and feel your best with these fruits. Beware of juices! They can pack a lot of antioxidants and nutrients but they can also pack a lot of calories. In fresh fruit look for color and enjoy a variety of different fruits so you can get the maximum benefits from all the great nutrients these wonders of produce have to offer.

Blueberries: Super high in antioxidants! These tasty little berries are a great snack to carry with you since they are loaded with stress fighting phytochemicals and age fighting antioxidants.

Pomegranates: These fruit are great substitutes for high calorie snacks. They average a mere 105 calories (for a medium sized fruit) and are loaded with vitamins, antioxidants and fiber. Avoid the juice if trying to lose weight, it lacks the fiber from the pomegranate pods that will make you feel fuller and is much more calorie-dense than the fruit itself. A bonus is that this fruit can take a little while to eat, so when you really want to snack  for the sake of eating, these fruits can save you from overeating and sabotaging your diet.

Some other great health articles:

Are Your Own Fat Cells Sabotaging Your Weight-loss? Get the Facts

The Truth About Carbs

Top Fitness and Weight loss Myths and Realities