Cutting down your daily caloric intake is only one aspect of lasting weight loss. What you eat is just as important as how much you eat when trying to attain your ideal body weight, according to "The Eat Clean Diet" author, Tosca Reno. Eating foods that are nutrient dense and are lower in calories will help you stay full longer, which will help you control the amount of food you eat, notes the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Fresh Fruits and Vegetables
Fresh fruits and vegetables are high in vital nutrients and low in calories. MayoClinic.com recommends increasing your fruit and vegetable ratio daily by adding them to your meals, such as putting fresh berries on high fiber cereal for breakfast, adding broccoli and cauliflower to your pasta sauce and replacing refined pasta with spaghetti squash. Replacing high calorie snacks such as candy bars with fresh fruit like apples can save you up to 250 to 500 calories a day. To lose one pound of fat you need to burn 3500 calories more than you consume. Cutting your daily calories by 500 can result in a one pound weight loss a week. Choosing fresh fruits and veggies over high calorie foods and snacks is one simple way to increase your weight loss.
Lean Proteins
Protein is the building blocks of the cells, tissue and organs in our bodies. The protein we eat in food breaks down into amino acids and replaces these proteins in our bodies. When trying to lose weight, it is important to eat the correct amount of protein daily and to choose lean proteins that are low in saturated fats, such as lean beef, fish, turkey and chicken. The CDC recommends adults consume 10 to 35 percent of their diet in lean proteins.
Fiber and Whole Grains
Contrary to high-protein diet fads, whole grain-high fiber complex carbohydrates are essential nutrients that can help you in your weight loss journey. Foods such as whole grain pasta, bread and cereal, steel-cut oatmeal and wild and brown rice are high in fiber which helps you feel full and eat less. Whole grains also provide your body with essential nutrients such as B vitamins to keep your metabolism high, iron to carry oxygen in the blood and magnesium to build bones and release energy from muscles, notes the American Heart Association.
References
- "The Eat-Clean Diet"; Tosca Reno; 2007
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Healthy Weight - It's Not a Diet, It's a Lifestyle!
- MayoClinic.com: Energy Density and Weight Loss; Feel Full on Fewer Calories
- FamilyDoctor.com: What It Takes to Lose Weight
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Protein
- The American Heart Association: Whole Grains and Fiber
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