Consuming fewer calories than you use is the recipe for successful weight loss. If you're gaining weight on your current diet, stop the trend by choosing foods that help you lose instead. A variety of low-fat and low-calorie foods -- not a single-food diet -- balances your energy intake to slightly below your output from exercise. To lose weight fast, rely on the five food groups to supply the right nutritional mix, and choose the foods with 100 calories or less most often.
Vegetables
Along with daily exercise, vegetables are major weapons in your war on weight. The National Institutes of Health notes that you fill up faster on foods with large amounts of dietary fiber. Choose different kinds of veggies, such as Brussels sprouts, broccoli, mushrooms, kale and spinach for iron and vitamin B, and carrots, tomatoes and tomato sauce, and red and green peppers for their vitamins A and C. With 30 calories or less in ½ cup and satisfying high fiber, the more room you give these and other veggies in your diet, the more quickly you'll lose weight.
Fruits
Fruits add to your fiber and vitamin C totals and bump up your potassium levels, all within low calories. Sweet and tart tastes make fruits versatile and appealing additions to a calorie-restriction diet. Most fruits, except avocados and bananas, remain under 100 calories per whole fruit or per ½-cup serving, according to the USDA Nutrient Database. Nutritious fruits with the lowest calories include apricots, kiwis and plums.
Dairy
Don't skip dairy products for lower-calorie foods or you'll sacrifice your daily calcium, protein and other important nutrients. Lose weight fast by pouring fat-free milk and choosing part-skim cheeses, both under 100 calories per suggested serving. At 127 calories, 1 cup of plain fat-free yogurt offers even more calcium and greater protein for a hearty diet breakfast or lunch.
Grains
The natural fiber in grain foods makes eating low-calorie cereal satisfying and buying "diet" breads unnecessary. A slice of whole-wheat bread and a suggested serving of some whole-grain cereals offer good nutrition in fewer than 100 calories. Additional healthy foods to eat for weight loss in this group include plain popcorn, corn tortillas and rye crackers.
Protein Foods
Big calorie savings come from choosing low-fat protein foods. Low-calorie meats and poultry servings from the deli case include extra-lean ham and roasted turkey breast slices. Fish such as tuna, flounder, cod, haddock and perch offer larger vitamin and mineral ratios than fattier beef, pork and chicken, in about 100 calories per 3 oz.
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