1. Broccoli
Eating broccoli will make you feel fuller so you wont over eat but it doesn’t stop there, it is also full of nutrients such as:
- Vitamin C which helps with iron absorption in the body and also helps as an immune booster if you get a cold.
- Calcium
- Potassium
- Folic Acid
2. Cinnamon
Research has suggested that Cinnamon reduces blood sugar and cholesterol levels. Lower blood sugar levels will limit your cravings but it has also been found to increase your metabolism allowing you to burn stored fat more quickly and efficiently. Add some ground cinnamon to your tea, coffee or even your meal. You could even have a nice slice of cinnamon toast (wholegrain), but don’t think it’s OK to go for the cinnamon buns as these are not going to help you lose fat.
3. Grapefruit
Eating or drinking grapefruit can help balance your blood sugar levels and help your liver burn excess fat instead of storing it. It would seem that we have the Flavonoid called Naringenin to thank for this, details of the research and study can be found on Science Daily.
4. Greek Yogurt
Greek yogurt will have you feeling fuller for longer as it has twice as much protein than regular yogurt. Did you know that your body burns more calories digesting protein than carbs and fat? How great is that! Your body will be burning extra calories just to digest the food you have eaten without you having to do anything.
5. Kiwi fruit
Packed with vitamins and nutrients and also high in fibre both insoluble and soluble so it will not only aid your digestion but also suppress you appetite as you will feel fuller for longer. This little green fruit is also high in vitamin C which your body needs to burn fat.
6. Ginger
Chop, grate and sprinkle on food or add to a drink. Ginger not only helps your digestion but can also increase your metabolism, the boost in your metabolism is caused by the thermogenic effect – when your body temperature raises slightly from increases in your blood circulation, so speeding up the rate which your body burns off calories.
7. Green Tea
Green Teas contain Catechins which are believed to lead to a reduction in body fat. There have been a variety of different studies on Green Tea and its effect on weight loss. According to research reported in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition green tea speeds up the rate that your body burns cellular energy by 40%. Other studies can also be found here.
So drink 2-3 cups per day and you will be on your way to losing that fat faster. Additional health benefits from green tea are:
- Powerful antioxidant
- Increases resting metabolic rate
- Helps fight cancer and heart disease
8. Caffeine
An added bonus for those of you out there who like a nice cup of coffee, but it’s when you drink it that is important. The best time is to drink a cup of coffee 30 minutes before you exercise and the caffeine will stimulate your nervous system which increases your metabolism in turn helping you burn more calories and fat. Be careful though, some coffee’s can be high in sugar and calories so stick to a plain black coffee with no milk, sugar, cream etc added.
9. Apples
An apple a day…. Scrub the apple first to get rid of any pesticide residue that may be lingering and then eat, simple. Apples are high in pectin which helps keep your blood sugar levels regulated, they contain fibre which will keep you feeling fuller for longer and they are also a good source of vitamin C. They are high in fructose so don’t eat too many, one per day should be plenty.
10. Chilli Peppers
Hot peppers contain capsaicin which speeds up your metabolism and can curb your appetite. Eating hot peppers can increase fat oxidation so your body will use more fat as fuel instead of carbs. The increase in metabolism is for a short time but you will be burning more calories than if you had no peppers so why not add some spice to your meal!
11. Garlic
You can add garlic to almost any savoury dish and is most effective when raw either crushed or chopped. Eating garlic has many benefits when it comes to fat loss, it is a natural diuretic which means it will helps flush out the excess fluids in your body, it gets rid of unwanted toxins, helps break down fat and stimulates your metabolism. The other benefits of garlic are that it also includes the following:
- Vitamin C
- B6 which helps protect blood vessels from inflammation and oxidative stress which reduces the risk of stroke, heart attack and heart disease.
- Calcium
- Selenium
- Manganese together with Selenium are antioxidants which help keep away those free radicals.
The foods are above will help you in your fat loss quest and speed the process up but only if they are combined with a healthy diet and exercise programme, there is no food that you can eat or drink that will magically banish fat from your body.
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