Oxford University and Pennsylvania State University have found that certain foods have fat-burning, muscle-building, or satiety-inducing properties. Here are ten great weight loss foods that help you burn fat, build muscle, and increase your energy. They also help you to control cravings.
1. Raw Fruits and Vegetables
Fruits and vegetables high in vitamin C, such as oranges, lemons, pineapples, grapefruit, apples, limes, tomatoes, broccoli, cabbage, celery, carrot, and watermelon liquefy body fat so it can be easily flushed out of your body, according to researchers at Arizona State University.
Pennsylvania State University researchers discovered that people who ate a large apple, approximately 128 calories, 15 minutes before lunch took in 187 fewer calories during lunch than those who didn't snack beforehand. They also reported feeling more satisfied afterward. Apples are loaded with belly-filling fiber, and they require lots of chewing, which can make you think you're eating more than you really are, says study author Julie Obbagy, Ph.D.. Apples contain pectin, a strong appetite suppressant that keeps you satisfied for long periods of time, helping you to avoid overeating so you lose weight.
People who ate half a grapefruit three times a day lost 4 pounds in 12 weeks, even though they hadn't deliberately altered any other part of their diets, according to a recent study from Louisiana State University.
2. Oatmeal
Oatmeal is high in fiber, which helps prevent your body from storing fat and suppresses your appetite. If you eat it about 1 to 2 hours before doing a weight loss workout, it will give you sustained energy, allowing you to work out longer and more intensely which results in faster weight loss. Oatmeal can help to control cholesterol and blood glucose levels. The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition concludes that the use of fiber is an effective and well-tolerated part of a prudent diet for the treatment of high cholesterol. Fiber incorporated into food products is more effective at reducing blood glucose response than a fiber supplement taken separately from the food. Our blood glucose levels can determine how hungry and energetic we feel, and whether we store fat or burn it.
3. Dairy products
Dairy products like low-fat yogurt, cheese, and milk are high in calcium, which breaks down fat cells faster. In a recent study, people who ate low-fat dairy products 3 to 4 times a day lost 70 percent more fat than people on a low-dairy diet. Scientists also believe that foods high in calcium suppress calcitriol, a hormone responsible for making fat cells bigger. Other studies have shown that dairy products contain high-quality proteins that help suppress appetite.
A diet consisting mainly of high calcium foods resulted in an average weight loss of 24.6 pounds in 16 weeks, more than the average weight loss in a year in trials using weight loss drugs like orlistat and sibutramine, according to a 2003 edition of the International Journal of Obesity & Related Metabolic Disorders.
Cheese is an excellent source of casein protein, one of the best muscle-building nutrients you can eat. Danish researchers found that even when men ate 10 ounces of full-fat cheese daily for 3 weeks, their LDL ("bad") cholesterol didn't budge. Researchers at Boston University found that casein protein caused more weight loss and a higher muscle ratio than whey protein. You can eat your cheese and lose weight.
