Eat and Lose: 10 Fat-Burning Foods!
Stoke your metabolic fire and burn calories faster with diet-friendly foods and beverages. Here are a few pointers:
Water! One study seems to indicate that drinking water actually speeds up weight loss. Studies show that green tea extract boosts metabolism and may aid in weight loss.
Fat Burning Foods
Soup! In the study, women chose one of three 270-calorie snacks before lunch.
Grapefruit! The study indicates that the unique chemical properties in this vitamin-C-packed citrus fruit reduce insulin levels, which promotes weight loss. Fruit eaters also ate fewer calories overall. So, next time you need to satisfy a sugar craving, reach for this low-calorie, high-fiber snack.
Broccoli! Study after study links calcium and weight loss.
Low-Fat Yogurt! People on a reduced-calorie diet who included 3-4 servings of dairy foods lost significantly more weight than those who ate a low-dairy diet containing the same number of calories.
Lean Turkey! Countless studies have shown that protein can help boost metabolism, lose fat, and build lean muscle tissue so you burn more calories. A 3-ounce serving of boneless, skinless lean turkey breast weighs in at 120 calories and provides 26 grams of appetite-curbing protein, 1 gram of fat, and 0 grams of saturated fat.
Oatmeal! To keep your oatmeal as low-calorie and healthy as possible, make it with water or skim milk. Avoid using sweeteners, and add flavor and sweetness with fresh berries instead. One-half cup of fresh blueberries has only 40 calories and almost 2 grams of filling fiber. To lose weight, you need to create a calorie deficit so your body stops storing fat and dips into your fat reserves for energy.
Hot Peppers! Hot peppers get their heat from an oily chemical compound called capsaicin, found primarily in the membrane surrounding the seeds. Capsaicin boosts thermogenesis — the process by which the body turns calories into heat to use for fuel — in studies on humans and animals. You won’t speed up your metabolism to lose weight just by eating hot peppers. To shed extra pounds, you’ll need to balance the calories you take in with the amount you burn off every day through physical activity.
Water-rich fresh fruits, veggies, and soup dilute the calories in your food and allow you to eat more without breaking the calorie bank.
