Fad diets, there is always someone spouting something about the newest and best diet ever created, the pounds melt off in front of your eyes. Guess what, none of them work. However, there are weight loss superfoods that really can help in weight loss and weight maintenance, these foods either burn more calories or help you eat less and in some cases, decrease body fat.
All the expert dieticians will echo one another in saying there are two categories of weight loss superfoods. Fruits and vegetables can be classified as the keep-it-off superfood and fiber can be classifies as the keep-it-off supernutrient. As an example, two cups of steam broccoli is only a minuscule 87 calories, two cups of strawberries are less than 100 calories, ever denser vegetables and fruits are low in calorie count; carrots come in at 140 for two cups and sliced apples at 130 for two cups.
Protein is another great supernutrient, eating protein-rich foods increases satiety which is of extreme importance when the object is to lose weight.
Although there are a long list of weight loss superfoods keep one thing in mind; weight loss is about burning more calories than you take in and the superfoods are all low in calories.
- Green tea: Make it a point to have glass of cold green tea or a steaming cup whenever you can. Studies that ran over a three month period showed that participants who consumed a bottle of green tea lost more body fat than the participants who drank a corresponding amount of oolong tea.
- Tomato based soup or broth: Once again, another study showed that eating a 300 calorie serving of soup before lunch resulted in fewer calories taken in on the days when the participants had soup. The soup must be tomato based broth and eaten prior to the main meal. The consensus among dieticians is that soup helps control hunger and the tendency is to eat less.
- Green salads: Do not confuse this superfood with a salad dripping with cream cheese and high-fat dressings. This superfood is a small green salad with salt and pepper. When eaten before the main meal, a salad of this nature reduces the calorie intake at the main meal by 7%, a slightly larger salad by 12%. Two cups of spinach leaves, with 8-10 slices of cucumber a tomato and ¼ cup of carrot is only 67 calories.
- Beans: Beans have the tendency of making you feel fuller and as a result they work to curb your desire for more food. They are very rich in protein and a great source of fiber. One cup of black beans is about 110 calories and also delivers 8 grams of fiber.
Grapefruit, whole-grain cereals and diet shakes as well as yogurt are also included in the list of weight loss superfoods.
