Natural Weight Loss Foods You Should Add To Your Grocery Shopping List

Changing your diet is one of the key components when you want to live a healthier life, lose weight and get more energy for the fun things in life. If you're changing the diet for yourself you should include your family as well so the also can reap the benefits of a healthier lifestyle.

For some people it is hard to know what to include in their diets, there's a lot of information available and too much information is overwhelming. The list of what not to buy can be made very long and the focus for this article is instead on what you should buy.

These are the foods you should always have at home; and you can eat as much as you like of these foods. They are nutritious and help you on your way to fitness and health. Get them on your grocery list today!

Beans

Apart from some unwanted effects in your stomach area beans are excellent food, high in fiber and antioxidants. Beans contain high levels of protein which is very important for building lean muscles.

When losing weight you have to make sure to get enough protein so that you only lose weight from fat, not from muscle tissue. After all, muscles are what you want to keep. Protein helps you do just that.

Beans digest slowly, and this is a very good thing as it keeps you satisfied much longer and prevents your insulin to spike (causing hunger or cravings). What I usually do is to replace potatoes, white rice or pasta with beans instead such as a bean salads or humus.

Kids love humus with garlic, but if you're cooking for you and your wife you can try to put some red pepper in it to spice it up a little.

Eggs

Eggs are another protein rich food source (6 grams per egg or 12% of recommended daily value) that you probably already have in your kitchen if you do any kind of cooking at home.

If you've been to a gym or seen those unnaturally big guys with really big muscles I can tell you they probably eat tons of egg every year. A hardboiled egg is a great snack in the afternoon or as part of your breakfast. Eat them any way you'd like.

Eat scrambled or boiled eggs for breakfast and omelets for lunch. Easy to cook and it keeps you satisfied for a long time. Eggs also are a good source of vitamins such as vitamin B6, B12, A, D and E.

When you're really after the protein and want to cut down on calories you can do an egg white omelet from just the egg whites, salt, pepper and some parsley.

Worried about all the fuzz about cholesterol levels in eggs? Don't be! Research has shown that cholesterol in our body is not directly linked to cholesterol in food but to overconsumption of saturated fat.

What this means is that the cholesterol you're getting from fried eggs or a cheese omelet actually comes from the saturated fats in the butter and not from the eggs.

Stick to natural eggs without any added nutrients. The eggs you eat should come from a happy hen!

Grapefruit

This fruit has been on every weight loss program for the last 30 years or so, and for a good reason. Grapefruit is low in calories (40 kcal for a normal sized grapefruit), high in nutrients and has a unique compound that aids weight loss.

Why grapefruit aids weight loss is not completely understood but research has shown that consuming grapefruit or grapefruit juice clearly helps when you want to lose weight. Juice does the trick but the real fruit is always better to eat.

Lemon

Lemon contains citric acid, pectin and a lot of vitamin C. It is the citric acid that helps break down fats, carbs and protein into carbon dioxide and water. Some weight loss methods suggest that you should drink a glass of water with squeezed lemon first thing in the morning for an extra weight loss effect.

Actually drinking water in general is a good habit when you want to lose weight and if you drink it first thing in the morning you'll also get an extra weight loss effect. So combine the two every morning - a few glasses of water with fresh lemon in it.

Cinnamon

Cinnamon's got a group of compounds which help increasing the efficiency of insulin. Insulin transports glucose (one of the compounds our bodies break down food into and use as energy) from the blood to each individual cell (so that we can use the energy).

Use cinnamon on your Greek Natural Yoghurt that you eat for breakfast along with some grated apple.

Sorry, cinnamon rolls do not count.

      Chili Pepper

      Chili is a great fruit that is used endlessly in cooking, especially in asian food. Use it as much as you can because it will get your metabolism going. Chili is well-known for its ability to speed up metabolism. In fact, this goes for many spices and herbs so make sure you eat them often to help you lose your belly fat naturally.

Be a bit careful though, I always remove the seeds and pulp as this is the hottest part of the chili.

Vinegar

Along with lemon, using vinegar is an old weight loss trick. It has actually been used for thousands of years to promote weight loss. The major benefit is that it makes you feel full longer. Just use it in your salad dressing. You're eating salad every day, right?

In conclusion there are many more foods you should include in your diet than listed here. But it's a great start! As a rule of thumb, stick to natural food and stay away from highly processed foods.

If the food has been processed in any way it is better to stay away from them, if you can. Sometimes its hard to exclude processed foods altogether but strive towards keeping them to a minimum in your diet.

If it's good for you it's probably good for your family as well, so stay informed and stick to what's natural.

Max J Miller is the father of 2 kids and a health and fitness enthusiast. Just an ordinary guy trying to stay in shape and teach my kids what's healthy and the things to eat to make your body feel good.

Are you a dad wanting the same things? Come over to GetDadFit now and find more information about fitness and natural weight loss for dads.

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