If you want to lose weight or simply maintain the body weight that you have, exercise alone is typically not going to be enough. A balanced approach to nutrition complete with complex carbohydrates, healthy fats, protein, fruits and vegetables is definitely the way to go if you want to improve your physique and your health. But with all of that hard work in the gym, wouldn’t it be fantastic if you could simply eat certain foods and get the results you want? Well there is some good news – eating certain foods can skyrocket your metabolism, keep you full in between meals and help you drop fat.
Here are 10 foods to help you get started.
1. Cayenne Peppers
Jalapenos and habaneros may be your favorite pepper, but cayenne peppers may help you burn additional fat. Cayenne peppers increase your body heat and increase your heart rate, increasing lipid oxidation and resulting in improved fat mobilization. Some research has even shown that these peppers can slow the growth of tumors and slow the growth of fat cells, making it much easier to drop fat.
2. Cinnamon
Cinnamon has been shown to lower blood sugar levels, something that is of great importance if your goal is weight loss. Be sure to include cinnamon in your hot cocoa, coffee or even your tea.
3. Ginger
Ginger increases your metabolic rate, suppress your appetite, and can increase the rate at which certain foods digest.
4 Citrus Fruits
Things like lemons, limes, and citrus fruits are high in fiber and Vitamin C and are very low in calories. Not only will you stay fuller between meals, but you will also keep your blood sugar stable.
5. Berries and Apples
Apples and berries contain high amounts of pectin, quercetin, vitamin C, and malic acid. These fruits have also been shown to increase energy levels. And because they are high in fiber, they will help suppress your appetite.
6. Wild Salmon
Salmon is high in omega-3 fatty acids, which improve immune health, promote cardiovascular health and may even help increase bone density.
7. Garlic
Having a few cloves of garlic with each one of your meals can lower blood sugar levels.
8. Green Tea
A chemical known as EGCG found in green tea can increase your heart rate, metabolism, and fat-burning capabilities. Powerful antioxidants known as catechins found in green tea have also been shown to reduce your risk of certain cancers.
9. Almonds
Almonds are high in fiber, vitamin E, and magnesium. They are excellent foods to help you gain muscle and lose fat, since they are high in protein and healthy fats.
10 Eggs
Eggs are high in vitamin B12 and protein and just like nuts, they are fantastic muscle building and fat loss foods, since some research shows that they increase your testosterone levels naturally as well – testosterone is the single most important muscle building & fat loss hormone in your entire body.
The Take Home Message
Probably the absolute worst thing you can do when trying to lose weight is starve yourself. If you eat too few calories, you will slow your metabolism and actually burn off muscle and not fat. But by eating the 10 foods above, you can increase your metabolism, lose more fat and overall improve your health.
