Losing weight requires a healthy food plan and getting regular exercise. But while you’re giving fatty foods the cold shoulder you should try sneaking some of these fat-burning foods into your diet to help you burn more calories.
Coconut
Since it contains medium chain triglycerides that stimulate the liver, coconuts can help you burn up to 30 percent more fat! Add this delicious fruit to your smoothies, a healthy stir fry, or enjoy it on its own. Perfect for poolside summers.
Fish
If you usually eat other meat instead, make a point of substituting it for fish. Not only is this better for your general health but your waistline too. Fish normalises a hormone called leptin which monitors fat storage, so it’s good for keeping a watch on extra fat in the body. A study found that people who ate a diet filled with fish had lower levels of leptin and better fat metabolism regulation.
Hot Peppers
Sometimes your meals need a bit of extra zing, so add some hot peppers to your favourite dish. They contain a compound known as capsaicin that stimulates protein structures inside the body to disintegrate fat.
Yoghurt
You might think you need to cut out dairy in order to lose weight, but deleting this food group from your diet can have the reverse effect: when your body doesn’t get enough calcium it will start storing calories away as fat! Try to get some healthy dairy into your diet, such as yoghurt that contains more calcium than milk. The calcium boost is also great for your abs. When you have excess weight around your middle, your body produces the hormone cortisol which sends a message for your body to store more fat in this area. But when you get enough calcium through yoghurt, your body produces less of the hormone so your weight can be better controlled.
Beans
Beans are great in those summer salads and to notch up your protein intake, but they can also help you kill calories. University of Colorado researchers have found that foods high in resistant start, which beans contain, can help you burn more calories throughout the day. Not a fan of beans? Resistant starch is also found in whole grains.
Avocados
These delicious green gems are packed with monounsaturated (or good) fats, which fatten cell membranes so they can communicate better with hormones while handily turning off the body’s hormone that stores fat. Add more avos to your home-made pizzas, sandwiches or salads to deliciously eat your way to a more toned bod this summer.
image credit: BillionPhotos.com / Dollar Photo Club
