If you’re willing to critically examine your current health status this year, you may want to focus on your nutritional diet before aiming to tackle anything else, like weight loss or gain.
Believe it or not, mindful nutrition habits can help you shed excess pounds without allowing you to have food cravings or feel extremely hungry. This is due to healthy foods, including natural nutrients, as opposed to processed foods, which are loaded with fats, sugars, salts, and preservatives. For reference, naturally nutrient-rich foods include fruits and vegetables, lean meats, fish, whole grains, dairy, legumes, nuts, and seeds. Although highly processed foods are convenient (I’m speaking to those who don’t enjoy cooking), they are unfortunately packed with calories, low in nutrients, and increase in various diseases like diabetes and coronary artery disease.
However, natural foods can continue to keep you healthy, as they are rich in vitamins and minerals, lack chemical additives, and are primarily unprocessed.
Examples of natural foods:
- Apples
- Bananas
- Chia seeds
- Broccoli
- Kale
- Berries
- Tomatoes
- Sweet potatoes
- Brown rice
- Salmon
- Whole eggs
- Unprocessed meats
Here’s how natural foods help you lose weight:
Whole, unprocessed plant-based foods and meats are loaded with vitamins and minerals, which are great for your health. Processed foods are low in micronutrients and can increase your risk of health problems. If your diet only consists of processed foods, it might not provide enough iron, which can affect your ability to exercise and subsequently limit your ability to burn calories through exercise. A low nutritional diet may also prevent you from losing weight, as processed foods are less filling. Additionally, protein is the most essential nutrient for fat loss. Natural foods are better protein sources since they are less processed and typically have more protein and less fat.
Fiber:
Soluble fiber provides many health benefits, including aiding weight loss. When combined with water, the fiber forms a thick gel and may reduce appetite by slowing food movement through the gut. Another way soluble fiber may reduce appetite is by affecting the production of hormones that manage hunger.
Less fats:
Artificial trans fats are bad for your health. These fats are artificially made by pumping hydrogen molecules into vegetable oils, changing them from liquid to solid. These fats increase fat gain and boost the risk of many harmful diseases. Natural foods don’t contain artificial trans fats.
Cut back on the sugars:
The natural sugars in fruits and vegetables are not the same as those in refined sugars, which can be processed. Fruits and vegetables contain natural sugars but provide other essential nutrients like fiber, vitamins, and water, which are needed for a balanced diet.
Limit high-fructose corn syrup and table sugar in your diet, and you’ll see a difference in your overall health and weight. That also means cutting the ice cream, cakes, cookies, and candy. Like processed foods, refined sugars also do little to keep you full.
The best part of eating natural foods and maintaining a healthy diet is that you can still eat more food while losing weight. Natural foods contain a good portion of air and water, which is calorie-free. Additionally, foods with fewer calories and more volume can fill you up more than foods with more calories and less volume.
