You can exercise all you want, but if you aren’t eating right, you won’t see that belly go away. The most important aspect of a healthy lifestyle is what you feed your body. It should be full of nutrition and not contain anything that would make losing belly fat difficult. This article will list some foods that you should include in your daily diet to help you burn belly fat, and some that you should be avoiding like the plague.
Do Eat…
- A rainbow of vegetables – Everyone knows that vegetables are the most nutritious foods you can eat but it is still a challenge to eat as much as we should. Society plainly makes meat or carbs the star of our plate, but we should endeavor to give veggies the limelight. We should also make sure to include a wide range of vegetables in our diet from every color in the rainbow from green leafy veggies, orange carrots, red beets, and white cauliflower. This helps us to get a variety of vitamins and minerals into our bodies.
- High fiber foods – Fiber is filling and helps to keep our blood sugar at healthy levels. The best sources of fiber are from many of our vegetables, legumes, nuts, and grains. The best fruits for fiber are apples and berries because they contain soluble fiber that absorbs water and takes longer to digest, keeping you full longer and stopping you from overeating and helping you get rid of belly fat.
- Complex carbs – Contrary to popular opinion, not all carbs are bad. Complex carbs give you lots of energy and help you stay satisfied so that you don’t feel fatigue or have crazy cravings. Good sources of complex carbs are sweet potatoes, legumes, brown rice, whole wheat bread, and some fruits and vegetables.
- Lean protein – Protein is the building block of muscles. When you have a higher muscle content in your body, you have a higher metabolism and it is easier to burn fat. Lean protein gives your muscles the nutrients they need to stay strong and dense. Protein is also one of the most satisfying foods to eat, keeping your appetite in check for hours. The best sources of lean protein are certain cuts of meat like chicken breast, pork loin, and sirloin steak. Nuts and legumes are also good sources of protein.
- Healthy fats – Healthy fats actually help your body to burn its stored fat so getting a healthy dose in your diet is very helpful in getting rid of belly fat. Good sources are avocados, fatty fish like salmon and herring, nuts and seeds, peanut butter, and oils like olive oil and coconut oil.
Don’t Eat…
- Sugary foods – Sugar is one of the most dangerous foods and the most fattening. Cut out all sources of unnatural sugar from your diet like baked goods, soda, candy, coffee creamer, sweet tea, and more.
- Processed meat – Bacon, sausage and deli meats all contain nitrates and nitrites which are very bad for your health, not to mention the high fat content. If you want to lose belly fat, stay away from these meats.
- Refined carbs – Sugar is a refined carb but there are more foods to include in this list. Any foods that contain white flour like white bread, pasta, and other baked goods like pizza crust, biscuits, and crackers are just empty calories that won’t give you any nutrition but will definitely cause your stomach to inflate.
- Saturated fats – Deep fried foods like mozzarella sticks, fries, and fried chicken are full of saturated fat. This is the worst kind of fat that you can eat, and it should be avoided as much as possible.
- Preservatives and additives – Fast food chains add so many preservatives to their foods to keep them from spoiling and also additives to make them taste better. These preservatives and additives throw off your body’s natural metabolism, making it very hard for it to lose weight and burn belly fat. Some frozen foods contain the same damaging chemicals. Be careful when buying frozen foods and stay away from fast food restaurants.
