Fat Burning Foods

Want to shed some unwanted pounds without feeling deprived, or additional exercise?  Eating natural fat burning foods help burn calories without any extra treadmill time.  Depending on your current metabolism it’s possible to burn off 10% of your body fat, and 3-5 pounds in the first week.

Fat burning foods, also classed as thermogenic foods, naturally speed up your metabolism.  Thermogenesis is the natural process of heat production and is one of the biochemical processes that make up metabolism.

“Negative Calorie” foods supposedly require more calories to be digested than it provides.  Don’t look too hard, because they don’t exist!  There is no scientific evidence that any of the foods claimed as negative calorie foods are such.

All foods burn calories to some degree. In fact, about 10-15% of all the calories you eat are used just in the digestion process. It’s hard work for your body to break down food, absorbing all the protein, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, etc…. and then getting the unused portion out of the body.  But, the point is, these foods aren’t ‘magical’ and most are foods you may already be eating anyway.

What you need to know are what foods that cause accelerated fat burning , particular foods that prevent fat burning, and how to put the right foods together in a certain way to create a fat burning effect. Training yourself to eat more fat burning foods may be easier than you think.

Sugar is Your Enemy
Juice, breads, and other carbs, turn to sugar in your body.  Having a blood sugar level over 120 for a consistent period causes insulin to be released.  Insulin signals your body to store fat, and in the process makes your blood sugar lower – making you crave sugar all over again.

However, not all carbs are created equal.  Certain carbs you don’t need.  Whole wheat carbs, like those whole wheat muffins at the coffee shop, make the body release insulin and store fat.  Carbs that help you burn fat are sprouted grain breads, rice, spelt, millet, quinoa, sweet potatoes, and any fruits or vegetables.  Any diet which tells you not to eat fruit, or limit the number of fruits, is a crash diet!  The fiber and nutrients in fruit will help you lose fats.

Good Fats vs. Bad Fats
It’s impossible to lose fat without eating fats.  Eat the right kind of fat and it increases your metabolic rate to burn fats.  Eat bad fat and it will help store fat in your body.  Fats that will make you gain weight are hydrogenated oil, canola oil, margarine, or any other types of substitute butter – it’s not real food.  Good fats you must eat to lose fat are real butter, whole eggs, coconut oil, olive oil, avocado, raw nuts – any natural unprocessed fats.

Processed Foods
Processed foods usually have lots of sugar, or harmful chemicals, to keep them fresh in stores.  You liver does not work optimally feeding it these foods.  The liver works to breakdown fats, and filtering harmful chemicals out of the body.  Overworking the liver by making it filter these chemicals can cause the liver not to process fats properly.

Counting Calories
The other misconception is that you should count every calorie.  Counting calories is not practical, and does not have continuity.  The number of calories does not matter as much as what type of calories you’re feeding your body.  Crash diets call for starving your body of calories and it’s not always effective.  If you skip meals and food, it will slow your metabolism and your health will deteriorate.  Your body might think it’s in starvation mode and begin storing fats.

A fat burning diet which uses foods that burn fat will make you lose weight naturally, but only if you eat enough.  You should never feel hungry and if you’re doing it properly you will probably end up eating more.  Make sure you eat enough that you feel full after every meal, this way you won’t be tempted to snack in between meals.

Foods that Burn Fat

These fat burning foods are basically just natural foods.  If you eat these fat burning foods while sticking to an exercise routine it will boost your metabolism and burn more calories (fat) at a faster rate for several hours even after exercise.  Eating the right foods will put your metabolism on fat burning auto-pilot.  Eat all the right foods for you, and you can eat all you want!

Dairy products
Calcium found in dairy products like milk, cheese, and yogurt act as a fat burner that can boost weight loss by increasing fat breakdown in fat cells. The International Journal of Obesity published a study in April 2005 that concluded calcium and protein that comes from low-fat dairy products actually promote weight loss and help to maintain muscle mass. 

Research showed that overweight people who consumed 3 servings a day of calcium-rich dairy lost more belly fat than those who followed a similar diet minus two or more of the dairy servings. The calcium supplements didn’t work as well as milk.

Basically, calcium stored in fat cells plays a crucial role in regulating how fat is stored and broken down by the body.  It’s thought that the more calcium there is in a fat cell, the more fat it will burn.

Too many dieters tend to immediately exclude dairy foods from their diet, because they’re just sure they’re going to make them fat.  Try to eat three servings of low-fat dairy products a day, which can come in the form of milk, cheese or yogurt.  Skim milk is best but if you find it too watery, 1% milk is a good alternative.

Getting enough calcium can be difficult for some – especially if allergic.  These nondairy foods can be good alternatives for those who need calcium:

• Salmon
• Tofu
• Rhubarb
• Sardines
• Collard greens
• Almonds
• Spinach
• Kale

Apples & Berries
Although all fresh fruit contain pectin – apples and berries have it in abundance. Pectin restricts the amount of fat our cells can absorb, and forces the cells to discharge fatty deposits so aiding natural weight loss. The watery buildup that results from pectin drowns out the fat from the cells and keeps your body from absorbing it.  The antioxidants in apples may help prevent metabolic syndrome, a condition marked by excess belly fat.  Berries such as blackberries, blueberries, black and red currants, raspberries and strawberries help to detox your body, boost your metabolism and make your body more efficient at burning fat.

Hint: To get the maximum effect of pectin in your body, eat applesauce (unsweetened of course).  This makes digesting the nutrients easier when the apple is broken down more.  If not applesauce you can run it through a blender, or at least chew apples thoroughly when eating.

Fish & EFAs
Life expectancy in Japan, for both men and women, is the highest in the world.  And, many researchers are sure the higher than average consumption of fish by Japanese contributes greatly to that longevity.  Many types of fish are rich in Omega-3 fatty acids which boost your metabolism, burn more fat, and contribute to cardiovascular health protecting you against heart disease.   Fish is the new wonder food!

Essential fatty acids, or EFAs, should be a part of your dietary lifestyle. Women who consume fish regularly have lower levels of a protein hormone called lepton, which has been linked to a slower metabolism and obesity.   French research has found that men who replace six grams of fat with six grams of fish oil lost an average of two pounds in just 12 weeks.

Salmon is one of the best sources of Omega-3 Amino fatty acids which boost your metabolism and burn more fat.  Other great sources are tuna, herring, and mackerel.  Canned sardines are convenient, and are rich in fish oil.  Fish oil supplements are now widely available and are a great way to shed pounds.

Do your best to eat fish three to five times a week.

Oats & Whole Grains
Whole grain cereals are a great source of both complex carbs and fiber, and these are what’s needed to keep your metabolism pumped by keeping insulin levels low after a meal. Since insulin spikes make your body think it’s time to start storing the fat, eating foods that lower insulin levels makes sense.  In order to stockpile fat your body slows down your metabolism. The result is that you burn fewer calories.  The antidote?  Eating metabolism-boosting foods – like whole grain cereal.

Oats are a great way to fill you up as they’re loaded with fiber, which also boosts your metabolism. They’re also a very good source of selenium which boosts your energy and immune system by producing antibodies while also increasing the body’s ability to burn fat.  Since oatmeal breaks down slowly in your stomach, it doesn’t cause a big insulin spike the way carbs like bagels do. Eat oatmeal for breakfast and you’ll keep insulin production down and rev up the daily calorie burn in the morning.  Aside from it helping burn fat, oatmeal is also known for lowering cholesterol and is good for fighting colon cancer and heart disease. So not only do you burn fat, you stay healthy as well!

Proteins
Foods high in protein are the best for burning fat simply because they require so much energy for complete digestion. Studies have shown that people who follow a high-meat/high-protein diet burn twice as many calories AFTER a meal as people who follow a high-carbohydrate diet. Foods that are high in protein and fiber are also the best kinds of food to eat if you want to burn fat around your middle.

Pretty much all lean meats help to speed up the metabolism and burn more fat.  These are Lean Beef, Chicken, Turkey, Pork, Buffalo, etc.   Also included are low calorie dairy products, beans, whole grains, oatmeal, eggs.  Beef is a very popular meat around the world due to its taste and wide availability. Lean beef especially is a great fat burning food as it also contains iron which is vital for the creation of hemoglobin in your red blood cells.  Turkey is another great meat for burning fat, and is also naturally lower in fat compared to chicken.  Lentils are high in protein and soluble fiber, two nutrients that stabilize blood sugar levels.

Green Tea
Green tea has a chemical called EGCG that causes the brain and nervous system to run faster and helps you burn more calories. EGCG works sort of like caffeine except that caffeine causes your heart to beat faster.  Green tea also has powerful antioxidants and studies have shown it to even reduce the risk of some cancers. Furthermore, it has also been known to help lower overall cholesterol levels and improve the ratio of good cholesterol (HDL) to bad cholesterol (LDL).

Although green tea is getting very popular, it’s still has a somewhat bitter flavor not agreeable to the pallet of many of us.  Try several brands before giving up, as all teas are not created equal.  What do you have to lose, other than about 50 calories with no exercise!

Broccoli
Broccoli is one of those super foods that you can never really eat enough of. It is literally packed with nutrients including calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, and fiber. The calcium, vitamin C and fiber all contribute to burning fat and increasing your metabolism. On top of that, broccoli is full of antioxidants that provide a multitude of health benefits including decreasing the risk of heart disease and certain cancers.

Fruits rich in vitamin C – Citrus Fruits:

Vitamin C burns fat by diluting, or liquefying, it so the body can easily flush it out of the system.  Your body essentially doesn’t absorb fats as much as it normally would.  Vitamin C also stimulates the carnitine amino acid which speeds up the body’s fat-burning capacity.

Citrus fruit like limes, lemons, oranges, guava, grapefruit, papaya, sweet lime, tangerines, broccoli, cabbage, and tomatoes are rich in Vitamin C and fiber.  By adding citrus fruit to your diet, you will essentially increase your metabolism and control your cholesterol levels.

Chilies

Foods containing chillies or cayanne pepper are considered to be as foods that burn fat. Chillies contain capsaicin that helps in increasing the metabolism. Capsaicin is a thermogenic food, so it causes the body to burn extra calories for 20 minutes after you eat the chilies.

Coffee
Coffee contains caffeine, which helps speed up your heart rate and thus helps you burn more calories. And this benefit comes in coffee of all kinds, whether it’s iced, hot or in a mocha smoothie. Of course, the hundreds of calories in a sugar and fat-rich blended coffee drink can negate whatever heart-quickening benefit the coffee in caffeine imparts, so you may want to consider using skim milk and keeping sweeteners to a minimum.

Soybeans
Packed with lecithin, this naturally occurring chemical in soybeans helps your body to keep your cells from accumulating fat.  Soybeans (natural not hydrogenated soybean oil) contain the chemical lecithin, which protects your cells from accumulating too much fat and helps in the breakdown of fatty deposits in your body.

Edamame are soy beans which have been lightly boiled and salted. Originally from Japan, edamame are an excellent source of protein, Vitamin C, iron, and calcium! They also contain 0g of saturated fats so eat them guilt free.

Bananas
Found in milk and oranges as well, bananas contain potassium, a naturally occurring chemical that boosts your metabolism and regulates your body’s water balance.  Bananas contain approximately 450 milligrams of potassium (a cup of milk contains about 350 and oranges contain about 250), and you should aim to have about 2,000 milligrams per day, every day.

Garlic
It may leave your breath smelling somewhat undesirable, but garlic has many healing properties. Besides being a natural antibiotic, a bacteria destroyer and a blood sugar regulator, garlic also has the ability to speed up your fat-burning.  Garlic works like a thermogenic in your body, boosts your metabolism and keeps your insulin levels low to maximize fat burning. It’s stinky, but worth it.

Honey
Honey is a great sugar substitute because it mobilizes the extra fat deposits in the body.

Cardamom
Cardamom is a thermogenic herb like Capsaicin that increases metabolism and helps burn body fat.

Curry leaves (Curry Patta)
Curry leaves flush out fat and toxins, reducing fat deposits in the body.

Follow a Fat Burning Food Plan that Works
Incorporating these fat burning foods into your regular diet can definitely help stimulate fat loss, but if you are really serious about losing fat permanently I highly suggest you follow a fat burning diet plan that’s proven to work for the long term.

It’s also important to note that in order to lose weight you have to burn more calories than you consume. This can be done by eating fat fighting foods and doing some physical activity. This will help your body burning up the excessive stored fat.