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To effectively lose weight, you need to combine exercise with proper nutrition. It is about being careful about the number of calories you take into your body. Exercise done together with the right nutrition ensures that even as you lose the pounds of weight, you are able to replace the fat with lean muscle.
The best way to approach that is taking nutrient-dense foods for weight loss. Apart from providing few calories, they boost your metabolism, thus helping you lose weight within no time. Nutrient-dense foods are also effective when it comes to giving your body the inner strength you need to function properly. Now a closer look at nutrient-dense foods for weight loss.
What Are Nutrient Dense Foods For Weight Loss?
Nutrient density is the nutritional level in a specified volume of food. Nutrient-dense foods, therefore, tend to have a very high nutrient content but with very few calories. They are sometimes referred to as superfoods because of containing a lot of nutrients. The opposite is energy-dense foods which have more calories in a given volume compared to fewer nutrients.
Nutrient-dense foods, by their nature, contain a lot of protein, fiber, and phytonutrients like antioxidants. Nutrient-dense foods are defined by the following characteristics:
•High water content
Vegetables and fruits usually have a very high content of water. They also contain some fiber. When these two features combine, they make you feel full sooner thus preventing high-calorie intake. Because of the high water content, fruits contain very few calories, therefore making them nutrient-dense foods for weight loss. Examples include pears, raspberries, apples, blueberries, strawberries, and grapes.
•Fiber
Foods with a very high fiber content provide volume, take long to digest, and keep you full for longer. The good thing about them is that they contain very few calories. Foods that can be categorized as whole grains, fruits, and vegetables all have a high fiber content. Examples include raspberries, pears, apples, blueberries, strawberries, black beans, whole wheat pasta, multigrain and whole wheat bread, and oatmeal.
•Rich in antioxidants
A number of fruits, vegetables, and legumes have a very rich content of antioxidants. This helps protect against the devastating effects of oxidation including cancer and heart disease. The vegetables in this category include kale, watercress, spinach, arugula, Bok Choy, collards, cabbage, cauliflower, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and romaine. Fruits with a high content of antioxidants include grapes, limes, lemons, cherries, grapefruits, cantaloupe, oranges, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries. Other foods include black beans, red peppers, mushrooms, carrots, asparagus, carrots, tomatoes, onions, cucumber, green tea, and green coffee.
•Protein
It is easier for you to build lean muscle without an increase in your daily calorie intake while taking protein-rich foods. There are a number of protein-rich foods that supply very few calories in your diet. They include eggs, non-GMO tofu, tempeh, shrimp, tuna, tilapia, sirloin, turkey breast, and chicken breast. These foods can help you strike the balance between protein and calorie intake.
How Do Nutrient-Dense Foods Help in Weight Loss?
When eaten regularly, nutrient-dense foods are easy for your body to digest and make use of. Based on the preceding discussion, these foods contain a lot of antioxidants, minerals, and vitamins. They also have a very high fiber content, which means they make you feel fuller sooner and for longer.
When on a diet full of these foods, it is not possible to overeat. If anything including these foods in your diet is similar to going on a protein sparing modified fast. You will feel full and avoid overeating, even as you get the protein you need in your body. For anyone looking to lose a lot of weight, you need food with high fiber and vitamins.
Benefits of Nutrient-Dense Foods for Weight Loss
Did you know that nutrient-dense foods are usually eaten in their raw or unprocessed forms? They are, therefore, incomparable to the chemically-altered processed foods. These foods are known as superfoods for a reason.
According to research findings, nutrient-dense foods are important when it comes to enhancing the digestion, intake, and metabolism of the main nutrients. The result of that is a boost to your weight loss goals. The reason is that their nutrient to calorie content ratio is very high. Because of the low-calorie content, you can eat more of these foods without gaining weight.
The more of the nutrient-dense foods you eat, the less you will crave the unhealthy, low-nutrient foods. It will be possible for you to take less sugar, white flour, processed foods, saturated fats, and animal products. In fact, eating nutrient-dense foods can be equated to having a healthy diet since you will automatically need to avoid taking in fewer calories.
Nutrient-dense foods are known to have the ability to lower the risk of acquiring lifestyle diseases such as obesity, type II diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. Because of the very few calories they contain, these foods are very effective when it comes to weight loss. According to research findings, the people of Okinawa in Japan are able to keep fit because of eating nutrient-dense foods. The life expectancy for these people have is more than average even as they have a very low incidence of chronic diseases. The people of Okinawa mainly eat vegetables, fruits, and unprocessed meat, the perfect nutrient-dense foods for weight loss.
The following are the benefits of a nutrient-dense diet for weight loss:
•Stimulating the body’s metabolism levels to help burn fat
•Improving your energy and exercise endurance levels
•Regulating your body’s blood sugar levels
•Reducing your craving for carbohydrates given the increased satiety
•Boosting your amino acid, mineral, vitamins, and antioxidants
Conclusion
What do you want to achieve by dieting? If the phytochemicals, minerals, vitamins, and fiber, are what you need, try nutrient-dense foods. You will be able to effectively lose weight, given the few calories contained in these foods. Apart from weight loss, you will enjoy a number of the best health benefits. Unlike the highly-processed foods, you will be able to get all the nutrient you need to function properly on a daily basis.
