Trying to lose weight? Know all the tricks in the book and still nothing? Weight loss is not child’s play. The journey to your desired weight starts with making dietary changes. Cutting back on foods high in fat plays a major role in dropping those extra calories. Losing weight is a combination of eating nutritious food, being physically active and knowing what to avoid like those foods high in fat with empty calories. With so many options it’s difficult to make the right choice.
Here are 20 foods that you must avoid if you want to lose weight.
1. Sugary Beverages
Sugary drinks are basically beverages that contain added sweeteners and flavours. These include soda, tonic, fruit punch, energy drinks and more. A single tablespoon contains about 4 grams of sugar. A typical can of soda contains 7 to 10 tablespoons of sugar. Swap your can of soda with a glass of lemon water for accelerating weight loss.
2. Potato Chips
Potato chips contain extra flavoring, additives, fat and sugar. Out of all the fat causing offenders, potato chips are the worst! Along with a dangerous amount of sodium, a bag of chips is also high in trans fat. This leads to obesity along with heart disease, diabetes and Alzheimer’s. Go for healthy snacks like celery, kale chips, dark chocolate or apple slices with peanut butter!
3. Processed Meats
4. White Rice
Rice is a staple food for half of Earth’s population. Easy to cook, and versatile, it’s packed with calories. A single cup of rice contains 200 calories which is a disaster for someone looking to lose weight. When compared to brown rice, white rice is stripped off its vitamins and minerals during the refining process. Filled with carbs, this food should be avoided at all costs or replaced with unprocessed brown rice.
5. Diet soda
6. French Fries
A typical helping of french fries contains around 427 calories which means it’s a high calorie food. Made with potatoes and deep fried in oil, french fries are a quick ticket to obesity. Often eaten along with other junk foods, ketchup and topped sometimes with melted cheese, they also increase your risk of overeating.
7. Whipped Cream
Desserts don’t feel complete without a rich dollop of whipped cream. We’re used to having cream in coffee, baked goods and all sorts of other things. It is made from heavy cream and is packed with calories. A two-tablespoon serving has 100 calories and 10 grams of fat. Clearly, it’s a no go if you are looking to lose weight!
8. Chocolate Bars
Chocolate is the world’s favorite dessert. While dark chocolate has health benefits, milk chocolate bars are packed with calories and sugar and very little nutrients. Did you know that the consumption of chocolate in America has gone up from 74% to 81% in just 10 years. These bars also increase appetite and, be honest, when was the last time you had one bite? They’re just plain unhealthy and you should resist the temptation!
9. Fridge Chicken
Fried chicken is America’s favorite soul food. Sadly it contributes to massive weight gain. When chicken is fried, it becomes dense in caloric content. This happens because it loses water and absorbs the oil. When eaten every day, not only will you gain weight but also increase cholesterol leading to heart problems.
10. Ice Cream
Ice Cream is made from heavy cream, loaded with sugar and incredibly dense in fat content. Just 1 cup of vanilla ice cream contains 14 grams of fat. If you find it difficult to cut back on it, then only have it as an occasional treat. You can also substitute commercially prepared ice cream with the low fat ones.
11. Energy Drink
If you’ve been skipping meals and substituting them with energy drinks then it’s time for you to stop. They have zero nutritional value and are high in empty calories and sugar. Drinking even 2 cans of it every day is considered over consumption. Often associated with sports and athletic activities these drinks are very harmful in the long run.
12. Jam
Fruit jams are a part of a balanced breakfast, especially for kids. Despite the delicious taste there is nothing more to it. This classic sweet spread is made by simmering fruits in high calorie sugar and zero fiber. It is also dense with glucose and leads to weight gain. Replace it with freshly cut fruit topping or some other organic spread.
13. Savoury Sauces
Barbecue sauce, ketchup, ranch, classic mayonnaise and others contain shockingly high amounts of calories and fat. Just 1 spoon of mayo contains 10 grams of fat and 100 calories.bSure these condiments make any bland food delicious but they are not good news, if you are looking to lose weight. Basting chicken or any meat with barbecue sauce is as good as deep frying them.
14. Coffee Creamer
15. Tortilla Chips
16. Large Coffee Drinks
Large coffee drinks like a vanilla latte, iced white chocolate mocha and others can cause some serious weight gain. While black coffee helps in breaking down large foods into smaller bits, large coffee drinks contain heavy, whipped cream, large quantities of sugar and artificial flavoring. All these add ons negate the positive characteristics of coffee. Just one of these drinks everyday will bring your weight loss journey to a standstill.
17. Pie
If you deconstruct the ingredients of a pie, you will notice that most of them cause quick weight gain. Pie crusts and other baked goods contain gross amounts of trans fats and saturated fats. They add on hefty calories and harms the natural nutritional value of your body.
18. Cinnamon Rolls
Beware of craving cinnamon rolls if you are on a weight loss diet. These delicious treats are made of flour and loaded with sugar, including the toppings. One large cinnamon roll contains 290 calories and 15% of it is just fat.In order to burn these calories you will have to do some intense cardio. With zero nutritional value these should be immediately cut from your diet.
19. Pancake
20. Alcohol
