8 Foods to Avoid for Weight Loss
❓ Are there foods that you should avoid if you're trying to lose weight?
If you're like most dieters, you've probably categorized food into one of two categories, good or bad, and you're allowing industry dieting trends to dictate which foods fall into what category. Some months gluten is the devil and other months it's added sugar, meat, or eggs.
Since every person's physiology is different, food will affect each person differently. While I digest dairy and gluten with ease, my client may have sensitivities to these food groups. Therefore, there is no black and white list of good versus bad foods.
Most of us will agree however, that there are some treat foods that are generally classified as "bad" foods. Ice cream, pizza, burgers, beer, tacos, and donuts (are you salivating yet?) are notoriously listed as foods one shouldn't consume when dieting or trying to lose weight, but I want to go beyond this generic list.
I believe that these foods are acceptable in moderation. If eating pizza and having a couple of beers on Friday helps you to reign in it the rest of the week, by all means, enjoy these foods in moderation. If a Sunday donut is your jam (🙋♀️), then please enjoy your donut so that you don't obsess over donuts the rest of the week.
However...diet trends aside, I do encourage those on a weight loss journey to avoid the following foods:
Ultra processed cookies, crackers, and chips; ultra processed frozen meals; and ultra processed protein bars, cereal and chips. Are you seeing a trend?
While no one food is inherently good or bad, some foods are more nutrient dense than others.
Ultra processed packaged foods were designed to make you OVEREAT them. They are engineered foods designed to make you crave more. If you crave more, you buy more. 💰
❓If the food can sit on your shelf without spoiling for two years, what do you think it’s doing to your body when you eat it?
❗️ Ultra-processed foods have a ton of additives, food coloring and artificial sweeteners that affect how you feel physically and mentally.
‼️Just because the marketing says “high-protein” or “gluten free” doesn’t make the food any more nutritious.
❓In fact, when was the last time you saw a sweet potato, apple, or chicken thigh with such marketing? Never, because you already know that those foods are rich in nutrients.
Stick to the perimeter of the grocery store- that’s where all the good stuff is like meat, fish, poultry, vegetables and fruit. Grab some dry beans or rice, and prepare the food yourself when possible.
Get in touch with what food should taste like.
Learn to cook simple meals.
Learn to season your food with herbs which have health benefits as well.
In conjunction with a good strength training program, this is how you lose body fat.
✅ Once you retrain your palate to enjoy “real” food again, you’ll be able to better regulate your hunger cues and more easily reach your weight loss goals.
