Adding these foods to your shooping basket will help you slip into those dreamy shorts or rock that teeny weeny bikini you bought last January with a little more confidence.
1.Cabbage
Cabbage is one of the greatest foods on the planet. Not only is it full of fibre and a treasure trove of essential vitamins, it is also made up for 92 per cent water. Delicious in salads and coleslaw with low fat dressings. More than this, it actually helps the body shed excess fluid. Just remember that you can have too much of a good thing – and too much cabbage also leads to flatulence – about a handful a day is the right amount.
2.Green tea
Try an ice cold green tea with a slice of lemon, a slice of lime and sliced strawberry – perfect cooling drink for those long summer nights and great for you, too. Big tip – drink this instead of wine or mixed spirits as alcohol contains a mountain of useless kilojoules while green tea has a raft of body benefits, helping the body to detoxify itself by eliminating free radicals. It also boosts the metabolism and allows your body to burn kilojoules more efficiently.
3.Water
It’s flavourless and colourless but there few things as good for weight loss as plain old water. Scientific research has proven that drinking water before a meal helps to curb the appetite, meaning you eat less. A recent study in the United States recently showed that college students who drank water before meals lost an average eight cent more body weight during a kilojoule-controlled diet over a two-week period compared to a control group which did not. Bottoms up.
4.Celery
As innocuous as it might seem, celery is one of the most amazing foods on the planet. It requires more energy to digest it than it actually contains, making it a perfect kilojoule-negative snack. It also contains Vitamin C and Vitamin K both of which contribute to raising metabolic rates and is reputedly a powerful blood cleanser.
5.Pineapple
Not only is pineapple delicious and sweet , but it’s also a super mood booster. If you feel that 3pm slump every day, eat a few rings of fresh pineapple (not the canned stuff, it has too much added sugar). eating a few slices of fresh pineapple a day can defend your body from harmful free radicals and disease, help your digestion by cleaning the body’s organs and blood, increase your energy intake and boost metabolism, nourish your hair, skin, nails and teeth and keep you generally healthy.
6.Grapefruit
A dynamo for heart health, grapefruit contains vitamin C, folic acid, and potassium, along with pectin, a soluble fibre that may be a strong ally against atherosclerosis. Natural fibre also aids in weight loss. Pink and red varieties also have vitamin A and lycopene, a phytochemical that protects arterial walls from oxidative damage.
7.Lentils
Stay full for hours with a lentil and chickpea salad or a lentil and tomato curry (try it on spinach instead of carb-loaded rice). Three quarters of a cup of lentils contains 13 grams of protein and 11 grams of fibre. A recent study published in the journal Obesity reviewed nine randomized, controlled trials that measured the effect of pulses – lentils, black beans, and chickpeas – on post-meal satiety. Participants felt 31% fuller after eating one serving of pulses compared to foods such as bread and pasta.
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