At Lose Baby Weight, as well as helping you to lose your pregnancy weight, we also try to help you live a healthier life and learn about what foods are packed full of nutrition so that when you lose your weight you keep it off and stay in the best heath possible.
Of course, the best way to lose weight effectively and to keep it off, is to eat a healthy, balanced diet and to increase levels of exercise. As well as helping you lose weight, eating this sort of diet and living this kind of active life will improve your general levels of health and wellbeing.
And when we look at the best kinds of foods to eat – fruit, vegetables and wholegrains are some of the most important to eat – and in this article we are going to focus on the health benefits of fruit and which fruits are the best from a nutrition standpoint.
What’s so great about fruit?
For people who are trying to lose weight, fruit is the ideal food. Fruit is easily accessible; it is sold in every supermarket in food store and you don’t have to trek across the city to a specialist health food store to buy it. It is also easily portable and can be packed as a quick snack.
Fruit doesn’t have to be expensive either. Some of the more exotic fruits may seem pricey, but the more common fruits, especially native grown ones, are great value for money. Finally, fruit is sweet and tasty, and nearly everyone enjoys eating it.
Nutrition
As well as tasting great and all the other benefits listed above, fruit is a healthy choice. Fruits are known to be high in dietary fibre, especially when eaten with their skins intact.
Fibre keeps the digestive system healthy, and also keeps you feeling fuller for longer. Fruit is also rich in vitamins and minerals, all of which protect against disease developing.
Fruit is also a far lower calorie snack than chocolate or potato chips and although there are sugars in fruit they are natural sugars and are processed differently in the body then the sugars found in candy and junk food. Below are our pick of fruits which should be top of the shopping list as they score highly for nutritional benefits.
Top 10 Fruits to Eat for Weight Loss
The following fruits are the best things to eat in terms of being low in calories and also being packed with essential vitamins and minerals.
- Apples. This everyday fruit is high in fibre which keeps you feeling full and decreases the urge to snack between meals. Most of the vitamins and fibre are in the peel, so don’t peel apples before eating.
- Blackberries, Cranberries, Blueberries & Raspberries. These little berries are packed with antioxidants which are thought to help prevent certain types of cancers. They can be eaten raw, or added to your smoothies or cereal or yoghurt.
- Pomegranates. There are also lots of antioxidants in pomegranate, and they are low in calories and high in fibre. Many stores sell the seeds on their own, and these are tasty as a snack or added into a salad.
- Avocado. Many dieters are put off avocado as it is relatively high in calories. However, the fat in avocados is the healthy, unsaturated fat which can help satisfy fat cravings. Avocado works very well as a salad vegetable, or made into a guacamole dip – just make sure you watch portion control
- Strawberries. The high levels of vitamins and minerals in strawberries helps them boost the immune system, they are low in calories and high in fibre.
- Citrus fruit. All citrus fruits are known for providing high levels of Vitamin C, and are high in fibre too. A recent study showed that dieters who ate grapefruit regularly lost weight more quickly than those who did not.
- Rhubarb. Rhubarb is completely fat free, is high in fibre and is high in Vitamin C and K and oven baked Rhubarb is a great family dessert which is full of nutrients and is low in sugar
- Grapes. Red skinned grapes have high levels of antioxidants and are the perfect sweet and tasty snack.
- Watermelon. The red colour of watermelon is caused by lycopene, thought to protect against types of cancer. The high levels of water also help to flush toxins out of the system.
- Bananas – Bananas contain complex carbohydrates, the preferred fuel for our working muscles. Bananas are also a rich source of potassium, fibre, and other vitamins and minerals and are a great source of energy to tired mums
To get inspiration to make delicious smoothies with these fruits click here for over 20 recipes
