What you eat and what you eat will have a huge impact on how quickly you lose weight, and more importantly, how long you keep those pounds off. There are some foods that you should really eat regularly, for many good, healthy reasons. They come from all walks of life, but each one has one thing in common: it packs a lot of nutritious punch into its calories. Here is a list of five healthy foods that will help you stay healthy and lose weight. 1. Whole grain breads If you've been paying attention, you know that bad carbs are the current way of eating. If you just stay away from all the carbs, some of the diets advertise, you will lose weight no matter what else you eat. This is not just wrong, it is very dangerous for both your health and your diet. There is a reason why the Bible calls bread ‘the rod of life’. Instead of cutting out carbs, you should aim to reduce them to a healthy portion of your diet - most doctors agree about 50-60% of your calorie intake. That means that if you eat 1,500 calories a day, you should strive to get about 900 calories a day from whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Grain loaves packed with large amounts of nutritious food. Replace your two pieces of white toast with 1/2 cup of whole oatmeal or whole grains, and about the same amount of calories, you will be getting the triple vitamins, amino acids and roughage needed by your body to function. You will feel full for a long time, too - because you have given your body something to work on that will take a while to digest. 2. Fish Eat at least three fish a week, according to many major medical organizations. Fish is low in fat, high in protein like red meat, and provides something other high in protein - omega 3 fatty acids. Omega 3 is one of the key structures in your cells. If your body does not get enough Omega 3, you will try to build cells for some fatty acids. The problem is that those cells are inflexible, and they are never in the right shape. Among the worst cells are those in your brain that help control emotions and tell your body what you need. By providing enough Omega 3 for your body to use, you will be healing the damage done during the years of malnutrition. And since fish, as a rule of thumb, has fewer calories than most meats, you will be storing calories, too. Just remember that you are SUPPLYING pieces of meat with fish, do not add to what you have already eaten. 3. Spinach With 13 calories and 2 grams of carbohydrate in 2 cups chopped green spinach, this is one of the lowest sources of nutrition your body can provide. All foods give you folic acid, manganese, beta-carotene, protein, lutein (a powerful anti-oxidant), magnesium, vitamin C and vitamin K. You can eat it raw in salads, burnt as a side dish, or a little crushed oil for a different taste, and you still get all the benefits of a nutritious diet. 4. Olive Oil Your body needs less fat to digest vitamins and use them properly. Olive oil is a mono-unsaturated fat that is the main source of fat in the so-called Mediterranean diet. It contains antioxidants, flavonoids, beta-carotene and vitamin E, among other things. One tablespoon is 125 calories, but supplemented with a 13-calorie spinach and a little lemon juice and garlic, you still have less than 150 calories - and a lot of healthy fats in your body. 5. Pink Grapefruit With just 40 calories in half of grapefruit, you get 45 mg of vitamin C, lycopene, pectin, beta-carotene and potassium. Flexible and fun. Eat it as breakfast, or toss it in a salad with spinach to get an extra punch to improve the quality of your food. Most importantly, do not remove your food from any ONE ingredient. The best way to lose weight is to eat a variety of healthy foods to make sure you get all the essential nutrients you need every day.
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