What is a Negative Calorie Food

What is a negative calorie food? It sounds like a dieter's dream, doesn't it?

Well, actually- it is! Negative calorie foods are foods that burn more calories during digestion then they actually contain. Pretty sweet, right?

So you may ask yourself, 'What are these foods and why don't people only eat negative calorie foods to lose weight'?!?! While negative calorie foods are generally high in fiber, they are not what the average person is going to be able to consist on. In theory, you could eat negative calorie foods alone and lose weight, but in reality you are probably going to crave some pasta, protein, or sweets along the way. And also, you need a wide variety of foods to make up a nutritious diet. Since negative calorie foods are fruits and veggies, you would not be getting any protein, enough iron, and no whole grains.

The fruits that are considered to be negative calorie are: apples, cranberries, grapefruit, honeydew, lemons, limes, mangos, oranges, pineapple, raspberries, strawberries, blueberries, tomato, turnip, papaya, Peach, watermelon, tangerines, Cucumber (yes cumcumber is a fruit) and hot peppers (which surprise, surprise are fruits too).

The vegetables that are negative calorie are : lettuce, onion, broccoli, garlic, green beans, cauliflower, radish, carrots, cabbage, spinach, turnip, zucchini, chicory, garden cress and asparagus.

Now some people think the whole idea of negative calorie foods is hooey. I personally, think that its true. In my personal experience, I always become hungry again much fast after consuming an apple or some carrots, than I would after eating some toast. This would lead me to believe, that this is happening because of the negative calorie effect of the apple or carrots. And in the case that it is not true, these fruits and vegetables are so nutritious and vital to a healthy diet- that it doesn't make too much of a difference. Either way, you are going to lose more weight eating fruits and vegetables, rather than if you were carbo-loading like a mad woman.

I hope I answered that question of what a negative calorie food is. If you are new to the concept, that it is just another great reason to load up on fruits and veggies! Tasty, nutritious, AND a negative calorie food- doesn't get much better.

What to Eat to Lose Weight and Be Healthier: Food Combinations

What should you eat to lose weight and be healthier? Well, conventional wisdom tells us that the less calories we eat, the more weight we will lose. But is that really all there is to it?

Studies are showing that there may actually be more to losing weight than just counting calories. For instance, did you know that the combinations of food you eat may actually slow weight loss? That's right.

Certain foods are not only easier on the digestive system, but in combination will prove beneficial towards your weight loss efforts. Since our bodies were actually made to eat only natural foods, they are also used to certain combinations that would have been prominent in nature. The more efficient we digest food and metabolize food as energy, the less we store our calories as fat. So lets go over the most energy efficient food combinations:

First, lets discuss protein. It is actually best to eat protein by itself for best digestion and metabolization. But vegetables can be eaten in combination with protein, because they are the easiest source or energy for our bodies and the easiest to digest. Many say that vegetables are the easiest to digest because they were the most prominent food source thousands of years ago- and our bodies are still best equipped to digest vegetables today.

Next, lets talk about starches. Starches are best eaten alone. They cause drastic spikes in blood sugar and take a lot of energy just to stabilize your body. But if you must eat another food with your starch, opt for vegetables. I know it is tempting to add protein to your pasta or baked potato, but this is actually a bad choice. Proteins require an alkaline environment for digestion and starches require an acidic environment. So to combine the two- will only make you feel sluggish (because your body is using most of its energy to digest your food), and your weight loss efforts will suffer.

Fruits seem like they would be an obvious choice as an addition to almost any meal. But actually, fruit is extremely acidic and best eaten alone. Do not add fruit to your meals as a 'side'. As a matter of fact, allow about half an hour after eating fruit, to consume anything else.

Let us move on to another surprising combination that should be avoided: proteins and fats. Sorry Atkins diet, consuming a large amount of fat and protein at the same time is no good. Fat requires hours for digestion- which is great for feeling full.. but terrible for digesting other foods at the same time.

Honestly, it is really best to eat one food type at a time. It is easiest on your body- both for digestion and weight loss purposes. But if you must combine food- protein and vegetables, and starches and vegetables are the easiest and vest for your body. Keep these tips in mind to help you lose some extra weight or just to boost your energy levels.

There of course, are many factors when it comes to - but starting with beneficial food combinationslosing weight and being healthier is a great way to learn what is best for your body. Weight loss will only occur in optimal conditions- so starting out with the healthiest food combinations is the perfect step for anyone!

What to eat to Lose Weight and be Healthier

If I told you exactly what to eat to lose weight and be healthier, would you follow my advice? If I seriously took the time to sit down and figure out exactly what you should eat and how much of it- for you to lose weight- would you not only listen to me, but DO what I told you?

You can look in the mirror and wish those 30 pounds away.. or you can COMMIT to a diet and STICK to it. A diet is not going to work if you don't follow it- practically perfectly. I know, that sounds dramatic. But imagine that you want to lose a pound of body fat a week- that is a decently reasonable expectation. You wouldn't have to starve yourself, but you wouldn't be able to totally indulge yourself either. But anyway, we are aiming for a pound a week here and on Saturday we really want some ice cream, since we have been so good and followed our diet perfectly all week. So we go to Dairy Queen and we get some ice cream, the really good stuff too- like a blizzard or something. Well, you easily just ate 800+ calories, and that is almost 1/4 of your weight loss for the week! If you treat yourself like that once a week, you will lose a pound less a month. And if you decided to treat yourself with chips, queso, and a margarita (which are pretty much my favorite things in the world), you have just set yourself back even more.

Now, I don't think you should restrict yourself from all of the best foods- but when you are dieting- you either have to factor in your treats and plan accordingly, or not treat yourself at all. Yes, that sucks. And that is precisely why so many diets fail- willpower. You NEED to commit to a diet plan and STICK to it. Even if I or someone else were to give you the magic formula to lose weight and told you exactly what to eat- it would be of no use unless you stuck to the plan. If you would really commit to a good eating plan that was reasonable, both calorie-wise and nutritionally (no grapefruit diets), you would be successful. Simple as that.

But if you ever have questions about what to eat to lose weight and be healthier you can always drop me a comment or e-mail and I'd be happy to hear from you :) Losing weight is tough but there are so many weight loss benefits- that is it also very worth it.