Foods that will help aid Weight Loss

Important fat burning tips

When trying to burn fat it’s important to remember that skipping meals will only slow down your metabolism, making your health deteriorate. So avoid this, changing your diet alone will not cause you to suddenly lose loads of excess fat however when combined with a good cardiovascular programme it can work wonders. That being said some foods will naturally increase the body’s metabolism, so adapting your diet to include these foods is going to help you shed any excess weight.

Foods that burn fat

• Citrus fruits high in Vitamin C – Oranges, limes, mangos all contain vitamin C which stimulates the carnitine amino acid, carnitine is involved in transporting fats around the body. The more free and mobile a fat is the easier it is oxidised.
• Apples – I have given Apples it’s own class because it contains a higher percentage of a substance called pectin, this reduces the cells ability to absorb fat.
• Chilies – The active ingredient in chilies and hot peppers is a substance called capsaicin, which is considered to have a thermabolic effect. The basic idea is that after consuming chilies the bodies metabolism is raised and more fat is burnt.
• Green Tea – Green tea contains polyphenols and some caffeine and induces a process called thermogenesis. It is thought to increase metabolic rate by 4% without increasing the heart rate.
• Calcium rich dairy products – Several studies have shown that calcium rich dairy products lead to a loss in weight, it has been suggested it reduces the amount of fat absorbed by cells. So for these you want to be drinking skimmed milk, yoghurts etc. If you are in the London area I suggest you check out Snog Yoghurts it is a frozen yoghurt shop, it couldn’t come more highly recommended.
• Caffiene – A lasting favourite, as I am sure you are aware caffeine is a stimulant. It raises your heart rate which in turns speeds up the bodies functions, such as reaction times but more importantly metabolism.

Throughout this post I have mentioned a lot about metabolism, and that speeding up your metabolism will lead to weight loss. Why is this?

Your metabolism is divided into two groups, Catabolism and Anabolism. Catabolism is the breakdown of matter i.e. food into an energy supply such as ATP, this occurs in cellular respiration. Anabolism is associated with growth mainly in the components of cells such as proteins and nucleic acids.

When your metabolism is increased both these processes increase, and therefore fat is oxidised and energy is consumed leading to loss in weight.

Please check out my fitness section for posts on cardiovascular routines.

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