Vegetables
This might come as a surprise but there is a particular food group that I have found which directly correlates to having heaps of success with fat loss. Let’s take a few minutes to discover why vegetable are not only one of the best things you can possibly eat for your health and the longevity of your life but also in your pursuit towards loosing body fat.
Many of the top fitness professionals, fat loss experts, and myself have concluded that the more vegetables a person eats then the leaner, healthier and fitter they will be. Why is this so? Well let’s take a look by breaking down vegetables into three parts of calories, fiber, and macronutrient density.
First of all, most vegetables are very high in volume yet contain few calories. If you were to take a cucumber, tomato, zucchini, or assortment of others and squeeze the vegetable hard enough you would actually see water based liquid draining from the veggie. The advantage here is that vegetables have incredibly high water content thus creating a large volume combined with high nutrient levels, and yet they are very low in calories. Because of this much of the time the consumption of veggies actually works out to create a caloric deficit. Essentially through the process of chewing and digesting the veggies much of the time you are actually left with a negative calorie balance. Meaning it took more calories to process the food and pull the nutrients out, then the food actually contained. Being in this state causes your body to tap into its fat stores when additional energy is needed.
Second of all, fiber is also another huge benefit of vegetables. Some of the benefits of fibrous foods include reducing or negating spikes in blood sugar levels. This helps to keep blood sugars constant which reduces the body’s tendency toward the continuing storage of body fat and cravings. Also fiber creates a slowing of the digestive process allowing the body more time to pull nutrients out while expending higher levels of calories to actually process the food. Furthermore fiber in vegetables creates a greater sense of fullness and satisfaction upon consumption, thus reducing the intake of unnecessary additional calories. Fiber also increase’s bowel elimination, the ease there of, and many of the diseases associated with colon and or intestinal problems. Last but not least fiber has been linked to the reduction in heart disease, cancer, diabetes, diverticular disease, gall stones, and kidney stones.
Thirdly, vegetables as a food group are one of the highest in macronutrient density. In essence veggies across the board are jam packed with tons of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals. All which are either directly or indirectly related to a reduction in practically every illness and disease in existence. People who are healthier exercise more and people who exercise stay healthier. Overall vegetables are an incredible gold mine when it comes to nutrient value.
If you first understand that vegetables are low in calories and high in water, fiber, vitamins and minerals, while secondly realizing that the consumption of veggies commonly works out to create a caloric deficit, it’s clear to see that they are a secret food for fat loss and overall health. For all of the reasons and more listed above you now see how and why veggies can help you to enjoy a leaner, healthier, happier life.