By now, you may have heard about how Beyonce drinks water, lime juice, maple syrup and cayenne pepper for weight loss. One, the combination sounds terrible. Two, we wouldn’t recommend that to anyone. In fact we don’t recommend following most celebrity food fads — they don’t really qualify as a balanced diet. Instead, there are fat-burning foods and drinks you can add into your everyday consumption for an extra weight loss boost. Interested? Great! Read on to learn what will work!
1. Green Tea
Green tea might be touted as a wonder drink, and it does have great health benefits. All of those antioxidants help with other things (like heart disease) and can also help to reduce belly fat. Antioxidants contain catechins which tell your body to burn extra calories by increasing fat burning hormones. If this sounds too good to be true, some studies show that green tea drinkers burn a little over 250 extra calories per day!
Drink green tea before your workouts for an even larger boost of fat-burning qualities. Studies show that this timing can increase how much fat is burned! If you don’t want a hot drink — no problem at all, you can have it iced. Make sure your tea steeps at a hot temperature before cooling it though!
2. Grapefruit
Okay, yes, grapefruit IS good for weight loss. This doesn’t mean you have to eat it at every meal though. Grapefruit also doesn’t help your fitness goals if you have to sprinkle it with sugar to get it down! Suggested amounts are half a grapefruit or a glass of grapefruit juice with each meal.
If you’re worried about the grapefruit being too bitter, try broiling it to caramelize the top! You can also try adding grapefruit slices into your salad — the same way you would with oranges. Use oil based dressings to help temper the bitterness of the salad, and pair with dried cranberries!
3. Chili Peppers
The thing about cayenne pepper for metabolism is true — but you can get the same benefits from chili peppers or any hot peppers. Spicy peppers contain capsaicin, which boosts your metabolism and can temporarily suppress your appetite. (All the water you drink when you eat them will also help limit your appetite!)
There are a million different ways to add peppers into your diet — we love adding them to breakfast omelets or wraps, but you can also include them in sandwiches, salsa, or anywhere else that you’d use a sweet pepper.
4. Pine Nuts
These little nuts can do a lot for your goals! How? They contain a phytonutrient that helps to suppress your appetite.
How can you use them? If you’re making your own pesto, pine nuts will be needed. Or you can always toast them to add to salads, rice, or pasta salads! (Just don’t burn them!)
5. Lentils
In some cultures, lentils have always been a favorite for weight loss. They’re full of fiber to keep you full longer, as well as protein to prevent your blood sugar from spiking.
How do you use lentils? One great suggestion is to create lentil burgers — bonus if you add some hot peppers to it! When in doubt, there’s always the favorite — lentil soup!
6. Flax Seeds
Not only are flax seeds a great egg replacement, they’re also a great superfood. Containing lots of omega-3s and fiber, flax seeds will help you stay full while simultaneously boosting your metabolism. You can try them in smoothies, salads, or even grind it up to use as a breading for fish or chicken!
7. Peppermint Tea
Seeing a pattern with the herbal tea? It’s definitely a plus over your average iced tea! Peppermint tea can limit bloating to help keep your stomach flat. It also aids with digestion, and can help your body process fats better.
Before your next trip to the grocery store, think about what foods you can swap out for these fat burning foods to keep your weight loss plan moving in the right direction!
Ready to finally meet your weight loss goals? No better place to start than here!
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