Olive Oil & Great Weight Loss Foods

We are fast approaching summer and warmer weather and if you like many people are looking at your summer clothes thinking maybe I should try to slim down some, we have some great tips for you. Weight loss tips need to be delicious, easy and produce results for us to keep with a new routine. So you will find below some very tasty tips from the team at Tastealotta on how to easily add foods to your diet that can help you lose weight!

One of the best ways to lose weight is to track what you eat. I know you are thinking, one more thing to do! But with all the apps that abound today for tracking diet, weight, and exercise, it’s really incredibly simple. Just go to the App store and choose one that seems simple to you and then record what you eat and your weight each day.

Aiming for the Numbers on Your Scale to Drop

When you are looking for the numbers on the scale to drop, it matters more how much you eat more than what you eat. But you can see trends when you are inputting what you eat each day. Funny, I saw the scale go up over the last week, I hadn’t been eating much and some days much less, but I added in cheese curls made from corn, and over three days I gained 3 pounds, and my activity those days was even more vigorous. Upon reading the contents of the cheese curls I found that were additives for extending shelf life that I was probably reacting to with water gain because the same thing didn’t happen with corn chips. Two days later and no cheese curls and I am down two pounds–end of mystery and bye-bye cheese curls.

How to Get Your Scale Numbers to Drop

Cutting back on heavily processed foods and having more balance in your diet can help your overall health while helping you lose weight in the process. Whole foods, local foods, and eating in moderation can help support better moods, more consistent energy levels, appetite control, and can even help you achieve a better overall body composition. When you get the correct combination for your unique body you can achieve more lean mass and less body fat overall.

Why Olive Oil Can Aid Weight Loss

Olive oil is a healthy source of monounsaturated fats and medium-chain triglycerides, both of these fatty acids help keep your heart healthy, blood sugar stable, and can also assist in weight loss. All it takes is replacing other fats and butter with olive oil and you can quickly add a tablespoon or so a day. Keep in mind that olive oil is 119 calories a tablespoon and 14 grams of fat, but it’s good fat! You can add olive oil easily to salad dressing, drizzle or dip on bread or pizza, sauté vegetables, mix some into pasta, and substitute it for other oils and butter in baking.

Filling Nutrient Dense Foods

The simplest way to increase calories and increase your nutrition intake is by making nutrient-dense food choices. The founds we discuss below have more nutrition per calorie compared to other foods that may be higher in empty calories. Nearly all vegetables are nutrient-dense with the exception of peas, corn potatoes, and winter squash. Other great sources of foods that deliver good nutrition per calorie are whole grains, fruits, and lean proteins such as chicken, turkey, and fish.

These are all simple foods to add to your meals especially in the summer when we tend to make more salads.

• Eggs-only 70 calories and packed with protein, vitamin D, B12, vitamin A, and so much more. Eggs can be served in so many creative ways for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Think omelet, tacos, quiche, hard-boiled eggs on salad, and more.
• Oats-Oats is an example of an amazing source of nutrient-dense hunger-satiating food. Start your day with a great source of fiber, protein, vitamin B6, folate, thiamine, and more for only 150 calories per half-cup serving.
• Salmon-A fabulous source of such good-tasting omega-3 fatty acids. a three-ounce serving is only 150 calories, salmon is packed with so much goodness including protein, vitamin D, B12, and more.
• Oysters-A fabulous source of trace minerals and at only 40 calories for two oysters minus sauce, they are a nutrition powerhouse with choline, iron, selenium, copper, and loaded with zinc which is good for your immune system.
• Greek Yogurt-I have this for breakfast each morning and for only 110 calories for a 5-ounce cup, it packs in a hefty amount of protein. riboflavin, calcium, and B12.
• Spinach-It’s amazing that you can eat two cups of spinach and only consume 10 calories. Spinach is great sauteed in olive oil or used in a salad, or added to an omelet. Not only is it a tasty green but is packed with iron, magnesium, folate, vitamin A and K.
• Carrots-Carrots are packed with vitamin A, contain lots of fiber, vitamin C, and are a fabulous source of lutein, which is good for your eye health. A cup of carrots is only 45 calories and pair with hummus as a dip made from garbanzo beans and you have a double source of fiber and have added some protein to the snack also.
• Arugula-Arugula is a tasty addition to any salad and at 20 calories for 2 cups you get a lot of fiber for very few calories. Arugula is a good source of calcium, vitamin C, folate, and vitamin A.
• Bell Peppers-Snacking on bell peppers, especially red bell peppers is one of my favorite summer snacks. Bell peppers are a great addition to stir fry, salads, and kabobs. They provide vitamin A and lots of vitamin C.
• Bok Choy-One of my favorite Asian vegetables and at 10 calories for a cup of bok choy you get a lot of goodness for hardly any calories. Bok Choy is easy to grow and delivers folate, vitamin A, and lots of vitamin K.
• Brocolli-Brocolli or trees as my kids called them bring a lot of nutrition to the table at a cup for 30 calories and delivers 100% of your needs for vitamin C daily and it’s generally a vegetable a child likes.
• Sweet Potatoes-A medium-size sweet potato comes in at 100 calories and is filled with fiber, sweetness, potassium, and lots of vitamin A. Think sweet potato salad for summer.

So much good food and some of these vegetables can be sourced locally at our Farmer’s Market. Farm to table is nutritious and fun way to cook. Be sure to stop by Tastealotta for your olive oil, vinegar, and seasonings to help make all these additions to your meals a stunning success.