Our number one diet tip: You don’t have to deprive yourself of food to achieve your ideal, healthy body! It’s easy to tell the good foods from the bad, if you know what to look for. Eat your way to your ideal figure with our healthy diet tips.The Good Food:
- Fiber: aim for about 30 grams per day, bulking up in the morning (try steel-cut oatmeal)
- 100 percent whole-grains
- Fish and nut protein
- Fruits and vegetables
- Healthy fats: monounsaturated omega-3 with DHA, some polyunsaturated fats, such as olive oil
QUIZ: What’s Your Eating Style?It’s smart to eat some healthy fat (a handful of nuts) a half hour before your meal. The satiety signal connects your stomach to your brain, keeping you from overeating. You can avoid overindulging by drinking loads of water. Whatever diet you may be considering, water will help you lose weight.MORE: Are Low-Fat Foods Making You Fat?The Bad (and Ugly) Food:
- Trans fats: partially hydrogenated vegetable oil
- Saturated fats: aim for none and never more than four grams per serving
- Animal protein (including whole-milk dairy products), palm and coconut oil, baked goods
- These produce low levels of leptin, the hormone that makes you feel satisfied
- Simple sugars: they end in -ose and include syrups like high-fructose corn syrup, rice syrup, molasses or cane sugar
- Enriched, bleached or refined flour: they’re stripped of nutrients
- Any starch or grain with less than 100 percent whole grains
MORE: The Best Foods for Your Beauty
