Can Caffeine Help Me Lose Weight?

This is from the HungryGirl website and will clear up all the stories you hear about caffeine.

Mmmmm… Coffee. It tastes good, it’s a great way to start your morning, and the hot mug warms up your hands when it’s cold outside... but could the caffeine in that cup also help you lose weight? 

When it comes to the connection between caffeine and weight loss, there are three common claims...

1. Research suggests that consuming caffeine can jumpstart your metabolism and help you burn fat. One study, for example, found that in the three hours after consuming coffee, metabolic rates were significantly higher in those who drank coffee than those who did not.

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2. Another common belief is that caffeine boosts your energy level. The theory here is that the energy boost will make you more motivated to exercise, help you exercise for a longer time, or both. In fact, the International Olympic Committee puts a limit on caffeine intake for athletes so as not to give them an unfair advantage.

3. Coffee is often cited as an appetite suppressant. This suggests that drinking the caffeinated beverage could lead you to eat less.

Here’s my take on the subject… 

It’s definitely tempting to believe that caffeine is the answer to your weight-loss woes. But there are several reasons why consuming caffeine won’t necessarily lead to shedding those extra pounds. Plus, consuming too much caffeine can be dangerous. 

Studies do show that caffeine intake can increase your metabolism... but the effects only last for a few hours, and the effects are much less pronounced in obese people. In other words, people who need to lose significant amounts of weight are much less likely to have their metabolism boosted by caffeine.

As for exercise performance, studies really only show that caffeine can help boost energy for short workouts (about 5 minutes) and for endurance exercise done by trained athletes. There isn’t much evidence that caffeine has a positive effect on mid-length, moderate workouts.

The appetite suppression claim is probably just that: a claim. One of the only studies on the subject found that drinking coffee had little to no effect on participants’ appetites.

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Plus, people grow tolerant of coffee pretty quickly, so any positive effects tend to be short-lived.

Even if caffeine does help some with weight loss, it’s likely that any positive effects would be outweighed by the extra calories people tend to consume when they get caffeine in the form of sweet beverages. Coffee and tea are often drowned in cream and sugar, and it’s no secret that coffee-shop concoctions can be super high in calories. And soda, iced tea, and many other bottled caffeinated beverages can also be high in sugar, carbs and calories.

HG warning: Caffeine is a diuretic, which means it will contribute to losing some water weight on a short-term basis, but too much can be dangerous in the long-run. Always be sure to stay hydrated! Here are some tips for getting those 8 glasses of water a day.

And finally, here are some coffee-centric Hungry Girl tips and tricks...

If you get your caffeine from coffee, be aware of what else you're taking in. A lot of coffee drinks are packed with calories, fat, and sugar.

When you’re on the go, follow these tips. Order your drinks with just a splash of fat-free milk, trade traditional syrup for sugar-free, and choose no-calorie sweeteners over straight-up sugar. 

If you make your cup of joe at home, stick with smart milk and sweetener choices. I always recommend unsweetened vanilla almond milk (it’ll add creaminess and flavor to your coffee for minimal calories) and natural no-calorie sweeteners. If you like your coffee more like a milkshake, try Hungry Girl’s Vanilla Java Swappuccino. And if you’re looking for a swap for hot and sweet coffeehouse drinks, check out our Salty-Sweet Caramel Mocha. They’re both low in calories, of course! 

I have my own take on caffeine and here goes. First, you want to understand that I drink coffee and tea straight black, I put nothing in my tea or coffee.  Caffeine does seem to reduce my cravings. I think it does have much to do with caffeine, it's more to do with changing the taste in my mouth. After dinner is the hardest time for me and if I drink a cup of black tea after dinner, I seem to lose my appetite. 

Designer coffees or teas are loaded with calories and will only ruin your diet.  Some people believe that caffeine will keep you regular but I think your body will get use to the caffeine after a few weeks, so it might work in the short-term but not forever. 

If you really want to lose your body fat than look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $1.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, B&N.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Dread The Gym, You're Not The Only One

This is an article from WEBMD, I made a few comments.

Want to hit the gym, but can't quite seem to make it there? Your schedule might not be the only reason. If you're feeling bored or self-conscious, afraid of injury, or just plain uncomfortable, there are solutions for all of those.                

1. “I’m too heavy for the gym.”

Maybe you think that people who go to the gym are already in shape. Not so! 

The first time I went it was late morning and I thought it was a hangout for Seniors. 

If you're afraid that people will judge your appearance, “remember that everyone is there to improve how they look and feel,” says Anika Christ, a program manager with Life Time Fitness. The first gym I joined was a 24 hour fitness center. They’re popular because not everyone likes to workout with the crowds. I like to visit a gym a few times before I commit. See for myself when it's slow and you can work the machines without waiting. I also like a gym with a pool. I like to swim on alternate days, you can’t do the treadmill or lift weights everyday. A gym membership can be beneficial if your new at this. A trainer can help you get started. You don’t need them forever, but they can help you get on the right track.

Try these ideas:

• Buddy up. To make yourself feel more comfortable, bring a friend with you.
• Pick your spot. Go for a machine that’s away from the action (and, perhaps, far from a mirror, if you don't want to see yourself while you're exercising), or nab a spot in the rear corner of a fitness class. Do whatever makes you feel at ease. You are in control.

Working out regularly can make you feel more confident. It's also a mood-booster. “One session at the gym can enhance your mood for up to 12 hours,” Christ says. It’s true, a good workout gets your engine running and can workout the aches and pains. You’ll feel like you accomplished something.

2. “I don’t know how to use the equipment.”

Never seen a kettlebell? Stumped by the settings on that rowing machine? That can feel intimidating.

Try this: Prep yourself ahead of time so you know what to expect.

“A quick online search will give you dozens of pictures, videos, and articles explaining the proper ways to use a piece of equipment or perform an exercise," says Aaron Maibach, a certified personal trainer in San Francisco.

If you still feel unsure once you start your workout, ask an employee or someone else who’s around for help. “Feeling lost in the gym happens to everyone,” Maibach says.

3. “I get so bored!”

Putting your head down, blasting your iPod, and focusing only on the exercise at hand is motivating for some people. For others, it’s not enough to beat boredom, says psychologist Patricia A. Farrell, PhD. Generally this happens to people who do the same machine for extended length of time. I can understand, I use a stationary bike for more then 30 minutes a day. I find a bike near a TV and I watch TV or sometimes read.

Try this: Shake up your routine. Try a group fitness classes -- from tai chi to Zumba -- most gyms offer. Yoga is popular now and you can usually find a beginner class if you go in the morning or after work.

"Working out with other people gives you camaraderie and pumps up your enthusiasm," Farrell says. "You get a sense of 'We're all in this together,' which eliminates the feeling of 'I have to do this alone.'" 

Try to smile while you're getting your sweat on: Smiling releases endorphins, the body’s feel-good chemicals, and lowers stress, according to a study from the University of California at Irvine.

4. “I don’t have anything to wear.”

Workout clothes can be super-tight, trendy, and expensive. But they don't have to be.

Try this: Choose an outfit that fits your shape now, not what you hope you’ll look like after you’ve been hitting the gym for 6 months, Christ says. 

Pants and a loose shirt are a good choice. Dark, solid colors will help you blend in. “Buy something comfortable that makes you feel confident,” Christ says. 

No need to make a huge investment. If you're working on weight loss, you may need to buy a smaller-sized outfit soon.

5. “I’m worried I’ll get hurt.”

Forget the old saying “no pain, no gain.” “Exercise shouldn’t be horrible and difficult,” says Erin McGill, director of training and design at the National Academy of Sports Medicine. 

If your last trip to the gym was torturous, you likely overshot your abilities, or your body alignment was off.

Try this: Sign up with a personal trainer who can show you the correct way to move and ease you into a program that’s right for your fitness level. Some gyms offer a complimentary session to new members.

If you’re working out on your own, remember: Less is more. “Quality of movement is far more important than doing X number of reps or spending X amount of time on the treadmill,” McGill says.

6. “Why should I even start? I’ll never stick with it.”

Thinking like this defeats you before you even step into the locker room. If you’re serious about losing weight, exercise is as important as your diet. 

“Many people assume they need to put in excessive hours at the gym and overcommit right from the get-go,” Christ says. “When you do too much too soon, you won’t be able to stick to it.” So take baby steps.

Try this: Exercise one time this week for no more than 30 minutes (and make it as fun as possible). Add another workout the following week, and slowly build in more sessions from there. 

Weight loss isn’t about going as hard and fast as you can, Christ says. “It’s about behavior change and building [good] habits.”

7. “I really hate the gym.”

You absolutely -- hands down, no doubt about it -- can’t bear the thought of going to the gym. So don't go. “You can accomplish plenty of goals outside the gym,” McGill says.

Try this: You still need to exercise, but you can pick where you do it. 

“Tennis, hiking, walking, and/or biking can all burn calories and help you get in shape," McGill says. "Think about what activity you like to do; then do it more."

Whatever you choose, don’t push yourself too hard. Overdoing exercise will just make you more likely to hate your workout.

If you really want to lose your body fat than look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $1.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, B&N.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

I Want To Lose Weight, Where Do I Start?

Losing weight isn't as hard as some might think. You want to start by changing the food your eating. This is a common mistake many people make. They think if they just cut back on calories by eating less they'll lose weight. Maybe if you just want to lose 2 or 3 pounds. It's your diet that put on your extra weight and by the way that's extra body fat, not just weight. You can gain healthy weight and that's okay. Pro-athletes will gain healthy weight by adding muscle, but if your gaining fat that's the stuff you want to lose.

Changing your diet and eating healthy will give you more energy to exercise and be more active. The extra activity will help your burn more calories and you'll lose fat. Now the hard part is to get your body to burn the stored fat.

Your body only processes or burn enough to give you the energy you need at that moment. The body works in real time. In other words when your resting your body burns very little calories. It will burn some because your heart is always working and your brain is always working and there is other body functions that have to work constantly. When I sit and type out the post, I'm burning some calories, more than just watching TV, but if I was standing I would burn twice the calories because of the work your muscles have to do just to hold you up. So watching TV burns more than sleeping, but write my post at my desk burns more than watching TV and walking burn even more and running burns even more.

So if a normal person doing normal activity might burn 2000 calories a day, some hours you might burn 50 calories and some hours you might burn 150 calories. For example, a person who works out 5 days a week for one hour a day does a walk and run routine can burn 300 to 350 calories during that workout. All these statistics are to give you an idea of how many calories you might burn.

If you go to the Mall or grocery store and watch people for a long period of time you'll notice people who have a hard time getting around and some moving at a very fast pace. The point I want to make is that someone who spends most of the day either sitting or laying may only be burning a minimal amount of calories like 1000. The person burning 1800 might be the average office worker who could be sitting or lying as much as 16 hours as day, and that's even if they workout. And some people who are very active, working all day on their feet and working out every day and then working around the house after they get home, may be burning 2500 calories a day.

You want to be one of those people who burn more than 2000 calories a day and you can do it. But first, you want to start by eating healthy and building your energy. Nex,t you want to start walking more. Try to walk in the morning, before work, and then again in the evening after dinner. A good way to begin exercising is to walk more. Now is not that easy to judge the amount you walk because of your speed. So I suggest getting a pedometer. There cheap, just go to a sporting goods store. The average person doing normal things all day walks about 5000 steps a day, but to lose body fat and build strength you want to walk 10,000 steps a day. The pedometer will count for you, just set it to zero in the morning and hook it on your belt. If your short steps after dinner you want to walk before bed and finish the 10,000.

I think changing your diet and sticking to it is the hardest part. You have to start eating 'clean', no processed foods. Which means eating 'fresh' foods. Fruits, vegetables, dairy and grains and some meat. I follow the 'food pyramid'.

I write several blogs and e-books, check out some of my other sites.

gettingtoahealthyweight.blog
idropped40pounds.wordpress.com
howbaddoyouwanttoloseweight.blogspot.com
blogonweight.blogspot.com

If you really want to lose your body fat than look for my e-books at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet. Instead of spending hours on the internet reading dozens of posts, you can save time by picking up one of my e-books. 

There are two e-books. “How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?” is available at all the online bookstores selling for $1.99. Go to any of the websites below and search the title to find my e-book. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, B&N.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new e-book is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

Your Diet Can Add Years To Your Life, Or You Can Lose Years

We all have the ability to live healthier, stronger, and longer lives simply by eating the most nutritious foods for our bodies.The importance of good nutrition cannot be overstated. I have personally seen how an optimal diet can prevent and reverse disease. I have written books about the therapeutic power the right foods can have on such problems as heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes, allergies, asthma, autoimmune illnesses (including lupus) and headaches.

I firmly believe that few people can expect to have good health without paying attention to the consumption of high-micronutrient foods. The latest scientific advances in nutritional research continue to provide evidence in support of these facts.

The latest to shine a spotlight on the necessity of a superior diet is a new group of data released by The Global Burden of Disease study. It is a huge, ongoing project collecting data in 188 countries. An international research team evaluates studies on each of 79 modifiable risk factors associated with preventable deaths and loss of quality of life years, grading the evidence that links each one to early death and adding more risk factors to the list when new evidence arises.

The study cited poor eating habits as the most significant risk factor for premature death worldwide. It found diet was the primary factor responsible for the greatest number of premature deaths starting in 2000 and up to the most recent data for 2013, accounting for 11.3 million deaths worldwide in 2013.

In recent decades, the American diet has undergone a transformation that has put disease-causing refined carbohydrates, oils, and animal products at the center of every meal, with natural plant foods playing only a minor role. This dietary shift became apparent when researchers looked at the data. As new parts of the world continue to adopt these eating habits, diet is becoming a larger burden on health and lifespan all over the world.

What Foods Place You at High-Risk?

When researchers looked at some of the dietary risk factors individually, they found that between 2000 and 2013 there was a global increase in the numbers of deaths associated with the following factors:

Low Fruit Consumption
High Sodium Intake
Low Fiber Diet
Low Consumption of Nuts and Seeds
Diet High in Processed and Red Meats
Based on the above dietary factors, it should be no surprise that there was an increase in the number of deaths over this same time period associated with high blood pressure, high BMI or body mass index, and high fasting blood glucose rates.

The Good News

The study didn’t yield all bad news though. Mortality due to the consumption of trans fat and secondhand smoke declined during that time and, as the authors pointed out, each of the risk factors have the potential to be eliminated or reduced in our diets. Already we are seeing a stronger emphasis on whole foods, clean eating, and a wider interest in more thoughtful food selection. Our individual choices have a huge potential to positively improve our health.

The trends the study spotlighted are reversible, and the deaths associated with a poor diet are avoidable. It took many years, but today everyone knows that smoking causes lung cancer and as a result, tobacco use is declining and so are the negative health effects associated with its use. The data suggests that this is beginning to occur with trans fat, too. We are certainly not there, yet, but we are moving toward a time when processed meats, commercial baked goods, and sugar-sweetened beverages will be viewed by everyone as dangerous.

I encourage everyone to eat a nutrient-dense, plant-rich diet of greens, colorful vegetables, beans, nuts, seeds, and some fruit. Make salad the main meal. Eat big salads and lots of tomato, onion, raw and cooked greens, and mushrooms. Until everyone learns to avoid processed food, excessive animal products and oils preventable diseases will continue to plague us. A diet that delivers a broad array of micronutrients via a wide spectrum of healthy foods is the most satisfying and the most healthful.

If you really want to lose your body fat than look for my Ebook at the websites listed below. You'll get information on Healthy eating, exercise, and diet.

“How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight?”, is available at all the online bookstores selling for $1.99. Go to any of the websites and search the title to find my Ebook. This book gives you all you need to lose weight without spending money on gym memberships, diet plans or meal plans. Look for my book. at Amazon.com, B&N.com, iBooks, Kobo.com, Scribd.com, or Gardner Books in the U.K.

My new ebook is available on Smashwords.com, just type “getting to a Healthy Weight” in the search box at the top of the home page. 

How Long Will It Take To Reach My Goal Weight?

This is a frequently asked question. The answer is different for everyone. If you are only 20 pounds or so over your goal weight then a 200 pound man can expect to loss about 2 pounds a week. If you're a woman who weighs about 140 and wants to lose 20 pounds then 2 pounds every  week might be too much to expect. And it also depends on your age. For instance, a young woman who has had a baby recently will loss her 20 pounds faster than a woman in her late 40's who has carried the extra weight for a few years. If you have been over weight for sometime, it will take longer to lose it.

So several things being considered, 20 pounds may take 2 months for a new mom to lose, or it might take a man 200 pounds age 65, one years to drop the weight. This is what you need to consider; your weight and your age, what kind of physical shape am I in? The better the condition the more exercise you'll be able to do. How motivated am I? You have to stay with it. And don't forget the diet, you can't cheat, if your going to reach your goal.

That's a big problem "cheating". If your on a 2 pound a week weight lose program, it doesn't take much to stop losing and start gaining.  Yes, it will take time but if your going to be thin for the rest of your life, go slow and keep it up. Once you reach 10 pounds of lost weight, you'll start feeling better, but don't stop and don't start cheating. Even after you reach your goal, don't stop. That's how everyone else gains the weight back. And I did have to stop drinking alcohol until I reached my goal and then I could go back to a drink occasionally without gaining. You see, alcohol will mess with your metabolism and that stops the fat burning process. Now after you reach your goal your metabolism is back to normal and an occasional drink doesn't hurt.

I stopped smoking cold turkey back in the seventies and it's just as tough. But when you make up your mind that you must do it, then and only then will you loss weight. Remember it's a change of lifestyle and not about dieting for a few weeks.

How long it takes to lose weight is a question that's impossible to answer. Most people don't want to make a long-term commitment to a new way of living, even though that's what it's going to take.

If you follow this blog, in the archives, there's over 400 posts, all the posts are related to diet, exercise and losing weight. Most people fail at weight loss because they're not really serious, their clothes are starting to get tight and they don't want to buy a new wardrobe. O.K., that's a reason, but not a good reason. They will probably fail. Another popular reason for losing weight is someone is nagging you, maybe it's your spouse or your doctor. Those reason will carry a little more weight and your going to try harder but most people just end up on diet pills. They take the easy way out. And most of them won't keep the weight off.

I always tell people that they have to change their life. Make time to exercise and start eating the right food and quit eating the junk. Stop over-eating and only eat good snacks like fresh fruit. And I go through a list of do's and don't's and they have to stick to it and don't give up. That's why most people fail, they give-up.

Getting to your weight goal is differennt for everyone. We all burn fat at a different rate. A lot depends on you; how you make the life changes you have to make. You gained the weight because of the foods your eating and the hours of inactivity. An hour in the gym can't make-up for a bad diet. 

Losing body fat should be your goal. Read up on weight loss and losing body fat. It doesn’t cost money to lose weightier fat. The internet is full of free information. But the quickest way and cheapest way is to buy an ebook online and get everything you need in one short read. I have two ebooks on Amazon:

How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight

Getting To A Healthy Weight

Check out one of them, I think you can find all the info you need and plenty of tips on how I lost my body fat. 

How Much Protein Do I Need To Lose Weight?

Eating foods with protein may improve both short and long-term weight loss success. According to new research, dieters who eat more protein are able to increase lean muscle mass, improve metabolism and decrease body fat. But that leaves many dieters asking, how much protein do I need to lose weight?

How Much Protein is Best for Dieters?

Before you stock up on protein supplements and high protein snack bars, make sure you know your recommended daily allowance for protein. Eating too much of any nutrient isn't a good thing and you want to make sure you use protein properly for weight loss.

Some researchers believe that when dieters consume more foods with protein, they see greater weight loss results. How much protein is best? Three recent studies have found that dieters who consumed 25-30% of their calories from lean protein lost more body fat and substantially increased the number of calories that their bodies burned at rest.

In one study of overweight and obese women, researchers evaluated dieters who consumed a high protein (30%), high dairy diet to a lower protein (15%), lower dairy diet. The high protein group lost more body fat and gained more lean muscle mass than the women who consumed the low protein diet. The low protein group lost weight, but they also lost more lean muscle mass.

Study authors suggest that this loss of lean muscle may contribute to the long-term weight gain and frustrating weight loss plateaus that plague so  many dieters.   Lean muscle mass burns more calories than fat, even when the body is at rest.

When the low protein group lost lean muscle mass, they may have lost the ability to burn more calories throughout the day. On the other hand, the improved body composition of the high protein group may help them burn more calories in the short and long term.

So does that mean more protein is better? Not necessarily. If you eat too many calories, no matter what kind of calories they are, you will gain weight. Even though some studies suggest that weight gain from lean protein is better than weight gain from fat and carbohydrates, if weight loss is your goal, eating the right number of calories is still the key to success.

Should I Take a Protein Supplement?

The short answer is probably not. Most people consume too much protein already, so adding more in the form of a supplement is not necessary. There are still some people, though, who don't get enough. Should they invest in powders or pills? The answer is still probably not.

Foods with protein are also high in other vitamins and minerals that are essential to your diet. Lean meats, dairy and seafood contain iron, calcium, niacin and thiamin. Protein-rich lentils are a good source of fiber.

Many supplements are expensive and some may contain sugars and other ingredients that you don't need. Why waste the money and consume the extra calories? Try to include at least one lean meat or dairy product in each meal throughout the day and chances are good that you will reach the recommended intake of protein to keep your body lean and healthy.

Use Lean Protein Recipes to Lose Weight

Try to eat some protein at every meal. Stock up on lean dairy products, chicken, fish, lean ground turkey, lentils and green leafy vegetables. Use healthy cooking techniques that cut fat and calories. Before you know it, you'll be creating delicious meals that are low in fat but high in the nutrients that you really need.That said, I do use protein powder on days when I do a heavy workout. A long run or a workout with weighs that strain the muscles. You want to strain the muscle when you workout. That helps them to grow, but after the workout you want to eat some protein to help those muscles recover. 

70gm. or 80gm. of protein is good but don't raise the amount of animal meat. The trouble with animal meat is that you get animal fat along with it. Animal fat is the reason most of us add fat around the waist. You can increas your protein with "protein powder". All the grocery stores carry protein powder in a variety of brands. It's very popular today. Protein powder has plant and dairy protein. The shakes are simple to make, you can use a machine or a shaker. There great for a quick breakfast. Eat protein at every meal and use shakes between meals. I get about 30gms. of protein in one shake.

Losing body fat should be your goal. Read up on weight loss and losing body fat. It doesn’t cost money to lose weightier fat. The internet is full of free information. But the quickest way and cheapest way is to buy an ebook online and get everything you need in one short read. I have two ebooks on Amazon:

How Bad Do You Want To Lose Weight

Getting To A Healthy Weight

Check out one of them, I think you can find all the info you need and plenty of tips on how I lost my body fat. 

Can I Eat Pasta and Still Lose Weight?

You already know that the fish and chips, or the burger and fries might not be the best option considering your current goals. 

You find yourself debating between a “healthier choice” of either grilled chicken or sautéed fish. You get the chicken, and then the waiter asks you to choose a side. You have 3 options: (1) a baked potato, (2) penne pasta, or (3) brown rice.

Which option would you choose, and why? In the context of losing weight, which side dish do you think best supports your goals?

Do you have your answer? How many of you chose brown rice? 

What if I told you that the penne pasta would be the best choice? You might be surprised to learn that of those 3 side dishes, penne pasta has the lowest glycemic index.

The Glycemic Index and Fat Loss 

While glycemic index (GI) is only one measure of evaluating a food, the fact that pasta has a lower GI does make it a more attractive option. 

It’s inarguable that calorie intake has the biggest impact on the whole fat loss equation, but controlling your blood sugar levels by opting for lower glycemic foods definitely plays a role in weight and fat loss as well.

So, contrary to popular opinion, you can eat pasta and still lose weight. But this doesn’t mean you should make pasta the foundation of every meal. The key to eating pasta and getting a lean is to control your portions.

Strategies to Stay Lean While Eating Pasta 

These 3 strategies will help you eat pasta while losing body fat:

1. Keep Your Portion Size In Check 

Look to the Italians on this one. They love their pasta in Italy and eat it pretty much every day, sometimes even multiple times a day! How many obese Italians do you see? Not many. 

The issue with pasta is that it’s very calorie dense (meaning that it contains a lot of calories per gram of food), making it very easy to overeat. But it all comes down to portion sizes. A single serving of pasta will do very little harm to your fat loss goals.

So if you keep your portion sizes under control, you should be just fine. One serving equals 1 cup of cooked pasta.

Pro Tip: When eating pasta, make it your side dish to complement a bigger portion of protein and veggies. See recipe below.

2. Choose Your Sauce Carefully (Or Make Your Own) 

When I was a kid, I used to love fettuccini alfredo. The cream, the cheese, the fettuccini – it was incredible! I would order it every time my family went out to dinner. 

But now that I’m an adult, I don’t eat it anymore. That is, unless I’m looking to pack on some weight. Why? Because alfredo sauce is loaded with calories – almost 900 calories in one jar!

When you decide to eat pasta, watch out for any cream-based sauces, especially when you eat at a restaurant. These dishes are guaranteed to be loaded with calories, and generally contain a much larger serving than if you were to make it at home. 

But even if you avoid cream-based sauces, it’s important to be mindful of any store bought tomato sauces as well. Most contain added sugars, some variety of low quality refined oil, and possibly even corn syrup.

When you buy pasta sauce at the store, select one that’s tomato-based, contains no added sugars, and is made with olive oil. 

Otherwise, you can try making your own sauce. It doesn’t have to be complicated and actually can be done in less then 5 minutes. Check out the recipe below

Pro Tip: Make your own basic sauce with garlic, olive oil, and basil with the simple below recipe. 

3. Eat Pasta Post-Workout 

After an intense workout, your muscle cells are more receptive to carbohydrates meaning you can safely consume carbohydrate-rich foods with little damage to your fat loss goals. There are two primary reasons for this:

• You need to replenish your glycogen (carbohydrates) stores, which get depleted by intense exercise.

• Intense exercise induces specific hormonal responses that make you more insulin sensitive post-workout.

This is why the bodybuilders at the gym freak the hell out if they can’t get their protein and carb shake right after a workout. It’s this post-workout anabolic window that they are trying to take advantage of. 

While the research differs slightly on the duration of this post workout window, it is a safe bet to consume pasta within a 2-hour period post workout. 

It’s important to note – this is a variation of “nutrient timing”, which is an advanced nutrition strategy that only works if you have a solid nutritional foundation already in place. 

Pro Tip: Plan a pasta night after an intense strength workout that you do later in the day, preferably within 2 hours of eating dinner.

Regular vs Whole Grain Pasta 

While regular pasta can definitely be a part of a fat loss diet, the same serving size of whole grain pasta packs a lot more nutrition with fewer calories, but you can lose weight either way.
If you're eating for the most nutrition per calorie than you want whole grain wheat pasta. People who do a high-intensity workout need all the energy they can get and always pick a high amount of nutrition in every meal.

Regular Pasta 

Sure, regular pasta might be enriched with specific nutrients, including iron and b-vitamins, but it lacks dietary fiber which means that it’s less satiating. Without dietary fiber, regular pasta is digested faster and the sugars are released into your bloodstream more rapidly. This could cause you to be hungrier sooner, especially if you don’t include lean protein, vegetables, and healthy fats in your pasta dish.

Whole Grain Pasta 

Whole grain pasta, on the other hand, contains trace minerals like selenium in addition to b-vitamins and iron, and also has more dietary fiber. You’ll probably find a bowl of whole grain pasta to be more satifying, keeping you full for a longer period of time. If you add some protein and vegetables, you have a nutrient-dense meal that also keeps your blood sugar levels more stable.

Nutrition	Regular Enriched Spaghetti	Whole Grain Spaghetti
Calories	220	174
Carbohydrates	43 g	37 g
Fat	1 g	1 g
Protein	8 g	7 g
Dietary Fiber	3 g	6g

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