Raise your hand if you dream of having a flat belly, of getting rid of that bulge above your pants. Dreaming is all good, but losing weight and maintaining a fit body takes real work and commitment. Along with exercise, a balanced diet is also very important. Here’s a list of 9 foods that you need to stay away from so you can look in the mirror and feel satisfied that your efforts have worked out.
Soft drinks are the devil
‘First, they came for the alcohol, and now the soft drinks as well??’ is probably what you’re thinking. Unfortunately, yes, soft drinks are essentially just flavoured fizzy sugar water and as you would imagine, are high in harmful calories. They also tend to slow down your metabolism and create fat on your body, so definitely a no-no if you’re coveting that flat belly.
Put away the booze
Alcohol is dense in calories and calories aren’t ideal when you want to lose weight. But the main issue with alcohol isn’t even that. When you drink alcohol, your cognitive thinking becomes fuzzy, which is a good enough reason to stay away from alcohol in the first place, but it also makes you think you’re hungry, even if you aren’t. So, you end up cracking open a bag of chips with that cold beer. Calories on top of calories!
Don’t buy chewing gum
What’s wrong with chewing gum, it refreshes your breath and shouldn’t all that chewing make your mouth tired and keep you from eating more? Wrong! Constant chewing triggers your stomach into thinking that there is an incoming meal, causing the production of stomach acid as it gets ready for digestion, this in turn will make you hungry!
Avoid salty foods
Foods that are high in sodium (read: salt) are not good for the general well-being of your body and health. They can cause high blood pressure and be particularly harmful if you are already a person with blood pressure issues. Salt also causes the retention of fluids in your body, which causes bloating. So, stay away from foods that are too salty, remember, anything in excess can turn into poison.
No more McDonald’s
In your quest to attain that perfect flat stomach, you will need to make many sacrifices, and giving up your favourite fast food is one of them. You probably won’t be too shocked to hear that fast food is not good for your health. Stay away from the big yellow M and the royalty of burgers if you want a flat belly. Fast food is high in calories and contains many harmful fats and carbohydrates that are of absolutely no use to your body.
Hold the mayo
Mayonnaise is another food that is high in fat, as the main ingredients of it are egg yolks and oil. Needless to say, salads drenched in mayo aren’t really doing much to help your cause. Instead, skip the mayo and opt for vegetable purees or natural tomato paste as a substitute. If you absolutely cannot live without mayo, you can also find egg white based mayonnaise as well, but keep in mind that it still does contain oil!
French fries need to go
Who doesn’t love a crispy, golden French fry? These highly addicting little sticks of fried potato are delicious no doubt, but definitely not good for you. Just like any other fried food, the potatoes soak up all that saturated fat like a sponge, and are also usually heavily salted. Both of these are harmful for your body and can create abdominal fat. The best substitute for French fries are vegetable ‘fries’ that are baked in the oven, just as delicious, just as crispy, but way healthier.
I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream!
I know it’s painful to hear, trust me, but if you want that flat stomach, speed walk past that freezer section at the supermarket and don’t look up until you’ve reached the fruits and vegetables section. Unfortunately, sugar, full fat milk, cream, and egg yolks are the main ingredients in ice cream – all of which are high in fat.
Sugar-free doesn’t mean calorie free
If you’re in the habit of buying products labelled sugar-free with the intention of staying away from sugary foods, unfortunately, you aren’t really helping yourself. Sugar substitutes used in such products like polyalcohol are only effective for those with diabetes. Furthermore, even sugar-free products can be high in calories, so be smart about what you eat!
