Eating the right foods

When you’re trying to reach a fitness goal, be it Fat Loss, Muscle Gain, or improving your Cardiovascular Endurance, ensuring you’re eating the right foods is essential.

So, watch our for these 12 foods that can mess with your appetite and encourage you to eat more than you normally would, potentially damaging your fitness results.

12 foods to avoid

Shop bought Smoothies –Shop bought smoothies can be bad for controlling your appetite as they are often full of sugar from the fruit and frozen yogurt that they contain, and this can leave you feeling sluggish and tired. They are not the healthy alternative that you think they are. If you are wanting a smoothie, make sure you choose one that includes a natural protein powder (i.e Spirulina) and a mix of fruit and vegetables as veg will provide you with fibre, vitamins and minerals.

Bagels – Although white bagels are tasty, they contain little fibre and a lot of carbohydrate. A healthier alternative would be a slice of whole-grain toast and scrambled eggs. If you must have a bagel, choose a whole-grain one, which contains 7 grams of fibre compared to 2 grams of fibre in a white bagel.

Protein Bars – Some protein bars can be as bad for you as a chocolate bar. They contain sugar, carbohydrates and artificial flavours and leave you wanting more sugar. Try to eat a combination of nuts, seeds and dried fruit or if you really want a protein bar, look for one that contains mainly seeds, nuts and dried fruit, or make your own.

Cookies – Most cookies are high in sugar and refined carbohydrates which can spike your sugar levels and leave you wanting more. It’s easy to eat a whole packet as your body will keep telling you that it needs food until you eat something with nutritional density! Try making low sugar alternatives and eating one or two as a snack. Our low sugar digestives are a healthy alternative to sugar-laden cookies.

Crisps – Crisps are easy to eat and eat! It’s hard to stop after just a few, but they will not fill you up and you’ll find that you are still hungry even after eating a whole bag. They provide empty calories as they contain very little nutrition. A healthy alternative would be to bake slices of vegetables, e.g. sweet potatoes, parsnips and beetroot.

White Rice and Pasta – White rice and pasta do not fill you up, they just make you think that you are full and not for long! Change to whole-grain pasta or brown rice which contain more fibre or, better still, try cauliflower rice or broccoli rice.

Breakfast Cereal – Most breakfast cereals are full of sugar and could have your appetite spiking and your energy levels crashing before lunchtime. They contain added sugars and very little protein which is what will keep you feeling fuller for longer. Eggs are an excellent breakfast, either scrambled, poached or boiled, with spinach or kale on a slice of wholegrain toast. An omelette is also a good choice. As eggs are quite high in protein, these will keep you feeling fuller for longer. Porridge, overnight oats and healthy homemade granola are also great choices.

Juice – Juicing fruit releases the sugars and removes the fibre. Fibre slows down the absorption of fructose (the sugar in fruits) and makes us feel full. As fruit juice contains no fibre, it is absorbed immediately, leaving us feeling hungry. Fruit juice should be restricted to 150ml a day and should be 100% juice, or better still, make your own from fresh fruit.

Sweets – Sweets are extremely high in sugar and will cause a spike in insulin (when the body has had more sugar than it can process) followed by a crash, making us want yet more sugar. If you need a snack, try nuts and dried fruit or an apple dipped in some 100% peanut butter.

Doughnuts – Doughnuts contain empty calories and will not make you feel full for long. They contain simple carbohydrates that are quickly broken down by the body which, in turn, lead to highs and lows in energy and poor appetite control. Try one of our low sugar brownies or digestive biscuits as a healthy alternative.

Microwavable Meal – Many microwavable meals are missing vital nutrients and fibre. You will probably find yourself hungry again soon after eating one. Look for healthier choices which contain whole grains and protein or better still, make a batch of healthy meals to freeze and use these instead, e.g. wholemeal pasta bolognese, chilli-con-carne or soup.

Diet Drinks – Although you might think that diet drinks are ok for you as they have no calories, they may increase cravings for sweets which could, in turn, change the way your body manages hunger and sugar cravings. Try sparkling water with added lemon and lime, herbal teas or coconut water for a healthy alternative.

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