Aug 12, Fat Burning Foods - Negative Calorie Foods

You've obviously heard about fat burning foods at some point whilst dieting, but do you actually know much about it? Can fat burner foods make you slimmer or is it just another cult?

Keep reading and you'll find out! Plus, keep reading for two tables of examples of fat burning foods.

What are fat burning foods?

Certain foods are considered as fat burners if they accelerate your body's ability to burn fat, either directly or indirectly. There are two main types of fat burning foods:

So can fat burning foods make you slimmer or is it just another cult?

In my opinion, through research, I and many other people would recommend eating fat burning foods whether you want to slim down or tone your muscles.

Obviously the techniques for each are slightly different but in either instance fat burning foods can increase your metabolism with a healthy balanced diet.

If you are new to fat burning foods, absorb the information on this page and consult your doctor/dietician to see if this is a viable option for your weight control.

Incorporating fat burning foods into your diet is simple if you follow a healthy balanced diet. All you have to do is understand how they work and eat these fat burners over the less effectives types currently in your diet.

So this page is a good place to start.

But, if you are more interested in learning about weight control, click here for the Weight Control page.

Negative Calorie Foods

This is a simple concept . If a food provides you with less energy than it takes to digest it, the food is classed as a negative calorie food.

Your body has to burn some of its fat reserves to digest these foods which is why they are classed as fat burning foods.

Foods with negative calories directly burn fat.

Whilst the amount of energy your body requires to digest and absorb food varies from person to person, there are typical guidelines for negative calorie foods.

Typical examples of negative calorie foods

Raw/natural vegetables, fruits and nuts are typical negative calorie foods. So as long as you eat the raw or natural types they can indeed make you slimmer with a healthy balanced diet.

You can learn what a healthy balanced diet means here on the Healthy Diet page.

REMEMBER only natural types that are eaten raw or lightly cooked provide slimming benefits. Most canned/tinned or dried fruits are NOT negative calorie foods.

It's okay to lightly cook (or preferably steam) fruits, nuts and vegetables but overcooking or adding any unnecessary fats or sugars will not only tarnish their negative calories but raise the GI of the food.

Most foods with negative calories also have a low - medium GI, a great benefit for diabetics so it would be a shame to waste that.

Other benefits of negative calorie foods

Examples of Negative Calorie Foods:

Below is a table of Negative calorie foods. It's detailed yet not exhaustive but contains most of the typical foods commonly eaten.

Fat Burning Foods - Negative Calorie Foods -apples -apricots -bananas- Berries (Black, Boysen, Rasp etc.) -cherries- Citric Fruit (Oranges, Grapefruit, Lemons etc.) -Currants (Black, Red, White etc.) -damsons -figs- grapes -greengages -Tropical Fruit (Kiwi, Pineapple, Guava, Papaya etc.) - pears- peaches- satsumas- star fruit-asparagus -aubergine (eggplant) -beetroot -broccoli -brussel sprouts -cabbage -carrots -cauliflower -celeriac -celery -chicory -Chinese Cabbage (Pak Choi, Bok Choi etc.) -endive -globe artichokes -green beans -Leafy Vegetables (Lettuce, Fresh Herbs, Watercress etc.) -leeks -mangetouts (snow peas) -onions -seaweed -Sprouting Vegetables (Alfalfa, cress, raddish etc.) -squash -swede -tomatoes -turnips
(Unsalted & Unroasted) Nuts and their oils
More info-almonds -Barcelona nuts -Brazils -chestnuts -coconuts -filberts -halzelnuts -macadania -peanuts -pine nuts -pistachios -walnutsThermogenic Protein Foods - Something to do with heat right? Yep. Thermogenic foods aid fat burning by giving off heat during digestion.

Most foods are thermogenic but like negative calorie foods some types of thermogenic foods are more beneficial fat burners than others.

This is an indirect type of fat burning.

When I say thermogenesis i'm not talking about eating herbs and spices that "magically" increase your metabolism.

There's a lot of fad info on thermogenic food (like they cayenne pepper diet) so be cautious when doing further research.

As always it is important to have a healthy, balanced diet, but if you incorporate fat burning foods into that diet, its effects can be additionally beneficial for diabetics.

Why Thermogenic Protein Foods?

I said earlier that all foods are thermogenic but protein rich foods have a much higher effect than that of fat and carbohydrates.

Also, protein foods are beneficial to diabetics as it can sharpen your insulin sensitivity, giving you more control over your diabetes.

Typical examples of Thermogenic Protein Foods

The best types are lean meat, fish and eggs but also include vegetarian options like cheese and soya products.

You can learn more about the benefits and guidelines for each food type on the Food Groups page here.

Other benefits of Thermogenic Protein Foods

Examples of Thermogenic Protein Foods:

Below is a table of thermogenic protein foods. It's detailed yet not exhaustive but contains most of the typical foods commonly eaten.

Fat Burning Foods - Thermogenic Protein Foods-Beef -Pork -Lamb -Veal -Venison -Rabbit -Hare -Offal- Chicken -Turkey -Pheasant -Grouse -Guinea fowl-Cod -Haddock -Plaice -Sole -Coley -Whiting -Mackeral -Trout -Red Salmon-Scallops -Shrimp -Prawns -Lobster -Crab -Scampi -Cockles -Mussels -Winkles -Whelks -AbaloneCheese - but watch the trans/saturated fat content!
More info-Free Range and Organic eggs are the best for quality, nutrition and taste. Battery farmed and (even worse) caged eggs are strongly unrecommended but if you're on a tight budget go for barn eggs.