Did You Know? Eating More Of These Foods Speeds Up Detoxification And Fat Loss!
You’ve been hearing it your whole life, and I have to tell you – your Mum was right. If you want to be grow up to be healthy and strong then you have to eat all your veggies.
I don’t know if you realise this, but eating more vegetables is one of the simplest and smartest things you can do to speed up fat loss. You think you’re being so smart putting in the hard yards at the gym, saying no to breads and pasta and obediently scarfing down your protein breaky? Well, okay, you are being pretty smart with all of that, but is it possible that you’re doing so many things right on your quest for health and vitality, and yet still neglecting this one very simple element?
Forgive me if I’m jumping too rapidly to conclusions, and I must admit I have met more than a few readers who eat truckloads of veg, but for the most part? Yes, yes it is possible. If not completely probable.
9 serves of vegetables per day?! is she crazy?
If you stop by Body Incredible regularly you’ll know that I’m a big fan of Charles Poliquin (in fact, he is one of my most influential mentors, as well as my Coach for my training and Biosignature studies). You’ve probably also heard me mention Dr Jonny Bowden – Dr Jonny is a medical doctor AND a nutritionist and he wrote one of my top 5 favourite books of all time; Living the Low-carb Life. It’s both entertaining and educational, which is a great combo.
Anyway, sorry, I’m doing that go off onto 10 different tangents thing again, aren’t I?!
The point I was getting to is this – when 2 of your most respected industry professionals join forces on an article, you know it’s worth reading a couple of times. In The 9 Habits of Healthy People, which Dr Jonny wrote for Charles’ blog, he says this of vegetables (and it’s point #1!):
Eat your vegetables. No kidding. And I’m talking at least 9 servings a day.. Unless you’re following the most stringent first stage of the Atkins Diet, you should be able to consume 60-120 grams of carbs a day (depending on your weight and exercise level), and you’d have to eat a stockyard full of spinach to get to that amount. Every major study of long-lived, healthy people shows that they eat a ton of plant foods. Nothing delivers antioxidants, fiber, flavonoids, indoles, and the entire pharmacopia of disease fighting phytochemicals like stuff that grows.
As if that’s not convincing enough for you, I’ve also heard Dr Jonny say that the most important supplement for fat loss is fiber. More veg = more fiber, yes? And this is the key to detoxification, because when you lose body fat it’s actually toxins which are being dragged out of your fat cells and into your blood. Fiber is what swooshes those toxins out of the body, which I really think is a far better option than leaving them in there.
Don’t you?
but it’s too hard/i don’t have time/i only like spinach/it costs too much!
It’s pretty simple really. Either your love yourself and your desire to lose weight and be healthy or to lose the final 5 is strong enough to do what it takes, or you care more about your can’t-quite-be-bothered approach to nutrition.
There really is nothing else to say about any excuse you care to come up with.
the best veggies for fat loss and health
Later this week I’m going to post one of my favourite ‘get all your veggies in one yummy hit’ recipes. (Yup, that’s the official name of the dish!).
For now, here is a list of especially nutritious and yummy vegetables. You’ll notice they are mostly green – I’m a big believer in eating predominantly seasonal and local vegetables, and I think green is best. Add some colour now and then, but do remember that when we talk about vegetables I’m talking low-starch. This does not include pumpkin, potato, sweet potato, corn (that’s a grain anyway), and most root vegetables.
Enjoy!
- Cruciferous veggies are great for fat loss, especially as regards your lower body. These include cauliflower, broccoli, cabbage, and brussel sprouts
- Zucchini
- Squash
- Green or yellow beans
- Spinach (a great source of iron, and it really does make you strong!)
- Any sort of lettuce or leaf (organic please as they are sprayed
directly) - Cucumbers
- Kale
- Silverbeet (these two are great options in salads, and bitter vegetables such as Kale are great for digestion)
- Spring onions
- Any fresh herbs; fresh chilis
- Celery (yummy snack with almond or cashew butter)
- Green capsicums
- Olives
- Artichokes
- Pickled foods like eggplant, green tomato (pickled stuff is great for
lowering blood sugar response!) - Onion
- Mushrooms; unless you have ever had fungal issues such as
thrush or candida
If you feel so inclined, I’d love for you to comment and share either your favourite way to eat your veggies, or a question about what you struggle with most when it comes to getting all your greens.
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Hi Kat – no tomatoes?
What’s the deal with red/orange/yellow capsicum?
Thanks – looking forward to the recipe
Hi Catherine, I would definitely eat any or all of those vegetables, I just meant that the majority of your vegetables should be green, as they have lower sugar and often higher fiber. A little variety now and then though for sure! I have heard that non-green capsicums which are not organic are sometimes coloured! So organic where possible.
Hi Kat!
Whilst I love my vegetables (fresh/raw or roasted and steamed), one of the most difficult veggies to eat is Kale. Ironically, Kale is also one of the most super-nutritious of the green vegetables!
Any recommendations from people on how to incorporate more kale into your meals would be most appreciated!
Jules
I sometimes have it raw and lived very finely, but kind of marinated in red wine vinegar and then made into a salad. That works for me!
Hi Jules,
I make fresh Kale smoothies for breakfast using almond milk, a few raw kale leaves, (often some collard greens and baby spinach too), 1/4 of an avocado for creaminess, fresh ginger, coconut water and then fruit to sweeten, (strawberries or bananas taste best).
You can also make Kale Chips. Tear kale leaves into pieces and layer on a baking tray. Spray with olive oil and season with salt and pepper or garam masala. Bake at 175 C until crunchy and chip-like. Delicious!
Oh my goodness Penny – YUMMMMMMMMMM. That sounds amazing; I just want to go home right now and make one! (The smoothie I mean; although I’m sure the chips are great as well!)
Hi Kat,
I was just wondering how much is a serving? I’m curious how close I come to the nine servings a day.
My new favorite vegetable is fennel. But I have only cooked it one way so far. I think it is important to try vegetables we are not familiar with in case we find something we like. I think having variety is important to keep from getting bored and for me that means I’m more likely to do better staying with the plan. That also includes cooking them different ways too.
Thanks for the great article,
Brenda
My pleasure Brenda. You can have fennel raw, in salad with orange and lemon juice and salt and pepper. Very Italian 🙂
I would say a serving is whatever common sense says! To me, it would be about 3/4-1 cue loosely packed.
Hey Kat, i was wondering if how you cook veggies matters at all? I’m a bachelor and well, don’t cook very well. So I usually just eat things like broccoli and cauliflower raw. Are veggies better for you or give you more nutrients when done different ways, say raw or grilled or steamed or anything like that?
Hi Tim, I would not eat many cruciferous veg raw as they can ramp down the thyroid. So I steam them, but I only do it twice a week just in huge batches. I eat many veg raw, like cucumber or capsicum during the day instead of fruit. That makes it easy, that way you can start mid morning!
Hi Kat. Soup is a great way of increasing my vegetable consumption.
Fry onion, garlic (ginger and chilli if you like) in EVO till softened.
Add as many green veggies as you like.
Add water to cover.
Add seasoning (herbs and/or spices) to taste.
Simmer until veggies cooked.
Blend until smooth.
Each serve of soup can be eaten on its own or add dash of cream or add cooked meat to make a complete meal.
Sometimes if I feel like a coffee, I drink a cup of soup instead.
Yum! Thankyou so much for sharing that recipe Toni! And what a great idea; veggie soup as a pick me up! Especially good with the spices I think 🙂
Hi Kat,
I’d be interested to hear which other books are in your ‘Top 5 Favourites of All Time’.
Hi Penny – the truth is probably that I would rotate about 10 in and out … but off the top of my head just now, and kind of in this order:
1. Sleep, sugar and survival
2. Living the low-carb life
3. The promise of sleep (I suffered insomnia for years so I have a real thing about helping people with sleep issues)
4. Living Thin (it’s a book by a Melbourne financial journalist on cutting back on your spending and getting control of your money – it has seriously changed my life!)
5. Zebras don’t get ulcers
Kat x
I DO eat at least 9 servings a day of veggies and my life is better for it! I had a pound of cabbage at lunch! Some call me crazy, but I call myself fully sated (and healthy, too!) I think I have eaten all the veg on your list in the last week. I do believe we could be great friends 🙂
I also recently wrote a blog post on my love of veggies and how to incorporate more into your diet. It’s got several recipes: http://www.notjustadaydream.com/?p=583
Wow … a pound is most definitely impressive! How do you eat it? Oh – I’ve just subscribed to your blog!
Hey, Kat
I buy the bagged coleslaw mix in the produce section. It is 16 oz. of shredded cabbage. I cook it in my stir-fry pan with some cooking spray and a couple of TB of water. I add seasonings like curry powder or caraway seed. Sometimes I add a little teriyaki or hoisin sauce for an Asian stir-fry. Then I add my protein to it. A really fast, easy and filling meal!
Thanks for checking out my blog. I am going to get some new posts up in the next day or two!
Elaine
I just read your post on veg; wow – that must have taken you ages!
Yum..the breakfast smoothie sounds awesome! I’ll have to try it!
I like to saute spinach in with my eggs & shredded turkey for breakfast. Sometimes I throw olives in it. I do one or two big handfuls but it shrinks up so much….so theres 2 servings 🙂
Turkey is such a fantastic and underrated source of protein … yummy recipe Ginger!