How To Eat Healthy Food To Lose Weight

By: Casey Holley

Break Studios Contributing Writer

You need to know how to eat healthy food to lose weight if you want your weight loss program to be a success. Fast food, prepackaged foods and processed foods will hinder your weight loss efforts.

Choose natural foods. Fresh fruits and vegetables, whole grain breads, fresh lean meats and low fat dairy products are the optimal choices. If you must eat canned fruits and vegetables, make sure that they don’t have any added sugar or salt. If the can says "heavy syrup" or "light syrup," don’t purchase it.
Use a little oil. The average person needs approximately 1 tsp of oil added to the diet daily to ensure that the body can function optimally. To get this oil, cook a meal using 1 tsp of canola oil or olive oil. You can also use 1 tsp of full fat salad dressing or mayonnaise on a salad or sandwich.
Stay away from empty calories, or calories that don’t provide much nutrition, recommends the American Academy of Family Physicians. Even calories in soft drinks or snack cakes count toward your daily allowance. Water, 100 percent fruit juice and no calorie beverages can help you stay hydrated.
Pay attention to portions. Measuring cups and a kitchen scale can help you ensure that your portions sizes are correct. The internet provides information about serving sizes and the number of servings needed daily based on gender, age and activity level.
Bring snacks with you. To minimize the risk of grabbing an unhealthy snack when you are away from home, bring food with you. 100 calorie snack packs, string cheese, fresh fruits, nuts and water are good options for travel.
Eat out successfully. Most entrees at restaurants contain a lot of fat and calories. To minimize the effect these have on you, order an appetizer instead of an entrée or bring half of the entrée home with you to eat the next day. Stay away from dishes that are fried, and those that contain heavy sauces or fat-laden condiments. You can ask that all sauces be placed on the side of your dish if you want a dish that has a sauce.