Ditch These 6 Foods To Get Your Dream Body

So you struggle to lose weight, maybe you even gain weight inexplicably no matter what you try.

Is it because you are secretly stuffing your face at night and lying to everyone about how much you eat? Are you not exercising enough? Are you just lazy?

No. It is none of these. If it were, then there would not be people like “that skinny friend” who can not gain weight no matter what she eats. Some people are predisposed to gaining weight. And while that may not be fair, it is life. So we have to do something about it!

The good news is that you do not have to starve yourself or hire a personal trainer that will make you hate your life for an hour every day. Because weight, loss or gain, is not as much about how much you eat and how little you move, as it is about what you eat. By making a few dietary tweaks, you will begin losing weight in a way that is healthy and sustainable.

Here are the big 6 fat offenders; foods that have been shown to lead directly to weight gain.

Offender 1: Sugary Drinks

Sugar makes you fat. How many times have you heard that? Only like a gazillion. Well, sadly, it is true. The best thing to do would be to stop eating sugar altogether, but you are human. And where is the fun in that? (Nowhere! 0 sugar = 0 fun).

Sugar is such a huge problem because the average American eats 3 times the daily recommended amount of 30 grams.¹

A little cake on the weekend will not kill you, but consuming sugar all day, every day will. One of the easiest ways to reduce your sugar intake is in your drinks! Most people do not even know how much sugar is in their drinks. One 12oz Coca-Cola, for example, contains 39g of sugar, 105% of the daily recommended intake.

Here are some other drinks to look at for:

Avoid Drinking These

• Real sodas
• Sweet tea
• Fruit juices and smoothies
• Energy drinks
• Your favorite latte
• Chocolate milk
• Some milk alternatives such as almond milk
• Any other drink with added sugar. Read Labels!

Drink These Instead

• Water
• Coffee
• Tea
• Anything sugar-free

Offender 2: White Bread

Mmm, so soft and fluffy. I get it. Bread is delicious. It is also a pure carbohydrate, which to your body is the same thing as sugar.

One big pitfall of avoiding bread is dining out. So be proactive. When you sit down, ask your waiter not to bring any bread. If it is not on the table, you will be less tempted to eat it.

Avoid Eating These

• Sandwich style white bread slices
• Hamburger buns
• Rolls
• French and Italian bread
• Bagels
• Pizza (crust)

Bread is hard to get away from, it is a staple in many people’s daily diets. So the best thing to do is to come up with healthy alternatives.

Eat These Instead

• Use lettuce wraps or veggies as sandwich end.
• If you really want some bread, opt for 100% whole grain bread.
• Make sure it says 100% whole grain on the package. Just because it is brown doesn’t mean it’s healthy.

Offender 3: Potatoes

There has been some confusion over whether or not a potato is a vegetable. Allow me to set the record straight.

Officially, potatoes are vegetables. Unofficially, potatoes are bad for you. Potatoes are classified as starchy vegetables, which means they are high in carbohydrates.

Just as it does with white bread, your body views potatoes as sugar. One cup of potatoes has even been shown to have the same effect on blood sugar as a can of coke!

In addition to being digested similarly to sugar, potatoes are listed as #3 because they are everywhere. Seriously, everything seems to be a potato these days.

Avoid Eating These

• Baked potatoes
• Mashed potatoes
• Potato salad
• Potato casserole
• French fries (or any other types of fries)
• Hash browns
• Tater tots
• Potato chips
• Gnocchi

Eat These Instead

• Any and all veggies (except potatoes!).
• And beans, just not too many.
• You can try some of these healthy chip recipes.

Offender 4: Candy

Candies are everywhere! The best way to avoid it is to change your environment. Remove any candy from your house, ditch the candy jar at work – just get rid of it. If it is around, you will eat it.

Avoid Eating These

• Candy
• Bars
• Hard candy
• Gummies
• Desserts (Yes, desserts are treated as candies!)
• Ice cream
• Brownies
• Cobbler
• Pie
• Pudding
• Cake, cupcakes
• Cookies
• Donuts
• Fudge
• Blondies
• Anything else I have left out

Eat These Instead

• Fresh fruit and berries
• Dark chocolate
• Sugar-free ice cream
• Healthy peanut butter cheesecake cups

Offender 5: Bad Breakfast

Traditional breakfast foods are surprisingly unhealthy. Yes, I am talking about your cereal. Cleaning up your breakfast can make a huge impact on your overall health.

A quick and easy way to do that is to eat breakfast at home. Stopping at an eatery is the fastest way to start your day off on the wrong foot.

Avoid Eating These

• Breads
• Toast
• Bagels
• Biscuits
• Pancakes
• Cereal
• Baked goods
• Muffins/cake
• Donuts
• Croissants
• Scones
• Pumpkin bread
• Banana bread
• Sugary Breakfast bars

Eat These Instead

• Eggs
• Bacon
• Plain Greek yogurt
• Fruit and veggie smoothie
• Whole grain oatmeal

Offender 6: Snacks

Eating between meals keeps your insulin and blood sugar high. The best thing to do is to not snack at all. But, that is a tall order, so the next best thing is to ensure your snacks are healthy and sugar-free.

Snack foods are similar to breakfast foods in that the most popular ones are generally terrible for you – highly refined foods like bars, cookies, muffins, or anything else that comes wrapped in plastic.

Avoid Eating These

• Candy bars
• Crackers
• Chips
• French fries
• Sugary Dairy Products  – Most dairy products are loaded with sugar. Dairy naturally contains sugar (lactose), then more sugar is added on top of that!
• Meal bars
• Snack bars
• Energy bars
• Granola bars, etc.

Eat These Instead

• Nuts
• Fresh veggies
• Fresh fruit
• Plain Greek yogurt
• Get creative with these recipes

The Key To Success

Only do one thing at a time. The fastest way to failure is to read this list and try to do it all tomorrow. Do not do that! Start with one, and not even the biggest one. If you love potatoes, but feel like the coke could go, then start with coke!

Whatever you choose, work on it for at least 30 days until it becomes second nature to you. Studies have shown that 30 days is the minimum amount of time needed to develop a new habit – and that is exactly what we are going for, a habit. We want these changes to stick!

Using this technique you will develop healthy habit after healthy habit that helps you lose weight. Many tiny habits add up to make a very large difference.