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It can be tricky, determining which foods still fit into your diet as you strive to lose weight. You want your meals to be nutrient dense and filling, but you also don’t want to sacrifice the flavor and excitement you get from eating good food. Breakfast is important for starting out your day on the right foot, setting you up to make healthy decisions in your eating throughout the following hours. But what should you be avoiding if you want to actually see results from your lifestyle? This is what a registered dietitian wants you to know.
While there’s room for all of your favorite foods in your diet so long as you consume them in moderation, breakfasts that are loaded with calories and little nutritional value are ultimately going to prevent you from losing weight if you eat them every morning. “The worst breakfast for weight loss would be the one that is calorically dense without providing much satisfying protein or fiber, leaving you with an energy crash and feeling hungry a short while later,” explains Annamaria Louloudis, MS, RDN.
Although sugary or carb-dense breakfasts may satisfy your cravings, they will likely leave you hungry within an hour or two of eating, making you more apt to overindulge later in the day. “Calories from protein, fat and fiber-filled foods are going to fill you up and keep you satisfied for a lot longer than refined carbohydrate and sugar-filled foods. For example, a piece of whole wheat toast (fiber) with avocado (fiber + fat) and an egg (protein + fat) is going to satisfy and keep you full for a lot longer than a piece of white toast (refined carbohydrate) with jam (sugar) and butter (fat),” says Louloudis.
Not sure which meals you should specifically be weary of? Louloudis warns that although in moderation they can be delicious treats, sweet pancakes, bagels with cream cheese, and fruit juices often skimp on nutrients that will make it more difficult to lose weight in the long run. “Again, all foods fit into a balanced diet, it's the portion size that is most important when it comes to weight loss,” she explains.
Feeding yourself for weight loss is so much more than eliminating ‘bad’ foods from your diet and sticking to a minimalistic eating plan which will ultimately be difficult to maintain. It’s important to keep your favorite foods in your repertoire so as not to deprive yourself, but in the day to day you will achieve the best results by prioritizing breakfasts that provide your body with a solid variety of carbs, protein, and fat. Nothing is off limits, but you should limit how frequently you indulge in breakfasts that are made up solely of empty calories if you want to feel great in your body.
