Toning up your body is no easy feat, but it’s a task made much easier when you incorporate the right foods into your diet. Here are our favourite foods to help you get summer body ready.
Kefir
Not only is this drinkable yoghurt a good source of calcium and protein, but it will also encourage the growth of good bacteria in your body. This makes the food you consume break down more efficiently. If you haven’t tried kefir before then try and substitute it for the milk that you normally have in your diet.
Lemon water
It’s one of the oldest tricks in the book, but if your body is in need of a detox then you should probably start by adding a slice of lemon to your water. First of all, drinking more water makes you feel fuller, making it easier for you to stop snacking away on unnecessary calorie-filled foods. As a bonus, adding a little lemon helps flush toxins from your body and helps bowel activity, which flushes fat from your system.
Avocado
Calling all avocado on toast fans. The monounsaturated fats in avocado are filling which means you’re less likely to want to snack on unhealthy fats later in the day.
Choose your fats wisely. If that wasn’t enough to convince you to jump on the avocado bandwagon, they’re also loaded with fibre and contain more potassium that bananas.
Apple cider vinegar
Consuming just a little apple cider vinegar can help your body burn off carbs quicker. And the faster you burn off carbs, the sooner your body starts burning fat. Apple cider vinegar is made up largely of acetic acid, which slows the release of sugar into the bloodstream and means that your body won’t crave as many sugar-filled foods. Try having a spoon of apple cider vinegar a day, as well as enhancing weight loss, it can lower cholesterol and improve skin health.
Cinnamon
Aside from being full of flavour, cinnamon contains powerful antioxidants that help improve your body’s insulin sensitivity. This keeps your blood sugar stable and prevents dramatic spikes of hunger. Add a little cinnamon to your morning porridge and see for yourself.
Cauliflower
Your body burns more calories digesting cruciferous vegetables like cauliflower. Adding more of these foods into your diet can help boost the amount of calories your body burns as your body has to work harder to digest crunchier foods. If cauliflower’s not your thing, broccoli, kale, Brussels sprout and cabbage all have the same benefits.
Garlic
Studies have found that adding garlic to your diet can help to reduce your body mass index, though as always, results are significantly increased when combined with regular exercise. It is said that garlic aids with weight loss by increasing your metabolic rate. Garlic is the food which just keeps giving because research shows that it also helps to naturally lower your blood sugar.
