Have you heard “eat less, move more” to lose weight? Yeah, that’s not helpful. I don’t know a single person who wants to eat LESS. How about eating more, and feeling satisfied longer?
Most of us want to eat more… and want to feel satisfied longer so that we’re not always reaching for a snack. Now, first off, let’s make it clear that there are no good and bad foods, a calorie is a calorie, a measurement of energy. Period. Deeply understanding this and operating from this premise is extremely helpful in healing your relationship with food.
That being said, not all foods are the same. If you have an allergy or insensitivity, that food is bad for you – that doesn’t mean it’s bad period. A potato and a donut, for instance. While you may equate for calories based on how much you will eat of each, the potato has much more nutrition than the donut. So while they aren’t good or bad, they are not the same.
When managing your weight, the nutritional density, meaning how much nutrition you get per calorie, or in other words, being able to eat more food for less calories, is important. In our potato donut example, you can eat a lot more volume of potato than donut for the same amount of calories, and the potato will give you added nutrition and will keep you feeling fuller longer.
I purposefully chose 2 foods that many people consider “bad”. Again, there is no bad food, there is only better food for your specific goals.
If you are looking to eat more food for less calories your rule of thumb will be to avoid over and hyper processed foods. The process of processing food is the process of stripping food from it’s natural state, which removes most of the nutrition, and combining carbs, fats and salt to make highly palatable foods. These foods generally lack any true nutritional benefit, and they pack on the calories.
Here are 9 foods that will help you feel fuller longer, and note that in some cases I’m giving you more of a category, and these are in no specific order.
1 Potatoes
Mind you, potatoes are VERY nutritious and filling. The issue with potatoes only shows up as something you can’t stop eating when you add fat (such as butter) and salt. Potatoes themselves are very filling.
2 Fruit
Especially those high in fiber and water, think oranges, apples, watermelon, grapes, berries, etc. Fruit have a load of nutrition for very little calories.
3 Leafy greens
As with potatoes, the issue comes when you load your greens with high calorie toppings, but the greens themselves are as low as you can get in calories for a massive nutritional impact. Think lettuces, spinach, etc. When you make smart choices regarding how you top your salad – including a good protein and not going overboard in calories from toppings, a salad continues to be a very filling, very nutritious option.
4 High fiber carbs
Whenever you eat something like bread, pasta, rice, if you choose the option with whole grains you will feel fuller longer. This is because of the fiber content. Besides whole grain delivering more nutrition in general, higher fiber means you are more satisfied for a longer period of time. Again, I’ll repeat this, I’m not saying white bread, pasta or rice is bad, I’m saying your perceived fullness is less with these.
5 Eggs
Chock full of nutrition and high satiety feeling.
6 Beef, chicken and fish
Besides being great protein sources, these foods keep you feeling fuller for a longer period of time.
7 Popcorn
Such a great snack! When you air pop, which means you will control the amount of fat and salt in your popcorn, you’re getting a very filling snack for low calories.
8 Oatmeal
Another super high fiber and incredibly versatile food, oatmeal is a great way to add volume to your breakfast or snack, keep you feeling full and pack a punch in nutrition.
9 Lentils and beans
Again with the fiber! I know, but these foods are so incredibly high in nutrition, and they keep you feeling satiated while delivering fewer calories.
I will repeat, again, what I’ve been saying all along. There is no bad food, but food is the #1 thing that will make or break your health goals. You cannot outtrain overeating, and it is your food that gives you the results you are looking for. If you are trying to find ways to eat more, especially when trying to lose or maintain weight, these types of foods will help you fill up your plate.
Keeping it simple,
Aline