It seems bizarre that eating high calorie fat could actually help you lose weight but it’s true! It’s not the amount of calories found in food but rather the hormonal response that’s generated once it’s eaten. Research shows that certain fats help with weight loss by making you feel full for longer, increasing your metabolism and encouraging the burning of body fat.
By Sydney Naturopath Kate Troup, founder of W8less
8 Fats to Eat to Lose Weight:
1. Coconut oil has fought its way back from nutritional condemnation to be the latest dietary golden child with good reason. The unique type of fats in coconut oil, called medium chain triglycerides, aren’t stored in your body but instead they are taken straight to the liver and turned into energy. This helps to stoke the fat burning furnace in your cells and speed up metabolism. Researchers have discovered that people who consumed two tablespoons of coconut oil per day burned more calories than those who ate less. You can use coconut oil in anything from baking cakes to spreading it on your morning toast.
2. Macadamias: In the past, people have worried about the fat content of these tree nuts, but research has shown that they are mostly monounsaturated fats – the same kind found in olive oil. Research conducted in Newcastle showed that when people ate macadamias, their cholesterol levels actually improved and they lost weight despite eating more fat than their previous diet.
3. Raw nuts used to be on the no-no list if you wanted to lose weight but we now know that eating these healthy fats actually encourages weight loss through making you feel full for longer. People who snacked on 100 calories from almonds lost more weight than those people who snacked on 100 calories from carbohydrates.
4. Eggs, and in particular egg yolks, have finally shaken off their undeserved “they contain cholesterol therefore will cause a heart attack” reputation. Egg yolks contain a vitamin B type nutrient called Choline which neatly packages up excess fats in your liver and carries them out of your body. Eggs have also been shown to have the highest satiety value of any breakfast, which means that they keep you feeling full so you can resist snacking.
5. Full fat dairy: say goodbye to that skinny flat white and welcome back delicious, creamy full fat milk, yoghurt and cheese. It’s thought that the combination of fat and calcium found in dairy helps to control hunger and increase fat burning.
6. Grass fed meat: there’s no need to trim the fat off this increasingly popular variety of red meat. Animals that are allowed to graze on their natural grass diet have higher levels of a fatty called Conjugated Linoleic Acid (CLA) which encourages fat to be burnt as energy rather than being stored on your thighs.
7. Fish oil: this fat already has a good reputation but you might not know that people with a diet high in the omega 3 fats found in fish tend to be slimmer. Research suggests that this could be because the fats keep you feeling full after a meal.
8. Avocados are a rich source of monounsaturated fats, similar to those found in olive oil. These fats not only help to protect your heart, they provide a slow burn source of energy and keep you feeling full for longer after a meal.
