• Vitamins & Supplements
  • Food & Drink
  • Sports Nutrition
  • Free From
  • Natural Beauty
  • Weight Management
  • Offers
  • Summer Shop
  • The Health Hub
  • Learn more Healthbox
  • Account
Track your order Delivery & Returns Help Centre My subscriptions

Customer Service

  • Contact us
  • Site map
  • Site map
  • Store locator

About us

  • Who are we
  • Working at Holland & Barrett
  • Press releases
  • Privacy & cookie policy
  • Terms & conditions
  • Holland & Barrett More
  • Holland & Barrett International
  • Corporate Social Responsibility
  • Modern Slavery Statement

Connect with us

Store
0370 606 6606
My account
Rewards
  • Sign in
  • How do I join?
  • What are the benefits?
  • FAQs
Holland & Barrett :: the good life
  • Menu
  • Account
  • Store
  • Basket
    Search for
    • Vitamins & Supplements
    • Food & Drink
    • Sports Nutrition
    • Free From
    • Natural Beauty
    • Weight Management
    • Offers
    • The Health Hub
    • Healthbox

    Home / Weight Management / Weight Loss / How to eat more to lose weight in the new year

    How to eat more to lose weight in the new year

    New year is the peak time for trying to lose a few pounds, but this January it’s time to do things a little differently. Our expert nutritionist, Angela Dowden, reveals the foods we should eat more of in order to lose weight.

    Stop calorie counting

    If calorie counting leaves you dispirited and hungry, there’s a reason; not all calories influence our appetite and health equally. In fact, research shows if we stop obsessing about calories and focus on a nutrient-rich diet – like the Mediterranean diet – instead, it’s actually easier to maintain a healthy weight in the long term.

    Even better, that means we should actually eat more of the following foods to help manage our weight…

    Pile on more fruit and veggies

    A study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that each additional daily serving of fruit and veg (but not fruit juice) you eat can prevent you from putting on between a quarter and half a pound over four years.

    A waistline-whittling rule of thumb is to fill half your plate with raw, steamed or stir-fried fruit and veg at every meal.

    Apart from stopping you piling on the pounds, their package of fibre, vitamins and phytonutrients also reduces your risk of heart attacks, strokes and some cancers.

    Dollop on more yogurt

    It’s not clear why numerous studies have linked yogurt with being slim, but the high calcium content and gut-friendly bacteria may play a role.

    Either way, it’s well worth eating more – Harvard researchers found every additional daily serving of yogurt prevented nearly a pound of weight gain over four years.

    Even flavoured and sugared yogurts may be beneficial, but go for natural yogurt made with whole or skimmed milk, and add your own fresh fruit, to boost the health benefits.

    Nibble more nuts

    With more fat and calories per 100g than chips or chocolate, it’s hard to believe a daily handful of nuts can help manage our weight, but that’s what several studies have found.

    Part of the reason may be due to their tough cellular structure, which prevents some of the calories being absorbed – up to 20 per cent in almonds, according to the USDA’s Agricultural Research Service.

    Nuts also provide appetite-satisfying fibre and protein, and are a powerhouse of essential nutrients including magnesium, zinc and selenium.

    Serve up more wholegrains

    Eating more wholegrain foods – such as wholewheat pasta, quinoa or brown rice – rather than refined grains like white bread and white rice, is associated with both a lower weight and a smaller waist; great news as abdominal fat is considered the most dangerous to our health.

    Minimally processed high-fibre wholegrains take more energy to digest and absorb than the refined type, keeping you feeling fuller for longer. They also release their energy more slowly, steadying blood sugar and insulin levels.

    Other health benefits include a reduction in your risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease risk, plus higher amounts of fatigue-fighting iron and B vitamins.

    Eat more lean protein

    Protein curbs our appetite more effectively than either carbohydrate or fat, so save a quarter of the space on your plate for lean, unprocessed protein foods like chicken, fish, eggs and tofu.

    Our body also uses more calories to process protein than it does for other nutrients, so if you eat 100 calories of protein, your body uses 20-30 of those calories to actually digest and absorb it.

    Go for a protein-rich breakfast, such as a couple of poached eggs, instead of a high-carb breakfast like a bagel to help prevent mid-morning snacking on unhealthy foods.

    Want more ways to lose weight? We’ve got plenty of diet and weight loss tips to try.

    Tweet
    Follow on Instagram
    Weight Loss

    You may also like

    10 easy ways to burn fat

    Article

    10 easy ways to burn fat

    Burning fat can be a real challenge. Whether it is in an attempt to improve..

    READ MORE...
    Best vegetarian diet for weight loss

    Article

    Best vegetarian diet for weight loss

    Since vegetarian diets are often full of fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts, seeds and wholegrains, it..

    READ MORE...
    8 exercises to help burn fat

    Article

    8 exercises to help burn fat

    We all know that the key to burning fat is a healthy balanced diet and..

    READ MORE...

    Connect with us

    • Log in Register
    • rewards for life

    Customer service

    • Store locator
    • Contact us
    • Site feedback
    • Frequently asked questions
    • Delivery & returns
    • Site map
    • My account

    About us

    • Who we are
    • Working at Holland & Barrett
    • Press room
    • Privacy & cookie policy
    • Terms & conditions
    • Holland & Barrett More
    • Holland & Barrett International

    Brands

    • Holland & Barrett
    • Bootea
    • Dr Organic
    • Precision Engineered
    • Manuka Doctor
    • Good n Natural
    • Miaroma
    Register
    Click to verify if this website is operating legally

    Copyright © Holland & Barrett Retail Limited, 2017. All rights reserved. hollandandbarrett.com is a trading name of Holland & Barrett Retail Limited,. Registered office: Samuel Ryder House, Barling Way, Nuneaton, Warwickshire CV10 7RH. Registered in England: company no. 2758955. Registered VAT no. 211727395.