Healthy Foods making you Fat

 

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Ever wonder why you go all day munching on fat-free pretzels and granola yet never seem to lose any weight? Why your tasty yogurt with fruit is leaving you feeling blah and your trail mix has you bloated?

It's because all those healthy things are nothing but junk. Crap. Garbage. They are well-disguised as health foods, I'll give them that, but man are they ever liars. And they know it, too.
I went out and checked labels, read nutrition information, and came up with seven of the worst offenders -- including one or two whose labels are painfully misleading. Put down that sugar-filled energy drink and read on.
More from The Stir: Yogurt -- You Might as Well Drink a Soda Instead

1. Granola bars and trail mix are the quintessential health food. But most granola these days are packed with salt, sugar, and fat. Basically, if it tastes good and comes in a package, it's bad for you.
2. Pretzels are better than chips, but they are also nutritionally empty and made from white flour. If you need a salty crunch, try a handful of tamari roasted almonds instead.
3. Bran muffins these days are huge and filled with sweeteners to make them palatable. Don't forget that muffins are basically cake -- which is why you aren't losing any weight by munching on these.
4. Vitamin waters are king of the misleading names and labeling. They make you think you are drinking a health supplement, but they're really no better than a soda. And at 32 grams of sugar, you might as well eat a Snickers instead.
5. Yogurt, especially with fruit on the bottom, is one of the biggest offenders in terms of fat and corn syrup. And despite their recent marketing campaign, corn syrup just isn't good for you -- and it still packs on the pounds.
6. Energy bars ... come on, they're just candy bars in disguise. They usually have as many calories as a candy bar and contain many, many teaspoons of sugar to make them go down.
7. Multigrain products aren't very "multi" after all. Unless the label says "whole grain," you are still getting the same old Wonder Bread flour with a couple of sesame seeds thrown in.

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So-called health foods make up a multibillion-dollar industry -- and they're making you just as fat and insulin-dependent as the soda industry. It's completely disgusting, but what can you do?
Funny you should ask!
Make your own foods: trail mix with unsalted nuts and fruit, muffins with low sugar and fat content. Drink water flavored with lemon and switch to Greek yogurt with frozen berries mixed in. As for those energy bars -- dump them altogether and score natural energy from fresh fruit.
Have you even been shocked by how fattening your "healthy snack" is?
Image via The Kitchn
Written by Megan Van Schaick for CafeMom's blog, The Stir

Alli Cain, B.A.Kin, C.K.
Personal Trainer
www.ACAINtraining.com
905-806-7198

Reducing calories most effective for weight loss

Even with nutritionists, personal trainers, seminars, classes, TV shows and  large corporations all promoting healthy lifestyles, I would argue that eating "healthy" is still quite tough to do with the ever changing research, data and clever marketing. 

So many food items now contain promotional terms "healthy," "organic," "containing omega 3's," gluten-free" etc. etc. and have caused people wishing to lose weight believe that because they have chosen a more nutritious option, they can eat the same amount or more and reach their goal.
While I do and will always advocate healthier choices, I want consumer to be cautious of the marketing, and where weight loss is the goal, to still take into account the calories and macronutrient content of the food they eat.

Case Study:
Mark Haub - profressor of human nutrition at Kansas State University ate snack cakes, doritos, sugary cereals and oreo cookies every 3 hours. He also took a multivitamin, veggies and one protein shake daily. He counted the calories of the food he consumed in order to prove that it is calories that matters most for weight loss, and not solely the types of food consumed.
His 2-month experiment resulted:
- losing 27 lbs
- decreasing his BMI from 28.8 - 24.9
-decreasing LDL cholesterol
- increasing HDL (the "good" kind)

Again, I write about this not because I promote the eating of junk food. I will always promote nutrient dense, high quality foods  paired with safe and effective exercise for weight loss. However, I want to reiterate that calories do count when making a lifestyle change. What do you think about this?



Alli Cain, B.A.Kin, C.K.
Personal Trainer
www.ACAINtraining.com
905-806-7198