50 of the Best Foods for Weight Loss

Healthy foods aren’t hard to find, but they can be hard to eat. Or at least make yourself eat them. This list of 50 delicious super foods will help you lose weight, stay healthy and feel great. Fit one of two of these foods into your diet each day to keep yourself looking fabulous and away from the doctor.

Fruits for Your Health 
1. Bananas – For a healthy breakfast or snack, it’s hard to not go bananas. They have high potassium, are a good source of protein and fiber, have lots of vitamins and minerals, and only 140 calories.
2. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Goji Berries – The question to ask regarding goji berries is not “what do they do for me,” but rather “what don’t they do for me.” You’ll get better vision, a better complexion, better circulation, help avoid cancer…the list goes on.
3. Tomatoes – Tastes like a vegetable, but technically a fruit. Tomatoes provide almost half of your recommended daily value of vitamin C. It also provides vitamin A, potassium, iron, and can help prevent lung, breast, and colon cancer.
4. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Blueberries – Aside from tasting downright delicious, blueberries are a good source of vitamins, act as antioxidants, and may even preserve your mental acuity into old age.
5. Dr. Perricone’s 10 Superfoods: Acai Berries – This Oprah-endorsed blend of berry and chocolate flavor (a flavor you can shorten to “yum”) provides antioxidants, amino acids, and the good fatty acids that are key to weight loss.
6. Grapefruit – Did you know just one grapefruit provides you with a quarter of the daily recommended dose of fiber? Additionally, it helps lower your cholesterol levels and may even help prevent colon cancer.
7. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Apples – Aside from keeping the doctor away, apples provide a low-calorie, high fiber food that keeps your metabolism in tip-top shape.
8. Pumpkin – If you’d like your pumpkin knowledge to go beyond pumpkin pie, check out this great site for pumpkin-related recipes. Learn how to make pumpkin muffins, pancakes, oatmeal, and more.
9. Oranges – Dieting doesn’t mean ditching snacks, and that’s where oranges come in. Oranges are only 80-calories but leave you feeling fuller for longer periods of time, and gives you a virtual buffet of vitamins (only about 100% of your recommended vitamin C dose) and fiber.

Heart Healthy Grains and Wheats
10. Cereal – As long as you avoid the real sugary messes, cereal can be a great healthy breakfast. It builds calcium and fiber, and can be “spruced up” through the use of bananas and other fruits, making it even more of a health powerhouse that keeps you going all morning.
11. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Oatmeal – Oatmeal remains a health powerhouse to this day. It digests slowly, keeping you full and your blood sugar stable; you also get a yummy dose of needed fiber.
12. Whole Wheat Pasta – Whole wheat pasta means fiber, and lots of it. What this means for you is a lowered risk for heart disease and diabetes, as well as a meal so filling you’re more likely to eat less calories because of it.

Vegetables for Plenty of Fiber 
13. Spinach, Leafy greens – Spinach is great for building calcium and vitamins A, C, and E, as well as buffing up your antioxidant level. Come on, would Popeye ever lie to you?
14. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Kale – You can eat a whole chopped-up cup of Kale and only take in 34 calories. However, that low-calorie dish brought in heaping helpings of fiber, iron, and calcium.
15. Broccoli – Broccoli is another health powerhouse, offering more vitamin C than an orange, as well as vitamin A, potassium, calcium, and fiber. Oh, and it even fights cancer.
16. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Lentils – If you’re looking to flatten your belly, look no further than lentils. High in protein and soluble fiber, lentils keep your body from developing excessive abdominal fat.
17. Beans – Beans are about as simple—and as healthy—as it gets, offering high fiber and a good amount of protein. They even provide the complex carbohydrates that will keep you energized.
18. Sweet Potatoes – This page is all about sweet potatoes. After you’ve tried the delicious recipes (yam trifle, sweet potato Bundt cake, and more), submit your own recipe to win $3,500, as well as play the kid-friendly games on the site.
19. Celery – Celery is great for easing arteries, providing vitamin C, providing loads of fiber, and even reducing stress.
20. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Chiles – They may not be your first thought when it comes to health, but chili peppers can reduce inflammation, strengthen blood flow, increase magnesium, and even help with PMS. And, of course, they help flavor the healthier dishes you’re making, too.
21. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Avocado – Avocados are a great source of vitamin K, vitamin C, potassium, and fiber. That means your next scoop of guacamole is filling your stomach and helping your heart.
22. Cucumber – Low in calories, high in potassium, and a decent source of vitamins. If that wasn’t enough, cucumbers even combat rheumatism.
23. Asparagus – Need to know what do with that asparagus? These dozens of recipes provide options from all corners of the globe, suitable for breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
24. Soy – Soy is another all-around great food choice. It provides fiber, helps with weight loss (it is particularly good at preventing childhood obesity), and is very healthy for your heart.
25. Alfalfa Sprouts –Sprouts are an amazing source of nutrients. On top of that, they offer protection from cancer, prevent osteoporosis, and can even control hot flashes.
26. Cabbage – Cabbage has a lot going for it, health-wise: aside from being a great source of vitamins and fiber, it serves as natural detox for your body and may reduce your chances of cancer. Did I mention it was really cheap?
27. Red Bell Peppers – If you need vitamin C (perhaps to boost against sickness), chuck the orange and grab a red bell pepper, as you’ll get three times the vitamin C in it. They also provide fiber, vitamins, and may prevent colon cancer.
28. Brussel Sprouts – Got a shelf full of veggies and no idea what to do with them? This site provides dozens of recipes, with a special focus on that oft-overlooked fiber powerhouse: brussel sprouts.
29. Corn – Not content with being a delicious Summer dish, corn is an amazingly tasty source of vitamins and fiber that helps produce energy, preserves memory, and keeps your heart healthy.

Healthy, Lean Meats 
30. The Wild Salmon Debate – Salmon are high in omega-3 fatty acids. Despite the name, these acids are great for your health, keeping your arteries clear, your heart strong, buffing your immune system and even boosting eyesight and mental acuity.
31. Fish – Eating fish just twice a week means getting a one-two punch of protein, vitamins, and nutrients that are great for your heart and your brain.
32. Sushi Nutrition Facts – Everyone knows that sushi is low in saturated fat and high in protein. However, not everyone knows that sushi promotes a healthy cardiovascular system, boosts metabolism, and is a powerful antioxidant.
33. Red Meat – If you thought red meat was the red-headed stepchild of the dieting world…well, join the club. However, extra-lean cuts of beef are a great source of iron (which is the numero uno deficiency in women), it can help you recover from fatigue and boost your memory.
34. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Eggs – Despite its bad cholesterol-inducing rep, egg ingestion in moderation (2 a day for adults) offers protein, vitamins, and brain boosting choline for a low calorie count.
35. Fat Free Chili – The quickest trick to fat-free chili is to replace the beef with turkey. You still get the same delicious chili taste, but now you’ve got a great source for protein and fiber that’s also low in fat, carbs, and cholesterol.
36. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Sardines – What makes sardines so darned healthy? They boost your energy, offer lots of vitamin B12, lots of protein, those good-for-you omega-3 oils, and even help if you have hypertension or congestive heart failure.
37. Tuna – This great recipe provides tuna steak with a twist, with more than a little bit of avocado-added flavor. Great for at-home fine dining or impressing a last-minute data (it only takes 10 minutes to make), this meal is guaranteed to impress.
38. Lobster – Lobster is another dish that can be healthy when the virtual gallons of butter it is often served with are removed. It provides protein, potassium, and vitamins, as well as omega-3 fatty acids.
39. Turkey Breast –Turkey breast is low in calories, fat, and cholesterol, and offers a delicious (not to mention kid-friendly) source of protein.
40. Bison – Whether you’re a hunter or a meatasaurus looking for a healthier cut of meat, these recipes provide ways of incorporating bison into ribs, roasts, stews, soups, and more.

Cook With This Stuff
41. Broth-based soups – Who knew that grandma was right all along? Broths offer a buffet of healthy minerals for your body in an easy-to-break down form, as well as helping cure the common cold, easing fatigue, and helping your digestive system.
42. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Olive Oil – Olive oil is great for protecting against heart disease, helping with ulcers, preventing stomach problems, and even preventing gallstones.
43. Vinegar – Vinegar helps your digestive system, lowers cholesterol, improves memory, and relieves pain. And that’s just from ingestion; on the body itself, vinegar can heal bee stings, sunburns, warts and more, and carries the 400 B.C.-era endorsement of Hippocrates himself.
44. Honey – While honey is another item that doesn’t readily spring to mind as healthy, its use as a natural sweetener is infinitely better for us than sugar. Additionally, it provides a variety of vitamins, can clear a sore throat, works as an antiseptic…if all of that isn’t enough, eating locally-made honey helps prevent seasonal allergies, because it comes from that dreaded pollen.

Muchie Foods 
45. Almonds Are In – Though a simple food, almonds are an excellent source of vitamin E and magnesium, as well as fiber, phosphorous, and protein. Additionally, they are a very filling (yet healthy) snack, making them a one-two punch when it comes to dieting.
46. 20 Superfoods for Weight Loss: Yogurt – Yogurt is a health food staple, but why is that? Well, it boosts your immune system, helps your digestive system, and provides a good dose of calcium and even water.
47. Cottage Cheese – Cottage cheese is not only delicious, but offers a low-carb, low-fat way of obtaining protein.
48. Popcorn -Most moviegoers don’t associate butter-drenched popcorn with health. Enter this recipe for spicy air-popped corn, which is low in calories and high in flavor.

Liquidate Your Diet
49. Green Tea: Health Insurance You Can Afford – Green tea is the Swiss army knife (or drink, if you will) of health-conscious consumers. It provides vitamins, serves as an antioxidant, helps with weight loss, and may prevent cancer.
50. Water – While healthy food intake may be the pillar of a weight loss foundation, water intake is the brick and mortar. It keeps your blood going, keeps you hydrated for exercise, and can even help keep you filled during the day with calorie-free water instead of vending machine wares.

Now that you know the best foods for your body, incorporate them into meals. Trick yourself into eating healthier, or trick your family into getting more vitamins and minerals from fruits and veggies tucked into yummy meals.

The Posterior Chain: It's All in the Hips

So, what exactly is the posterior chain? It's only one of the most important sets of muscles you will need to assess.

Primary muscles included in the chain are the lower back, glutes, hamstrings, and calves. Unfortunately, the posterior chain is all too often a neglected region. Why? Two reasons.

First, most people sit on their glutes all day, leading to quad dominance; in essence, their butt now becomes their feet. The glutes lose their primary role of hip stabilization and extension. Second, none of the primary muscles is a mirror muscle. It's the out-of-sight, out-of-mind theory. Even people leading an active fitness lifestyle that includes strength training, usually overwork anterior muscles. They end up neglecting the more important posterior ones.

The quadriceps take a back seat to the posterior chain (hip and lumbar extensors) when it comes to performance, strength and power. Compared to the quads, the glutes and hamstrings are more powerful muscles for stabilization. Sedentary lifestyles and lack of proper exercise lead to suboptimal muscular activation patterns within the posterior chain due to lower crossed syndrome (LCS).

Patterns of Dysfunction

Dr. Vladimir Janda referred to the systems of the posterior chain as the deep longitudinal subsystem and the posterior oblique subsystem, and demonstrated how critical these muscles are in transferring force from the ground to the upper body. In LCS, the hip flexors are overactive and reciprocally inhibit the gluteus maximus muscles. Without contribution of the gluteus maximus to hip extension, the hamstrings and lumbar erector spinae muscles must work overtime and become synergistic dominant movers. There is marked anterior tilt of the pelvis and an accentuated lordotic curve at the lumbar spine. This is a recipe for acute and chronic lower back pain syndromes.

The "chain of pain" from dysfunctional movement continues, affecting the rectus abdominus, which becomes inhibited by the overactive erector spinae. With the gluteus maximus and rectus abdominus both at a mechanical disadvantage, one cannot optimally posteriorly tilt the pelvis (important to the completion of hip extension), so there is increased lumbar extension to compensate for a lack of complete hip extension. When patients bend over, pick something up or stand from a seated position, they are now at a mechanical disadvantage. Instead of activating muscles in the correct movement pattern (hams-glutes-contralateral erectors-ipsilateral erectors), they compensate and skip right over the glutes. Proper hinging at the hips and pushing the hips forward simultaneously are critical to effective posterior-chain motor control.

You must work the hip to protect the spine. When the hip does not work properly or move the way we need it to, there will be increased spinal motion and potential back problems. The solution to low back pain isn't always found in the back; it's all in the hips! Hip mobility requires the right muscles moving the hip joint to decrease the movement and load of the lumbar spine as a substitute. This means core stability is intimately related to hip mobility.

Remember, a major part of the core is the glutei. The body will take the necessary motion from the lumbar spine if it is not getting it from the hip. Often with back pain, inability to flex the hip past 90 degrees will cause patients to flex the lumbar spine to compensate, giving the illusion of flexing the hips. This dysfunctional movement pattern will ultimately lead to microtraumatic tissue damage.

Glutei muscle activation and proper symmetry are paramount to proper hip function. The ability of the glutes to work is critical, because if the glutes can't work, there will be lower back pain. Weak glutes equals bad back! (Thanks to Stuart McGill for this priceless observation.)

The synergistic dominant hamstrings, which are now primary hip extensors, contribute to chronic tightness, fatigue, stiffness and spasm episodes. Use of the hamstrings as the primary hip extensor changes the vector forces of the femur and can cause anterior capsular pain, mimicking pain symptoms associated with an anterior iliac spine. Always assess the mobility of the hip and glute activation patterns during your lumbopelvic examination.

Stability / Strengthening Exercises

Once you have removed fixations and restored proper mobility, you then progress to stability and strengthening exercises. What are some of the most effective exercises and fundamental movement patterns you can use to strengthen the posterior chain? Here you go:

Kettlebell swings are fantastic for glute activation and hip extension. They not only work the front muscles, like the shoulders, chest and biceps; they also give your lower back, hamstrings and hips a really good workout.

Deadlifts: Yes, I said deadlifts! Do not be intimidated by this exercise. In reality, a properly executed deadlift is the perfect exercise for strengthening your back and teaching hip hinging. This movement pattern is probably the most effective thing you can do to teach proper biomechanics. They are not only the best muscle-building exercise, but are also superb for strengthening the hamstrings and lower back while improving posture by enforcing your rear delts and traps.

Cook hip lifts: Named after Gray Cook, hip lifts are a great beginning gluteal activator and are meant to be used as a precursor to the glute bridge, because it solves a problem that the glute bridge does not address very well. One of the main problems people encounter is not being able to tell the difference between lumbar range of motion and hip range of motion. So, when they try to target the glutes and hamstrings, say with a regular glute bridge, they mistakenly use a lot of lumbar extension rather than hip extension. The Cook lift solves this by maintaining the lumbar in a neutral position and effectively isolating the glutes.

Stability ball leg curl: A great all-around exercise, the stability ball leg curl combines coordinated movements that work several muscles of the body. The exercise focuses on the back, abdominals, hamstrings, glutes, quadriceps and outer thighs. In addition, the muscles work together to stabilize and balance the body, thereby developing core strength and balance as well as strength in individual muscles.

Strengthening the posterior chain will not only make your clients feel better; it will also improve your treatment outcomes. Progressing to a corrective exercise program after symptomatic management protocols should be the long-term goal. Teaching posterior chain exercises will help empower your clients to improve their quality of life. That what it's all about.