If you’re trying to shed a few unwanted pounds, you might be worried about avoiding some of your favorite foods. While this may be true for dumping fast food from your list of diet-appropriate meals, some foods won’t hinder your dieting goals.
You may be intrigued that some foods you thought you’d have to avoid are actually diet-friendly. Here are a few of the more surprising ones.
Pasta
Many dieters falsely believe that pasta should be the first foodstuff to go. The key to eating pasta while dieting is to be more aware of the toppings and additions. Avoid meatballs or sausage, and ensure that the pasta sauce doesn’t contain high amounts of sugar. Consider adding fresh vegetables to create a diet-healthy pasta primavera.
Eggs
Eggs can provide high-quality protein to your diet. They’re also quite filling, which can help stave off hunger and prevent leaning into urges during the first few crucial days.
Nuts
Although nuts are high in fat, most varieties contain unsaturated fats, which are healthy for your body. They’re also high in fiber, which can help you to feel full, even when consuming a small amount. However, beware of eating too many nuts as snacks.
Pistachios with shells were found to be one of the most beneficial nuts to eat for diets since they naturally restricted how long (and how much) people ate.
Orange Juice
Even though pure orange juice contains a high amount of natural sugar, an 8 oz glass can count as a serving of this highly beneficial fruit. However, even 100% orange juice lacks the fiber from real oranges, so pair it with fiber-rich foods.
Potatoes
While fried potatoes (or any fried food, really) should be avoided, baked or boiled potatoes don’t have added fats. This makes them good side dishes.
