The Worst Food Combo for Fat Loss

Pairing certain foods can spell disaster for your fat loss goals.

by Katelyn Castro

Have you worked hard to eat healthy, but it seems like your plan just doesn’t work? You’ve counted your calories to make sure that you’re not consuming too much, yet you still struggle to lose fat? What if I told you that pairing certain foods might actually cause you to store fat?

We are beginning to understand that exercising more and eating less is not the only way to achieve optimal health. While I firmly believe in mindful eating and daily movement, I do agree. Overall health isn’t simply calories in versus calories out. Learning to become aware of what we fuel our bodies with and using our intuition to figure out what our bodies need is key to achieving the skin we are comfortable in. Don’t get me wrong, calories are important, but what we eat, when we eat, and what combinations we eat make a world of difference.

Fat + Starch = Disaster

Now, here’s the truth – high starch foods and sugar stimulate a fat-storing hormone called insulin. Fats also have an indirect way of stimulating insulin release. Pairing starchy carbohydrates (cereals, breads, crackers, rice, potatoes, etc.) with fats (butter, cream, bacon fat) is like a double whammy. Blood glucose spikes and the pancreas releases large amounts of insulin to lower the blood sugar. In addition to insulin release, there are other hormones going to work that assist in fat gain. This goes against all fat loss attempts, and may be a post in itself, so stay tuned. If we continue to flood our bodies with insulin, our bodies build a resistance to acknowledging it, which can lead to pre-diabetes and diabetes (type 2). Even well-known diets like Atkins and veganism are successful because they do not combine high-fat with high-starch. Moral of the story, mixing fat with starchy carbohydrates (think cheese and crackers) is one of the worst food combinations for fat loss.

Upgrade Your Choices

Simple adjustments we can make are to eat bell peppers or carrot sticks with hummus instead of pita chips. Is cheese a must on a salad? Skip the croutons or tortilla strips, and opt for sunflower seeds for a crunch. Chips and guacamole are a party favorite, so try cucumber slices or zucchini chips as an alternative. For more information on what might be the best combinations for you, shoot me an email and I’ll be happy to help.

Better Combinations = Better Health and Wellbeing

That being said, consuming foods in the right combinations will make you feel like a different person. How? Better absorption. We actually start fueling our body the way it was intended. As a reminder, we are all different. It takes time to learn what your best choices should be and we can help you adjust as needed at Bird Rock Fit.

If you have questions about this article or any other nutrition topic, send me an email at katelyn@birdrockfit.com.

Happy eating!