Is it possible to eat a lot and not gain weight? And even lose weight? You will probably say no. And yet! And there is no paradox in that. It is enough to choose the appropriate groups of products, i.e. those with a low caloric (energy) density. By planning your nutrition in this way, you won't even go hungry on a slimming, low-calorie diet.

Caloric density(otherwise: energy density) is the caloric content of a certain volume of a product. Usually it is given for 100 grams, you will also find this information on food packages. The easiest way to talk about caloric density is the "packing" of calories in a food product. In order for your body shape and he alth to benefit from what you eat, choose products with low caloric density, which usually have highnutritional density(i.e. contain large amounts of valuable nutrients in 100 grams) ), and avoid those with a high caloric density.

Which products have low and which high caloric density?

The general rule is: low caloric density is due to the high water content in the product, and high caloric density is due to the presence of fat and sugars. Therefore, it is easy to guess that the group of foods with a low caloric density includes vegetables and most fruits, lean dairy products, poultry and whole grains, and the calorie-dense products include sweets, cheese, highly processed foods and fatty meats. Differences in products with high and low caloric density are best compared with the example of a chocolate bar and fruit, such as apples. By eating 100 grams of the Mars bar, i.e. 2 pieces, you will provide the body with 414 kcal in the form of fat and sugar, without any nutritional value. 100 grams of apples is only 46 kcal. To consume as much calories as from bars, you would have to eat 12 of them.

What to do to kill the hunger? Check it out!

Why is caloric density important when losing weight?

When you decide to lose weight, you need to verify your approach to eating and replace most of the products used so far with he althier ones. The majority of overweight and obese people use inappropriate products in the kitchen, i.e. dense calories. By simply limiting their amount to ensure that you have caloric content every daya diet of 1500 kcal, you will be hungry and frustrated all the time, and the enthusiasm for weight loss will pass quickly. In addition, eating too small volumes of food causes the body to switch to the economical management mode, and the accumulated adipose tissue will not be burned very willingly by it. What's the lesson from this? Eat large amounts of low calorie foods! Instead of a slice of tomato on your sandwich, eat the whole tomato. And throw in a cucumber. The caloric value of your meal will hardly change at all, because vegetables are mostly water (78-95%), your stomach will be fuller and you will be fuller. In addition, vegetables provide fiber, which is responsible for slower release of glucose into the blood, reduces hunger pangs, gives a feeling of satiety and regulates the rhythm of bowel movements.

Choosing foods with a low caloric (energy) density is a key principle behind the>>volumetric diet .

How to choose products with low caloric density?

Changing eating habits is not an easy process and requires some knowledge of food and its properties. Building your eating plan based on your caloric density information is no exception, but with some background information you can manage it efficiently. Let's take a look at the energy density of products from each level of the he althy eating pyramid.

Whole Grain Cereal Products

Cereal products provide carbohydrates - one of the basic nutrients that should not be omitted even on a slimming diet. Whole grain products are the best solution because in addition to energy, they provide fiber, B vitamins, magnesium, selenium and iron. They are digested more slowly and maintain the feeling of satiety for longer. Choose from whole wheat bread, wholemeal pasta, brown rice, groats and cereals.

Vegetables

The vast majority of vegetables are low in calories due to the very high water content. Lettuce, asparagus, zucchini or broccoli are the most important here, as they do not have more than 25 kcal / 100 g. To make the dinner more voluminous and satiated, reduce the amount of pasta or meat sauce, and add more vegetables with impunity. Also eat vegetables as snacks.

Fruit

Choose fresh or frozen fruit. Dried or syrup fruits have a high energy density because they contain a lot of sugar in a small volume. Also, be careful with bananas, figs and grapes, which are among the most caloric fruits. Unfortunately, fruits cannot be treated with impunity as vegetables, because they are the sourceeasily digestible sugars, which when eaten in excess, accumulate in the form of adipose tissue.

Milk and milk products

From this group you can easily choose milk, lean cottage cheese, cottage cheese, kefir, buttermilk or natural yoghurt. Avoid yellow cheeses, which are about 50% fat, as well as melted and blue cheese. You will provide yourself with valuable protein and fat-soluble vitamins, and you will also get saturated, because protein products maintain the satiety effect for a long time.

Meat and other protein sources

In this group, bet on poultry, fish, eggs and legumes. They provide protein and at the same time contain small amounts of fat. Pork meat, sausages, sausages and other products of dubious quality contain not only large amounts of fat, but also harmful improvers.

Fats

All fats are energy-dense foods. However, some are he althy and some are not. Choose vegetable fats with a high content of mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids, positively influencing the cardiovascular system and cholesterol levels.

Sweets

The current nutrition pyramid recommended by the Food and Nutrition Institute does not contain such a "floor" at all, but I must warn against them. Sweets are foods with the highest caloric density and, at the same time, negligible nutritional density. Avoid store-bought sweets, which are a source of sugar and unhe althy hardened fat. If you fancy something sweet, you'd better prepare a light cake at home.

Caloric density of foods - TABLE

LOW CALORIC DENSITYHIGH CALORIC DENSITY
Cereal preparations [kcal / 100 g]

Wholemeal rye bread

213White wheat bread256

Graham bread

221

Toasted bread

305

Wheat bran

185

Bun with cheese

339
Fruits [kcal / 100 g]

Peaches

46

Peach jam

157
Ananas54Pineapple in syrup84
Strawberries28Raisins277
Watermelon36Cherries in chocolate417
Milk and dairy products [kcal / 100 g]

Milk 1.5%

47

Milkthickened sweetened

326

Natural yoghurt 2%

60

Cream cream 30%

287

Kefir 2%

51

Sour cream 18%

184

Buttermilk 0.5%

37

Fat gouda cheese

316

Lean curd cheese

99

Parmesan

452

Cottage cheese

101

Processed cheese

298
Meat and meat products [kcal / 100 g]
Roast beef113Pork bacon510
Turkey breast without skin84Pork loin174
Skinless chicken breast99Chicken Wing186

Boiled beef ham

107

Krakowska dry sausage

323
Turkey Ham84Salami568
Chicken breast ham98Sausages342

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