8 Foods Women Must NEVER Eat To Get A Flat Belly

It’s feeling like right time so you’ve made a very important decision that you’re going to lose some weight.

The next thing you will no doubt be wondering is how you should go about your weight loss journey.

The best way to approach sensible, healthy weight loss is to eat healthily, reduce fatty and sugary food and factor in daily exercise.

However, with supermarket shelves stacked high with food promising to deliver the weight loss you want; it’s difficult to pinpoint which products will work for you and which won’t.

There are diet foods, low-fat foods, low sugar foods and more but so many don’t work and that’s why women just like you fail to lose what they want to lose, quickly piling on pounds because they soon give up.

In this article, we’ll look at the foods you should never eat for weight loss and we’ll tell you why they won’t help your quest for a slim, svelte body.

1. Artificial Sweetener

If you feel that you’re making a big difference by adding artificial sweetener to your beverages, cereal or bowl of fruit, think again.

Firstly, these types of sweeteners aren’t that safe (some could even be carcinogenic) and there is a lot of evidence in research that shows consuming sweetener can actually lead to weight gain.

There are various studies on animals that show artificial sweeteners can lead to craving sweet food.

It’s simple – when the brain thinks it’s getting something sweet and doesn’t consume the calories it wants, it keeps craving the sweetness so you run the risk of getting into a vicious circle.

See this article for more in-depth information.

2. Popcorn

A big bucket of salted popcorn at the movies is no worse than eating an entire bag of oily potato crisps.

In fact, many popcorn brands are fattening and not the guilt-free snack you think.

Popcorn at the cinema is oil-popped and calorific, loaded with salt (and sugar if you choose that option).

A box of sweet popcorn contains more than 1200 calories and 60g of fat whereas a salted popcorn box can contain 3g of salt (that’s half the RDA of salt for an adult).

If you love popcorn (and who doesn’t?) but want to eat it healthily, pop it at home, with no oil or very low-fat oil and skip the salt/sugar.

3. Protein Bars

So easy to pick up when on the go but a protein bar packed with nuts and dried fruit can be as fattening (if not more) than a bar of chocolate.

That’s because these bars are processed and jam-packed with artificial ingredients plus loaded with sugar.

If you really want one, check the ingredients.

If it’s over 200 calories and contains more than 8 grams of sugar, you’re ruining your diet.

Avoid, go and buy an apple instead, at just 50 calories it will suit your waistline far better!

4. Margarine

Most people on a diet immediately switch out their butter for a margarine alternative but, this won’t help you at all.

Margarine relies on highly processed vegetable oils such as palm oil and soybean oil.

These processed oils are fattening and unhealthy so they are not much different to full-fat butter.

Instead of margarine, why not try a grass-fed organic butter but spread it very thinly instead?

5. Fruit Yogurts

Even those labeled as low-fat or low calorie or even fat-free aren’t good for you. Why?

Well, it’s the artificial sweetener problem again, it just makes you crave sweeter foods and regular fruit yogurts are no different to choosing a fruity, fatty dessert.

Most of the calories come from added sugar and they’re simply unhealthy (even though yogurt conjures up images of good health).

Good yogurt alternatives are Greek yogurt or natural, plain yogurt and to sweeten it, just add a handful of blueberries, raspberries or strawberries.

Now that won’t pile on the fat.

6. Shop-Bought Granola

Sounds healthy, looks healthy, and it is often advertised as good for you but shop-bought granola is a no-no if you’re on a diet. Why?

Well it’s packed full of sugar and preservatives, high in calories and it will definitely fill you up but it’s likely to add an extra layer to your thighs too.

According to the US government’s dietary guidelines, granola should be labeled as a dessert because its sugar content in it that is not dissimilar to a chocolate cake.

In 100g of berry granola for example, you’ll find more than 20g of sugar!

If you crave granola, why not make your own instead?

7. Dried Fruit

Reaching for a bag of raisins or currants, grabbing those banana chips, spearing dried mango all might “feel” like a healthier option but they are all high in sugar and extremely calorific.

They’re also loaded with preservatives such as sulfur dioxide which is used for extended shelf life and it’s not good for you, especially when you’re on a diet.

Bear in mind that most dried fruit mixes contain double or triple the sugar content of fresh fruit (that’s up to 70g of sugar per serving).

So hold the trail mix, instead, chop up fresh fruit instead and perhaps serve with a dollop of natural yogurt and a small handful of chopped almonds.

8. Hummus

You think you’re having a healthy snack or starter to your main meal, hummus with crudités, what could be better?

Well, hold the hummus!

While it’s made with chickpeas it should be healthy but shop-bought hummus is usually made with salt and fat.

In fact, a campaign group called Cash tested 210 supermarket dips and found that some hummus brands contained more salt than four bags of ready salted crisps.

Shop-bought hummus contains tahini and olive oil but lots of the brands add toppings which boosts the fat content.

A tablespoon of shop bought hummus contains around 1.4 g of fat and 25 calories, sounds low but when you keep dipping and licking, those 25 calories soon add up.

Just four crudités with a tablespoon of hummus equates to 100 calories you didn’t necessarily need.

You can avoid this calorie mistake by making your own, just reduce the tahini to around 1 tablespoon and change your oil to a low-fat alternative.

You can still enjoy hummus but skip the supermarket jars instead.