HOW TO LOSE BODY FAT:
Herbs and Spices
*The majority of this information is direct from multiple articles, research papers, and clinical studies published on PubMed Central
Ladies and Gents! It’s time to spice up your life!
We’ve all heard the saying,
“Let your food be your medicine”
I couldn’t agree more. Our bodies are a physical expression of what nutrients we choose to internally ingest. Far beyond macronutrients for protein, fats, and carbohydrates, our bodies outwardly express the micronutrients of vitamins and minerals we consume as well. This can be seen in the glow in our skin, hair, and nails.
What is on our plate is a direct relation to losing body fat. However I want to introduce you to my little friends, ‘herb’ and ‘spice’, these guys should be viewed as your foods new superpowered sidekick! I mean, what’s Batman without Robin? Sherlock without Holmes…Thelma without Louise, no way! Herbs and Spices should be your foods new best asset when it comes to weight loss! These two are master multi-taskers that pack a mean punch against body fat loss.
This week in our “fat loss’ series I wanted to make you aware of the herbs and spices that you can utilize in your fat loss arsenal. Several herbs and spices have been shown to curb your appetite, rev the metabolism, and speed the fat burning process. Several of these listed below can cross-category headings, but I broke them off by their most powerful component for you.
Let me make a connection and shed a little value on this topic for you. Approximately, 95% or more fat burning supplements that are available for purchase today have these exact ‘active’ ingredients in them!
Most people think that herbs and spices are the same things but an herb is the leafy green part of the plant. Spice can be made from the stem, flower, seed, bark, and sometimes the root of the plant.
I’m sharing with you today TEN top herbs and spices to add to your foods to get a boost on body fat loss!
APPETITE SUPPRESSANTS:
- Fenugreek
Recent studies on Pubmed have shown that 8 grams of fenugreek fiber daily promotes hunger reduction, increases feelings of fullness, obviously resulting in fewer calories consumed, and increased weight loss.
- Gymnema Sylvestre
GS is an herb that lowers blood sugar levels. Specifically crushing cravings for sugar. It also reduces appetite.
THERMOGENIC: (FAT BURNING)
- Cayenne Pepper
The HEAT that we experience from the pepper is from a compound called Capsaicin. The heat we experience in our mouths continues once we swallow as well. This heat is shown to temporarily increase thermogenesis where your body burns fat as energy. Capsaicin as a thermogenic is shown to boost metabolism by up to 5% and increase fat burning by up to 16%.
- Cardamom
This is a wonderful herb with a spicy-sweet flavor. It’s another thermogenic herb that boosts metabolism and aids in burning fat.
- Cumin
Cumin is a nutty flavored spice from the parsley family. An 8-week study conducted showed that women who added cumin to their food twice per day had accelerated weight loss and decreased fat moreover the control group.
LOWER BLOOD SUGAR AND BOOSTS METABOLISM
- Cinnamon
Cinnamon has been shown to rev your metabolism. Regulate blood sugar, and improve blood sugar metabolism.
- Ginger
Boosts metabolism by 20%. Ginger is also known to have qualities that suppress appetite, which clearly plays a role in weight management. Ginger also has wonderful anti-inflammatory properties.
BLOCKING FAT PRODUCTION (synthesis)
- Turmeric
Oh, this is a favorite, every heard of curry? We love turmeric not only for its amazing taste and color, but specifically because in a recent study conducted of 44 overweight individuals, not only did it increase fat loss, but specifically abdominal fat loss by up to 5%.
Turmeric has the compound and main active ingredient curcumin which benefits extend far past a weight loss aid. Curcumin is touted as powerful anti-inflammatory, it’s a potent antioxidant, its heart protective, brain protective, and is a proven anti-aging supplement.
- Black Pepper
Black Pepper is rich is piperine which gives black pepper its flavor. One of the main characteristics of piperine is that it inhibits the creation of fat cells! Before you go overdosing on black pepper, you should know that these benefits were seen with just five peppercorns per day.
- Oregano
Oregano has a powerful compound called carvacrol that may help boost weight loss. Carvacrol has shown to impact certain proteins and genes that are involved in fat synthesis in mice. Mice that were given the compound carvacrol distributed significantly less weight gain and body fat than the control group. Although human studies at this point are limited. However, since Oregano tastes amazing, it would be worth adding to your list!
HOW TO SAFELY USE HERBS AND SPICES
Herbs and spices can provide a rainbow of health benefits with very few risks. However, it’s worth mentioning, more isn’t better. Herbs and spice should be used in moderation and in relation to seasoning foods, follow the one tablespoon per day guideline.
If you’re taking herbs and spices in capsule supplement form, follow the “as directed” suggested dosage on the bottle.
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