Negative Calorie Foods!

HealthyGirl222
HealthyGirl222 Posts: 7
edited September 23 in Health and Weight Loss
If you are a snacker like me, this is for you!!! You can snack on very low calorie things. When I get serious about leaning up, I like to load my fridge up with these "negative calorie" (zero calorie) foods listed below.

There are several fruits and vegetables that occur in nature that while they have calories when consumed, are said to actually result in negative calories or a calorie deficit after digested. According to this theory, these foods cause the body to extend more calories to digest than contained in their nutritional content. The result would make them zero calorie foods after digestion.

If you believe this theory (which I do!), then these foods can basically be consumed without feeling guilty. They are healthy and provide nutritional content your body needs, but they do contain calories. Keep in mind, also, that even according to this zero calorie theory these foods only have this negative calorie effect when consumed without extras added to them like butter, sugar or dips.


Asparagus
Apple
Beet
Cranberries
Broccoli
Grapefruit
Cabbage
Lemon
Carrot
Mango
Cauliflower
Orange
Celery
Pineapple
Chile peppers
Raspberries
Cucumber
Strawberries
Dandelion
Tangerine
Endive
Garden cress
Garlic
Green beans
Lettuce
Onion
Papaya
Radishes
Spinach
Turnip
Zucchini

A little creativity with this list and you can be snacking all day and stay within your calories!

Replies

  • OneLife2Love
    OneLife2Love Posts: 39
    Thanks lol
  • webkaiser
    webkaiser Posts: 21
    Thanks for the list!
  • GuamGrly
    GuamGrly Posts: 600 Member
    Bump
  • lordofultima
    lordofultima Posts: 293
    Ok, I'll eat 12 cheeseburgers and then just eat 12 apples, and that'll cut those cheeseburgers right out of my system! This is basically like some weird voodoo crap, people will make a study about anything that sounds pleasing to your ear. Hard work and common sense are what you use to lose weight.

    Eat nothing but these items all week, in surplus beyond maintenance calories. See if you gain weight or lose it.
  • SLaw4215
    SLaw4215 Posts: 596 Member
    Wow! That's quite a list! I've heard that celery is one of those foods that burns more calories to chew than you take in but I had no clue the list was so long. Thanks for taking the time to post it. Last week was my first full week on MFP and I consumed several items from the list just trying to eat healthier. I had 8 pound loss without shaving off calories or trying to intentionally starve myself. Maybe your list is the key to my success? Time will tell...
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    Gotta rain on the parade here. This is BS.

    http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1896439_1896359_1896346,00.html

    Especially Apples and Oranges. Three of them will get you close to your sugar limit for the day.
  • lordofultima
    lordofultima Posts: 293
    Gotta rain on the parade here. This is BS.

    http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1896439_1896359_1896346,00.html

    Especially Apples and Oranges. Three of them will get you close to your sugar limit for the day.

    Indeed, even though fructose is considered "good" sugar, it's still sugar and must be handled in moderation.
  • katebjones
    katebjones Posts: 32 Member
    i agree.. with the gal above.. fruits all have sugar.. which has calories.. your best bet is green veggies.. and raw veggies at that.
  • AggieCass09
    AggieCass09 Posts: 1,867 Member
    Ok, I'll eat 12 cheeseburgers and then just eat 12 apples, and that'll cut those cheeseburgers right out of my system! This is basically like some weird voodoo crap, people will make a study about anything that sounds pleasing to your ear. Hard work and common sense are what you use to lose weight.

    Eat nothing but these items all week, in surplus beyond maintenance calories. See if you gain weight or lose it.

    I agree. Especially for all the new people who are stiil on their first-week-water-weight-losing-highs...stick with a healthy diet
  • Rugbychick16
    Rugbychick16 Posts: 183 Member
    Gotta rain on the parade here. This is BS.

    http://www.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,1896439_1896359_1896346,00.html

    Especially Apples and Oranges. Three of them will get you close to your sugar limit for the day.

    Agreed.
  • HealthyGirl222
    HealthyGirl222 Posts: 7
    The point of my post was to introduce foods that are good to have on hand due to their low calories, high density of nutrients, low on GI, low sugar. Most are also natural anti-inflammatories. I've used this list for years while helping countless people lose weight and I happen to agree to this food list based on repeated results, not logic. Not all fruits and veggies are created equal I'm afraid! This list is particularily helpful to push you through a plateau. Best of Luck to everyone on their health journey!
  • mayita72
    mayita72 Posts: 10
    I will include them in my foodlist this week!!!!
    Thanks
  • givprayz
    givprayz Posts: 328
    I think this goes along with the new Weight Watcher philosophy of unlimited fruits and veggies. Nearly every vegetable, eaten raw or very lightly cooked, will have negligible effects on calorie count. I can't agree to all of the fruits though. I know for a fact that different breeds of apples have wildly different sugar content. Granny Smith apples are pretty low, while sweeter red apples can have more than twice as many calories. Citrus fruits also contain abundant sugars, and since most people opt for the juice rather than the fruit, they should be watched carefully. Overall though, having a fridge and pantry full of fresh and frozen fruits and vegetables is likely to yield better diet outcomes than having bunches of processed foods around. Be cautious thinking any food has negative caloric value, but load up on fruits and vegetables and you will likely eat fewer calories than if you didn't.
  • iplayoutside19
    iplayoutside19 Posts: 2,304 Member
    The point of my post was to introduce foods that are good to have on hand due to their low calories, high density of nutrients, low on GI, low sugar. Most are also natural anti-inflammatories. I've used this list for years while helping countless people lose weight and I happen to agree to this food list based on repeated results, not logic. Not all fruits and veggies are created equal I'm afraid! This list is particularily helpful to push you through a plateau. Best of Luck to everyone on their health journey!

    That's a good list of healthy foods to eat. I try to eat off that list as much as possible. These foods are low calorie. However, they are NOT 0 or negative calorie. All food is converted to energy, therefore it has to have caloric content.

    Calling foods negative calorie is mis-leading. Like the example above one cannot consume cheeseburgers, and then eat celery to "counter-act" the cheeseburgers. 1 is a smaller number than 5, but 5+1 is still 6. And 6 is a greater number than 5.

    The only way to make negative calories is to spend the energy, ie moving.
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