When it comes to food and weight loss diets, every calorie counts! This is because eating less food means fewer nutrients to the body for energy, growth and maintenance of healthy tissues. So if you want energy and good health while you lose weight, the foods you choose need to pack a punch to get you through the day. Are these four foods part of your diet?
Broccoli
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Beans -
Nuts and Seeds -
Fish and Seafood -
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With no
fat and only 30 calories for 1//2 cup of cooked broccoli, you get
a great source of fiber, calcium, Vitamin A, Vitamin C,
potassium, and folate, an important B vitamin that is often low
in the diet. And since broccoli isn't canned, you either buy it
fresh or frozen so that there is very little salt (sodium) unless
you add it yourself. Eat it raw (or blanched quickly for 30
seconds in boiling water) or cooked. Add it to salads, eat it
with low fat dressing, or grind it up and add it to mashed or
twice baked potatoes, soups or chili to sneak in this very
nutritious vegetable.
These are quite high in calories, so why are they recommended for
weight loss diets? If you control the amount that you eat, nuts
and seeds are a great way to get the benefits of monounsaturated
and polyunsaturated fat long with folate, fiber, and protein.
Most fat sources contain no protein and no fiber, so this is a
great choice to get fat soluble vitamins and a concentrated
source of energy without the less healthy fats found in animal
foods and processed vegetable fats. Since 1 Tbsp. has about 50
Calories, mix them with other foods - sprinkle onto cereals, mix
into yogurt, add to salads or eat them with dried or fresh fruit
to get a crunchy high energy snack that has staying power. When
you eat small amounts of high energy foods instead of just eating
quick burning foods like the carbohydrates in fruits and
vegetables, it can help take the edge off of hunger and may help
you resist eating other foods later that didn't want
to. 
