What Are Healthy Fats & What to Eat for Lunch & Dinner to Lose Weight – With so much confusing or contradictory nutrition advice, many dieters aren’t sure which fats they should eat for weight loss. This article will clarify what exactly constitutes healthy fats, what are healthy fats, what is omega three good for, what foods are good for losing weight, what are healthy foods to lose weight, what fats are good for you, what fat is bad fat, what to eat for dinner to lose weight, what are good foods to eat when losing weight along with providing delicious, nutrient-packed lunch and dinner recipes to help you effectively shed pounds.
Understanding Healthy Fats
Healthy fats are vital to reducing hormone production, vitamin absorption, cell membrane composition, and inflammation. They’re essential for supporting overall health. However, not all fats have the same effect on your body composition or weight loss efforts. Here’s a breakdown of the top healthy fats to emphasize on a fat-loss diet:
Monounsaturated Fats
These fats mainly come from plant sources like olive oil, avocados, nuts, and seeds. Monounsaturated fats have been shown to reduce belly fat, regulate cholesterol levels, and suppress hunger hormones, aiding sustainable weight loss success.
Polyunsaturated Fats
These fats mainly come from plant sources like olive oil, avocados, nuts, and seeds. Monounsaturated fats have been shown to reduce belly fat, regulate cholesterol levels, and suppress hunger hormones, aiding sustainable weight loss success. Polyunsaturated fats are also primarily found in fatty fish, seeds, nuts, and their derivative oils, and they provide essential omega-3 and omega-6 fatty acids. Consuming more omega-3s curbs inflammation, benefits heart health, balances blood sugar, and makes losing fat more accessible.
Medium Chain Triglycerides
MCTs are unique saturated fats included in coconut oil, palm oil, and dairy products that studies reveal can decrease body fat percentages, enhance fat burning during exercise, and control appetite by quickly converting to energy in the liver rather than being stored as body fat.
Lunch Recipes for Fat Loss
Taking advantage of healthy fats at lunchtime provides a winning strategy to stay satisfied between meals. Here are delicious high protein lunch bowls built around healthy fats helping eliminate cravings:
Mexican Cauliflower Rice Bowl
Sauté riced cauliflower, black beans, salsa, avocado and seasoning. Top with shredded lettuce, diced tomatoes, chicken, fresh cilantro and drizzle with olive oil and lime juice.
Salmon Spinach Salad
Combine spinach, salmon, hard boiled eggs, cucumbers, shredded carrots, cherry tomatoes, avocado, sunflower seeds and chopped walnuts. Toss in olive oil and red wine vinegar.
Tuna & White Bean Salad Bowl
Mix tuna, cannellini beans, quartered artichoke hearts, olives, diced red onion, crumbled feta cheese, spinach and fresh dill together. Whisk olive oil, lemon juice and Dijon mustard for citrusy dressing.
Keto Coconut Curry Bowl
Sauté onions, peppers and carrots in coconut oil. Add in chicken, broccoli, cauliflower rice and coconut milk bringing it to a simmer. Season the veggie curry bowl with curry powder, turmeric, red pepper and salt.
Dinner Recipes Centered on Healthy Fats
Satisfying dinners preventing late night cravings come from building meals around the right healthy fats. These tasty dinner ideas will propel your fat burning journey:
Pesto Salmon with Roasted Vegetables
Brush salmon filets with avocado oil and cook until flaky. Roast Brussels sprouts and broccoli florets on a sheet pan seasoned with salt, pepper and garlic. Serve salmon atop veggies then drizzle with pesto sauce.
Mediterranean Sheet Pan Chicken
Coat chicken thighs with a mixture of crushed garlic, lemon zest, salt and oregano. On a sheet pan add potatoes, red onion, bell peppers, olives, artichoke hearts and cherry tomatoes. Roast seasoned in olive oil until chicken reaches safe internal temperature.
Grilled Steak & Vegetable Kebabs
Assemble wooden skewers with sirloin steak cubes, sliced zucchini & squash, cherry tomatoes, pineapple chunks and red onion wedges brushed with avocado oil. Grill kebabs 8-10 minutes turning once. Sprinkle with salt and squeeze lime juice over top when plated.
Shrimp Stir Fry Zoodles
Quickly stir fry shrimp and spiralized zucchini noodles in sesame oil with minced garlic. Add in snap peas, water chestnuts, baby corn and red pepper flakes boiling briefly until shrimp gets pink. Remove from heat and mix in scallions sprinkled atop the low carb, high protein noodle bowl.
Be Well Fueled with Healthy Fats
Strategically embracing more healthy fats in your diet through recipes like these improves satiation making weight management much more sustainable. So, implement monounsaturated fats, omega-3s and coconut oil into your weekly lunch and dinner rotations. Fueling well with healthy fats means finally winning the battle of the bulge!
