Many people stock up on what they think is healthy food when they make the decision to lose weight. Their intentions may be good, but if they’re grabbing these foods listed below, their actions may actually sabotage their weight loss efforts.

#1 Fruit – This is highly controversial, but fruit isn’t for everyone. At least not right away. Fruit is high in sugar and for the overweight individual, may actually do more harm than good in terms of weight loss. If you do consume fruit it should be at breakfast time only.

#2 Whole Grain Crackers – All carbs are broken down to sugar and cause insulin spikes. Whole Grains usually have more fiber and slow the process down. Whole grain crackers are still processed carbs and usually don’t have a lot of fiber.

#3 Fruit Juice – Fruit juice may seem healthy when you consider the alternatives like soda pop and other sugary drinks. However, when you get into what fruit juice is, you’ll learn quickly that it is not that good for you. Imagine you have a wonderful home and it’s the middle of the winter. Now imagine you took the walls off that home. Not so good anymore is it? The fiber in fruit is removed during the juicing process, which leads to a faster insulin spike and more calories stored as fat. Read more »

For folks on low-glycemic diet plans, vegetarians, or anyone who would like to eat healthier, there are a variety of different vegetarian and other healthy crock pot recipes which are delicious and convenient. The beauty of these meals is that you can prepare them in the morning, (or even the night before), throw them into the slow cooker, set it and forget it until lunch or dinner time.

Crock pot recipes are perfect for folks who work during the day, or who have other commitments such as child care or errands to run. In the past, healthy crock pot meals were few and far between as most crock pot recipes included meats high in fat as well as the addition of sugar and salt. Thankfully, slow cooker recipes have come a long way. Healthy slow cooker recipes often include leaner cuts of meat, (or no meat), and a variety of beans and vegetables. Barley, lentils, and dal are also great inclusions to crock pot meals as are a variety of different mushrooms, (especially for vegetarian or vegan dishes).

Coconut milk can be a great substitute for cream or whole milk and a variety of spices can help replace the salt of other crock pot recipes. For households where one or both parents work, these type of meals allow them to prepare healthy, delicious food for their families, with the ease of standard slow cooker recipes. Read more »