When you're trying to lose weight, the first thing you need to do is cut out the empty calories. And while most people understand that the cookies and cakes need to go, you won't get you the results you want if you keep making the same mistake. When it comes to losing weight, what you drink is at least as important as the foods you eat. In many cases, they might even be more important.
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Solid food at least fills you up. There's only so much you can eat of it. But liquids? They go down easy. And when you're drinking the wrong things, you can easily be taking in hundreds–even thousands–of waistline-ruining calories without even knowing it.
Soda, iced tea, Gatorade, even the so-called healthy fruit juices–these drinks are all absolutely loaded with sugar. They cause massive spikes in insulin, which is the hormone that sends your body into fat storage mode. And as long as you keep drinking them, you'll find it almost impossible to cut the body of your dreams.
So what should you do?
Well, the obvious solution is to start drinking water. It's the one beverage your body craves. It's what your cells are made up of. So you'll never go wrong by quenching your thirst with a glass of iced cold water.
In fact, drinking cold water actually has incredible fat burning benefits. We all know water has zero calories. But when you drink it cold, before your body can use it, it has to heat it up. This requires energy. And that energy actually causes you to burn calories. Studies have shown that just by drinking 8 glasses of cold water a day, over the course of a year, will burn an extra 7.3 pounds of fat! How's that for a quick fix?
And if you hate the taste of water, you may find that by adding a squirt of lemon or a sprinkle of sea salt gives it a much better taste because of the minerals they contain. But if it's still something you hate, you do have other healthy drink options.
First up is oolong tea. It's a great way to start your mornings and is a much healthier alternative to coffee. It's an all-natural tea that helps increase your energy levels, boost your metabolism, and helps curb hunger cravings.
Plus, when it comes to burning fat, it's one of the best things you can possibly drink. Its metabolism boosting effects are well-documented. Oolong tea has been shown to burn 2.5 times as many calories as green tea and burn fat up to 43 percent faster. You can drink it hot, or enjoy it on ice with some Stevia for a healthy iced tea alternative.
And then there's hibiscus tea, also known as "Jamaican water." This drink is also great for you. It contains high levels of Vitamin C, a powerful antioxidant which improves your immune system and keeps you from catching those pesky colds. It's also high in electrolytes which is great for replenishing your body after exercise. So not only does it give you the energy you need to have some great fat-blasting workouts, it actually helps you recover from those workouts, making it a great one-two-punch for effective fat loss.
By cutting out the sugary drinks and replacing them with these healthy alternatives, you'll eliminate hundreds of empty calories each day and put your body on the fast track to finally becoming slim and sexy. Make these simple changes and watch the pounds melt off easier than ever before.
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