Dark Chocolate For Weight Loss
Chocolate is an undisputed guilty pleasure. The sugar content makes sure of that. If you knew how to make chocolates work for you and help lose weight, would you have it? Surely, yes! Read this post and know what dark chocolate offers you.
Is Dark Chocolate Good for Weight Loss?
Chocolate lovers can celebrate. Here is one fitness solution that ‘fits’ right into your plans. According to many naysayers, anything that tastes good must be bad. Another set of positive thinkers, probably including us, eternally wonder why healthy foods are not always the foods we like.
This is where dark chocolate makes you think different. Tackling both sides of the coin, the delicious preparation is both an acquired taste and also very healthy. Though initially bitter, the taste grows on you until you begin to enjoy dark chocolate bars for health reasons. So, what are these remarkable health benefits that aid weight loss? Let us find out.
The Effects of Dark Chocolate for Reducing Weight
Benefits Of Dark Chocolate For Weight Loss
1. Accelerates Weight Loss
With dark chocolate, it is easier to get slimmer faster. This fact has been researched exhaustively in case you find any doubts plaguing you.
According to established studies, individuals undertaking a low-carbohydrate diet with dark chocolate had a 10% increased rate of weight loss compared to others. This essentially means that you lose weight faster than those who consume low-carb diets alone.
2. Fat Content
Yes, To Good Fats – No, To Fat Absorption
One might feel the statement is contradicting itself. Why shouldn’t the body absorb good fats? But, this is a piece of good news everyone wants to hear. Dark chocolate gives you good fats while changing the way your body metabolizes them. Consequently, bad fats are eliminated, and weight loss is the result.
The rule holds true for carbohydrates too. With dark chocolate, you can help your body cut down the amount of excess carbohydrates and fats absorbed within.
3. Controls Appetite
So, you want to lose weight but cannot stop yourself from eating as much as you can hold. Such troubles can end if you eat one or two pieces of dark chocolate a few times a week.
In small amounts, it controls sudden spikes in insulin levels in the bloodstream. This in turn prevents insulin resistance. As high insulin levels lead to more hunger, controlling them is highly beneficial. Low appetite surely makes you eat less of what made you overweight in the first place.
4. Which Ones To Trust?
Ensure this piece of life saver has a minimum cacao percentage of 70%. We are emphasizing the need for an almost pure dark chocolate that actually delivers the said benefits.
Since you’re eating for weight loss, it helps immensely to stay on dark chocolate and not the milk varieties.
5. One Bite And You’re Full
Dark chocolate promotes satiety. Hence, a bite or two is all you need to feel full and satisfied. Now, that sounds like something we’ve always wanted. Two pieces bitten off the larger bar 3 times a week was found to increase satiety.
Dark chocolate decreases sugar absorption. Every meal you have will make you feel full earlier than usual, which reduces the amount of food consumed.
Lesser food portions, as you know, help lose weight in a few short weeks. It will also control cravings for fatty, sweet and salty diets.
6. Weight Loss Without Changes To Lifestyle
Quite exceptionally, dark chocolate can assist in and accelerate weight loss even without significant changes to your diet. Studies mention that those who consumed bitter chocolate in moderate amounts experienced weight loss after continuing with their existing lifestyles. Obese individuals benefit largely from this.
7. Chocolate Is Not The Only Nutrition Choice
Ensure that the chocolate is definitely the dark variety and that you are consuming only a few pieces at once. Having an entire bar or depending only on the chocolate does not have the aforementioned effects. But, the benefits are prolonged for a long duration when you consume chocolate the right way.
8. Eat Calories - But Lose More
Yes, you are eating your way to weight loss. And yet, how many calories are you really taking in? As a 1.5 ounce of dark chocolate piece is the suggested amount, you’re eating about 170 calories per ounce.
It is, for this reason, dark chocolate must be consumed in moderation. Additionally, its ability to drive our bodies to burn fat makes the calories worthwhile. Here’s a cheat fact. You can reduce the calories to just 70 if you sprinkle a few raw cacao nibs on fruits or yogurt. Watch out for the bitter taste though.
9. Dark Chocolate - Does Win The Heart Over
Considering you have enjoyed dark chocolate for a few weeks, it is safe to say that it has won your heart over. We’re not talking about how much you love it, but that the chocolate is good for your heart. It improves circulation, decreases cholesterol and reduces blood pressure while preventing plaque formation.
Dark chocolate’s high flavonoid content, a group of bio-active molecules, has several health benefits. A healthy heart and body encourage weight loss through numerous channels, one of which is better activity levels.
10. Encourages Exercise
Chocolate, especially dark chocolate, makes you feel happier for a short duration. Don’t we know that already? Well, what we do not know is that it makes you feel so good that exercise is barely a challenge.
- Firstly, the deep sense of well-being encourages you to have a positive outlook towards exercise.
- Secondly, it helps reduce the pains experienced during exercising. This keeps you on the regimen efficiently.
- Thirdly, dark chocolate was found to diminish Body Mass Index (BMI) in many people with or without any diet modifications. With lower BMI, overweight is no more a term in your mind.
Considering you do not touch any milk based chocolates, which have high sugar and which are the primary culprits towards weight gain, you should have no trouble losing weight. Make sure your chocolates are as dark as they come. Quality homemade dark chocolates would help your goals too.