How to Eat Fruit for Breakfast & Lunch to Lose Weight
Increasing your fruit intake at breakfast and lunch can help you lose weight by making you feel fuller on fewer calories. Unprocessed fruits contain a lot of water and fiber, which takes a lot of room in your stomach with few calories, leaving less room for other foods. In addition, fruits provide other nutrients and can satisfy your sweet tooth.
A plate of fresh fruit and a glass of orange juice on the breakfast table. (Image: Danazipp/iStock/Getty Images)Whole Fruits
Buy plenty of whole fruits so you have them on hand every day for your breakfast and lunch. Avoid fruit juice; it does not contain any fiber and therefore does not make you feel as full. Try to stay away from canned fruit as well: It usually contains less fiber and is often packed in sugar-rich syrup. Dried fruits are very concentrated you should eat only small portions of these--2 Tbsp. or less. Fresh or frozen fruits are the best options to facilitate weight loss because they are still loaded with nutrients, the fiber has not been removed from the fruit and no sugar has been added. If possible, try to get the fruits with the highest fiber content. For example, 1 cup of raspberries has 8 g of fiber; a medium pear, 5.5 g of fiber; and 1 cup of blueberries, 3.6 g of fiber, according to the USDA National Nutrient Database.
Protein Source
Buy protein-rich foods to accompany your whole fruits at breakfast and lunch. Protein is an important contributor to satiety, according to the July 2005 issue of the "American Journal of Clinical Nutrition," which makes protein an key factor of your weight-loss plan. Stock your fridge with natural peanut butter; low-fat cheese, yogurt and milk; eggs; and fish, poultry and meat. You can also keep some nuts and seeds in your cupboards as an alternative source of protein. For example, at breakfast, you could have peanut butter and plain yogurt mixed with berries and at lunch you could have a salad with slices of fruit, a small chicken breast and a few almonds.
Low-Glycemic Index Carbohydrates
Have low-glycemic index carbohydrates to eat with your fruits and protein for breakfast and lunch. Low-glycemic index carbohydrates are digested more slowly, which can allow you to feel fuller for a longer period of time. Keep oatmeal, bread made with stone-ground grain, and bran-rich breakfast cereals on hand for breakfast. Each week, try cooking some whole grains in advance so you have a convenient low-glycemic carbohydrate option to add to your fruity lunch.
