1.) Lattes and cappuccinos

Postworkout caffeine may be energizing at first, but it won’t last all day. Plus, your favorite sweetened mocha adds unnecessary fat and sugar. Instead, opt for green tea sweetened with just a touch of honey.

2.) Muffins and other pastries

People often think fruit-filled muffins are a much healthier choice than donuts or danishes. But all of those foods contain too many calories, not enough protein, and are often loaded with sugar.

3.) Candy bars, granola bars, and protein bars

Sure, you’ll find some protein in these bars, but you’ll also find lots of calories. These are never a good choice if sugar or corn syrup is among the top five ingredients.

4.) Pretzels

It’s no wonder most people make pretzels their number one choice when it comes to the office vending machine. It’s easy to be pulled in by the low-fat labeling of these tasty snacks. The down side? They lack adequate protein and contain enough processed white flour to send blood sugar skyrocketing.

5.) Ice cream, hamburgers, etc.

How often have you justified eating junk food after lifting weights or completing a grueling run? “Rewarding” yourself with one of these high-fat convenience foods after a workout cancels out all the hard work you just completed.

SCREWUP: Marathon TV Pig-Out

REMEDIES

• Eat Breakfast the Next Day: “Starving yourself is a bad idea,” says Jim White, R.D., a Virginia Beach, Va.-based dietitian. “It just slows the metabolism down.” Have a high-fiber, low-glycemic breakfast like oatmeal. You’ll feel full longer, making it less likely you’ll overdo it at lunch.
• Trim Tomorrow’s Calories: Cut 500 calories off tomorrow’s meals. It’s easier than you think: Choose sugar-free instead of regular, vinegar and oil rather than creamy dressing, baked not fried, mustard instead of mayo, and fruit over chocolate. If your pig-out was especially bad, repeat for a few more days.

SCREWUP: Boozing with the Guys

REMEDIES

• Drink Up, Again: Beyond all those calories you chugged, alcohol dehydrates the body, impairing aerobic capacity and endurance. Drink 64 to 84 ounces of water. Eat fruits like apples, blueberries, and cherries, which have a high water content, says American Dietetic Association rep Amy Jamieson-Petonic, R.D. They’ll help restore fluid balance and fat-burning capabilities.
• Eat Regularly: Go for grilled meat, plain nuts, Greek yogurt, or raw vegetables. Eating a little bit of food every three to four hours will help to prevent swings in blood sugar and speed your recovery.

SCREWUP: Lazy Business Trip

REMEDIES

• Hit the Gym Hard: Make up for lost ground (and pounds gained) with a week of intensified workouts, says White. Shorten the time between sets, bang out more reps or add sets to your workout, and increase your typical cardio time by 10 minutes.
• Eat Clean: “Be hyper aware of your diet,” says Jamieson-Petonic. Base your meals around fruits, vegetables, and whole grains for the next few days; stick to lean, healthy proteins; and avoid sugary, high-fat treats.

A decade ago, it would have been hard to write this column. While there were all kinds of foods and supplements sold with promises to burn fat, none of them had any scientific data to support the claims. Today, scientists are beginning to understand how certain foods actually do rev up metabolism or enhance hormones to help us burn fat. You’ll read about the six best fat-burning foods below. Ten years from now, a column on fat-burning foods is bound to be full of science-based information on dozens of foods that can help boost metabolism and burn fat. So stay tuned.    

PROTEIN
In addition to helping build muscle, your metabolic furnace for burning fats, lean protein helps stoke the fat-burning fires— its thermogenic effect is 20 to 30 percent compared with an anemic 3 to 12 percent for carbohydrates. This basically means that it takes many more calories to digest, absorb and utilize protein versus carbohydrates. As you include protein in every meal and snack all day long, you raise your fat-burning potential, as well.
Make sure to choose lean protein sources such as eggs, chicken, turkey, fish, lean red meat and vegetable proteins. If you don’t already have a blender and some protein powder, buy them. When you crave a high-fat or high-carb snack, reach for a protein shake instead.

FISH
For many years, nutritionists assumed you lost weight when you ate fish because it has fewer calories, pound-for-pound, than red meat. Now however, it appears that reasons go above and beyond calories. Most important, the type of fat found in fish appears to enhance the efficiency of the hormone leptin. This protein circulates in your bloodstream and, like the hormone insulin, is a key hormone in the weight-management equation. Leptin regulates your food intake as well as your body’s energy expenditure. When cells in your brain sense a rise in leptin, they signal other parts of your nervous system to turn down your appetite and turn up your metabolism.
I recommend that all my clients eat five fish meals a week. The omega-3 fats support a healthy heart, a healthy brain and nervous system, and possibly enhance the efficiency of leptin, helping you boost your metabolism and control appetite. It hardly gets better than this. While all fish have more omega-3 fats than a hot dog, the fatty fish like salmon, black cod, herring, sardines, mackerel, halibut, fresh tuna and shellfish are highest in omega-3 fats.

OLIVE OIL
The kinds of fat that you eat can influence your energy expenditure and bodyweight. Energy is released through heat production in a process called nonshivering thermogenesis, which is controlled by uncoupling proteins (UCP) in the cells of brown fat, white fat and muscle. Researchers interested in finding out if diet can influence this process investigated possible dietary enhancements of thermogenesis in rats. They found that olive oil, which is high in monounsaturated fats, increased the activity of the UCPs, and hence of metabolic rates. Because of the short duration of the study, published in the American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, no differences in bodyweight were recorded between the rats fed olive oil and those fed other fats. However, international studies have shown that Mediterranean-style diets higher in olive oil are associated with weight maintenance and little weight gain over time compared with diets lower in olive oil. However, overall fat consumption still does add many calories to the diet, and those subjects with a very high fat consumption were overweight compared to those who controlled their total fat intake.

GREEN TEA
Certain natural chemicals called catechins are abundant in green tea; animal and human studies show that these chemicals appear to increase fat burning and stimulate thermogenesis, and the combination with caffeine in tea appears to boost the effect. The amount that you need to consume isn’t absolutely clear. A 1999 study in Maryland used syx, one-quarter cups of tea per day for four days. A more recent Japanese study found successful results feeding two one-half cups every day for 12 weeks. A study from the UK published this year demonstrated increased fat burning in exercising young men. In this study, researchers used a green tea extract of three capsules (containing a total of 890 +/- 13mg polyphenols and 366 +/- 5mg EGCG [the catechins]). Since the amount of catechins is difficult to control with brewing, many practitioners recommend using a green tea extract for better dose control.

MILK
Milk ranks high on the list of fat-burning foods. No doubt you’ve read about or heard the commercials for how milk can help you lose weight. The high calcium content of milk helps it turn off a key obesity gene, keeping your body from turning up the fat-making machinery to high, and helping your fat-burning metabolism run smoothly. At the same time milk is the primary source of whey protein, shown in studies to enhance fat burning and limit the turnover of calories into fat storage by the liver. Subjects on a calorie-reduced diet given 20 grams of whey protein supplement every day after an exercise bout lost significantly more fat and maintained significantly more muscle mass compared to subjects given a placebo. Milk is a natural source of whey protein, and you will also benefit from adding a whey protein supplement to your diet.

CHILI PEPPERS
Studies have shown a thermogenic effect of capsaicin, a compound found in chili peppers. When chili-containing meals have been fed to subjects regularly for four weeks, results have shown an attenuation of high blood insulin levels after the meals. While weight loss was not studied, a lowering of blood insulin levels in overweight subjects may ultimately lead to weight loss. Other studies using a capsaicin supplement have been shown to be effective, but the dosage must be strictly followed. One Danish study using a supplement combining green tea extract, capsaicin, tyrosine and calcium for seven days showed a 2 percent increase in energy expenditure in overweight and obese men. The researchers found that only the capsules that were not enterocoated were effective. The coating, which inhibits digestion in the stomach, inactivated the efficacy of capsaicin.

Is your quest to shed those extra pounds on target or way off the mark? We asked MF weight-loss adviser Christopher Mohr, Ph.D.,R.D., to weigh in on what works and what doesn’t.

On Target

Drink More Water
It’ll flush away sodium, which bloats you. You’ll also be less likely to down high-calorie beverages. People often underestimate how important hydration is when it comes to losing weight.

Cut Calories
You’ll never lose weight until you change your diet. Americans have grown accustom to large portions at the dinner table. The bottom line is you’ve got to take in fewer calories than you are burning each day. Period.

Running Intervals
Ever notice how sprinters have extremely lean, toned bodies? Sure, they spend half the day training on the track, but even the average person can greatly benefit from 10-20 minutes of interval training each day. There’s no better way to burn off fat.

Fill Up On Fiber
Fiber allows you to make the most of the food you eat, because it keeps you full longer than any other food. Load up on lots of fruits, vegetables and whole grains every day.

Pop a Multivitamin
They can fill in gaps in your diet but don’t expect them to work miracles. You still need to rely on a nutritious diet in order to maintain healthy metabolism.

Off the Mark

Skip Breakfast
The morning dash to get shower, dressed and out the door usually results in you skipping the most important meal of the day. Bad move. The meal keeps your body’s metabolism stoked and burning strong throughout the day.

Light Weights, High Reps
While good for toning, this method doesn’t burn much fat at all. Increasing the weight accordingly allows your muscles to work harder and burn more calories — even after you leave the gym.

Slash Carbs
An active person can’t simply go without carbs. In fact, your body needs at least 100 grams a day for energy. Always remember to maintain a balance of carbs, protein and healthy fats in your diet. This gives you what you need in terms of energy, muscle growth and recovery.

Swear Off Your Favorite Foods
Anytime we want to drop few pounds, most of us immediately slash all comfort foods from our diets. The problem is you’ll eventually cave, and it won’t be pretty. So enjoy a treat once in a while — just remember that moderation is key.

Train, But Just Barely
Any degree of training is better than nothing at all. But you can only get out of something what you put in. Remember, losing weight isn’t just a matter of going to the gym once a week. It also involves lifestyle changes. Talk a walk on your lunch break, park on the opposite end of the parking lot at stores, and do more yard work (your girl will love the new you).

Postworkout Snack
People love to reward themselves for a hard day at the gym. But, remember, many granola and protein bars are also packed with extra calories — don’t cancel out all the hard work you just put in at the gym.

Load Up On Diet Snacks
Another misconception in the diet arena. Baked chips and fat-free candy are still junk food. Train your body (and mind) to think of fresh fruit and vegetables as delicious snacks. After 30 days, you’ll be surprised at how you start to crave these nutritious foods.

Treadmill Marathons
When it comes to losing weight, people always put the emphasis on cardio. While running and biking is highly recommended, you still need to get in some strength training. Working those muscles is what really fires up the metabolism.