Eat more & still lose weight

Yes I know you’re probably thinking ‘Hannah, have you gone crazy?’. Well no, I haven’t actually. Let me introduce to you the idea of volume eating. As shocking as it may sound one of the fastest ways to lose fat fast is to increase how much you’re eating.

Now firstly, please don’t think I mean ‘go stuff your face with whatever – pizza, chocolate or  ice-cream’ although, that would be quite nice wouldn’t it? Volume eating is eating large amounts of nutrient dense, low calorie food in one sitting with the intention of fuelling your body.

Volume eating has begun to be one of my favourite things when trying to shift a little weight. Whilst you’re a lot of eating nutrient dense food which is low in calories you’re actually consuming less than what you would normally compared to your usual high calorie meals. Have you ever scrolled through Instagram and suddenly seen a massive bowl of oats and begun seriously stalking that person’s account wondering how they can eat that much but still have such a toned physique? (guilty as charged). Well my friend, let me introduce to you ‘zoats’ – the new Instagram craze.

Zoats are a recipe mainly consisted of the following measurements:

30g oats
Half a zucchini
Water/Almond milk
(Toppings – optional)

One medium zucchini is quite large but contains only 18 calories and is packed full of essential nutrients that your body needs. Zucchini (or courgette as some people like to call it) can replace your usual pasta, be used in salads, oats or even turned into a sauce.

So, the idea here is that you’re lowering your usual morning oats in grams and topping the rest of the ingredients with a nutrient dense, low calorie food and yes it certainly does the trick by leaving you feeling fuller for longer.

This way of eating food will feed and fuel you and leave you feeling full and satisfied. If I eat a small plate of food, even rich, high fat foods, I do not feel that full or satisfied. I feel like I want more, as if that small plate wasn’t worth it. Big plates of carbs do nothing to fill or fuel a volume eater – your body is after nutrient dense food that will fill it up.

If you’re reasonable about Volume Eating, you can eat a lot of food for very few calories and feel satisfied afterwards. This can also lead to a significant amount of weight loss if you keep it up – it is all in the strategy and how you handle your self control. Have you ever tried to eat 3-6 pounds of veggies in a day? I know, it sounds crazy but it’s actually not that bad of an idea and it definitely keeps me full up. Come to think of it, I can’t think of the last time my stomach grumbled for food.

Here are some of my top tips for volume eating:

– Firstly, learn about nutrient dense, low calorie foods. Find out which foods are actually in that category instead of double guessing. Green veggies tend to have the least calories (but not always!). The veggies I always use are: Mushrooms (my fav), spinach, kale, broccoli, bell peppers and green beans. Cook these up and then pile them up on your plate.

Other low calories vegetables:
Asparagus (12 spears = 39 calories)
Beets (2 inch diameter beet = 22 calories)
Bell Peppers (1 entire pepper = 35 calories)Cucumber (entire cuke = 40 calories)
Broccoli (entire head = 110-150 calories, depending on size)
Brussels Sprouts (1 sprout = 8 calories)
Cabbage (1 leaf = 6 calories / 1 cup shredded = 17 calories)
Cauliflower (entire head = 120-150 calories, depending on size)
Celery (1 stalk = 5 calories)
Green Beans (20 beans = 34 calories)
Kale (1 cup cooked = 35 calories)
Lettuce (1 cup shredded = 8 calories)
Mushrooms (1 medium = 4 calories)
Spaghetti Squash (1 cup cooked = 42 calories)
Spinach (1 cup cooked = 20 calories / entire bag = 50 calories)
Tomatoes (1 cherry tomato = 3 calories / 1 whole medium tomato = 22 calories)
Zucchini (1 entire medium zuke = 35 calories)

– Switch out your usual rice and replace it with cauliflower rice. I have to admit – I really wasn’t a fan of this idea at first, however after I cooked it up for one of my dinners one night and it left me full for the whole evening I was hooked. Normally I tend to search for an evening snack 2/3 hours after dinner but nope, not that night. All you have to do is grate some cauliflower florets, cook them and then they’re ready to eat. You can either use them as a replacement of rice completely or mix them with rice – kinda like the ‘zoats’ idea.

– Have a large serving of veggies with every meal. It will fill you up and also stop you from snacking throughout the day. Not only this but you’re increasing your chances of consuming your five a day – which many of us struggle to do.

– Get creative with your veggies and change up the way you cook them. For example, bake them, steam them, grill them, boil them or eat them raw. And then the finishing touch: season the hell out of them! The options are endless for seasoning but some of my favourites to use are: sea salt, garlic, red pepper flakes, garlic salt, Gomasio, fresh ground pepper, coconut oil cooking spray, olive oil, sesame oil, toasted sesame oil, brown rice vinegar, balsamic vinegar and hummus as seasonings. Just not all together – yuck.

Now, please don’t get me wrong – I still love my good old carbs (don’t fear the big bad carb) and i’m certainly not saying replace every meal of yours with vegetables and purely no carbs. Oh no! That is not only unhealthy but totally against my morals of balanced eating. Instead, try incorporating volume eating into your weekly diet a few times. I tend to incorporate volume eating into my low carb days but only for 1 or 2 of my meals. See what works for you and how your body reacts to volume eating.

Now go get happy stuffing your face!

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