A diet is a diet is a diet. That’s what we all know: that weight loss is about the amount of calories you eat vs. the amount you use. So why are there so many coconut oil weight loss stories? Well, while a diet may be math, beneficial foods can play a role in your metabolism. Coconut oil is a healthy fat that can manage appetite, blood sugar, metabolism and more. Read on to find out how coconut oil can fit into your weight loss strategy, and what you can and can’t expect.
Coconut Oil Weight Loss Tips
1. The Fat that Burns Fat
Studies have actually shown that coconut oil can take inches off your waist size and lower the BMI. Whether or not you lose weight depends on how many calories you eat and use up. But it’s common to hear from people who lost inches of fat, even if they didn’t lose weight! While you can’t exercise to target belly fat, you can eat to. (Free eBook: 101 Tips that Burn Belly Fat.)
2. Jump-start Your Thyroid
Coconut oil gives the thyroid a boost, which raises metabolism. This is because coconut oil helps your thyroid to produce more of the metabolism-boosting hormone thyroxin. Medium Chain Triglyceride consumers burn 65% more calories than others, even while resting, says a study in The Journal of Nutrition. In fact, many people have used coconut oil to combat hypothyroidism.
3. Feel Fuller, Snack Less
Coconut oil’s healthy fats help you feel fuller and snack less. All fats help the body to feel sated, and healthy fats like coconut oil can also slow down digestion. You can take it with your meal, such as in oatmeal, a smoothie, or a cooking substitute, or have a bit by itself or in tea twenty minutes before you eat. (It always makes my healthy green smoothies more filling and I end up having less and feeling full longer.)
4. Stop Blood Sugar Spikes
Coconut Oil curbs blood sugar spikes, since eating it causes carbs to be digested more slowly. Blood sugar spikes are linked to all kinds of trouble, including increased belly fat! Not to mention when you spike, you also crash, which means more sugar cravings and the cycle continues. A reader on the Coconut Oil Tips Facebook page said: “Coconut oil helps with cravings. I used it when I gave up smoking. That was three years ago and I still use it. Plus, it helps with sugar cravings. I don’t know how, but it has been really easy to say NO to donuts at work. I have never been able to do that.”
“It helps with sugar cravings. I don’t know how, but it has been really easy to say NO to donuts at work. I have never been able to do that.”
5. Candida Making You Snack More?
Coconut Oil’s natural anti-fungal properties kill off yeast and candida in the gut. Since candida overgrowth can cause sugar cravings, eliminating the excess yeast removes those extra urges for sugary snacks.
6. Instant Energy
The type of fat in Coconut Oil provides quick energy like carbohydrates, but without the fat storage. The liver converts the MCTs in coconut oil to energy that can be used immediately, since the liver doesn’t need extra enzymes to break it down (like it does for other fats). Many people, including myself, report increased energy from coconut oil. And that’s great for workouts!
The liver converts the MCTs in coconut oil to energy that can be used immediately, since the liver doesn’t need extra enzymes to break down the fat.
7. Clean Up Inside Out
Keeping your digestive system running smoothly helps you to burn up fat more efficiently. Coconut Oil can help, since it’s healing and detoxing, improving the health of the overall digestive system, immune system, and pancreas. Coconut oil has antibacterial, anti-fungal, and antiviral properties. (A healthy, efficient system is so important to weight loss! Dr. Charles has great information about the liver’s role in losing weight in his book Fat Loss Factor.)
8. More Weight Loss than Olive Oil
Studies have linked Medium Chain Triglyceride oils to increased weight loss when compared with olive oil. Subjects took the same amount of either MCT oil or olive oil for weeks, and at the end the MCT group had shed significantly more pounds. Coconut oil is one of the few substances out there that is primarily Medium Chain Triglycerides, so it’s basically the same as the MCT oil. Use coconut oil as a substitute for olive oil in dishes where it makes sense to do so.
9. Get Regular
In countries where diets are rich in coconut oil, consumers have more regular bowel movements. This also helps detox the body and keep the metabolism running smoothly.
10. Get Healthy to Get Thin
Coconut oil is linked to better health and weight. People in countries with coconut oil-rich diets are also less prone to heart disease.
11. Heating Up
Coconut Oil boosts fat burn through a process called thermogenesis. By stimulating this process, the body burns fat calories for heat.
12. Smooth Cellulite
It may not be for fat loss, but who wouldn’t love some help smoothing out dimply thighs? Coconut oil, when massaged to the skin with a dry brush for about 10 minutes per day, can actually reduce the appearance of cellulite. The results I have seen people get from doing this daily have been so significant, they are nothing short of amazing. (For more information about getting rid of cellulite, I recommend this popular eBook.)
A Few More Things
There are plenty of benefits to using a coconut oil weight loss strategy, but it’s not a magic bullet. Any healthy nutrition plan includes proper amounts of protein, fiber, carbohydrates, and yes, fat. What’s key about coconut oil is that it’s a far better choice than other fats you might consume. So for the fat in your foods, go for coconut oil. It’s best used to replace butter and sometimes olive oil in cooking and baking, or to add something filling to low-fat foods like smoothies.
Refined vs. Virgin Coconut Oil
Always use unrefined (virgin), organic coconut oil. The refined kind has been treated so extensively that the healthy triglycerides are degraded. Refined coconut oil loses all its health benefits and is full of trans fat instead! I prefer Nutiva’s organic, virgin coconut oil for its natural goodness and sweet, pure taste.
How Much Do I Need?
How much you take depends on your body weight, and it’s also a good idea to start small before you work up to more. Generally, 1-3 tablespoons per day are fine for most people.
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