7 Foods That Help You Lose Weight and Satisfy Your Stomach

There are lots of reasons to put beans on your shopping list. Beans are an excellent source of fiber, and any food that’s high in fiber will be filling, says Christine Gerbstadt, MD, RD, a physician based in Bethesda, Maryland, and the author of Doctor’s Detox Diet: The Ultimate Weight Loss Prescription.

Plus, fiber helps fill you up without adding any calories to food (since our bodies can’t digest fiber), explains Kelly Kennedy, RDN, staff registered dietitian-nutritionist formerly for Everyday Health. Fiber also takes longer to digest and adds bulk to food, she adds.

A veggie chili or a bean-based stew will fill you up without weighing you down, suggests Kennedy. She also loves the convenience of canned beans, which can be rinsed (to reduce the sodium content) and added to a rice dish or on top of a salad for more protein and fiber.

Protein-rich foods are filling because protein is metabolized more slowly than fats or carbohydrates, explains Dr. Gerbstadt. Salmon is also one of the best sources of heart-healthy fats known as omega-3 fatty acids, adds Kennedy.

Try baking or grilling salmon. You can have a 3-oz portion for dinner and flake the leftovers over salad greens for lunch the next day, says Kennedy.

Add hard-boiled eggs to your salad for a low-calorie protein, or try egg whites and cucumber with salt and pepper for a snack, says Kennedy.

But the calories from nuts and nut butters can add up quickly because they’re such a rich source of healthy fats, says Kennedy. While this fat is not a bad thing and is actually good for you, it’s important to keep an eye on portion size when eating nuts.

Kennedy suggests thinly spreading 1 tablespoon of natural peanut butter or almond butter on a piece of whole-wheat toast for breakfast and adding a sprinkle of slivered almonds on steamed green beans at dinner.

Your brain lags behind your stomach — it takes about 20 minutes for digestive hormones to send the signal to your brain that you’re filling up, says Kennedy.

That’s one reason popcorn is high on Gerbstadt’s list of filling foods that can help you lose weight: It takes a long time to eat popcorn, and the more slowly you eat, the more likely you are to start feeling full before you overdo it.

To be considered a good source of fiber, a food has to contain just 2.5 g of fiber, which can be reached at just about 2 cups of popcorn (and just 62 calories plain).

Gerbstadt suggests using a hot-air popper to save on fat and calories. Or pop your corn on the stove with a minimal amount of oil, suggests Kennedy.

Greek yogurt is another chart topper on the list of smart foods for weight loss. It’s a great choice because it has more protein and less sugar than most other yogurts.

Greek yogurt is also a good source of calcium, with about 230 milligrams (mg) per 7-oz container (about 18 percent of your DV).

You can make a parfait of Greek yogurt and fresh fruit for breakfast or as a dessert, or use Greek yogurt as a base for thick and creamy smoothies, suggests Kennedy, who recommends using plain Greek yogurt without any added sugars.

Water should be a staple on your list of foods for weight loss (even though it’s not technically a “food”).

Some people overeat because they mistake thirst for hunger. The parts of the brain where the body assesses hunger and thirst are very close together, explains Kennedy. For this reason, it’s very common for someone to feel hungry when they’re really just dehydrated. Staying well hydrated is the best way to make sure any hunger pangs are actually hunger.