If you are already working out and into living a healthy lifestyle, you probably are eating a diet high in protein for muscle growth and staying away from the sugar and carbohydrates.
You know all about the best foods to gain muscle, but let's say you want to take your muscle-building diet to the next level.
Here are some foods that may seem a bit surprising but will certainly boost your ability to reduce fat without a whole lot of difficulty involved.
1.
Lean beef instead of chicken.
Chicken has fewer calories, but lean red meat has more vitamins, minerals and creatine than chicken.
Creatine is a compound that has taken on great popularity with athletes, as it appears to reduce lactic acid, which as an energy waste product causing fatigue.
So occasionally substituting beef on those days when you would have chicken breast could help kick-start your muscle growth.
2.
A product called Calorie Countdown instead of skim milk.
Skim milk is great for protein, vitamins and minerals, but still has that sugar.
But Calorie Countdown has 40% fewer calories, 75% fewer carbohydrates, and 75% less sugar, all great benefits for reducing fat as you build muscle.
The product has been around for a few years, and can be found in the dairy case.
And people have said it is great in smoothies.
3.
Green tea instead of coffee.
I'm a great lover of coffee, but green tea does so much more.
With its high level of catechin-polyphenols, these compounds work together with other chemicals to greatly increase levels of fat oxidation.
These compounds create heat in the body by burning fat as a fuel, and have been shown to help reduce stomach fat by increasing fat oxidation in this area.
It was once though that this effect was due to caffeine alone, but is now attributable to caffeine and the catechin-polyphenols working synergistically.
4.
Fat-free Greek yogurt instead of regular fat-free flavored yogurt.
So what makes Greek yogurt so much better.
They are both loaded with calcium and low in calories, but Greek yogurt has up to double the protein with half the sugar.
When you add in the creamier texture, because it is extensively strained to remove much of its lactose, sugar and liquid whey, it is no wonder that its sales have skyrocketed in the United States and elsewhere.
Be aware that Greek yogurt's full-fat version is heavy in fat (16 grams of saturated fat in only 7 ounces), so definitely oft for the fat-free varieties.
5.
Canned salmon instead of chunk white tuna.
Canned salmon has much more flavor, about the same amount of protein, but a lot more omega-3 fatty acids with about three times less mercury.
Salmon in almost any form is one of my favorite foods, but you should always look for wild caught over farm raised salmon.
The wild caught stock of Atlantic salmon has been reduce to the point that Atlantic salmon is virtually all farm raised.
This harvested salmon is certainly not healthy, and should be limited in your diet if at all possible.
There are still abundant supplies of wild Pacific salmon available due to proper management of wild harvests, and as you look for salmon that is the direction to look.