Pumpkins can help you lose weight. Don’t believe us? Read on to find out.
The delectable pumpkin can help you reach your weight loss goals. The vegetable is low in calories and curbs unnecessary snacking, making it the perfect healthy snack, food or drink.
Below we give you reasons why you should include pumpkin your weight loss diet.
Low calories
Pumpkin is a low-calorie vegetable with under 50 calories in one cup or 245 grams. Additionally, it also contains 94% water. Therefore, you can have a big serving of the vegetable and still not feel guilty about it. It is a great alternative to carb-filled sources like rice and potatoes.
High fibre
A cup of pumpkin contains 3 grams of fibre. The fibre is crucial for digestive health as it helps curb hunger and unnecessary snacking between meals. This, in turn, will help you stay on track for your weight loss journey.
Boosts immunity
Pumpkin is considered a high immunity booster food, as it contains vitamin C and beta-carotene. Having a strong immunity system is essential for losing weight without causing harm to your body.
Nutrient-dense
Pumpkin is a nutrient-dense food as it contains ample amount of vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin E, vitamin B12, potassium, manganese, fibre, protein and iron. Thus, the vegetable ensures that your body is not devoid of essential nutrients when you are cutting down on your food intake for losing weight.
Muscle recovery
The presence of potassium in pumpkin helps your muscle recover faster post-workout. There is 340gm of potassium in 100gm of pumpkin, higher than bananas. Thus, you can binge eat on pumpkin as a post-workout snack without worrying about the calories.
Mood booster
Tryptophan in pumpkin is a natural mood booster and helps fight stress. Having good mental health is vital to stay on track of your fitness and weight loss regime.
Incorporating pumpkin in your weight loss diet does not mean binge-eating pumpkin cakes and pies as they contain huge amounts of added sugar and other unhealthy fats. Therefore, we recommend researching healthy pumpkin recipes online like pumpkin soup, baked pumpkin, pumpkin hummus and more.
Also, we are not saying that you should not eat only pumpkin. To lose weight, you need to eat other healthy foods and exercise regularly at the gym.
