When you really think about it\u00a0there\u2019s no such thing as an inherently \u201chealthy\u201d food.<\/p>\n Obviously\u00a0some foods are low(er) calorie, \u00a0nutrient dense, and have certain qualities that should be emphasized within an overall \u201chealthy\u201d diet.<\/p>\n But there isn\u2019t a single food that, in isolation, can be deemed \u201chealthy\u201d or \u201cunhealthy.\u201d<\/p>\n Because one\u00a0food doesn\u2019t make up the sum and substance of your diet or lifestyle.<\/p>\n Rather, the context of your life as a whole determines your health<\/strong> including things that are both in and out of your control.<\/p>\n To name a few, below is a small list\u00a0of the countless determinants of your health:<\/p>\n Without overly digressing, it\u2019s incorrect\u00a0to label a single food as \u201chealthy\u201d or \u201cunhealthy\u201d for the same reason it\u2019s incorrect\u00a0to say men are stronger\u00a0than women, dumbbells are safer than barbells, or toilet paper is\u00a0more effective than a bidet.<\/p>\n Context\u00a0must be taken into consideration and only then, once we appreciate\u00a0context, can we begin to see no food\u00a0is inherently \u201cgood\u201d or \u201cbad,\u201d \u201cright\u201d or \u201cwrong,\u201d \u201chealthy\u201d or \u201cunhealthy.\u201d<\/p>\n Rather, all foods are equally neutral<\/strong> with some being more conducive to successful long-term dieting than others.<\/p>\n For example, some foods might help you stay full for longer periods of time, others might be higher in protein , and others might include vitamins and minerals that are difficult to find elsewhere.<\/p>\n These foods \u2013 the ones that make dieting easier \u2013 should obviously be emphasized within your diet.<\/p>\n This is a really important point to understand and where most fitness junkies who eat \u201chealthy\u201d but can\u2019t get a 6-pack\u00a0go wrong.<\/p>\n Just because certain foods are\u00a0worth emphasizing does not mean they can or should be eaten ad libitum.<\/p>\n These traditionally labeled \u201chealthy\u201d foods still have calories and, contrary to popular dogma, calories always\u00a0count<\/strong>regardless of whether or not a food is \u201chealthy,\u201d \u201cclean,\u201d \u201cnatural,\u201d\u00a0or \u201corganic.\u201d<\/p>\n In other words, you can overeat \u201chealthy\u201d foods<\/strong> and if\u00a0you do you will gain fat.<\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t matter.<\/p>\n At all.<\/p>\n It doesn\u2019t matter how or what you eat.<\/p>\n Paleo, low carb, vegan,\u00a0South Beach, vegetarian\u2026everything has calories <\/strong>and if you eat more than your body needs to maintain its current weight you will gain fat.<\/p>\n Period.<\/p>\n First and foremost, if you\u2019re having trouble losing fat you should start by reading my guide to creating an effective fat loss program<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n Second, track your calorie intake for 3-6 weeks to see how much you\u2019re eating, where the majority of your calories are coming from, and what an appropriate portion looks like.<\/p>\n Third, below I\u2019ve listed 5 of the most commonly overeaten \u201chealth foods<\/em>\u201d that you might be overlooking. You don\u2019t need to eliminate these foods from your diet but you should keep moderation in mind when eating them and be aware that they are far more calorically\u00a0dense than you might think.<\/p>\n In no particular order of importance here are 5<\/strong>\u00a0of the Worlds Healthiest Foods (That Are Actually Making You Fat!).<\/strong><\/p>\n I love them\u00a0for the same reason everyone loves them\u00a0\u2013> they\u2019re\u00a0freakin\u2019\u00a0amazing.<\/p>\n I hate them\u00a0because a true serving size (2 tbsp) is offensively minuscule and inordinately high in calories (~200 cal).<\/p>\n Do you realize how small 2 tbsp really is?<\/p>\n Contrary to what we like to convince ourselves, 2 tbsp is not a fist-sized slab o\u2019 nut butter\u00a0on your largest spatula.<\/p>\n Nope, 2 tbsp is about the size of a golf ball.<\/p>\n Want to see what that looks like on a slice of bread?<\/p>\n Trust me, I was pissed when I found\u00a0out too.<\/p>\n The good news is you don\u2019t need to completely eliminate nut butters from your diet. What you do need to do, however, is pay very close attention to how much you\u2019re eating to make sure you aren\u2019t overdoing it by consuming 2, 3, 4 or 5x as many calories as you think.<\/p>\n A fraction of the calories and fat of standard peanut butter, PB2<\/a><\/strong> is a great way to enjoy a large portion of peanut\u00a0butter without going completely overboard on the calories.<\/p>\n I eat\u00a0PB2 on a daily basis and my girlfriend eats it at pretty much every meal.<\/p>\n She\u2019s addicted.<\/p>\n In all seriousness,\u00a0it\u2019s great for both of us since we can feed our nut butter addiction without worrying about blowing our calorie allotment for the day.<\/p>\n Want to try PB2? Grab it HERE<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n #Fact<\/p>\n On a serious note, while avocado is the single most delicious food in the history of history, it\u2019s also exceptionally high in calories and remarkably easy to over eat.<\/p>\n Just today I was speaking\u00a0with one of my brand new nutrition clients<\/a><\/strong> who had difficulty hitting her calorie and protein guidelines on her first day of the program.<\/p>\n Soon after asking what she ate, she told me she\u2019d eaten a whole avocado because she thought it was a \u201chealth food.<\/em>\u201c<\/p>\n While I assured her avocado is a phenomenal option with a variety of health benefits, I explained how calorically dense one avocado is and can easily\u00a0add\u00a0up to 350 calories and 30g of fat.<\/p>\n After assuring her she didn\u2019t screw up, we discussed how\u00a0eating the entire avocado made it significantly harder for her to stay satiated\u00a0throughout the day while hitting her calorie and protein guidelines. From that point we came up with a plan that\u00a0would allow her to\u00a0enjoy\u00a0avocado on a regular basis without blowing past her calorie guidelines.<\/p>\n For some that might mean weighing and measuring out how much you\u2019re going to eat while for others that might mean establishing a pre-determined portion\u00a0(1\/2 an avocado).<\/p>\n Regardless of how you choose to moderate your portion size\u00a0it\u2019s essential to keep moderation in mind.<\/p>\n Seriously.<\/p>\n Loaded with sugar (more often than not it\u2019s coated with an extra layer of added sugar), dried fruit is exceptionally calorie\u00a0dense and atrocious at\u00a0reducing hunger.<\/p>\n Keep in mind, it\u2019s not inherently bad for you and you\u2019re more than welcome to eat it so long as it fits in your calorie allotment (just like candy), but it\u2019s definitely not something you want to emphasize on a daily basis.<\/p>\n My personal favorites include strawberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, melon, oranges, and apples.<\/p>\n My only problem with olive oil is that, like nut butters, a single serving (200 calories) is just about the size of a ping pong ball.<\/p>\n So without even thinking, if you accidentally double your serving you\u2019re downing a quick 400 calories with minimal satiety\u00a0and zero protein.<\/p>\n Not your best bet when fat loss is the goal.<\/p>\n Without the hassle of breaking out the measuring cups or food scale, you can quickly spray it onto anything you want without\u00a0nearly as much worry about overdoing the calories and still reaping all the health benefits liquid olive oil has to offer.<\/p>\n Don\u2019t waste your money.<\/p>\n Calorically\u00a0dense, low in protein, anything but satiating, and usually packed with sugar\u2026\u201dhealth\u201d bars are a scam wrapped in plastic.<\/p>\n Could you eat them while still losing fat?<\/p>\n Of course, as long as you hit your calorie and protein guidelines.<\/p>\n Are they\u00a0\u201chealthier\u201d or more beneficial than real food?<\/p>\n Absolutely not.<\/p>\n And, truth be told, I\u2019d argue a diet with fewer \u201chealth\u201d bars is\u00a0probably easier and more\u00a0conducive to long-term fat loss than a calorically\u00a0comparable diet including more \u201chealth\u201d bars.<\/p>\n Even the smallest \u201chealth\u201d bars can\u00a0easily pack 200-300+ calories per serving.<\/p>\n And while that doesn\u2019t make them inherently bad (I\u2019ll have a quest bar<\/a><\/strong> or epic bar<\/a><\/strong> when I need a bite on the go), I could easily throw down 4-5 bars as an appetizer for my appetizer without thinking twice because they do absolutely nothing to keep me full.<\/p>\n So rather than\u00a0toss 300+ tasteless calories down my pie hole, I\u2019d prefer to make a big meal loaded with fresh fruits, vegetables, and a massive slab\u00a0of high quality protein.<\/p>\n Not only will it\u00a0taste better but it will\u00a0keep me full for a longer period of time and likely provide countless health benefits far beyond what the bar has\u00a0to offer.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" 5 of the Worlds Healthiest Foods (That Are Actually Making You Fat!) by Jordan Syatt | Apr 21, 2015 | I hate the phrase \u201chealthy food.\u201d When you really think about it\u00a0there\u2019s no such thing as an inherently \u201chealthy\u201d food. … Continue reading ![\"Healthy](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Healthy-Foods-Making-You-Fat-300x210.jpg\")
<\/a>I hate the phrase \u201chealthy food<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\nWhy Can\u2019t a Food Be Labeled \u201cHealthy\u201d or \u201cUnhealthy?\u201d<\/strong><\/h1>\n
\n
But Emphasis Does Not Include Excess<\/strong><\/h1>\n
What If You Eat Paleo? Or Low Carb?<\/strong><\/h1>\n
So What Should You Do?<\/strong><\/h1>\n
1. Nut Butter<\/strong><\/h1>\n
![\"Nut](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Nut-Butter-300x225.jpg\")
<\/a>I have a love\/hate relationship with nut\u00a0butters.<\/p>\n![\"ping](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/ping-pong-300x204.jpg\")
<\/a>Sucks, I know.<\/p>\n![\"pb\"](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/pb-233x300.jpg\")
<\/a>That\u2019s not even enough to spread a halfway decent layer across 1 slice.<\/p>\nMy Favorite Low Calorie\u00a0Alternative:\u00a0PB2<\/h2>\n
![\"PB2\"](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/PB21.jpg\")
<\/a>PB2<\/a><\/strong> is a low calorie, powdered peanut butter alternative and it\u2019s abso-freakin-lutely amazing.<\/p>\n2. Avocado<\/strong><\/h1>\n
![\"Avocado\"](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Avocado-300x225.jpg\")
<\/a>The main ingredient in guacamole is avocado which, in case you aren\u2019t\u00a0aware, makes avocado the single most delicious food in the history of history.<\/p>\nMy Favorite Low Calorie Alternative:\u00a0Moderation<\/h2>\n
![\"food](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/food-scale-283x300.jpg\")
<\/a>The best low calorie alternative for avocado is simply being aware of how much you\u2019re eating and moderating portion sizes accordingly.<\/p>\n3. Dried Fruit<\/strong><\/h1>\n
![\"dried](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/dried-fruit-300x181.jpg\")
<\/a>Dried fruit is candy disguised as \u201chealth food.\u201d<\/p>\nMy Favorite Low Calorie\u00a0Alternative:\u00a0Fresh\u00a0Fruit (shocking, I know)<\/h2>\n
![\"Real](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Real-Fruit-300x188.jpg\")
<\/a>Significantly\u00a0fewer calories per serving, fresh fruit is more filling than dried fruit and, in my opinion, far more conducive to long-term dieting success.<\/p>\n4. Olive Oil<\/strong><\/h1>\n
![\"olive](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/olive-oil.jpg\")
<\/a>The health benefits of olive oil<\/a><\/strong> are extensive to say the least. So much so that I tend\u00a0to include olive oil\u00a0within my diet on a\u00a0daily\u00a0basis.<\/p>\n![\"olive](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/olive-oil-serv-300x200.jpg\")
<\/a>And if you\u2019re like me and pretty much every other\u00a0person in the history of ever\u2026you don\u2019t just use 1 serving of olive oil.<\/p>\nMy Favorite Low Calorie Alternative:\u00a0Olive Oil Spray<\/h2>\n
![\"pam\"](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/pam.jpg\")
<\/a>Equally as beneficial to your health with significantly fewer calories per serving, spray olive oil<\/a><\/strong> is a nutritional game changer.<\/p>\n5. \u201cHealth\u201d Bars<\/h1>\n
![\"Kind](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/Kind-Bar-300x234.jpg\")
<\/a>Kind bars, zone bars, atkins bars, south beach bars, power bars\u2026there are a million brands, 10 million opinions as to which one is best, and ya know what I say?<\/p>\nMy Favorite Low Calorie Alternative:\u00a0Real Food<\/h2>\n
![\"real](\"http:\/\/syattfitness.com\/sf-content\/uploads\/2015\/04\/real-food.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\n