Calorie-burning foods

Hello there,

Life at the moment is anything but predictable. It feels like more has happened in the past month than in the past decade. With a newborn, my role as Chief Wellness Officer, my other responsibility as the CEO of LEENR, managing a full renovation in one of my apartments, and living out of a hotel since a bunch of bugs decided to lay their eggs in our bed, life has been a rollercoaster.

"How do you manage all of that, Diego? How can you stay in shape and perform with all of that happening?" Well, let me tell you. The reason I am able to face these "first-world problems" with ease is because I am healthy and in shape, physically and mentally.

Doing all of this while lacking energy, feeling tired all the time, and not feeling confident would be a nightmare. And that, ladies and gentlemen, is what wellness gives you - something that money cannot buy. It has to be earned, and the currency is non other than knowledge.

Today I will share the foods that burn most calories when you eat them.

To put this into perspective, while digesting these foods, I burned approximately 200 calories a day last week, totaling roughly 1400 calories. So, I burned more calories digesting this food than I did in the three workout sessions I completed throughout the week, which were around 1000 calories.

What are these foods?

First, let's break down the science: we burn calories as we eat, regardless of the food. However, some foods burn more calories than others. This phenomenon is called the Thermic Effect Of Feeding and accounts for roughly 10% of the calories burned daily. We will discuss the chart below in another edition of The Lean Executive.

Different macronutrients burn calories at different rates: proteins can burn anywhere between 20-30%, carbohydrates anywhere between 5-10%, and fats anywhere between 0-3%.

Which foods give you the most bang for your buck? Here are my top 4:

1. Chicken and turkey. Breast or lean ground.

2. Eggs. They have a higher thermogenic effect compared to carbohydrate or fat-based alternatives.

3. Wild-caught seafood. Studies suggest that fish oils may augment the action of thyroid hormones, which play a significant role in metabolism regulation.

4. Cottage cheese. If you buy cottage cheese, and it has a sweet taste, it is not cottage cheese; it is a full-on sugary mix. Cottage cheese must taste sour.

Research shows that a high-protein diet resulted in a twofold increase in calories burned compared to a high-carbohydrate diet.

Do you also want to use fats for energy instead of sugars?

Let's delve into the science once more. When carbohydrates and fats are consumed simultaneously, your body prioritizes the use of carbohydrates for energy. Therefore, to promote the utilization of fat as a fuel source, it's necessary to reduce your intake of carbohydrates. Additionally, avoid consuming high amounts of both carbohydrates and fats in the same meal.

We will break down how to use fat as fuel for 90% of your day through an easy-to-use framework in one of our upcoming issues

How to burn calories during sleep?

First, you have to teach your body that fat is the most attractive source of energy for when you are not exercising. The ability of your body to choose between fat and carbohydrates for fuel is called Metabolic Flexibility. Most men are metabolically inflexible and tend to rely more on carbs for energy.

To fix this, try only eating carbs after your workout or before you sleep, but only once a day. By doing this, your body has to learn to use fat for energy because it doesn't have any other option. This helps your body get better at burning fat for fuel, even while you're sleeping. Inside The Lean Executive, we will provide you with a full framework to improve your metabolic flexibility in one of our upcoming issues.

TL;DR:

• You can burn calories whilst sleeping if you are metabolically flexible.

• Make protein the main macronutrient in your meals.

• There are no magic foods, just science.

• The more you eat, the more you burn.

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Diego Carrete

Chief Executive Officer @ FIT LIFE FZCO

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