It’s Boring, But These 6 Foods Will Get You To 12% Body Fat

Now, before everyone goes crazy in the comments, let's get one thing straight. The key to getting lean is creating a calorie deficit. And the truth is, you can lose weight on Twinkies and protein shakes if you just eat less and move more. But there are foods that make losing belly fat easier because they make the deficit easier to sustain. Now, over the last 12 years of coaching, I've analyzed thousands of diets. Now, I can tell you with certainty that 90% of guys who fail to get lean do so because of the type of food they eat. And in this video, I'm gonna give you six underrated foods you should eat if you're looking to get to 15% body fat or less and actually stay there. Now, the first food on that list, and my personal top choice for starchy carbs, is boiled potato. And the type of carbohydrates you eat matters a lot. Pick the wrong ones and you're hungry two hours after a meal and you're looking for snacks the entire day. It makes the calorie deficit much harder to sustain. This is one of the reasons there's a trend on the internet right now called potato maxing. In the original satiety index study from 1995, boiled potato was ranked the most filling food on the entire list. It was 64% more filling than apples, 84% more filling than steak, and three times as filling as white bread. And this isn't the only study that found potatoes are great for satiety and fat loss. In one newer study, after a 12-hour fast, people ate lean meat without or mashed potatoes, rice, or pasta until they felt full. The potato meal let people eat 23% less calories than rice and 31% less calories than pasta. Another study showed that young teens ate 30 to 40% less calories when combining lean beef with boiled mashed potatoes instead of rice, pasta, baked French fries, and fried French fries. So without even trying, potatoes led to a lower calorie intake and fat loss. And 100 grams of boiled potato is only 80 calories. It's also very nutrient-dense and rich in potassium, vitamin C, B6, and fiber. Plus, if you let potatoes cool off and then eat them as a cold salad, you get resistant starch, a prebiotic fiber. This leads to improved blood sugar control, better insulin sensitivity, better gut health, and even more satiety. Bottom line, if you're not potato maxing and hitting the like button on my videos, you're missing out. Which brings me to the next underrated food, which is Greek yogurt. And if you're struggling to hit your protein target consistently, this solves a big part of that problem. Greek yogurt has been one of my staple foods over the last decade, as I've stayed between 10 and 15% body fat. My favorite one is 5-0%, apparently pronounced 5-yay. And I can eat up to 16 ounce or 450 grams with berries and nuts as my first meal. Comes out about 540 calories, 56 grams of protein, 46 grams of carbs, and about 16 grams of fat. I get a third of my daily protein intake in that one meal, and it keeps me full for at least five hours with no energy drops. And you see the same effect in research. In one study, high-protein breakfast increased satiety hormones and reduced hunger compared to a lower-protein, high-carb breakfast. This is the whole point. When your first meal is dialed in and high in protein, you stay full and you avoid random snacking. And if you're a busy guy, the meal I just described is ready to eat in five minutes, which is honestly why I kept this as a staple for so long. And the benefits go beyond fullness. High-quality Greek yogurt contains a variety of probiotics and it's great for digestion. Studies show that people with more diverse gut bacteria tend to carry less visceral fat around their organs, and fermented foods like Greek yogurt feed those bacteria. Now, I have one warning when you're buying Greek yogurt, and that's to always check the label. What you're looking for in 100 grams is about 10 grams of protein, three to four grams of carbs, and no more than five grams of fats. A common mistake people make is buying Greek-style yogurt, which is a low-protein version that's nowhere near as good. Another thing I've seen some of my clients do is mix their Greek yogurt with whey protein, and a few have even made high-protein cheesecakes from it. So there are many ways to leverage all the benefits from Greek yogurt. And by the way, if you'd like my help to set up your entire nutrition plan and accountability to implement, details for coaching are in the description below. Now, the next food you should definitely consider adding to your diet are berries. And this one goes beyond fat loss, because if you're a guy in your 40s and beyond, getting lean is only half the goal. The other half is health and longevity. Berries give you both. For example, in a recent study on a Mediterranean diet, eating foods high in polyphenols led to double the visceral fat loss, and berries are one of the richest polyphenol sources you can eat. Not to mention, one pound of strawberries has only 150 calories, and my personal favorite, blueberries, are only 250 calories per pound. Both are delicious and a great return on investment when it comes to satiety per calorie. Now, the health side is where berries really separate themselves. In one six-month study, people were given a placebo, half a cup or one cup a day of blueberries. The one-cup group improved their blood vessel function and had less stiff arteries. The half a cup and placebo group didn't see the same benefits. And this is just scratching the surface of all the benefits from eating berries. Now, frozen berries are also a great option if fresh ones are hard to get. Freezing preserves most of the nutrients, and it's very practical to eat them on a daily basis. I know a lot of people who add frozen berries to smoothies or combine them with yogurt. One of the things my kids enjoys when we mash frozen berries and create a healthy sorbet-style ice cream. So there's a lot of options with berries, and they're a great healthy choice to have around, especially if you have a bit of a sweet tooth. Now, speaking of managing a sweet tooth and losing fat, the next underrated food on the list is the king for that. I'm talking about melons. And I'm always surprised with how few people eat melons on a regular basis. I think a lot of people have eaten processed food for so long that they forgot how good a fresh melon can taste. I have a pretty big sweet tooth, and whenever I'm dieting, my go-to for hunger and cravings are melons. They're delicious and very low in calories. One pound of cantaloupe is only 154 calories, and a pound of watermelon has only 136 calories. Actually, recently, I saw a podcast clip of Jay Leno saying that he ate one whole watermelon every day and lost 50 pounds. Now, I don't know the details of his diet, but watermelon is very filling, and you can eat a lot for very few calories. Now, other than satiety, melons have multiple health benefits. You get better hydration, improved digestion, better skin health, lower blood pressure, and more electrolytes from a natural source. So if you're looking for something delicious and very high volume that still works, even if you got only, let's say, 1,800 calories, melons are a great choice. Now, so far, I've focused mostly on lower-calorie, higher-volume foods, but when it comes to getting lean and staying healthy, we also need enough protein, healthy fats, and essential micronutrients, and that's where eggs and egg whites come in. Two whole eggs plus five egg whites gives you around 30 grams of protein and 11 grams of healthy fats for roughly 230 calories. Eggs also had a good score on the satiety index, about 50% more filling than white bread, and in one study, dieters were given either an egg breakfast or a bagel breakfast for the same amount of calories. The egg group lost 65% more weight and reduced their waist size more. This is exactly why food choices matter. Calories still count, but some foods will lead to better satiety and food control for the entire day. Now, another advantage of eggs is really the flexibility. You can scramble them in five minutes, boil a bunch to have for the week, or make an omelet with vegetables and have a full meal ready for under 500 calories. Actually, you can boost protein for any meal using liquid egg whites, and this is actually the key. I've been experimenting with my diet for 15 years now, and I've realized that the best way to make fat loss easier is to choose simple, healthy foods that are low friction and very practical. Now, the next underrated food on this list has some very interesting research behind it for metabolic health, and that food is salmon. Salmon is very nutrient-dense and gives us something most people don't get enough of, EPA and DHA. These are omega-3 fats, which are linked to better heart health, lower triglyceride levels, lower inflammation, and long-term brain health benefits. 100 grams of cooked salmon also has around 25 grams of protein, making it a great protein source. Now, some types of salmon do have higher fat and more calories. This isn't unreasonable, but just make sure you don't skip tracking just because it's a healthy food. People make this mistake all the time and then get stuck. Now, when it comes to fat loss, the evidence is interesting. So omega-3s don't magically target belly fat, but some studies did show a small reduction in waist size, especially in overweight and obese people. Now, I'm not saying you're gonna eat salmon twice a week and then wake up with abs, but this is a type of food that fits well into a smart diet for those who are looking for health and longevity on top of fat loss. And that's why baked salmon with potatoes and vegetables is one of our staple family meals. We have it twice per week. My two young kids also enjoy it and ensures that they're getting enough DHA, which plays an important role during early brain development. And if you don't like salmon, sardines are a great alternative for getting your omega-3s with very low mercury levels. And with all these foods that I mentioned, the goal is ultimately to create staple meals that you enjoy, that are simple and easy to prepare, and then you can see yourself eating long-term. That's how this goes from being a temporary diet to lose some weight to becoming a lifestyle where you're consistently lean and healthy all year round without major fluctuations. And by the way, if you'd like me to coach you and hold you accountable through the whole process, details for coaching are in the description below. So check those out. And if you have a lot of belly fat to lose, not sure what to do, then I recommend this video next.