During the pandemic when everyone’s on lockdown and not moving around a lot, we face weight gain problems. And talking and working on weight loss could be a quite difficult journey. Weight loss involves so many factors like a balanced diet, correct exercises, and good protein intake. A balanced diet could be a little tricky to follow which is why here we have presented some health specialist secrets of including olive oil into your daily life for quick weight loss. There are numerous benefits of olive oil for skin and hair along with weight loss. Quick recipes for olive oil are shared for incorporation into your diet. If this is something that interests you, then keep reading.
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There is no way olive oil is everywhere these days, on salads, on pizzas, while cooking, and included in many other recipes. Because of its immaculate health benefits, this Mediterranean oil is extracted from fresh olives, processed, and used. Research has shown that olive oil is helpful for weight loss as well as some other health problems like inflammation, and blood pressure raises the level of good cholesterol, and helps keep a healthy heart and brain.
Olive Oil For Weight Loss
1. Has Compounds That Promote Weight Loss
Especially extra virgin olive oil is extremely good for weight loss. Just because this is unprocessed and unrefined it is very beneficial for good health. It is made by grinding and cold pressing olives and extraction of fresh fat from the fruit is done. It contains unsaturated fatty acids which are considered quite better than saturated fats when talking about health and weight.
Plus it is said that olive oil contains 1% of oleic acid which helps to retain the antioxidants, also it doesn’t have any additives. It just has a bright green color with natural vitamins and minerals found in olive. They also contain MCTs which studies have shown to have a positive effect on weight loss. These are triglycerides containing fatty acids which can be absorbed by the liver and used for energy.
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2. Rich in antioxidants
Any food which is rich in antioxidants promotes a healthy immune system and metabolism. This could be the biggest health benefit of consuming this oil. A healthy metabolism leads to weight loss quicker than usual. Also, this helps the body to resist inflammation and infections.
3. Enriched with calories
You must be wondering how this is a good thing, let me clear one fact the calories to take don’t necessarily correlate with weight gain. Also, olive oil contains fats that have been proven to the reduction of weight.
Research conducted showed that people who consumed more olive oil and calories lost more weight quickly. Thus including and consuming more olive oil helps in losing extra weight.
Olive-Oil Recipes for Weight Loss
Olive oil can be incorporated into any part of your meal, be it a salad, a dip, a dressing, or just by replacing with your existing oil for roasting or frying anything. Some simple and easy go-to olive oil recipes are mentioned below :
1. Energy drink
Ingredients: 1 cup water, 1 cup of fresh spinach, small cucumber, ¼ cup parsley, a dash of lemon, ¾ tbsp olive oil, salt to taste
Procedure :
- Combine all the ingredients and blend them using a blender.
- Pepper on honey can be added as per your preference after blending for completing this drink.
This healthy olive oil drink can be consumed every day in the morning during breakfast for a quick loss of weight.
2. Lemonade
Ingredients: 1 cup water, a dash of lemon, one orange, honey
Procedure :
- Squeeze lemon juice and orange juice in a little water and blend them in a blender. Make sure to not make it too diluted.
- Add olive oil and refrigerate it till it’s cold enough.
- Serve it with a slice of lemon or honey as per your taste preference.
This drink can also be taken in the morning instead of water, it makes you feel fresh for the entire day. This helps with digestion and also helps in reducing belly fat.
3. Olive Oil and Gingers
Ginger produces a thermogenic effect in the body which could help burn fat easily. And as olive oil already has fat-burning properties, incorporating it with ginger helps with weight loss quicker than expected.
Ginger extract (or juice) can be mixed with olive oil for salads and dressings.
4. Cucumber Salad
Ingredients: 2 small cucumbers, 3 tbsp olive oil, salt, and pepper
Procedure :
- Cut the fresh cucumber into small pieces and add olive oil, salt, and pepper.
- Parsley or mint can also be added according to your preference.
Cucumbers help eliminate toxins from the body and thus help to drop the extra kilos. A healthy body from the inside always helps with weight loss faster. This salad can be consumed with any of your regular meals.
5. Pomegranate and Kiwi Salad
Ingredients: ¼ cup pomegranate kernels, 2 kiwis, iceberg lettuce, cottage cheese, garlic cloves, mint leaves, 1 tbsp orange juice, 1 tbsp lemon juice, 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, black pepper powder, and salt to taste.
Procedure :
- Roughly chop the kiwis after peeling them, also tear all the lettuce leaves and add them to a bowl.
- For the dressing, mix orange juice, lemon juice, garlic cloves, mint leaves, and extra virgin olive oil and grind them well. Add salt and pepper as per your preference and grind them together as well.
- Add the dressing to the bowl of kiwis and lettuce and roughly crumble the cottage cheese and add them to the bowl as well.
- Gently toss them till they are mixed completely and the salad is ready.
This salad is perfect for an evening snack since it is sour, sweet, and spicy altogether, and has all the protein balance which you need in a dish.
6. Cherry Tomato Salad
Ingredients: 500gm cherry tomatoes, olive oil, salt pepper
Procedure :
- Heat the olive oil in a pan and slowly roast the cherry tomatoes.
- Add salt and pepper as per taste and wait until the tomato skin shrivels up.
- Serve them hot immediately, don’t let the olive oil soak in completely.
This salad can be eaten with heavy meals such as meat and vegetables. Can be eaten once a day since cherry tomatoes also do have great health benefits.
Other Benefits
Along with weight loss, olive oil is also beneficial for many health, hair, and skin-related problems. In terms of health, it keeps the heart healthy, fights diabetes, and also helps with cancer-related problems. Olive oil has anti-aging properties which help in skin look better for a longer time as it acts as an antioxidant. Also adding olive oil to your hair provides them strength and also makes it smooth.
With all these benefits we can conclude that the use of olive oil could be very beneficial for you and also for weight loss. Try the recipes mentioned here and see your weight loss drastically.
Disclaimer
This article is purposive for intended general information and does not mark individual circumstances. It is not an alternative to professional advice or help and should not be relied on to make decisions of any kind. A licensed physician must be consulted to diagnose and treat any medical condition. Any decision you make depending upon the information highlighted here is strictly at your own risk and responsibility.