Best Foods for Weight Loss and What to Eat
The best foods for weight loss are everyday foods from the five food groups that fill you up for fewer kilojoules: vegetables and legumes, fruit, wholegrains, lean protein foods and mostly reduced fat dairy, with water to drink. No single food burns fat on its own. What counts is your overall eating pattern and how much energy it adds up to.
This is general information, not medical advice. Outcomes vary between individuals, and a GP or accredited practising dietitian can help you plan meals that suit your health.
On this page
- Key Points
- Is There One Best Food for Weight Loss?
- The Best Foods for Weight Loss, by Food Group
- Why Some Foods Fill You Up for Fewer Kilojoules
- A Simple Plate Model for Meals
- What to Eat Across the Day
- Foods and Drinks to Limit
- Food Works Best With Physical Activity
- When to Get Help
- Frequently Asked Questions
Key Points
No single food burns body fat. Weight loss comes from taking in less energy than you use, through a healthy diet and regular physical activity.
Foods high in fibre, such as vegetables, fruit, wholegrains and legumes, give a feeling of fullness for relatively few kilojoules.
A plate that is half vegetables or salad, a quarter lean protein and a quarter lower GI carbohydrate is a simple model for meals (Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute).
Foods outside the five groups, such as biscuits, chips, soft drink and alcohol, are high in kilojoules and low in nutrients, so they are the ones to keep to a minimum.
Results vary between individuals, so a GP or dietitian can help tailor these choices to you.
Is There One Best Food for Weight Loss?
No. There are no magical foods or food combinations that make you lose weight, and claims that foods such as grapefruit, celery or kelp burn fat or speed up metabolism are not true. Foods sold as superfoods are often nutritious, but a few of them added to a poor diet will not change much. Your overall pattern of eating has the biggest impact on your health.
Cutting out whole food groups, or eating only "clean" or organic foods, will not necessarily lead to weight loss either, and it can mean missing out on nutrients. Diets that ban certain foods, recommend "detoxing" or need expensive supplements and shakes are signs of a fad diet (healthdirect).
Weight comes down when you take in less energy than your body uses, whether that energy comes from fat, carbohydrate or protein. To see how that gap is worked out, read what a calorie deficit is. The foods below help because they fill you up and supply nutrients without many extra kilojoules.
The Best Foods for Weight Loss, by Food Group
Australia's dietary guidelines recommend a wide variety of nutritious foods from five groups every day, and plenty of water. The table shows good choices within each group and why they help when you are trying to lose weight.
| Food group | Good choices | Why it helps |
|---|---|---|
| Vegetables and legumes | Salad leaves, broccoli, carrots, beans, lentils | Fewest kilojoules per serve, plenty of fibre |
| Fruit | Whole apples, bananas, oranges, pears | Fibre and vitamins, whole fruit over juice |
| Grain foods, mostly wholegrain | Oats, barley, quinoa, wholegrain bread | Fibre, and lower GI options help fullness |
| Lean protein foods | Fish, chicken, lean meat, eggs, tofu | Protein can help you feel fuller for longer |
| Milk, yoghurt, cheese | Mostly reduced fat milk and yoghurt | Calcium and protein |
| Drinks | Water, plain milk | Water has no kilojoules |
Sources for the table: Eat for Health, the Better Health Channel and healthdirect (see References).
A few notes on the choices:
Legumes. Beans, chickpeas and lentils count in both the vegetable group and the protein group.
Fruit. Fruit juice and dried fruit count as a serve of fruit only occasionally.
Grain foods. Lower GI foods are less refined and take longer to digest.
Protein foods. Most Australians already get more than enough protein from food alone, and very high protein diets are not recommended. For a closer look at protein, carbohydrate and fat, see working out your macros for weight loss.
Why Some Foods Fill You Up for Fewer Kilojoules
Fibre comes closest to having special qualities for weight loss, because it gives a feeling of fullness with minimal kilojoules. High fibre foods tend to have a lower energy density, so the same amount of food carries fewer kilojoules. Soluble fibre also slows the emptying of the stomach, which extends the time you feel full. Protein helps in a different way: a higher protein diet can help you feel fuller for longer, as part of balanced meals.
Standard serve sizes show the difference. A serve from the grain, protein or dairy groups gives about 500 to 600 kJ, and a serve of vegetables gives 100 to 350 kJ. About 5 serves of green leafy vegetables, such as 5 cups of salad leaves, give about 500 to 600 kJ, roughly the same as one serve of grain food such as a slice of bread. A serve of discretionary food also gives about 600 kJ, but it is usually much smaller, less filling and low in fibre and nutrients.
| Food and amount | Energy |
|---|---|
| 5 cups salad leaves | about 500 to 600 kJ |
| 1 medium apple or banana | about 350 kJ |
| 1 slice (40 g) bread | about 500 kJ |
| 2 large eggs | about 500 to 600 kJ |
| 1 can (375 mL) soft drink | about 600 kJ |
| 2 to 3 sweet biscuits | about 600 kJ |
| 12 (60 g) hot chips | about 600 kJ |
The figures are standard serve values for each food group, not measured values for one brand. As a guide, 600 kJ is about 143 calories, because one calorie (kilocalorie) equals 4.2 kJ.
A Simple Plate Model for Meals
A plate model turns the food groups into a meal you can picture. The Baker Heart and Diabetes Institute's portion plate guide fills half the plate with vegetables or salad, a quarter with lean protein and a quarter with lower GI carbohydrate, such as wholegrain bread, sweet potato, corn or legumes. Eat for Health makes the same point about vegetables: making half of each meal coloured vegetables or salad, and having smaller portions of the other foods, can reduce the kilojoules by up to half.
A simple model for main meals. Amounts and needs vary between individuals.
To use the model:
Choose a smaller plate. Baker suggests plates less than 25 cm wide, or an entree plate if your dinner plates are larger.
Bulk up recipes with extra vegetables. A smaller serve of a favourite dish with a side salad still fits the model.
Add small amounts of healthy fats. Oils, nut butters and avocado add flavour and nutrition.
Choose water with meals. It keeps you hydrated without adding sugar.
Examples that fit the plate include chicken, vegetables and rice; fish, salad and quinoa; a lentil and vegetable salad; and an egg and vegetable omelette with toast.
What to Eat Across the Day
Across a whole day, the Australian Dietary Guidelines set a number of serves from each food group by age and sex, and taller or more active people may need extra serves. You can see the serves for adults in our guide on how to lose weight. Fruit and dairy are not on the plate, but they still count towards your daily serves. Fruit, nuts or wholemeal crackers make easy snacks.
Two habits make the food choices easier to stick to:
Plan ahead. Planning meals and snacks spreads your serves across the day, makes shopping easier and helps you avoid unplanned extras.
Keep a regular pattern of eating. Skipping meals can leave you tired and more likely to overeat later, and it is unlikely to help with weight loss over the long term.
To set an energy target for the day, see how many calories a day to lose weight.
Foods and Drinks to Limit
Some foods and drinks do not belong to the five food groups. They are high in saturated fat, added sugars, added salt or alcohol, often low in fibre, and high in kilojoules. If you are trying to lose weight, you are unlikely to be able to fit them into a lower kilojoule target, and Eat for Health advises keeping them to a minimum. They include:
biscuits, cakes, pastries, pies and doughnuts
processed meats, sausages, salami and bacon
potato chips, crisps, fried foods, commercial burgers and pizza
lollies, chocolate and ice cream
soft drinks, cordials, sports and energy drinks
alcohol
Sugary drinks are easy to have too much of, because they do not make you feel full. Alcohol has almost as much energy as fat: one standard drink has 10 g of alcohol, or 290 kJ. Alcohol can also lower inhibitions, which makes cravings for less healthy foods more likely.
Food Works Best With Physical Activity
Food and activity work best together. The best long-term approach is to change the way you eat and increase your level of physical activity, and regular exercise is critical for long-term weight loss success (Better Health). Australia's physical activity guidelines recommend moderate to vigorous activity for 30 minutes or more on most days, and muscle-strengthening activities on 2 or more days a week. For ideas on adding movement to your day, see how many steps a day to lose weight. If exercise is hard for you right now, read how to lose weight without exercise.
When to Get Help
If you are not sure where to start, an accredited practising dietitian can give you eating advice tailored to your health and lifestyle, and a GP can talk with you about your diet, exercise and a referral to a dietitian. If you have a health condition such as diabetes or heart disease, fad diets can be especially harmful to your health, so talk to your GP before trying one.
For some adults living with obesity, a doctor or nurse practitioner may discuss medical weight loss treatment as one option. Weight loss medication is used while you reduce your kilojoule intake and increase your physical activity, and it has side effects and can be harmful for some people. Whether any treatment fits is for a registered healthcare practitioner to decide after an individual assessment, and outcomes vary between individuals. To learn more, see how medical weight loss programs work.
Good food choices help most people, yet some adults living with overweight or obesity need more support, so Burst Health provides medical weight loss plans online, reviewed by an Australian-registered doctor or nurse practitioner: check whether you are eligible.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which food is best for losing weight?
No single food is best. The most helpful foods are vegetables, legumes, fruit, wholegrains and lean protein foods, because they fill you up and supply nutrients for relatively few kilojoules. Vegetables give the fewest kilojoules per serve. Weight loss depends on your whole eating pattern and your activity, and results vary between individuals.
What foods help burn belly fat?
No food burns belly fat. It is not possible to target where on the body weight comes off, so belly fat can reduce as part of overall weight loss, through a healthy diet and regular physical activity, and results vary between individuals. Vegetables, wholegrains and lean protein foods help by keeping you full. For more, see our guide on how to lose belly fat.
What is the best drink for weight loss?
Water is the best choice. It has no kilojoules, and plain milk is another good choice because it carries nutrients along with its energy. Soft drinks, sports drinks, flavoured milks and alcohol add energy, usually from added sugars, without the other nutrients. Cutting back on sugary drinks and alcohol is a simple place to start.
Which foods should you cut back on to lose weight?
Start with discretionary foods and drinks, such as biscuits, cakes, chips, lollies and soft drinks. A can of soft drink carries about the same energy as 5 cups of salad leaves, but it is much less filling. Swapping these foods for choices from the five food groups, planning for eating out and limiting portion size are practical ways to cut down.
Do you need to eat 3 meals a day to lose weight?
Not necessarily. A balanced diet often starts with 3 meals a day (healthdirect), and Better Health advises a regular pattern of eating that you stick to. Intermittent fasting, such as eating only within set hours, generally leads to similar weight loss as a standard reduced kilojoule diet, and results vary between individuals. As with any eating plan, being able to keep it up is key.
Medical weight loss plans, online
In three steps.
- 1Answer a quick questionnaireOnline, no appointment, no in-person visit.
- 2A practitioner reviews itAn Australian-registered doctor or nurse practitioner decides whether treatment is suitable for you.
- 3Start your planIf treatment is suitable, you start your plan with the practitioner supporting you throughout.
References
Eat for Health (NHMRC). Australian dietary guidelines 1 - 5.
Eat for Health (NHMRC). Discretionary food and drink choices.
Better Health Channel (Victorian Government). Weight loss: common myths.
Better Health Channel (Victorian Government). Dietary fibre.
University of Sydney. Spot reduction: why targeting weight loss to a specific area is a myth.
This article is general information only and does not replace individual medical advice. Please speak with a registered Australian healthcare practitioner about your own circumstances.