The simple secret to staying slim in eating more soup, a new book has claimed. “Slim people know that a tasty bowl of soup fills them up, crushes cravings, keeps them energised for hours and is hard to beat for good all-round nourishment,” the Daily Mail quoted Fiona Kirk, best-selling author of diet books, as saying. In ‘Soup Can Make You Thin’, Kirk added that sticking to soup can mean shifting those stubborn pounds in as little as 10 days. She also expounded the virtues of variety as long as it’s soup and said that it is not just the cabbage soup diet in disguise. “There are as many reasons why some of us struggle to lose weight and others don’t as there are varieties of soup to choose from but increasing evidence shows that the main stumbling blocks to getting slim and staying slim are hunger, cravings, diet boredom and lack of essential nutrients,” Kirk said. “Soup is simply a miracle in a bowl for fat loss. The combination of water and solids fills you up more effectively and for longer than if you eat exactly the same food but drink the water separately - plus the water and water content of the vegetables in soup allows for efficient exchange of nutrients into body cells, greatly reducing the possibility of bloating,” she said. In short, not only does soup keep you slim, but it keeps your nutrient levels topped up too - a double whammy of benefits according to Kirk. Choose soups that are rich in protein or add protein toppings to keep you nourished for longer while keeping the calorie count low. Add healthy fats like olive oil to fill you up, keep you energised and stem cravings, and include herbs and spices in your soups to fire up your metabolism and cut down on salt. “The wealth of ingredients in a bowl of soup provides a good balance of carbohydrates, protein and fats as well as the vitamins and minerals required to create energy and keep us firing on all cylinders,” Kirk said. “Vegetables which are always in evidence in soup provide good levels of fibre to keep digestion in good shape and make getting our five a day a no brainer. “And, soup is easy on the pocket, quick to make, widely available, easily transportable and diet boredom won’t be on the cards as the choices are endless,” she said. According to Kirk, what’s more is that you won’t risk dropping the ball at breakfast because soup happens to be a brilliant choice for breakfast too. “Breakfasting on soup might be alien concept to many but once you have tried it you may never again want to run out the door on just a slice of toast!” she added. ‘Soup Can Make You Thin’ also has 26 different soup recipes split into three categories. “SuperSkinny Soups” are for when you want to lose flab fast, “Skinny Soups” for continued fat loss and “FatBustForever Soups” for when you are close to your goal and want to maintain your new lean look. There are also plenty of recommendations about which ready-made soups to choose off the shelves and when eating out. Source: Indian Express, Image: flickr.com
