Foods to Avoid

The following foods are dense with carbohydrates and will spike your blood sugars and inhibit your ability to burn fat. Instead, they promote fat storage. Many of these items are also devoid of nutritional value. As a result, avoid these foods during the Weight Loss phase of the program. Depending on your personal level of carbohydrate tolerance, you may be able to introduce limited amounts of the least processed options back into your eating plan during the Lifestyle (weight maintenance) phase. For now, consuming any of these foods will spur cravings and hunger and limit your weight loss.

High Sugar Fruits

• Dates, mango, sweetened dried fruits

Grains

• Bulgur, couscous, oatmeal, quinoa, rice (all)

Refined Carbohydrates

• Breads, cereal, chips, crackers, granola, pasta, popcorn

Starches

• Corn, green peas, kohlrabi bulb, parsnips, potatoes (all), yams

Sweets

• Baked goods, candy (even sugar free or no sugar added), deserts

Sugars

• Agave nectar, cane syrup, cane sugar, cane crystals fruit juices, honey, molasses, sugar (white, brown, cane, powdered), syrups (maple, chocolate, cane)

Hidden Sugars

• Corn syrup, corn syrup solids, corn sweetener, dextrose, dextran, dextrin, evaporated cane juice, high fructose corn syrup, malt syrup, maltodextrin, maltose, rice syrup, sucrose, fructose, glucose, lactose, Truvia

Remember, sugar is added to 80% of items in the grocery store, and it is often hidden in different forms within the ingredient list. Read ingredients carefully to be sure to avoid sugars like those noted above.