Healthy And Light Dinners To Lose Weight

You don’t have to skip meals to lose weight. In fact, knowing how to prepare them with foods of high nutritional quality is the best option to ensure a healthy weight. Explore some dining options.

If you are trying to lose weight, you should be aware that skipping main meals or going for long periods of time without eating is not recommended. In the evening, it is enough to choose healthy and light dinners, prepared with ingredients of high nutritional quality.

While the idea that avoiding that last meal of the day generates a calorie deficit has spread widely, scientific evidence shows that the key lies in the foods you choose to prepare dinner. What should you take into account?

Healthy and light dinners to lose weight

Dinner is one of the five meals that are part of a healthy diet, if it is balanced and suitable for each person. Several studies suggest its weight loss benefits, especially when ingested two hours before going to bed.

In addition, it serves to reduce the time of night fasting; thanks to it, we will better control our appetite the next day. Indeed, you can rest easy if you eat meat, chicken or a source of carbohydrates such as rice or pasta. We will now give you some ideas.

Have a healthy meal

Basing your diet on healthy options  increases the likelihood of maintaining a normal and stable weight. Thus, the Mediterranean diet, for example, is one of those that has shown the most preventive effects in relation to cardiovascular and metabolic diseases such as obesity.

It consists mostly of foods of plant origin, which provide antioxidant compounds such as polyphenols, flavonoids and phytosterols. It also provides sources of protein and fatty acids, essential macronutrients for any diet. What can it contain?

• Whole grains
• Fruits
• Vegetables
• Legumes
• Oil seeds like flax and chia
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Fish and seafood
• Skimmed dairy products
• Lean red meats and eggs in moderate quantities
• Water in abundance

Of course, in addition to that, there are other food styles that you can use as a benchmark for healthy eating. The key is to avoid consuming ultra-processed foods, which are too nutritionally fair.

When it comes to cooking, if you are looking to prepare healthy and light dinners,  avoid frying and opt for grilling, steaming, baking and other similar modes. Check out some ideas to make at home.

1. Fish fillet with vegetables and potatoes

Marine fish provide healthy omega-3 fats. This dish, in addition to being light, is practical because it only takes about 20 minutes to prepare it.

Ingredients

• 1 fillet of hake
• 1 small carrot
• 1/4 red pepper
• 1/2 cup spinach (130 g)
• 1/2 small potato
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil (8 g)
• 1 tablespoon of seeds (8 g)
• Salt and condiments at will

Preparation

• First, cut the vegetables and put them to a boil.
• Meanwhile, salt and add condiments to taste on the fillet.
• Heat a pan with olive oil and cook the fillet.
• When you see that the vegetables are cooked, pass them, put them on a plate, season and add the seeds.
• Remove the fillet from the heat and serve it with the rest of the preparation.

2. Noodles with vegetable sauce

Who says you can’t eat carbohydrates because they make you fat? The most important thing is to consume them with vegetables  to achieve a balance in the preparations. So, if you love this dish, here is one of its recipes that you will love to try at dinner time.

Ingredients

• 1/2 plate of noodles (150 g)
• 1 tomato
• 1 small onion
• 1/2 carrot
• 1/2 cup of broccoli
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil (8 g)
• Grated cheese
• Salt and condiments according to your tastes

Preparation

• First, boil the noodles.
• While they cook, peel all the vegetables.
• Cook them over medium heat (it is not necessary to add oil).
• When they are cooked, season and salt them according to your preferences.
• Once the noodles are cooked, pass them, pour them on a plate and add the olive oil.
• Finally, add the amount of sauce you want as well as the grated cheese, at will!

3. Chicken with mustard accompanied by a salad

Salads are great for healthy, light dinners because they are low in calories. However, if you consume them unaccompanied, you will quickly get hungry. This is why, in this case, we suggest you add a portion of protein with the chicken.

Ingredients

• Skinless chicken (200 g)
• 1 tablespoon of mustard (15 g)
• 1 tablespoon of olive oil (8 g)
• 1/2 cup of arugula (100 g)
• 1 tomato
• Salt and condiments

Preparation

• To start, season and salt the chicken. Then cover it with mustard.
• Cook it on the plancha or in the oven with olive oil.
• Cut the vegetables.
• Serve on a plate and enjoy!

What should you keep in mind about light meals for weight loss?

Losing weight should not be synonymous with skipping the main meals. Even though fasting has grown in popularity lately, that doesn’t mean you have to stick to it. Knowing how to choose healthy and light options for dinner is enough to monitor your weight and health.

Ideally, vegetables and protein sources are present there. There is also room for carbohydrates, although it should be in a moderate way. Of course, as always, try to combine your diet with exercise for best results.