How to Lose Weight with Nigerian Foods that Are the Most Popular

Would you believe it if I told you that you can lose weight with Nigerian foods?

As in, you can still continue to enjoy hot puff puff while dropping several dress sizes.

I’ve done it and so many other Nigerian women have done it as well.

So, don’t be discouraged if you’ve been trying for a while but haven’t seen the results that you want. 

The key is to change how you approach these 5 popular Nigerian foods.[sociallocker]

• Jollof/Fried Rice
• Dodo
• Bread and eggs
• Drumsticks
• Juices

These are the foods we tend to eat the most of.

If you can change how you approach these 5 Nigerian foods, you can lose weight on a Nigerian diet faster.

Lose Weight with Nigerian Foods: Jollof/Fried Rice

Cook your jollof/fried rice with brown rice.

I hope you’re not thinking: 

“Ayama! I don’t like brown rice!!!” 

Using brown rice instead of white rice is one of the simplest ways to quickly start seeing progress. 

Good quality brown rice has more fiber and nutrients than white rice. 

It fills you up for longer and it’s harder to overeat. 

If you really don’t like brown rice, try mixing it with white rice to start.

Then little by little, reduce the white rice you’re adding. With time and patience, you will develop a taste for 100% brown rice. 

Lose Weight with Nigerian Foods: Dodo

Grill or roast but never fry your plantains.

Frying adds many unnecessary calories and slows down your progress with losing weight. 

Grilling or broiling (roasting) in an oven works just as well but without all the added calories.

Lose Weight with Nigerian Foods: Bread & Eggs

I’m sure you can already guess what to change here.

Yes, stop eating white bread and choose 100% whole grain wheat bread instead. 

If the thought of wheat bread makes you want to vomit, don’t worry. 

Try this trick.

When making a sandwich, put white bread on one side and wheat bread on the other side. 

After a few weeks of doing this, you will develop the courage to use wheat bread for both slices. 

With eggs, opt for boiled eggs. For fried eggs, use a non-stick pan. Also, use a measuring spoon (rather than pouring oil from the bottle).

This will allow you to have much greater control over the amount of calories in the finished meal.

Lose Weight with Nigerian Foods: Drumsticks

Drumsticks are good because they are a high protein food. 

The only issue is, drumsticks are also quite high in fat.

To lose weight on a Nigerian diet, replace your drumsticks with leaner protein sources.

A good example of a lean protein source is chicken breast. 

See this list for quality high protein Nigerian foods.

Lose Weight with Nigerian Foods: Juices

There is a misconception in the Nigerian community that juice is just as good as water.

This is completely false.

Most commercially sold juices contain more sugar than actual juice.

Even if you squeeze the juice fresh, it’s still quite high in calories from the sugar in the fruit. 

Instead of juice, always choose water.

If water is not available, choose whole fruit over fruit juice.  

BONUS TIP

Finally, be sure to incorporate exercise into your weekly routine.

One of the best forms of exercise you can do to lose weight is High Intensity Interval Training (HIIT).

This form of exercise was a big part of my success in losing weight after baby. 

See Daily Burn for lots of good HIIT workout plans. 

With these simple adjustments, you will be well on your way to losing weight while enjoying all of your favorite Nigerian foods! 

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