Nutrition

Can You Eat Pasta And Still Lose Weight?

eat pasta

Pasta gets a bad rap, and in some ‘diets’, it’s been blacklisted altogether. This is totally unnecessary! Calories per portion, yeh, pasta sits a little high. But the fact remains that you can still eat pasta and lose weight. Check out my top calorie saving tips below, to make the most of your next pasta meal.

Portions 

When it comes to the huge portions of pasta served when eating out, the calories can really add up. With pasta more than most other foods, portion control is key, and a sensible serving should not resemble Mount Everest. Until you have your meal portions and ingredient portion sizes figured out, it is worth investing in tools that help you portion, as well as kitchen scales and cup measurements. Doing this routinely, even in the short term, will ‘train your eyes’ and improve your ability to accurately eyeball your serving sizes when you’re eating out. 

Smart Sauces

Adding calorie-loaded sauces and dressings to any pasta dish can hugely impact how ‘healthy’ or not your meal is.

Heavy creams and oils can pack on hundreds and hundreds of unnecessary calories. This can be avoided by choosing sauces that are tomato-based or by making your own healthy dressings by reducing the ratio of calorific ingredients, or using alternate calorie friendly ingredients. 

Check out the clever switches we make in our Healthy 12WBT Mac and Cheese recipe.

Bulk Out

Reducing the ratio of pasta to ‘other ingredients’, can make eating pasta way more weight loss friendly. Pasta doesn’t need to be the star of the dish and you can add in lots of veggies, legumes, seafood/fish and meat for a hearty meal that doesn’t sacrifice on taste or satisfaction. This way you can still enjoy your favourite pasta recipe and even increase your serving size if you’re feeling more hungry than usual. 

Don’t Deprive Yourself

If you LOVE pasta, cutting it out entirely may induce feelings of deprivation and lead to overeating/binging on the very food you are trying to abstain from. By allowing yourself to eat pasta in smaller amounts and being sensible about how often, how much and what type, you’ll actually be able to stay consistent and keep cravings at bay. 

Type

 The type of pasta that you choose can make a world of difference! Opting for wholemeal over the standard white flour pasta will offer more fibre, a lower GI rating ( for longer sustained energy ) and less overall calories. And if these aren’t enough reasons to make the switch, it also tastes amazing!

Time of Day

Having large serves late in the evening may not be the best approach. While it is excellent to have a robust post-workout meal, if your meal-time ends up being too late in the day, it could be a good idea to keep your portions and ingredients lighter. A sensible meal time is essential to ensure your food is able to be processed by your digestive system while you sleep.  

Cook Al Dente 

Cooking your pasta ‘Al dente’ instead of cooked until completely soft, actually means the pasta is more nutritious. Yes, seriously!! This is because it’s easier to digest and offers a lower GI rating.

The Takeaway

Yes, you can still eat pasta and lose weight! You just need to be smart about how you do this, be honest with your portions and take into account calorie saving swaps.

Buon Appetito!

Get on top of your healthy habits with our 12WBT free trial! Find out how.

Louise McDonald, Cert III & Cert IV Fitness
Louise has been a Trainer and Wellness Coach for almost 20 years and is one of our experienced Support Crew members in Fitness, as our Lean and Strong Captain! Louise has worked passionately with all levels of fitness over the years across both Australia and the UK, where she has specialised in competition training with athletes for the last decade. She has worked closely with top level competitors and even our own 12WBT peeps to bring home a National Trophy! She lives, breathes, eats and sleeps weight training and is super passionate about teaching others how to reach their full potential.

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