“Can You Eat Pasta on a Diet?” Here’s the Best Pasta for Weight Loss
So, you'd like to drop a few pounds? We've all been there. Even if we appreciate our bodies for all they do, chances are we've had a moment (or a pair of tight pants) that makes us realize that we need to rein in our eating a bit.
What do most of us do when we want to lose some weight? We take a look at our eating habits and make some adjustments. We hit the gym more frequently, and we start a dreaded "diet." We give up cake, cookies, and our favorite foods like pasta.
Hold up. What if you could still eat pasta on a diet? Here’s the best pasta for weight loss—an amazing noodle that won’t derail your progress.
TO DIET OR NOT TO DIET
We all follow a diet of some sort. Most of the time, we probably follow a flexible diet where we eat whatever we crave. “Diet” just means our eating habits.
Some people follow a vegetarian diet, a pescatarian diet, or even a fast-food diet. There's nothing inherently "wrong" with eating and enjoying food. Our bodies need food for fuel. Food gives us energy, provides our body with nutrients and is required for life itself.
When our current diet becomes a problem, it usually means we've stopped thinking about what we're consuming. Maybe we're turning to food for comfort, or perhaps we're just indulging in a full social calendar, and food is part of that. Sometimes weight gain can sneak up on us—a few pounds over the holidays or some weight gain on vacation. We might be eating healthily, but not quite as healthily as we used to.
Food itself is wonderful. It connects us to our memories, our history, our culture. We all enjoy eating certain foods, whether it’s a big bowl of spaghetti, a takeout container of our favorite fried rice, or another comforting dish. Food feels like home.
But when our diet means eating more calories than we’re regularly burning, we may start to notice changes in our body. Most people first gain weight around the middle or lower bodies (hips and thighs). We might see that our clothes feel a little tighter or that we feel more run down and sluggish.
When we notice that we’ve put on a few pounds (or more), most of us reach a point where we decide to make a shift in our eating habits. We decide to adopt a new diet. We might research options like South Beach, Whole 30, Paleo, Atkins, or Keto. We might try giving up certain foods like dairy, sugar, or flour.
It’s usually when we start to give up certain foods that “diet” becomes synonymous with deprivation. Instead of thinking about nourishing our bodies with delicious, healthy food, we might think about all the dishes we’ve had to give up. As a result, we feel FOMO for our yummy food faves.
The most successful diets don’t require us to give up the foods we love. Instead, they shift us toward healthier versions of those foods. These healthy diets offer slow and steady weight loss by gradually increasing our caloric deficiency (helping us burn more calories than we eat).
One of the secrets to a successful diet? Allowing yourself to have healthier takes on the dishes you already love—dishes like pasta!
IS PASTA BAD FOR WEIGHT LOSS?
You might be wondering, is pasta bad for weight loss? Does pasta derail my diet? Maybe you've heard a lot about carbs in pasta, and the diet plan you've decided to follow is a low carb, high protein plan, like keto or paleo (very effective diets).
Traditional pasta is made from white or durum wheat flour, water, and sometimes eggs. It was first created many years ago. Italian pasta as we know it was invented sometime in the 13th or 14th century. Asian noodles were consumed thousands of years ago, with the earliest records dating back to the Han dynasty.
Many countries have variations on pasta of their own, from spaetzle in Germany to orzo in Greece. In Africa, couscous is a popular pasta dish. Around the world, pasta noodles are universally enjoyed and loved. Pasta really is the world's comfort food.
The word for pasta comes from the Italian word for “paste,” in reference to the paste-like dough that serves as pasta’s base. Pasta is enjoyed with many different sauces and flavors—everything from curry noodles to spicy sausage Bolognese
Pasta came to the United States with the early Spanish settlers, but it took a while to gain popularity. Thomas Jefferson enjoyed pasta so much during his travels to Europe that he promoted the delicious dish in the new country. All pasta was called "macaroni" back then, hence the line from Yankee Doodle Dandy.
Today, pasta is enjoyed in many different dishes and many different ways. From your favorite takeout to a romantic restaurant meal, pasta is beloved.
So why, then, would we want to give all that up for a diet? Is pasta bad for weight loss? Is there a healthy pasta for weight loss that you can still enjoy?
MEET IT’S SKINNY—THE 9 CALORIE NOODLE
If you’re on a diet, don’t fret. You don’t need to give up all those dishes you love so much. You simply need to find a new way to customize them and make them your own. Level up the health factor and turn down the calories.
A small bowl (about 1 cup) of traditional pasta has around 200 calories. That’s a lot of your calorie budget right there. Add in the sauce, protein, veggies, and of course, cheese, and you might be looking at over 1000 calories in the end. A bowl of restaurant fettuccine alfredo clocks in at a whopping 1010 calories. That translates to a four-hour walk or a two-hour run on the treadmill.
But don’t despair! You can still enjoy pasta on a diet. Meet It’s Skinny!
It’s Skinny pasta is the best pasta for weight loss because it has only 9 calories per bag. It contains no fat, no carbohydrates, and it’s vegan, gluten-free, and suitable for almost any diet. Does it sound too good to be true? Well, believe it!
The reason why It's Skinny is the best pasta for weight loss is something called konjac. Konjac is a root vegetable that’s similar to a turnip. It’s been popular in Asia for centuries—used as a base for shirataki noodles, as well as in other dishes and for medicinal purposes.
Konjac noodles are sometimes called miracle noodles, because well, obviously—9 calories per bag! It’s Skinny noodles are delicious and work with almost any pasta recipe. They come in four varieties: spaghetti, fettuccine, angel hair, and rice!
If you haven’t tried shirataki noodles before, you might wonder how to use and enjoy this pasta on your diet. It’s very simple—these noodles don’t require salting and boiling water, watching, and waiting. All you do is open the bag, drain, and toss the noodles in with your sauce and toppings during the last few minutes of cooking.
It's Skinny noodles are ideal for any dish because they take on the surrounding flavors of the other ingredients. The noodles aren't overpowering. Thanks to our unique formula, It’s Skinny noodles have a great pasta texture (unlike some other pasta alternatives).
You may have heard of other "diet pasta" like zucchini noodles or healthier pasta options made from grains and even beans. While these diet-friendly pasta options are okay, there are drawbacks. Zoodles and spaghetti squash offer low-carb pasta alternatives, but it's hard to get around the taste and texture. They tend to be watery and don't hold up well to certain sauces.
Whole wheat pasta and pasta made from beans, lentils, or other ingredients can also be less-than-ideal. The texture is often not-quite-right, and although they may have more fiber and fewer calories, they often still contain a significant number of carbs. No other pasta can beat the 9-calorie stats of It’s Skinny.
It’s Skinny pasta is plant-based, made with just a few ingredients. Our pasta has fiber to keep you full, but it won't weigh you down or leave you in a carb coma as other pastas can. It’s Skinny is the best pasta for weight loss and fits with most diet plans—keto, vegan, vegetarian, paleo, and more.
If you’re hoping to slim down and lose weight fast, It’s Skinny can help. Fill up on protein and sauces that you love, without the extra calories in pasta. You'll love It's Skinny, and you'll hit your goal weight before you know it!
Ready to try It's Skinny pasta? Shop now and order a convenient six-pack of any variety today!
