Can you eat chia pudding for weight loss?

The answer is yes, yes you can. Try this easy and filling chia pudding meal prep for breakfast. It’s super easy to meal prep and enjoy during the week.

This post breaks down what are chia seeds, how to make chia pudding, and how to meal prep chia pudding for weight loss.

What Are Chia Seeds?

Chia seeds are the edible seeds of the Salvia hispanica plant. It originated from Central America, where it used to be a staple food for the Nahuatl (Ancient Aztec cultures). source

“Chia” means strength. The Mayan and Aztec people used the tiny black and white seeds of Chia as energy boosters. Chia seeds are one of the most nutrient dense food you can eat and are considered a “superfood”.

Chia pudding got it’s name from “chia seeds”, and you make it by soaking chia seeds in liquid using water or milk, or both. Chia seeds multiply in size when soaked in liquid even though they’re tiny little seeds.

Are chia seeds good for you? I explain below.

Are Chia Seeds Good For You?

Chia seeds are safe to eat and have no adverse effects on your health. They’re definitely good for you, if eaten in moderation.

As with anything, eating too much chia seeds has some negative side effects. But if added to your diet as part of a balanced diet and eaten in moderation, you’ll be fine.

Chia seeds are known for their rich source of heart healthy omega-3 fatty acids. The fatty acid content of chia seeds are mainly unsaturated fats. source

Let’s look at some other health benefits of chia seeds..

Health Benefits Of Chia Seeds

Chia seeds contains a ton of nutrients and provide some health benefits.

According to healthline, chia seeds are rich in antioxidants which helps to protect your body from oxidative stress by fighting free radicals.

• NUTRIENT DENSE: Chia seeds are well balanced in terms of nutrients and contain a good amount of protein, fibre, b-vitamins, thiamin, niacin, calcium and phosphorus.

• OMEGA 3: Chia seeds are the best plant based source of omega 3 fatty acids. This is great if you’re a vegan because you can add this superfood to your diet and reap the benefits. Omega 3 fatty acids help you reduce inflammation and are essential to your health. source

• FIBRE: Chia seeds are a rich source of fibre. It contains mostly insoluble fibre, about 95%, which is associated with reducing the risk of diabetes. source

• GLUTEN-FREE: Chia seeds are whole-grain and 100% gluten-free. This means it’s perfectly okay to add chia seeds to your diet if you have Celiac disease.

• PROTEIN: Chia seeds are a great source of high quality protein. Chia seeds has a ton of protein and is considered a complete source of protein because it contains all 9 essential amino acids your body can’t produce. source

Also, the protein content of Chia seeds contributes to the building of lean muscle mass.

Chia Seeds Nutritional Value

1 tbsp (12 grams) of Chia seeds provides the following nutrients:

• Calories: 58kcal
• Protein: 2 grams
• Carbs: 5 grams
• Fiber: 4 grams
• Fat: 3.7 grams

Source: Nutritionix

Can You Eat Chia Seeds For Weight Loss?

Yes you can eat chia seeds for weight loss. Chia seeds are very filling because of it’s high fibre content and will complement a weight loss diet.

The soluble fibre in chia seeds is an essential nutrient that can help you lose weight.

Fibre contributes to weight loss by adding bulk to food and will make you feel fuller longer. When you eat a diet high in fibre, it fills you up quickly so you don’t have to consume excess calories.

Eating chia seeds in the form of Chia pudding can help you lose weight if eaten in a calorie deficit. Calorie deficit is the most important factor for weight loss. source

Also because chia seeds are high in protein, you’ll burn more calories while digesting your food. This is due to the increasing of your metabolism while your body digests the protein content of the chia pudding. source

If you want a meal plan for weight loss, get my 6 weeks fat loss meal plan.

Side Effects Of Chia Seeds

Does eating too many chia seeds cause side effects?

According to healthline, eating too many chia seeds can cause digestive issues. This is due to the fibre content of chia seeds. Chia seeds provides 11grams of fibre per 28grams of chia seeds.

Fibre is good for your gut health but excessive fibre intake can cause abdominal pain and bloating.

Chia seeds are healthy to eat and should be part of your diet. Before eating chia seeds in the form of chia pudding, make sure you’re not allergic to chia seeds and drink lots of water to aid digestion.

How To Make Your Chia Pudding Meal Prep

Maple Blueberry Chia Pudding With Greek Yogurt

This chia pudding recipe is one of the very best I have tried and it’ll soon become your favourite. It is tasty, filling and very easy to make.

Check the recipe card below for the ingredients.

Chocolate Chia Pudding With Banana

This chia pudding recipe is very chocolatey and full of flavour. It pairs well with the banana and tastes exactly like you’d imagine, chocolatey.

Ingredients:

• 300ml Almond milk
• 100ml Water
• 2tsp (10g) Cocoa powder
• 5tbsp Chia seeds
• 1 medium Banana

Macronutrient breakdown for this chocolate chia pudding:

• Carbs: 50g
• Protein: 24g
• Fat: 26g
• Kcal: 545

Can You Eat Chia Pudding For Breakfast?

Chia pudding are so filling you can eat them for breakfast or lunch. One thing to remember is to add chia pudding to your diet slowly if you haven’t eaten chia seeds before.

Before making your chia pudding, try sprinkling 1tbsp of chia seeds to your morning oatmeal or smoothie to see if you’re not allergic to it.

As mentioned earlier, chia seeds contains a high amount of fibre. To prevent the negative symptoms of eating a high fibre diet, make sure to slowly increase your fibre intake and drink lots of water to help pass it through your body.

With this chia pudding meal prep, you can be confident you’ll eat a healthy and filling breakfast.

This post contains affiliate links to products on amazon. This means I will make a small commission if you purchase through the links of products listed in this post. These products are recommended because I personally use and trust them.

Where To Buy Your Chia Seeds

When shopping for chia seeds, make sure to buy the organic ones.

I have tried many chia seeds that I didn’t like because they weren’t organic and didn’t mix well in liquid.

This Superfood Organic Chia Seeds from amazon are the best chia seeds I have tried. It is my go-to chia seed because it is the highest of quality.

Conclusion

Chia pudding should really become a part for your diet for it’s health benefits and because they’re very easy to make.

When you do eat your chia pudding for weight loss or just as part of your diet, drink lots of water after. This chia pudding meal prep can be eaten cold and will keep you fuller for longer so you don’t have to snack and consume unnecessary calories.

If you want more healthy recipes for weight loss, check out this baked sweet potato meal prep.

Which of the 2 chia pudding recipes do you like best?

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