12 Foods To Avoid Immediately If You Are Serious About Getting Fit

There are lots of foods labeled "healthy" out there. This branding on many packaged products can be both confusing and misleading. Words like healthy, whole grain, and natural are not the best way to know the quality of what's under the wrapper or sealed in the bottle.

Here are a list of some super popular foods that market themselves as "healthy" but are in fact usually sugar or sodium bombs or so incredibly processed we are not sure that they should qualify as food. These foods may have fooled you back in the day, but now you're older and wiser. No more excuses! If you have any of these in your fridge or cupboards get rid of them ASAP.  

1. Granola (Ahem, Candy) Bars

Now you know to look at the sugar and fiber content before you buy one of these ready-to-eat snacks. But back in the '90s...not so much.

2. 100 Percent Fruit Juice

It's kind of hard to believe you used to have a big glass of sugar—sorry, orange juice—with breakfast every single morning.  

3. Low-Fat Crackers

These might have had a slight caloric edge on the regular version. But that definitely didn't mean eating half a box in one sitting was a smart idea, which is exactly what you did (at least if you were anything like us).  

4. Frozen Diet Meals

They have fewer than 400 calories! ...And more than a quarter of your daily recommended intake of sodium.  

5. Health Drinks

Whether it was instant breakfasts, weight-loss shakes, or vitamin-infused waters, now you know: H2O will always be the gold standard when it comes to hydration—and real food is the best place to get your nutrition, not mixes or bottles.   [bctt tweet="12 Foods To Avoid Immediately If You Are Serious About Getting Fit"]

6. 100-Calorie Packs of Cookies

As much as we hate to admit it, 100-calorie packs of sweets are still sweets...and that "less than one gram" of fiber, along with all of the sugar, leaves you hungry for another snack in no time.  

7. Muffins

These cupcakes-in-disguise haven't fooled their last unsuspecting victim, but we're not falling for it anymore. These puppies can pack 400+ calories and enough sugar to fill a sack.  

8. Margarine

The second cousin to plastics. And this was back in the days before they removed most of the trans fats from the faux butter.  

9. Rice Cakes

Yeah, these don't have much in the way of calories...or nutrition.

10. “Real” Fruit Snacks

Even straight-up candy (we won't name names) says on the package that it's "made with real fruit." You may have fooled us back in the day, fruit snacks. But now...  

11. Fig-Filled Cookies

Again, still cookies...  

12. Fruit-on-the-Bottom Yogurt

Finally, you know these for what they really are: sugar bombs.      

Source: womenshealthmag.com