3 Ways Apples Can Help You Lose Weight

Breakfast: Low-Calorie Swap Oatmeal for breakfast is an excellent choice. You can sweeten your bowl of oats with maple syrup (one eighth of a cup is 100 calories) or pour on four times as much unsweetened applesauce instead: half a cup contains 52 calories. Make this switch for a whole week of breakfasts, and you'll not only save 336 calories, you'll gain 10.5 grams of filling fiber.

Morning or Afternoon Snack: Fill Up on Fiber to Prevent Mindless Snacking Full of flavor, apples are also great sources of hunger-satiating fiber. Snack on one large apple (with the skin) for 116 calories, and you'll consume 5.4 grams of fiber. The high water content and amazing amount of fiber will keep you full until your next meal, curbing hunger, and preventing the temptation to reach for a high-calorie nibble.

Dessert: Skip the Calorie Bombs Half a cup of chocolate ice cream contains 250 calories. Two homemade chocolate chip cookies contain 178 calories. Half a Green & Black's Organic Dark Chocolate Bar contains 300 calories.

Holy calories! After-dinner treats can really add up if you make a habit of indulging every night, so save your calories and enjoy a naturally sweet treat instead. Slice a small apple (77 calories), drizzle it with one tablespoon of honey (64 calories), and sprinkle on cinnamon for 141 calories. For a more decadent "dessert," remove the core from a raw apple, stuff it with a few chopped walnuts and raisins, a small dollop of honey, pop it in the oven, and enjoy a treat for even fewer calories.