Fish is valued by nutritionists much more than meat. Protein, healthy unsaturated fatty acids, vitamins, micro- and macroelements - its composition is most beneficial for the human body. Its soft and delicate taste, variety of varieties and dishes - all this makes it a welcome guest on any table.
At the same time, everyone is so accustomed to attributing it to dietary nutrition that they forget about the restrictions when losing weight. But, for example, 100 g of sterlet - 320 kcal, saury - 262 kcal, herring - 235 kcal. And they can easily ruin your figure. Low-calorie fish will help you stay within your daily caloric intake and not gain weight; you just need to know which specific varieties belong to it.
What does caloric content depend on?
Fat content
Low-calorie foods include fish and seafood, which contain no more than 100 kcal per 100 g of product. This concept should not be confused with fat content. Among the low-fat varieties there are many high-calorie ones: for example, beluga (147 kcal), sea bream (135), striped bass (124). And vice versa: there are low-calorie varieties with medium fat content: silverfish (84), sole (88), bighead (94). Among the fatty ones, we can mention the toothed greenling - it contains only 85 kcal.
Varieties
The same type of fish has many subspecies. Due to different habitats, diets and lifestyles, their calorie content may vary significantly. For example, ocean crucian carp belongs to low-calorie varieties (91 kcal), but Cape Cod carp no longer falls into this category (126). Or perch: Atlantic sea bass - 96, sea bass - 112, striped - 124. So, when looking for fish fillets for your diet in the store, you will have to clarify which subspecies it is.
Cooking method
The calorie content of fish directly depends on the method of its preparation. Compare: fresh pollock - 72 kcal, boiled - 79, baked - 80, hot smoked - 101, fried - 123, cold smoked - 141, salted - 235. Therefore, even the lowest calorie varieties cease to be dietary as soon as they are fried in oil, smoke or pickle.
Additional Ingredients
Calorie content depends not only on the cooking method, but also on what additional ingredients are in the recipe. For example, if you bake flounder in the oven with lemon, zucchini, tomatoes and eggplants, you will get a low-calorie dish weighing 60 kcal. But, if you fry the same fish in batter and a lot of oil, it will cost your diet 120 kcal.
Mayonnaise, heavy cream, oil for frying, breading, batter - all this will turn the most dietary seafood into a high-calorie bomb that will threaten your waist with extra centimeters. Vegetables, vinegar, lemon juice, dry white wine for sauce - look for only healthy ingredients in recipes.
Important conclusion. In connection with all of the above, and also taking into account that the calorie content of fish depends on many smaller factors (its habitat, nutrition, production methods of processing), please note that the lists and tables given below are conditional and very relative. The specific calorie content of a particular carcass can only be found in the store. It is indicated on the packaging or (if sold without it) in the accompanying documents.
What kind of fish can you eat while losing weight?
In non-carbohydrate nutrition systems when losing weight, it is often advised to replace meat with fish. However, not all varieties are equally useful. In terms of calorie content, fatty mackerel is far ahead of lean pork. In order not to be mistaken, we will divide the fish according to fat content.
| Fat content per 100 grams of fish and seafood | |
| High fat content (10 g or more) | Atlantic herring, eel, sturgeon, stellate sturgeon, mackerel, sardines |
| Medium fat (from 5 to 10 grams) | Salmon (Atlantic, coho, sockeye, chinook), bluefish, catfish, rainbow trout, swordfish, catfish, capelin, carp, chum salmon, salmon, pink salmon |
| Low Fat (2 to 5 grams) | tilapia, halibut, mussels, sea bass, oysters, Pacific sea bass, chum salmon, tuna, hake |
| Very low fat content (less than 2 grams) | Pollock, pike, pike perch, crucian carp, cod, navaga, flounder, haddock, lobster, scallops, shrimp |
To get an idea of the fat content of seafood, pay attention to the color of the meat. If it is light, you have a lean variety of fish. The darker the fillet, the more calories. Think herring, salmon or mackerel.
Of course, scientists say that fatty fish is the healthiest. It contains a large amount of necessary substances. But when losing weight, you should forget about it. Or reduce your consumption to a small piece per week.
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Let's mention low-fat fish varieties separately. They have no carbohydrates. That's why they are so popular among fans of low-carb diets. So switching to fish while dieting can help delay the need to lower your carbohydrate intake.
| Product (per 100 grams) | Squirrels | Fats | Carbohydrates | Calorie content |
| Low Fat (2 to 5 grams) | ||||
| Tuna | 24,4 | 4,6 | 0 | 139 |
| Sea bass | 18,2 | 3,3 | 0 | 103 |
| Far Eastern flounder | 15,7 | 3 | 0 | 90 |
| Vobla | 18 | 2,8 | 0 | 95 |
| Bream | 17,1 | 4,4 | 0 | 105 |
| Carp | 18,2 | 2,7 | 0 | 97 |
| White-winged halibut | 18,9 | 3 | 0 | 103 |
| Hake | 16,6 | 2,2 | 0 | 86 |
| Oceanic horse mackerel | 18,5 | 4,5 | 0 | 114 |
| Very low fat content (less than 2 grams) | ||||
| Pollock | 15,9 | 0,9 | 0 | 72 |
| Blue whiting | 18,5 | 0,9 | 0 | 82 |
| Haddock | 17,2 | 0,5 | 0 | 73 |
| Cod | 16 | 0,6 | 0 | 69 |
| River perch | 18,5 | 0,9 | 0 | 82 |
| Pike | 18,4 | 1,1 | 0 | 84 |
| Zander | 18,4 | 1,1 | 0 | 84 |
| crucian carp | 17,7 | 1,8 | 0 | 87 |
Lean fish has less fat than the leanest meat. You can get the same amount of protein from everyone, but consume fewer calories. This will allow you to keep your carbohydrate intake to a relatively moderate level and you won't feel too depleted. Even in the evening you are allowed to eat fish while losing weight. The excess will definitely not be put aside
