While you may be trying hard to lose weight, tone up and get a rockin body, some of the food choices you are making may be holding you back.

Discover what common foods are preventing you from getting a ripped body.

1.      Bread/Bagels/Muffins

It’s a common practice to grab a quick breakfast such as a bagel or muffin when running out the door in the morning en route to work. While the intention is good, this practice is unfortunately steering you further away from your physique goals. If you eat fewer carbohydrates, you’ll torch more fat when you exercise.

Food Fix:  Make a smoothie to go!

Recipe:  1 cup water, .5 cup frozen mixed berries, .5 banana, 1 scoop of low carb protein powder, 1 tbsp. coconut oil, 1 cup of spinach or kale, 1 packet of French vanilla stevia (steer away from sweeteners such as sugar, honey and agave-they high in calories and carbohydrates).

This smoothie is jam-packed full of nutrients that will nourish your body at a cellular level and energize you much more than that pesky muffin ever did. The coconut oil is a thermogenic so it’ll actually help you burn fat.

2.      Potato Chips/Microwave Popcorn

These snacks are loaded with bad fats and trans- fat. It’s very easy to overeat on these tasty treats, too. There is also very little nutritional value.

Food Fix: Opt for raw kale chips or cauliflower popcorn. Topped with nutritional yeast this sinfully great tasting snack is high vibe’n and a powerhouse in nutritional value.

3.      Red Meat

Red meat is high in saturated, unhealthy fats and energy, and is therefore another cause of weight gain.

Food Fix: Choose wild fish and organic free range white meats. Steer clear of all processed meats.

4.      Salad Dressings

A salad with too much dressing can cause more harm than good. Just a small bowl of salad at a restaurant has 400-500 calories and 30 grams of fat, thanks to loads of dressing. When dining out or even when making salad at home be conscious of your dressing choices and how much you are using.

Food Fix: Limit your dressing to 2 tbsp. per serving. If dining out ask for the dressing on the side and choose a vinaigrette based dressing such as balsamic. At home make your own dressing, a simple Google search will guide you to hundreds of recipes.

5.     Energy Bars

Most energy bars sold in convenient stores and super markets across the country are no more than glorified candy bars. They are high in calories and don’t even have enough substance to them to satisfy your hunger.

Food Fix: Make your own trail mix with a superfood blend of goji berries, raw cacoa nibs, pumpkin seeds and walnuts/almonds.

6.      Enhanced Water

These popular vitamin waters often have sugar added to them increasing the calories from 0 to 125 per bottle. Much like with soda pop, these empty calories add up and ultimately contribute to weight gain. Plus, it’s clear to see by the strange technicolors that there are also unnatural chemicals added to them

Food Fix: Make your own vitamin water at home by infusing your own choices of herbs and fruits into a pitcher of water and refridgerating overnight.  You can make many more flavors than you’d find in a store and with a much higher nutritional value.