It’s time to gorge yourself on the spoils of nature. Here’s your guide to the science-backed bacteria that speed up the rate you digest kilojoules. Cultivate your own stash to switch your gut to fat-fighting mode day in, day out. And each comes with a pro bono health boost, too, if you’re feeling greedy . . .
1 Kill ’joules with kimchi
The Korean superfood and hipster staple speeds up digestion to stop fat hiding your abs. Start by salting cabbage and leaving for six hours. Rinse and mix with fish oil, chopped onions, sugar, crushed garlic, ground ginger and chilli. Put the lot in a clean, airtight jar and let it ferment in a cool, dry place for four days.
2 Sleep off fat with kefir
“More melatonin is produced in the gut than the brain,” says nutrition researcher Kamal Patel. A kefir-loaded gut equals better sleep – and a healthier, leaner gut. Leave the grains (nourishmeorganics.com.au) in coconut milk for 24 hours before drinking.
3 Dodge carbs with miso
The Japanese comfort soup goes to work on sugar and other baddies in your stomach that can double-time weight gain. Bonus: it also helps bolster your bones. It takes 180 days to ferment, so cheat by using instant paste (nipponfoodsupplies.com.au) and soup-up your gut.
4 Start afresh with manuka
Manuka honey isn’t a probiotic per se, but you can consider it your gut’s clean-up crew as it goes about killing off the bad bacteria lurking in your insides. Multiple studies link certain bacterial overgrowths to a sluggish metabolism and a bigger waist – have one teaspoon each morning.
5 Detox fat stores with kvass
If you’ve been hitting the booze, try root-veg rehab. Kvass cleanses your blood and helps detoxify your liver, which results in a faster metabolism – even for those alcoholic kilojoules. Mix chopped beets, whey, salt and water, cover and ferment for two days.
6 Burn it off with kombucha
Compound your kilojoule burn with a lightly caffeinated pick-me-up. “A Symbiotic Culture Of Bacteria and Yeast or ‘Scoby’ (nourishmeorganics.com.au) is all you need,” says nutritionist Jessica Scott. Add it to sweet black tea and leave for 10 days.
