Weight Watching Tips - Eating Habits

Eating Habits

The first step you should take is to adopt healthier eating habits. Not only will you gain more food volume this way but you can use natural low calorie seasonings such as onions to improve the taste. This is proven for long term health and fat loss while removing the strain of dieting itself. Here are a few tips on improving your eating habits:

1. It takes the brain approximately 20 minutes to tell the body that it is full. Therefore, if you eat slower or wait awhile before you decide to take more you are less likely to eat more than you need to.
2. Never go to the grocery store while you are hungry. You will almost always end up with something that you do not need, like junk food for example. It is also a good idea to plan ahead and arm yourself with a grocery list.
3. Drink an 8 oz. glass of water before and after each meal. This will help battle the feeling of being hungry while restricting your calories.
4. No matter what type of diet you are on, the main objective is a slight reduction in calories therefore resulting in mild to extreme hunger attacks. This is normal. Usually it will take a week or two for your stomach to shrink and adjust to these new portions, that's why the first few weeks are the hardest.
5. Next time you go to grab a quick snack, ask yourself - "Am I really hungry?" You would be surprised at how many times we eat for other reasons such as depression, habit or sheer boredom. If you find that the reason is one other than hunger, try and replace it with another pleasure to take its place.
6. Remember the old saying, "Everything in moderation"
7. If you eat the same amount of calories day in and day out your body will get used to that specific amount of calories resulting in a slower metabolsim. Give it something to work with and eat more calories once every week or two. Your metabolism will then speed up over the week as a result.
8. Lose weight with spicy foods. Hot peppers can increase your metabolism. Frequently adding them to meals will increase your body temperature therefore creating a more constructive metabolism.
9. If you are always on the run because of work or school and simply don't have the time to prepare healthy meals quickly, try a protein bar. They come in many delicious flavors such as chocolate and eating more frequently also works to speed up your metabolic rate.
10. Write down what you eat and stick with it. You'd be surprised at how many extra things you might be eating if you don't write your menu down. Either plan ahead with your food intake or start keeping a food journal just to see.