8 Tips To Help You Decrease Overeating |
Do you overeat on a regular basis? Do you often feel “out of control” with food? Are you unable to maintain a healthy weight? Below are suggestions to help you decrease overeating:
1. Eat breakfast. A recent study reports that when you skip breakfast your chances of overeating at lunch increase by as much as 50%. Overeating is best prevented through healthy, satisfying eating. Get each day off to a good start by eating a nutritious breakfast. If time is an issue, a cup of low-fat yogurt topped with low-fat granola and banana slices makes for a quick and nutritious breakfast.
2. Don't skip meals. Skipping meals to maintain or lose weight almost always leads to overeating. The biological wisdom of your body prompts you to eat more whenever you restrict your caloric intake. When you skip a meal you actually set off a series of physiological changes in the body which intensify your preoccupation with food and your urge to eat. Most people mistakenly believe that when they later give in to this powerful urge to eat – and subsequently overeat – that it is because of a lack of willpower. Actually, it is the body's own physiology which has urged them to make up for the caloric deprivation.
3. Get adequate sleep. A study from the University of Chicago found that lack of sleep makes you want to eat more. The reason? Sleep loss appears to trigger changes in hormones that regulate appetite and stimulate hunger for high-calorie foods like cookies and chips. Researchers believe that we crave high-calorie foods when we're tired because they offer up instant energy. According to a Columbia University study, people who get less than the recommended seven to eight hours of sleep a night are up to 73% more likely to be obese. Commit to getting seven to eight hours of sleep each night.
4. Learn to distinguish the difference between physical hunger and eating to relieve stress. Many people are unaware that they eat food in response to stress and confuse the physical discomfort brought on by stress with the physical discomfort of needing food. Getting a handle on overeating begins by recognizing the difference between physical hunger and emotional eating. Physical hunger builds gradually, is felt below the neck (stomach), occurs hours after a meal, goes away when full, and eating leads to a feeling of satisfaction. Emotional hunger develops suddenly, is felt above the neck (having a “taste” or craving for chocolate), is unrelated to the last time you ate, persists despite fullness, and eating leads to feelings of guilt. When you feel the urge to eat, get in the habit of asking, “Is it physical hunger or is it emotional hunger?”
5. Untangle your emotional connections to food. Many people use food to fill emotional needs, contributing to overeating and being overweight. Do you use food to:
To eliminate emotional eating, use a food diary to identify when and why you eat for emotional reasons. Keep an accurate record for at least one week of what you eat, when, and where. Include how you feel when you were eating. Ask yourself: What happened today to make me feel this way? You may discover patterns that reveal the emotional cues that cause you to turn to food. Next, find healthier methods to deal with your emotions and find alternative behaviors to eating.
6. Manage your stress. When you're stressed, a chemical produced by your brain called cortisol increases your appetite. Not surprisingly, more than two-thirds of overweight adults report that they eat when they're stressed out. Instead of eating when you're stressed, learn how to manage stress in healthier ways. Start by exercising regularly. Walking for 20 to 30 minutes a day will help release tension, drain stress-producing hormones circulating in the body, and reduce your appetite. Educate yourself about other ways you can eliminate, manage or dissolve stress.
7. Eat more whole grains, fruits and vegetables. Your body needs you to give it nutrients for energy and to feel satisfied. If you aren't giving your body a balanced diet from whole grains, vegetables and fruits, your body will crave more food in order to get the nutrition you need – and you overeat. Eat at least five servings of vegetables and fruits per day. Try substituting them for higher calorie, less nutritious foods. Note: Low-fat dairy products, lean meats, poultry, fish and legumes are also important elements of a healthy diet.
8. Practice portion control. Overweight people have a tendency to eat a high percentage of their daily caloric intake in one meal. The calories they consume are often in excess, resulting in weight gain. If you've had a problem with overeating, following the recommendations above will help you cut back on your food portion sizes. Remember, overeating is best prevented through healthy and satisfying eating. You can maintain or lose weight and still eat your favorite foods, just decrease your portion sizes. Suggestion: Start a meal with soup or salad. Having a salad or cup of soup for starters can add nutrition to your meal and curb your hunger, which will help you keep portion sizes in check and prevent you from overeating.
