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Method #1
Change to foods that leave you feeling fuller longer.
O
nce it comes to reducing the abdominal weight, it's not usually all about how much you eat, but also what you eat that counts. Some foods give small "bursts" of energy and satisfaction but leave you hungry before your next meal. Instead of eating these kind of foods, concentrate on alternatives that gives long-term satisfaction.
The kind of foods that offer longer time of satisfaction includes water, lean meats and fish, oats, nuts, eggs, green vegetables, beans and legumes whole grain breads, rice and pasta.
Non-filling foods include "white" breads, candy, soft drinks, starches and processed snacks.
Method #2:
Eat smaller meals more often.
Instead of taking three large meals in a day, try eating different smaller meals of a few hundred calories. This will help restore your hunger cues so you know when you are really hungry instead of eating out of habit.
A suitable way to reduce the size of your meal is simply by using a smaller plate. Smaller plates can make the same amount of food look bigger due to something called the Delboeuf illusion. Basically, you are "cheating" your brain so that you feel satisfied with less food.
Method #3:
Take in enough water.
If you take flavored coffees, sports drinks, soft drinks, with sugar and cream or other high-calorie drinks throughout the day, try substituting them with water. You will get the equivalent level of hydration and satiety while reducing your calories. Keep it up and you can achieve a slight weight loss without any additional effort.
The different health benefits of water cannot be over emphasized. So, it keeps the skin looking healthy and clear, drinking water energizes muscles and provides an energy boost to our body system. But most importantly, it has zero calories, so you can drink as much as you want.
Do not be tricked into exchanging soft drinks for fruit juices, which are full of calories. The juice extraction process removes all the healthy fiber of the fruit and leaves nothing but sugar behind. Stay with water or flavored water without calories for a more pleasant hydration for your tummy.
Method #4:
Measure out each of your meal.
You need not trust your eyes to tell you how much to eat in this case but use your brain. With current trends in commercial cooking tending towards large servings, many people now have a partial idea of what a normal portion of food looks like. Use measuring cups and information in the "Nutrition information" section of your food packaging to make sure you eat one serving at a time. You may even want to invest in a simple food scale.
Many common foods have portion sizes that are easy to memorize visually.
Here are some common examples as can be seen below:
Fruits and Vegetables - about the size of your hand
Meat, fish or poultry - about the size of your palm (excluding your fingers)
Cheese or fat spreads - about the size of your thumb
Carbohydrates (pasta, rice, etc.): about the size of a cupcake wrap
Method #5:
Have your breakfast daily.
Unfortunately, many Americans skip breakfast and then overreact for their resulting hunger by overeating during lunch and dinner.
Make sure your breakfast contains at least one piece from three food groups such as fruits, grains and dairy.
If you eat a diet high in protein and low in carbohydrates, you could eat eggs and cheese. The most important thing is that the food you take in the morning actually gets your metabolism going and you do not stay on an empty stomach. A healthy breakfast for a 150-pound adult is approximately 300 to 400 calories.
Make smart choices on the food you take.
A healthy diet is friendlier to your tummy than an unhealthy diet, even if the caloric content is the same.
Eat fresh vegetables and fruits instead of processed snacks. Processed foods have artificial ingredients, added preservatives, and are often full of carbohydrates, fat and sugar. Fresh foods give you more nutrition by calories than processed foods, heavy carbohydrate snacks such as potato chips or crackers. Processed foods also tend to contain more salt, which holds fluids and can lead to excess weight stored around the tummy.
Method #6:
Never eat straight from the bag or cardboard box.
Research found that people who received a large bucket of popcorn ate 44% more popcorn than those who received smaller buckets.
Why?
Because it is much easier to overeat when there is a large portion of food in front of you. Instead, pour a portion of the sandwich into a container, then store the package.
Keep your portions under control when eating out.
Controlling the size of your meal at home when you sit down to eat is often easier than in a restaurant, where the size of a meal often contains the recommended calories for a person for a whole day or at a friend's house, where you cannot control what happens in the food. But fortunately, there are basically some things you can do to control the size of your meal in places where you do not have perfect control over your food:
Make a list of what you will order in advance.
Most restaurants have websites with full nutritional information for their menus, so you can make a smart decision even before leaving your home.
Once you are in a restaurant, ask the waiter to come along with a takeout container at the same time as your food. Measure a size and then place the rest in the container immediately. You will be less tempted to continue eating without thinking while talking to your friends.
When going to eat at a friend’s house, do not be shy or afraid to ask for a small portion of meal. This way you can clean your plate, instead of leaving a portion of food behind and possibly offending your host.
When shopping, choose foods of individual size, instead of foods that come in large containers. For example, instead of buying a box of ice cream, pick up a packet of ice cream popsicles or sandwiches.
Method #7:
Eat slowly.
Take out time, relax and enjoy your meal. When you eat fast, you can gulp a surprising amount of food before you begin to feel satisfied and full. Additionally, eating slowly gives you enough time to feel satisfied and help you stop eating before you consume more calories than you need. There is even indication that this may promote the release of specific hormones that are responsible for the feeling of fullness in the brain.
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METHOD #8:
Do not rush when eating your food.
Focus on chewing each bite 10-20 times and sipping water between each bite. Also place the fork or spoon down between each bite. If you can, eat with another person so you can take a break to chat during your meal.
Try setting a time control for 20 - 30 minutes at the start of your meal. Make a rhythm so as not to give the last bite until the timer goes off.
As soon as you finish eating, take a break from eating, even if you are still a little hungry. Give your body the opportunity to register as having a full stomach, which can sometimes take a while. Just help yourself if you still feel hungry after another half hour.
Method #9:
Eat in cool and peaceful places.
Research proposes that eating in peaceful environments helps people to eat less in general. Conversely, eating in noisy, busy and chaotic environments can lead to overeating. Even though the root cause is not yet certain, this may be due to the fact that this type of situations distracts the sensation of fullness by creating a slight anxiety.
A common cause of a rushed and frightened diet is being late to school or work. Mending this is a matter of regulating your schedule. Consider getting up early to have the opportunity to enjoy a comfortable breakfast before leaving.
Method #10
Keep record of your meals.
By simply keeping track of what you eat can be an enlightening experience. You will be surprised to know that you usually eat more than you think you do. Try writing your meals and snacks in a jotter that you carry with you every day. Be sure to write down the number of servings you consume for each, as well as the caloric content per serving.
There are also a variety of websites and free apps that make it convenient to keep track of your daily food choices. A simple Google search will save you the stress.
To your weight loss success,
Jennifer Moore.
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