Are you one of those women who eat when they aren’t hungry?
Do you always have candy or some snacks just in case?
Or, do you starve yourself and then binge on food?
If the answer is yes, then you probably know about the term overeating.
What is overeating?
Overeating is a food disorder characterized by episodes of intaking big amounts of food during meals in a short period of time.
Many research has shown that the most common food disorder isn’t anorexy or bulimia, it’s overeating or emotional eating.
Overeating affects badly your health and it’s the main factor that makes you gain weight and obese.
You can read more about emotional eating here.
Here you can see 12 tips on how to stop overeating:
1. Connect your brain and your stomach
Follow the 10-minute rule.
Your brain needs about 10 minutes to get a signal that your stomach is full after eating.
This is one of the most often reasons why we eat even when we are full.
Remember this fact and slow down eating.
That way you will intake less food.
2. Put down the utensils
Put down your fork or spoon after every bite.
This will help you slow down chewing and eating.
When we chew we usually prepare our utensils for our new bite.
It’s a reflexive move and your hand makes you eat faster than you have to.
3. Cut down on food
For starters, eat half of your portions.
If you aren’t full after eating half of your meal you can eat more.
Reduce the intake of food by chewing more slowly, putting down your spoon and trying to control yourself.
4. Enjoy with all your senses
The fast way of living stops us from eating with all our senses, not only with our mouths.
Nutritionists think that the lack of concentration is one of the main reasons why we eat bad meals, therefore they recommend making a 3-5 seconds break before starting to eat.
Pay attention to the look and smell of your food.
Concentrate on the flavor, smell, sound, and texture as you bite your food.
Truly enjoying your food will enhance the whole gastronomic experience and it will slow down your eating naturally.
5. Turn off your TV and laptop
You will eat approximately 14% more food if you stare at the TV or computer while eating.
Leave multitasking for the rest of the day, concentrate fully on your food during breakfast, lunch, and dinner and turn off all electronic devices.
6. Drink still water before your meals
People often think they are hungry when they are just thirsty.
Do this easy test- drink 1-2 glasses of water before your meal and check if you are still hungry half an hour later.
This will stop you from reaching for food when you aren’t actually hungry.
7. Clench your fist when you eat
Physical moves can affect your brain.
For example, when you think about the word NO, your brain connects the word with the image of a clenched fist.
If you occasionally clench your fist during your meal, you will send a message to your brain that it’s time to stop eating.
Strange, but true!
8. Don’t skip breakfast
Eat breakfast every morning.
It keeps your blood sugar stable and the levels of energy high.
Trust me, people who eat breakfast are in better shape than those who skip it.
9. Sleep well
You may not notice, but you eat more when you are tired.
Ingredients high in carbs will give you more energy, but the energy will quickly disappear because your body is tired.
When you are rested you have enough energy and you don’t need to eat all the time.
Sleeping is very important for weight loss.
Sleep at least 8 hours.
10. Fool your brain with smaller plates
Try smaller plates instead of using huge ones and filling them up.
That will help you pay more attention to the amount and kind of food in front of you.
It will also help you eat less since you’ll think the plate is full and so are you.
11. Plan your meals ahead
One of the ways to avoid uncontrollably eating is making a plan ahead.
For instance, plan 5 meals you will eat at a certain time of the day.
Moreover, it’s recommendable not to skip snacks between meals such as apples or bananas since when you don’t eat between meals you feel hungry and that’s when you eat unhealthy food your body doesn’t need.
12. Choose good ingredients
Avoid ingredients like milk, cheese, or chocolate because they are loaded with calories and they won’t make you full.
Choose ingredients high in fiber, proteins, and water since they make you full and you will intake fewer calories.
Ingredients which don’t make you full for a long time are those high in fats, sugar, and refined carbs like chips, chocolate, and white bread.
Hi, I am Stacey and I am the author of beautyandhealthlife.com. I have 10+ years of experience in fitness and weight loss and I want to share my knowledge with you. I am here to help you lose weight and tone your body.
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