Overeating is an addictive disorder and many people around the world combat it daily. The realization why you are overeating is the first step towards challenging the habit.
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Easier said than done, but it is certainly not impossible. The key to preventing overeating is to consume moderate portions of healthy food throughout the day. Learn to listen to your body. Being able to distinguish between emotional and physical hunger is one of the keys to avoid overeating.
You should also learn to stop eating when you start feeling full and satisfied. Remember that after you have finished eating, it takes about 20 minutes for your stomach to send a signal to your brain that you are perfectly full. So, before taking another portion, give yourself some time to digest
Don’t Bring the Whole Pot to the Table
Prepare your plate in the kitchen and do not bring the whole pot to the table. You will thus avoid the temptation to continuously refill your plate.
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No Television While Eating
Eating while watching TV, working at your computer, or reading the newspaper can be disastrous. When you are distracted, you don’t realize how much food you are ingesting and you tend to overeat. You should focus on your meal and always eat at your dining table. If you pay attention to what you are eating, you are more likely to stop when you start feeling full.
Learn to Appreciate and Enjoy Your Food
Apart from satisfying hunger, eating is supposed to be an enjoyable experience. You must learn to savor every single bite of your meal and give it your full attention. The more you focus on the aromas and flavors of your food, the less you will eat.
Choose Satisfying Foods
Satisfying foods are those that have the ability to provide nutrition and satisfy hunger with fewer calories. They can make you feel full faster and for a longer period of time. You may choose foods with high water content as well as those rich in fiber and protein, and avoid foods like nuts, crackers, chips, chocolate candies, candy bars, and white bread.
High-water content foods such as leafy greens, melons, and tomatoes can help suppress hunger and give you a longer-lasting feeling of fullness. Fiber rich foods will also make you feel full faster and for longer. They absorb water and swell up in the stomach, which slows down the digestive process giving you a longer lasting feeling of satiety. Adding fiber to your diet will therefore help you lose weight and avoid overeating.
Get Enough Sleep
Lack of sleep can lower levels of leptin, a hormone that tells us when we are full. When leptine levels are low, you can not realize when you have eaten enough. Insufficient sleep will also increase ghrelin, a hormone that stimulates appetite and makes you eat larger amounts of food. Try and sleep for 8 hours.
Eat a Healthy Breakfast Every Morning
People who eat a rich breakfast are less likely to overeat at their next meal. Including some healthy fats, protein, fiber, and complex carbohydrates in your morning meal will allow you to feel fuller and more satisfied for a longer period of time and stay energized throughout the day.
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Don’t Let Setbacks and Guilt Discourage You
Overeating is a tricky game. The more you eat, the more you want. The feeling of guilt that follows overeating will probably discourage you and make you give up trying to stop this destructive addiction.
Plan instead to go running, brisk walking, or biking. If you have messed up, it doesn’t mean it’s the end of the world. Just stick to your plan tomorrow and you will repair the damage you have done.
Make a List of Rewards
Make a list of 25 or more rewards you can give yourself every week when you stick to your plan of not overeating. At the end of each week that you have completed, you can choose one thing from your list and give it to yourself as a reward. Do not put things related to food on the list. Choose things that are meaningful to you.
Our pretty bodies have a natural rhythm to it and sleep and hunger cycles. Once you find it and respond to it accordingly, there will not be much to worry about.
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Image courtesy: arabia.msn.com , youqueen.com
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