Few things are more frustrating than trying to lose weight and then finding yourself constantly feeling hungry. Between the endless cupboards and fridge doors that keep turning up empty and the food cravings that come with your new lifestyle You can start to see why many people give up and put the weight back on.
The answer is to change how you eat. When you are feeling hungry, your body is sending you a clear signal that you are already consuming the right amount of calories for the day. So you may as well keep eating!
By learning how to eat when you are actually hungry, you can harness the power of this natural instinct and use it to your advantage.
Here are some of the best tips for turning off your hunger signals and losing weight successfully.
Eat What Is Available
When you are first starting out, it is easy to be distracted by what is not available around your home. On a trip to the supermarket, you come back with a haul of healthy living supporters and excess cupboards that you did not even know you had.
Make the most of these opportunities and take your pick of the cupboards. Do not worry about how much weight you are aiming to lose or how much you need to eat. Simply load up on the healthy food options and ignore the “off-limits” foods that are in sight. This will help you adopt a healthier lifestyle and avoid extra pounds later on.
Skip On The Refrigerator And Freezer Doors
Throwing away food that went bad is a good start, but make sure you are not tempted to reach for the fridge or freezer doors when you are feeling hungry. These are the foods that have been there since the last meal. While they may not seem very appetizing straight from the fridge or freezer, you will soon realize that heated food is a lot more tempting than cold food.
By keeping your fridge at room temperature, you are denying your body of the opportunity to “cool down” after working hard. When your body is overheating, it naturally produces cortisol and adrenaline, which cause your appetite to rise. Open the fridge and let your body begin the process of digestion. This will help you stay satisfied and prevent unnecessary weight gain.
Learn To Identify The Difference
When you are feeling hungry, there is a good chance that you are not actually starving. If you want to lose weight, you must learn to identify when you are really hungry and when you are just feeling lazy or stressed.
The difference is in your blood glucose. When your blood glucose is low, this usually indicates that you are either hungry or have recently eaten. At this point, you should start eating to raise your glucose level. Once you reach your target blood glucose, you can then start to reduce your calorie intake.
If you find that even though you are not actually hungry, you are still eating because certain foods are available and because they are known to be “healthy” or “low-calorie”, you have identified an unhealthy food habit. Break this habit by reducing your exposure to these foods or removing them from your diet entirely. Trying to lose weight by relying on what is already available around you is not a healthy or scalable approach.
Eat When You Are Not Tired
When you are tired, you are more likely to make poor food choices. Instead of eating small meals throughout the day, try to load up on the bigger ones in the morning. This will raise your energy level and help you avoid eating too much during the day. If you do eat during the day, make sure to avoid snacks that are high in carbohydrates or fat. These will cause you to gain weight without even realizing it.
Reduce The Sugar In Your Diet
Eating too much sugar can also cause you to gain weight. Although there is no direct evidence that links sugar to obesity, it can promote unhealthy habits and distract you from important dietary changes that you are trying to make. Cut back on the sugar in your diet and you will notice that you are less likely to crave quick hits of sugar. If you want to reduce your sugar intake, swap some of the white flour in your regular pantry for whole grains. This will also help you reduce the amount of empty calories that you consume.
Practice Substantial Snacking
When you are losing weight, you must practice substantial snacking. This is where your body starts to realize that it is consuming fewer calories daily and hence starts to generate heat and feel hungry. Practice frequent snacking and you will begin to see significant weight loss. The key is to make these snacks high in fiber and healthy fats rather than refined carbohydrates. Eating small meals frequently throughout the day can help too.
Consume More Vegetables
The amount of vegetables that you eat can also help you lose weight. A diet that is rich in vegetables can significantly reduce your body’s need for glucose and hence reduce your dependency on sugar. To reap the full benefits of this diet, you should eat a variety of vegetables and avoid those that are starchy or have a high-sugar content. The vegetable kingdom offers a wealth of healthy options and you should try to eat more than you have ever eaten before.
Focus On Quality Over Quantity
When you are first learning to cook, it is easy to lose sight of the fact that calories matter. If you want to lose weight, you must learn to focus on quality rather than quantity when you are eating. This will prevent you from eating too much food without even realizing it. When you are in the presence of food that you fancy, it is easy to be distracted by how much you want and need. Instead of indulging in the instant gratification that comes with food, consider cooking a meal for yourself or a loved one. This could very well be the best decision that you make this year. Not only will you be satisfying your craving for food, but you will also be giving your body the nutrients that it needs to continue the healthy course that it is on. In addition to that, you will be making memories with those that you love around the dinner table.
Eat When You Are Not Stressed
Last but not least, make sure to eat when you are not stressed. We all go through periods of time when we are under a lot of pressure and it is easy to see food as a quick fix. However, like most things in life, your body requires proper fuel to function at its best. When you are not eating adequately, your body will start to break down its own stores of glycogen which can lead to low blood sugar and excessive hunger. To raise your blood sugar and reduce these food cravings, get a good night’s sleep and eat something before you go to bed. Your body will thank you for this and you will begin to see an improvement in your quality of life.
Eating when you are naturally hungry will help you lose weight successfully. You do not have to go through life feeling deprived or unsatisfied because you are not consuming enough calories or nutrients. By harnessing the power of your instinctive appetite and using it in the right way, you can ensure that you lose weight and continue to maintain a healthy lifestyle.