These 6 tips will teach you how to eat less
and spot hunger so that you eat to stay
satisfied. You'll be able to control calories
and shed pounds without “dieting.”
1. Use the hunger scale
Do you really know what hunger feels
like? Before you can rein it in, you must
learn to recognize the physical cues that
signal a true need for nourishment. Prior
to eating, use our hunger scale below to
help figure out your true food needs:
Starving: An uncomfortable, empty feeling
that may be accompanied by light-
headedness or the jitters caused by low
blood sugar levels from lack of food. Binge
risk: high.
Hungry: Your next meal is on your mind.
If you don't eat within the hour, you enter
dangerous "starving" territory.
Moderately hungry: Your stomach may be
growling, and you're planning how you'll
put an end to that nagging feeling. This is
optimal eating time.
Satisfied: You're satiated—not full, but not
hungry, either. You're relaxed and
comfortable and can wait to nosh.
Full: If you're still eating, it's more out of
momentum than actual hunger. Your belly
feels slightly bloated, and the food does not
taste as good as it did in the first few bites.
Stuffed: You feel uncomfortable and might
even have mild heartburn from your
stomach acids creeping back up into your
esophagus.
2. Refuel every 4 hours
Still can't tell what true hunger feels like?
Set your watch. Moderate to full-fledged
hunger (our ideal window for eating) is
most likely to hit 4 to 5 hours after a
balanced meal. Waiting too long to eat can
send you on an emergency hunt for energy
—and the willpower to make healthful
choices plummets. "Regular eating keeps
blood sugar and energy stable, which
prevents you from feeling an extreme need
for fuel," says Kate Geagan, RD, author of
Go Green Get Lean: Trim Your Waistline
with the Ultimate Low-Carbon Footprint
Diet.
To slim down: If you're feeling hungry
between meals, a 150-calorie snack should
help hold you over. Here are a few ideas:
Munch on whole foods such as fruit and
unsalted nuts—they tend to contain more
fiber and water, so you fill up on fewer
calories. Bonus: They're loaded with
disease-fighting nutrients. Avoid
temptation by packing healthful, portable
snacks such as dried fruit in your purse,
desk drawer, or glove compartment.
3. Eat breakfast without fail
A study published in the British Journal of
Nutrition tracked the diets of nearly 900
adults and found that when people ate
more fat, protein, and carbohydrates in the
morning, they stayed satisfied and ate less
over the course of the day than those who
ate their bigger meals later on.
Unfortunately, many Americans start off
on an empty stomach. In one survey,
consumers reported that even when they
eat in the morning, the meal is a full
breakfast only about one-third of the time.
To slim down: If you're feeling full-blown
hunger before noon, there's a chance
you're not eating enough in the morning.
Shoot for a minimum of 250 calories and
make it a habit with these three strategies.
Prepare breakfast before bed (cut fruit
and portion out some yogurt).
Stash single-serving boxes of whole
grain cereal or packets of instant
oatmeal and shelf-stable fat-free milk
or soy milk at work to eat when you
arrive.
Eat a late breakfast if you can't
stomach an early one. "Don't force
anything," says John de Castro, PhD, a
behavioral researcher and dean of the
College of Humanities and Social
Sciences at Sam Houston State
University. "Just wait a while and eat
at 9 or 10 AM. It will help you stay in
control later in the day."
4. Build high-volume meals
Solid foods that have a high fluid content
can help you suppress hunger. "When we
eat foods with a high water content like
fruits and vegetables, versus low water-
content foods like crackers and pretzels, we
get bigger portions for less calories," says
Barbara Rolls, PhD, author of The
Volumetrics Eating Plan and a professor of
nutritional sciences at Pennsylvania State
University. Bottom line: You consume more
food but cut calories at the same time.
Rolls found a similar effect in foods with a
lot of air. In one study, people ate 21%
fewer calories of an air-puffed cheese
snack, compared with a denser one.
To slim down: Eat fewer calories by eating
more food. Try the following healthy ways
to fill up.
Start dinner with a salad, or make it
into your meal (be sure to include
protein such as lean meat or beans).
Choose fresh fruit over dried. For
around the same amount of calories,
you can have a whole cup of grapes or
a measly 3 tablespoons of raisins.
Boost the volume of a low-cal frozen
dinner by adding extra veggies such as
steamed broccoli or freshly chopped
tomatoes and bagged baby spinach.
5. Munch fiber all day long
Fiber can help you feel full faster and for
longer. Because the body processes a fiber-
rich meal more slowly, it may help you
stay satisfied long after eating. Fiber-
packed foods are also higher in volume,
which means they can fill you up so you
eat fewer calories. One review published in
the Journal of the American Dietetic
Association li nked a high intake of cereal
fiber with lower body mass index and
reduced risk of type 2 diabetes and heart
disease.
To slim down: Aim to get at least 25 g
fiber a day with these tips. Include produce
such as apples and carrots—naturally high
in fiber—in each meal and snack. Try
replacing some or all of your regular
bread, pasta, and rice with whole grain
versions.
6. Always include protein
When researchers at Purdue University
asked 46 dieting women to eat either 30%
or 18% of their calories from protein, the
high-protein eaters felt more satisfied and
less hungry. Plus, over the course of 12
weeks, the women preserved more lean
body mass, which includes calorie-burning
muscle.
To slim down: Have a serving of lean
protein such as egg whites, chunk light
tuna, or skinless chicken at each meal. A
serving of meat is about the size of a deck
of cards or the palm of your hand—not
including your fingers. Another protein
option is incorporating beans into your
meals. Black beans, chickpeas, and
edamame (whole soybeans) are low in fat,
high in fiber, and packed with protein.
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