If you are trying to lose weight or eat healthier, one of the best ways to do it is to break a few simple bad food habits. Instead of a complete overhaul of your diet or trying to work in an extra hour of cardio each day, try breaking these bad habits and see how much your eating habits improve.
Rushing through your meals
It can take up to 20 minutes for your brain to realize your stomach is full. So give it a chance to catch up and take your time while eating. Rushing through meals is definitely a food habit you should break, as this will not only help you to not eat more than your body needs, but will also keep you from getting heartburn or indigestion. Try putting your fork down between bites, or, as your mother always told you, chew each bite ten times!
Shopping for food on an empty stomach
If you are looking to eat healthier foods or lose weight, be sure to break this bad food habit. Shopping for food when you are hungry almost inevitably leads to buying high calorie, high fat food. Items you would (almost) never buy seem to hurl themselves into your cart “ chips, ice cream, frozen pizza. If you can’t shop after a meal, having a quick (healthy) snack before you head out to the market can help you break this bad habit.
Not focusing on eating
If you tend to eat while watching television, checking your e-mail, reading the paper, or even driving (yikes), put that on your list of bad food habits to break. Studies have shown that not concentrating on eating can cause a person to eat much more. Reading or watching television can quickly turn dining into mindless eating, and a bag of potato chips or cookies can quickly disappear during your favorite show. Instead, take the time to enjoy what you are actually eating “ your body will thank you!
Eating when you’re not hungry
Eating from stress, boredom, emotion or other reasons are other food habits you need to break. If your body isn’t hungry for food, you’re not doing it any favors by piling on the calories (and let’s face it, most of the time it’s not a salad your reaching for when you’re eating for stress, boredom, etc.) Instead, try to find another activity that will give you an outlet for your feelings without giving in to bad habits. Exercise, call a friend, take a bath, whatever it takes to break this bad habit.
Cleaning your plate
Eating all of the food on your plate instead of listening to your body’s cues about hunger is a bad food habit that definitely needs breaking. This is especially true when dining out “ most restaurant entrees could feed three or four people, not just one (some Italian restaurants serve as much as eight cups of pasta in an entré©e “ eight cups!) Instead of cleaning your plate, try the advice above and take your time eating, giving your brain time to figure out that your stomach is full.
