Time Your Meals
Set
a timer for 20 minutes and reinvent yourself as a slow eater. This is
one of the top habits for slimming down without a complicated diet plan.
Savor each bite and make it last until the bell chimes. Paced meals
offer great pleasure from smaller portions and trigger the body's
fullness hormones. Wolfing your food down in a hurry blocks those
signals and causes overeating.
Sleep More, Weigh Less
Sleeping
an extra hour a night could help a person drop 14 pounds in a year,
according to a University of Michigan researcher who ran the numbers for
a 2,500 calorie per day intake. His scenario shows that when sleep
replaces idle activities -- and the usual mindless snacking -- you can
effortlessly cut calories by 6%. Results would vary for each person, but
sleep may help in another way, too. There's evidence that getting too
little sleep revs up your appetite, making you uncommonly hungry.
Serve More, Eat More Veggies
Serve
three vegetables with dinner tonight, instead of just one, and you'll
eat more without really trying. Greater variety tricks people into
eating more food -- and eating more fruits and vegetables is a great way
to lose weight. The high fiber and water content fills you up with
fewer calories. Cook them without added fat. And season with lemon juice
and herbs rather than drowning their goodness in high-fat sauces or
dressings.
Sip Smart: Go for Green Tea
Drinking
green tea may also be a good weight loss strategy. Some studies suggest
that it can rev up the body's calorie-burning engine temporarily,
possibly through the action of phytochemicals called catechins. At the
very least, you'll get a refreshing drink without tons of calories.
Slip Into a Yoga State of Mind
Women who do yoga tend to weigh less than others, according to a study in the
Journal of the American Dietetic Association.
What's the connection? The yoga regulars reported a more "mindful"
approach to eating. For example, they tend to notice the large portions
in restaurants but eat only enough to feel full. Researchers think the
calm self-awareness developed through yoga may help people resist
overeating.
Eat at Home
Eat home-cooked meals at least five days a week. A
Consumer Reports
survey found this was a top habit of "successful losers." Sound
daunting? Cooking may be easier than you think. Shortcut foods can make
for quick meals, such as pre-chopped lean beef for fajitas, washed
lettuce, pre-cut veggies, canned beans, cooked chicken strips, or
grilled deli salmon.
Chew Strong Mint Gum
Chew
sugarless gum with a strong flavor when you're at risk for a snack
attack. Making dinner after work, socializing at a party, watching TV,
or surfing the Internet are a few dangerous scenarios for mindless
snacking. Gum with a big flavor punch overpowers other foods so they
don't taste good.
Try the 80-20 Rule
Americans
are conditioned to keep eating until they're stuffed, but residents of
Okinawa eat until they're 80% full. They even have a name for this
naturally slimming habit: hara hachi bu. We can adopt this healthy habit
by dishing out 20% less food, according to researcher Brian Wansink,
PhD. His studies show most people don't miss it.
Get Food Portions Right
The
top habit of slim people is to stick with modest food portions at every
meal, five days a week or more. "Always slim" people do it and
successful losers do it, too, according to a
Consumer Reports
survey. After measuring portions a few times, it can become automatic.
Make it easier with small "snack" packs and by keeping serving dishes
off the table at meal time.
When Soup's On, Weight Comes Off
Add
a broth-based soup to your day and you'll fill up on fewer calories.
Think minestrone, tortilla soup, or Chinese won-ton. Soup's especially
handy at the beginning of a meal because it slows your eating and curbs
your appetite. Start with a low-sodium broth or canned soup, add fresh
or frozen vegetables and simmer. Beware of creamy soups, which can be
high in fat and calories.
Go for Whole Grains
Whole
grains such as brown rice, barley, oats, buckwheat, and whole wheat
also belong in your stealthy weight loss strategy. They help fill you up
with fewer calories and may improve your cholesterol profile, too.
Whole grains are now in many products including waffles, pizza crust,
English muffins, pasta, and soft "white" whole-wheat bread.
Shrink Your Dishes
Choose
a 10-inch lunch plate instead of a 12-inch dinner plate to
automatically eat less. Cornell's Brian Wansink, PhD, found in test
after test that people serve more and eat more food with larger dishes.
Shrink your plate or bowl to cut out 100-200 calories a day -- and 10-20
pounds in a year. In Wansink's tests, no one felt hungry or even
noticed when tricks of the eye shaved 200 calories off their daily intake.
Go Meatless More Often
Eating
vegetarian meals more often is a slimming habit. Vegetarians tend to
weigh less than meat eaters. While there are several reasons for this,
legumes may play an important role. Bean burgers, lentil soup, and other
tasty legume-based foods are simply packed with fiber. Most Americans
get only half of this important nutrient, which fills you up with fewer
calories.
Burn 100 Calories More
Lose 10 pounds in a year without dieting by burning an extra 100 calories every day. Try one of these activities:
- Walk 1 mile, about 20 minutes.
- Pull weeds or plant flowers for 20 minutes.
- Mow the lawn for 20 minutes.
- Clean house for 30 minutes.
- Jog for 10 minutes.
Reach for the Red Sauce
Choose
marinara sauce for pasta instead of Alfredo sauce. The tomato-based
sauces tend to have fewer calories and much less fat than cream-based
sauces. But remember, portion size still counts. A serving of pasta is
one cup or roughly the size of a tennis ball.
Eat Out Your Way
Restaurant meals are notoriously fattening, so consider these special orders that keep portions under control:
- Split an entrée with a friend.
- Order an appetizer as a meal.
- Choose the child's plate.
- Get half the meal in a doggie bag before it's brought to the table.
Complement a smaller entrée with extra salad for the right balance: half the plate filled with veggies.
Eyeball Your Skinny Clothes
Hang
an old favorite dress, skirt, or a smokin' pair of jeans where you'll
see them every day. This keeps your eyes on the prize. Choose an item
that's just a little too snug, so you reach this reward in a relatively
short time. Then pull out last year's cocktail dress for your next
small, attainable goal.
Build a Better Slice of Pizza
Choose
vegetable toppings for pizza instead of meat and you may be able to
shave 100 calories from your meal. Other skinny pizza tricks: Go light
on the cheese or use reduced-fat cheese and choose a thin, bread-like
crust made with just a touch of olive oil.
Sip Smart: Cut Back on Sugar
Replace
one sugary drink like regular soda with water or a zero-calorie seltzer
and you'll avoid about 10 teaspoons of sugar. Add lemon, mint or frozen
strawberries for flavor and fun.
The
liquid sugar in soda appears to bypass the body's normal fullness cues.
One study compared an extra 450 calories per day from jelly beans vs.
soda. The candy eaters unconsciously ate fewer calories overall, but not
so the soda drinkers. They gained 2.5 pounds in four weeks.
Sip Smart: Use a Tall, Thin Glass
Use
a tall, skinny glass instead of a short, wide tumbler to cut liquid
calories -- and your weight -- without dieting. You'll drink 25%-30%
less juice, soda, wine, or any other beverage.
How
can this work? Brian Wansink, PhD, says visual cues can trick us into
consuming more or less. His tests at Cornell University found all kinds
of people poured more into a short, wide glass -- even experienced
bartenders.
Sip Smart: Limit Alcohol
When
an occasion includes alcohol, follow the first drink with a
nonalcoholic, low-calorie beverage like sparkling water instead of
moving directly to another cocktail, beer, or glass of wine. Alcohol has
more calories per gram (7) than carbohydrates (4) or protein (4). It
can also loosen your resolve, leading you to mindlessly inhale chips,
nuts, and other foods you'd normally limit.
Catch the 'Eating Pause'
Most
people have a natural "eating pause," when they drop the fork for a
couple of minutes. Watch for this moment and don't take another bite.
Clear your plate and enjoy the conversation. This is the quiet signal
that you're full, but not stuffed. Most people miss it.
Copy pasted from http://www.webmd.com
