Learning to Diet with the Right Eating Habits
The Correct Approach to Food Consumption for Weight Loss
Jun 3, 2009
The first approach to weight loss is through analyzing what is being eaten. Due to a hectic pace of life, people naturally assume that their weight problem is due to how much they eat and so cut back on their intake. But this is not necessarily true. Weight gain is caused by a number of factors, not just overeating. Much has to do with the wrong eating habits that have been adopted over the years. A closer look at these factors can help pinpoint the real reason for weight gain.
How Much is Being Eaten?
This is number one on the list. It's a given that eating more calories than what is being burned off will lead to weight gain. Three meals a day is considered the standard for good health. Much depends on how much food is eaten at every meal and how much is consumed in snacks between those meals. Consuming the breakfast of a Sumo wrestler won't help much if the other two meals are normal in caloric counts.
What is Being Eaten?
Many people regularly consume a high carbohydrate diet of fats and sugars. Typical fare is extremely low on nutrition. Easily digested food has become the standard over high fiber food. A diet of greasy hamburgers, fries and cola will do nothing more than expand that spare tire around the waist. Unfortunately, media advertising does not project the importance of eating healthy. Many people are swayed by convenience, regardless of any health benefits of the products being advertised. If a diet of high glycemic foods is sure to add pounds, most people simply don't realize that the chemicals added to those foods is also contributing to weight gain. Whatever the body cannot handle, it stores in fat tissue. With today's toxic environment, it isn't easy to rid those toxins along with the fat.
Why is It Being Eaten?
Emotional stress is a reality for many people. Food becomes a comforting avenue to escape stress. But like, smoking, eating for emotional reasons becomes an unhealthy activity. Under a relatively stress-free environment, people eat normally and have no worries about weight. If more is being eaten than is needed, a careful look at stress levels may locate the reason for overeating. The habit can then be replaced by more positive and constructive activity that doesn't involve food.
Under What Circumstances is Food Being Eaten?
Unfortunately, too many people eat on the run. This is not the best method to enhance health. Food is meant to be enjoyed, not gulped down in one bite. Properly chewing food is neglected, much like the requirement of washing hands thoroughly to prevent infections. The stomach needs time to break down food but must work hard with half-digested food. The nutrients of food is absorbed in the colon but little can be absorbed if the food hasn't been digested properly. Undigested food clogs up the intestines and lead to weight gain. In the old days, the family ate supper together. They took time to sit down to eat. Having dinner was the main event of the day, a chance for individual members to talk and renew family ties.
When is the Food Being Eaten?
While having supper at six in the evening is considered safe, many people eat far later. They have their major meal shortly before retiring. The stomach, the intestines work far better in a standing or sitting position than laying down. Gravity helps to keep food and stomach acids from working their way up to the esophagus where acid reflux occurs. Sleeping on a full stomach leads to sleepless nights and many digestive disorders.
Those that do follow the right regimen of eating at least three hours before bedtime are not immune when it comes to snacking that often occurs before bedtime. Chips, soda, chocolate and caffeine do little more than add to fat and insomnia. If the craving for a snack is too overwhelming, eating a fruit such as an apple or snacking on a few almonds and walnuts are far healthier alternatives. Drinking a cup of chamomile, green or peppermint tea will help relax the body to get it ready for a night of sleep.
Taking a full approach to food consumption can help lose weight better than just attacking the one or two gray areas that may or may not be the reason for weight gain. Knowing which area is responsible and addressing it will translate in permanent weight loss and a trim and healthier body.
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