Control your Appetite
Published on 31 May, 2011 | Healthy diets
How To Control Your Appetite Naturally
By: P.Rodgers
Plan your meals ahead of time
Planning goes a long way, not only when it comes to your work, but also with regard to eating less. If you have no idea what you will be eating for lunch or dinner, there is a big chance that you will act on your desires when the time comes for you to choose what you are going to eat.
Smaller meals eaten more frequently throughout the day have a tendency to keep a person thinner than huge meals eaten twice or three times a day, and they keep you out of the snack cabinet too. Just remember to load your plate up with naturally colorful foods (fruits and vegetables). Broccoli and cauliflower… bulk foods. All these foods fill you up with few calories. I’m not asking you to take away any foods you normally eat… just add these in.
Draw a circle as a plate, divide it in half, then again divide one half in 2 halves. Use this model when eating in or out: one half of your plate should be occupied by vegetables- raw is ideal, the other half should be divided about equally between proteins and carbohydrates.
Another way to successfully lessen your appetite is by playing mind games. Since studies show that the color blue curbs the appetite, you may want to paint your dining room blue. You can also use plates or place mats that are blue. Using smaller plates can also make you think that you have eaten a lot even if you just had a few servings. Lastly, light up a candle or wear a perfume before you eat so that your mind will get distracted from the smell of food.
The slower you eat, the more full you will feel. It takes your brain 10 minutes longer than your stomach to receive the message that you are it is full. Eating should not be a race. Enjoy it and be thankful for the healthy food you choose to eat.
Drink More Water
Drink the necessary amount of water, but don’t mix your foods with liquid. Water needs are calculated according to your weight and activity levels and should be fullfilled between meals.
Water helps to suppress appetite. A lot of times you think you’re hungry when in fact you’re just dehydrated. I’d tell you to drink plain ol’ water. If you just drink two more glasses of water a day, you will be amazed at the reduction in your appetite as well as your waist line. And no, soda pop is not a healthy alternative.
1- Drink two cups of water before meals.
2- Cut vegetables like cucumber, tomatoes, carrots, beetroot, onion ( any one or two) into medium sized pieces and sprinkle salt, black pepper powder, lemon juice (depending on your taste) on them. Eat at least 15 pieces of the cut vegetables (numbers matter, more you eat, you start feeling half full) before every meal.
3- Keep two fresh apples or any other fruits on in front of you while having meals (For psychological effect!). When you look at them, you try to keep some space for them in stomach and eat less. After having your meal (which would be 30-50% smaller to your normal meals), you would be able to take not even a full apple.
Come on…you knew this was coming
Engage in a regular exercise program
Numerous studies have shown that regular exercise has a balancing effect on the insulin metabolism. Exercise does not just help you lose calories and weight, it also changes the way your body craves food and can actually suppress your appetite. The breakdown that occurs during a hard workout raises your appetite but not for junk foods. Your body knows the premium-grade types of foods that will repair this damage.
Although exercise is important in keeping your body fit and your heart healthy, it may not be the best way to help you lose weight fast. If you want to see the numbers on a weighing scale go down fast, you better start lessening the number of calories that you eat.
Suppressing hunger and thereby controlling calorie intake is a traditional and proven method to lose weight. But controlling hunger is not an easy thing to do for many of the overweight people. 60% of men and women who desperately want to shed off unwanted pounds are turning to appetite suppressant diet supplements.
