Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Eat to Lose Weight - 3 Simple Tips For How to Eat to Lose Weight

There's so much conflicting information out there about what to do to lose weight that it can be confusing trying to figure out how to eat to lose weight. Here are some simple eating tips that will have you shedding pounds in no time:

1. Plan out your shopping.

One of the biggest keys to eating to lose weight is to plan ahead before you hit the grocery store. Start by scheduling a time to shop each week and make it habit. Before you head out to the store plan all the meals you will eat throughout the week and create a shopping list with all the ingredients you will need to make those meals. Try to organize your list according to the layout of the grocery store (ie. group all dairy items together, all fruits and vegetables together, etc) to make shopping faster and avoid having to run back to a part of the store for something you missed the first time through.

When you get to the grocery store stick to your list! If something isn't on it don't put it in your cart. This will help you avoid the temptation of things like a great deal on a pack of cookies or other junk food that jumps out at you as you make your way around the store. Also, be sure to eat before you hit the grocery store. Shopping on a full stomach will go a long ways toward keeping you from overloading your cart with bad food choices.

2. Monitor your portions.

One of the easiest ways to lose weight is to eat smaller portions of food. Most dinner plates are far too large for how much we should actually be eating at each meal which makes it easy to overload on calories that we don't need. Try taking less food at each meal and then giving yourself some time for your stomach to register that there is food in it before you go back for seconds. You may be surprised to find how little food it actually takes for you to feel full if you give it time to settle.

For even more help with portions you may want to consider checking out a portion control plate. These special plates have marking on them showing you appropriate portion sizes for the various food groups and make keeping your portions in check a breeze.

3. Eat smaller meals, but eat more often.

Most of us were raised on 3 solid meals a day and we continue to eat that way today. Instead of eating 3 large meals, try breaking up your meals into 6 smaller meals throughout the day. Not only will this help to keep you from feeling hungry throughout the day, but it will also help to keep your metabolism running strong. A faster metabolism means that your body will burn more calories even while you are resting and losing weight will become a lot easier.

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