Yo-yo Diets and Emotional Eating Habits
Have you successfully lost weight in the past only to regain it again and again? A lot of people struggle with this dilemma most of their lives.
What is the cause of weight cycling?
Drastically cutting on your food consumption for a quick weight loss may seem like a grand idea. Sooner or later, however, your body prepares itself for fewer calories coming in. The body will adjust to this lower calorie intake by decreasing the way it burns food for energy (metabolic rate) and conserving energy as well. The body then plateaus. It decelerates or stops weight loss all together.
Many dieters at this point would wrestle to sustain their diet. What happens next? The weight slowly creeps back up.
To make matters worse, the decreased metabolic rate induces the body to survive on diminished calories. Every low-calorie dieting episode makes the body more efficient. The severe calorie limitation also brings about a loss of muscle tone. Common signs of this are flabby upper arms and sagging buns.
Breaking out of the yo-yo diet
Instead of hoping for a rapid weight loss, take a long term sustainable approach. Your goal should be for a modest weight loss. If you plan on decreasing caloric intake, do it gradually. Depending on how much you have to lose, two hundred up to a 500 calories decrease a day would be commendable.
Think of your diet as a healthy living design instead of a temporary weight loss program. Increase your level of physical activities by incorporating them in your daily life. For example, take the stairs or try something you enjoy such as dancing or hiking.
Plan on eating frequently throughout the day. Eating frequent smaller meals will prevent you from overeating later on.
Overeating and Emotional Eating
All right, maybe your problem is not yo-yo dieting. It's possible that you are a habitual eater. Example, eating junk snacks while watching TV. Perhaps it is emotional. When you are stressed, you do not eat all day. Then when you get bored, you raid the refrigerator.
How to overcome habitual or emotional eating.
If food is feeding an impulsive need in your life, then it's time to examine what is causing it.
Find substitutes to eating instead. For example, instead of celebrating your birthday with cake (childhood ritual), invite your friends to play miniature golf instead. Have healthy snacks such as an apple or carrot sticks on hand. You can grab them quickly when you are too stressed to find time to eat at work. Or you can just clear your head by taking a brisk walk during your lunch break.
Try to manage hunger by eating several small meals a day. Remember that if you go hungry, you will make poor choices or you will tend to overeat.
Yes, you can train your body to be satisfied at 60% capacity at mealtime. Therefore, do not fill yourself. Don't feel guilty about tossing out the food on your plate, think of where it will land if you eat it all.
If you know that you cannot stop at just one potato chip, get rid of it. As a matter of fact, just get rid of all the junk food that is detrimental to your goal.
It may sound corny, but try to do things to keep you focused on your goal. Put a sign over your bed that says: "The difference between fat and fit is I." Stick a sign on your dashboard that says: "None of these foods taste as good as a size 8." (Add a picture of a cheeseburger and fries).
In the end, it all boils down to staying on track. Do not fall off the wagon even if you overate once (or twice).
What is the cause of weight cycling?
Drastically cutting on your food consumption for a quick weight loss may seem like a grand idea. Sooner or later, however, your body prepares itself for fewer calories coming in. The body will adjust to this lower calorie intake by decreasing the way it burns food for energy (metabolic rate) and conserving energy as well. The body then plateaus. It decelerates or stops weight loss all together.
Many dieters at this point would wrestle to sustain their diet. What happens next? The weight slowly creeps back up.
To make matters worse, the decreased metabolic rate induces the body to survive on diminished calories. Every low-calorie dieting episode makes the body more efficient. The severe calorie limitation also brings about a loss of muscle tone. Common signs of this are flabby upper arms and sagging buns.
Breaking out of the yo-yo diet
Instead of hoping for a rapid weight loss, take a long term sustainable approach. Your goal should be for a modest weight loss. If you plan on decreasing caloric intake, do it gradually. Depending on how much you have to lose, two hundred up to a 500 calories decrease a day would be commendable.
Think of your diet as a healthy living design instead of a temporary weight loss program. Increase your level of physical activities by incorporating them in your daily life. For example, take the stairs or try something you enjoy such as dancing or hiking.
Plan on eating frequently throughout the day. Eating frequent smaller meals will prevent you from overeating later on.
Overeating and Emotional Eating
All right, maybe your problem is not yo-yo dieting. It's possible that you are a habitual eater. Example, eating junk snacks while watching TV. Perhaps it is emotional. When you are stressed, you do not eat all day. Then when you get bored, you raid the refrigerator.
How to overcome habitual or emotional eating.
If food is feeding an impulsive need in your life, then it's time to examine what is causing it.
Find substitutes to eating instead. For example, instead of celebrating your birthday with cake (childhood ritual), invite your friends to play miniature golf instead. Have healthy snacks such as an apple or carrot sticks on hand. You can grab them quickly when you are too stressed to find time to eat at work. Or you can just clear your head by taking a brisk walk during your lunch break.
Try to manage hunger by eating several small meals a day. Remember that if you go hungry, you will make poor choices or you will tend to overeat.
Yes, you can train your body to be satisfied at 60% capacity at mealtime. Therefore, do not fill yourself. Don't feel guilty about tossing out the food on your plate, think of where it will land if you eat it all.
If you know that you cannot stop at just one potato chip, get rid of it. As a matter of fact, just get rid of all the junk food that is detrimental to your goal.
It may sound corny, but try to do things to keep you focused on your goal. Put a sign over your bed that says: "The difference between fat and fit is I." Stick a sign on your dashboard that says: "None of these foods taste as good as a size 8." (Add a picture of a cheeseburger and fries).
In the end, it all boils down to staying on track. Do not fall off the wagon even if you overate once (or twice).
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