I love the "eat with your other hand". Although I'm such a clutz, I don't do well with either hand. ;-)
Tempted to Eat Junk Food?
In a world where you can inhale half your daily allotment of calories as you turn left out of the drive-thru, often the only thing standing between you and a few extra chins is willpower—that oh-so—elusive ability to halt the urge to indulge.
If your powers of resistance are lacking, you'll be psyched to hear this: Research shows that willpower is a kind of mental muscle, and like any muscle, it can get stronger. "We now know that the capacity for self-control can be increased," says Roy Baumeister, Ph.D., a professor of psychology at Florida State University who studies the subject.
These four tactics target the most common resolve busters. Put them into practice, and pretty soon that cheesy Sicilian slice or glazed doughnut will be no match for your mental strength.
Eat Smaller, More Frequent Meals
Out-of-control hunger
Why it works:
Going too long without eating makes your blood sugar plummet. That leaves you with a raging appetite that can overpower your best intentions to eat well. If you have small meals every three to five hours, your blood sugar stays stable, preventing the wallop of a sugar low that will leave you vulnerable to overeating, says Lisa Jones, R.D., of LaSalle University.
Your blood-sugar levels do more than affect how hungry you get; they're also directly connected to willpower. In lab studies, people's blood-sugar levels dropped when they performed self-control tasks (such as restraining their facial expressions); then, when asked to attempt another test of resolve, they fared worse. Raising blood glucose with sugar-sweetened drinks restored the subjects' lost willpower. "Mental tasks, such as self-control or concentration, require the same energy your body runs on," explains Baumeister, who conducted the studies. "So it will be harder to exert willpower if you haven't had enough to eat."
Your thighs won't take too kindly to your downing sugary drinks, so reach for snacks that mix carbs with lean protein and a bit of healthy fat (the kind found in nuts, olive oil, and fish) to keep your blood sugar on an even keel. Some examples: low-fat yogurt with berries, or a handful of almonds with an apple.
Eat with Your Other Hand
Distraction
Why it works:
Picking up a fork with the hand you don't usually use automatically slows you down and makes you focus on your meal, two things that have been proven to aid weight loss. Studies have shown that with regular practice, this kind of switcheroo can also increase your overall willpower. Baumeister found that people whose resolve was drained by one test—say, resisting a plate of cookies in favor of vegetables—gave up more quickly on consecutive tests, such as trying to solve an unsolvable puzzle.
In one of his studies, when subjects spent several weeks practicing small acts of self-control, such as using their nondominant hand to brush their teeth or operate a computer mouse, they worked longer on that same puzzle.
"By practicing their ability to override one specific impulse, they increased their overall capacity for resisting impulses," Baumeister says. The subjects in this study saw progress within three weeks of daily activity. Of course, your results will depend on how often you practice and whether you keep it up over time—it's possible that, like your abs, your gray matter can turn flabby if you don't keep working it out regularly.
Weigh Yourself Regularly
Losing sight of your goal
Why it works:
Few things keep your weight-loss goal front and center better than seeing those big glowing numbers on the scale. Regular weigh-ins also make it easier to notice extra pounds creeping on, so you can slash and burn immediately. In fact, when researchers at the University of Minnesota analyzed more than 1,800 people who successfully shed pounds in weight-loss programs, they found that about 40 percent weighed themselves daily or weekly. And the more frequently they stepped on the scale, the more they lost: 12 pounds on average for daily weighers, compared with six for weekly weighers. (Scale shunners, meanwhile, gained an average of five pounds.)
But remember: "Don't get discouraged if the numbers aren't always the ones you want to see. Your clothing, the time of day, and how much water you're retaining affect weight," Jones says. "Contestants on reality shows might drop 11 pounds a week, but for a normal woman, one to two is more realistic." To improve your odds of slimming down, break your goal weight into several smaller targets—first aim for five pounds, then after you hit that, go for another five. A study at the College of Public Health at the University of Iowa found that the more frequent and specific your weight-loss objectives, the better your chances of sticking to them. And achieving one goal will motivate you to hang on for the next one—something we've all experienced and that research has shown to be true.
Lift Your Spirits
Emotional eating
Why it works:
It's estimated that when people overeat, nearly 75 percent of the time it's because they're feeling blue. It stands to reason that lifting your spirits might also help you take your mind off munching, and a study published in a 2007 issue of the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology backs this up. Researchers first depleted people's reserves of willpower by asking them to eat only radishes while left alone in a room filled with cookies and chocolate. Next, some of the volunteers watched a short comedy video; others viewed an educational film. Then the entire group was asked to perform a mental task. Guess who did better.
The results show that even small doses of pleasant emotions can quickly renew your ability to say no. So the next time you're facing down temptation, surf over to theonion.com or buy yourself that going-out top you've been eyeing. The good feelings might be temporary, but they will last long enough to get you safely past that hot-fudge sundae.
~Destiny
Listen to your body. It will tell you all you need to know.
Healthy Moms Moderator - Come join us!
I was eating a bowl of oatmeal while reading this and switched to my "non-dominant" hand to finish the bowl. LOL! I thought, why not! I'll start working on that distraction tactic now. However, by the time I finished the bowl my left arm hurt. haha! Thanks for the info!
I was laughing thinking about how I type with both hands but can type one-handed with my dominant hand. See? We can eat better AND type this way? LOL
Quoting ziff130:
I was eating a bowl of oatmeal while reading this and switched to my "non-dominant" hand to finish the bowl. LOL! I thought, why not! I'll start working on that distraction tactic now. However, by the time I finished the bowl my left arm hurt. haha! Thanks for the info!
~Destiny
Listen to your body. It will tell you all you need to know.
Healthy Moms Moderator - Come join us!
GREAT TIPS!!!!! and it really is true about willpower. After a few days/week, it gets A LOT easier to refuse. Another thing that helps my mind is telling myself that I can have that brownie any time! I made some yummy cake balls the other day. SO rich(which is my fav kind of sweet) They stay in the freezer and I allow myself 2 every night. DO I want to eat the whole plate? Some days but I tell myself I can eat it later, make myself a cup of green tea and let it go.
Eating sweets at night is also they best time to eat them. If you eat something sweet before bed, when your body gets to that plummet of craving it again, you will most likely be in the bed and you will not notice it. I know if I eat any kind of sweet treat during the day, it is SUPER hard for me to not go back and eat more.
Another thing I need to be careful of is my sleep. When I am tired I want to eat junk. I have been taking lil' cat naps this week because of exhaustion and that has helped me stay away from snacking.
I can really relate to all of this. I learned a long time ago that if I'm craving something and try to find things to have instead, I still have that craving. But if I allow myself to have it, but on a more reasonable amount, then I'm fine.
When I'm tired, I just want to eat whatever I can get my hands on. I'm much less mindful about what I put in my body.
Quoting sjc0858:
GREAT TIPS!!!!! and it really is true about willpower. After a few days/week, it gets A LOT easier to refuse. Another thing that helps my mind is telling myself that I can have that brownie any time! I made some yummy cake balls the other day. SO rich(which is my fav kind of sweet) They stay in the freezer and I allow myself 2 every night. DO I want to eat the whole plate? Some days but I tell myself I can eat it later, make myself a cup of green tea and let it go.
Eating sweets at night is also they best time to eat them. If you eat something sweet before bed, when your body gets to that plummet of craving it again, you will most likely be in the bed and you will not notice it. I know if I eat any kind of sweet treat during the day, it is SUPER hard for me to not go back and eat more.
Another thing I need to be careful of is my sleep. When I am tired I want to eat junk. I have been taking lil' cat naps this week because of exhaustion and that has helped me stay away from snacking.
~Destiny
Listen to your body. It will tell you all you need to know.
Healthy Moms Moderator - Come join us!
The other hand idea is interesting!!
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- DestMasters
on Jul. 14, 2010 at 10:17 PM