WHAT DO I DO IF IM HUNGRY?
Whenever we look at any sort of behaviour change, not just weight loss related, it’s important to discover and acknowledge the barriers to behaviour change and to create strategies to overcome them.
A key target in improving adherence to weight loss strategies is targeting an increased drive to eat, as that is obviously the major contributor to unsuccessful long term weight attempts.
Methods of prevention: structuring our diet in such a way to minimize hunger.
- Opt for high protein & fiber rich food
- Research shows eating similar foods from day to day can decrease appetite and reduce overall calorie consumption. Decreased overall variety in food can help reduce cravings
- Consuming lower GI sources of carbs
- Correct caloric allocations so you are getting enough hypocaloric, nutritional dense & satiating food & not too much energy-dense food (Eg1: 567 calories in 100g of peanuts vs 22 calories in 100 grams of mushrooms. Eg2: 492 calories in 100g M and Ms vs 34 calories in 100g broccoli)
- Dietary intervention tailored to your preferences
Ketogenic diets get a special mention here, because ketones themselves help supress hunger, while you also get a significant decrease in hunger due to decreased post-prandial spikes in blood sugar and insulin. You also have delayed gastric emptying on a ketogenic diet so you tend to only need to eat 2-3 x a day instead of 4-5.
Other tips:
- We can tend to eat out of emotion, stress and boredom. You have to treat this as you would any other bad habit & replace it with a productive activity (eg meditation, a brisk walk or yoga) .
- EXERCISE: Evidence suggests exercise actually reduces hunger and decreases food intake, attributed to the ability of exercise to sensitize the body to satiety signals.
- Chew your food more slowly then usual
- 90% dark chocolate kills my cravings for sweets
- Prioritize solid calories over liquid calories
- Final little tip I use myself: if you get hungry at night before bed: as soon as you get hungry drink 2 glasses of water, then go brush your teeth & use mouthwash.
Written by Luke Edmunds @eljayedmunds.