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Thursday, April 19, 2018

What’s stopping you from losing weight?


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Find out what renews your mental energy — and what doesn’t







Boredom, late nights and watching TV: 

What’s stopping you from losing weight?

IF YOU can’t drop the pounds despite watching what you eat, it could be your lifestyle that’s to blame. 

Tweaking your daily routine can work wonders for weight loss.





Lifestyle changes such as watching less TV and getting a proper night's sleep aids weight loss

You may have banished bread, ditched the wine and stopped snacking between meals but no matter what you try the pounds just won’t shift. 

According to the experts your lifestyle could be the problem.

By making simple changes to your day-to-day routine you could lose weight effortlessly and without cutting out your favourite foods.


EAT SLOWLY
According to the Journal of the American Dietetic Association people who eat slowly have on average a BMI 11 per cent lower than those who eat quickly.
“Foods when eaten quickly lead to high food intake and low satiating effects,” says Claudia Louch, of the Harley Street Skin And Nutrition Clinic.

“Scoffing your food only provides brief periods of sensory exposure which give the body insufficient cues for satiation.”
It takes some time for receptors in our stomach lining to signal to our brain that we are full. Eating slowly facilitates this process and makes us eat less as a result.


DITCH DIET DRINKS
“When drinking diet sodas people allow themselves to binge on other foods,” says Claudia.
The body is tricked into getting ready to absorb nutrients and when it only receives chemicals from a diet drink the brain conveys the message that we need to eat something in order to make up for the lack of vitamins and minerals.
“When we drink diet soda it provides a sweet flavour but no real sugar,” adds Claudia.
“This triggers the body into craving real sugar as our blood sugar levels have become unstable. This brings on food and sugar cravings in particular.”
She advises drinking water instead, as any drink that isn’t H2O triggers the body’s gastric juices that make you feel hungry.

Going to bed at a reasonable time and getting enough sleep may prevent late night snacking 
 
 
GET AN EARLY NIGHT
Recurrent sleep deprivation increases our desire for high-calorie foods because when you are tired fatty foods send reward signals to your brain.
“Lack of sleep can affect the hormones that regulate your appetite and this can lead to obesity,” says Claudia.
“Sleeping for less than five hours a night appears to increase the likelihood of weight gain. In Western societies chronic sleep restriction is common and food widely available.”
Avoid reaching for the wrong foods by making sure you get your recommended seven hours of shut-eye a night.


WALKING TO WEIGHT LOSS

“Walking is always a good thing and not just for aiding weight loss,” says Claudia. 

“However if you are on a diet it may help you to lose weight a little faster.” Driving everywhere certainly won’t help you drop those unwanted pounds.

 Walking for an hour a day can burn up to 250 calories and over a year that could help you lose 4 pounds.

If an hour a day seems a stretch too far start small and walk to the end of the road and back. Even walking to the bus stop is enough to get your heart rate up.
Studies have shown that regular public transport users are up to 13 per cent less likely to become obese.



DON’T BE A PEOPLE PLEASER
Putting the needs of others before your own increases your risk of overeating. 
You may accept food when you don’t want or need it because you feel pressured to do so.
It’s important to get the balance right and to feel comfortable to refuse politely if you don’t wish to eat something.
“Forming friendships with people who will be supportive is terribly important as it can be difficult to keep up morale alone,” says Gillian.



TURN OFF THE TELLY
Settling down to a TV dinner might be your ideal night in but if your mind is preoccupied you are more likely to eat without realising it.
Even the adverts remind you of food and trick you into thinking you are hungry.
“It is the quality of the food you eat in front of the TV that is a problem,” warns Claudia.
“If you were to eat only low energy foods such as cucumber it wouldn’t matter as much.”

Create a distinct place and time for eating proper meals such as at the kitchen table.
Train yourself into not engaging with foods outside those set places.



BE LESS IMPULSIVE

If you have ever thought to yourself, “This is the last time I’m going to have a takeaway and then I’ll stop” this thought process is known as permissive thought.

“We all have them,” says Gillian Todd, senior lecturer at Norwich Medical School. “You just need to be aware of them and try not to accept them.”

Ask yourself instead how much better you will feel if you resist eating it. She also advises keeping a detailed record of everything you eat before you consume it.

“If you have to acknowledge that you’ve had a biscuit by writing it in a diary it may just be enough time to reconsider.”
 
 
 
KEEP CALM
 
We all have setbacks in life and weight loss is no different.

“It is important to learn from your setbacks rather than beating yourself up about them and feeling down,” says Gillian. 

“Don’t give up and try putting it into perspective. Think of strategies to get back on track and have a better day tomorrow.”

If you have a lot of weight to lose it can seem overwhelming. 
 
“Change your cognitive process to acknowledge that losing even just one pound is a good thing.”

 

 
WILLPOWER
 
“To help you stay motivated try to think about why you want to lose weight in the first place,”
says Gillian.

On the inside of your fridge keep a list of questions such as: “How would you like to look?” and refer to them when feeling disillusioned.

“Rather than looking at long-term goals think about what you want to achieve by next week,”
she says.

Give yourself short-term goals with non-food related rewards.
 
If you lose a certain amount go to the cinema or have a massage. 
 

FIND A HOBBY
 
The busier you are the less time you’ll have to think about food.
Being content also makes choosing healthy foods easier.

“One of the key elements to weight loss and weight maintenance is to keep active,”
says Gillian. 
 
“When trying to lose weight people often become preoccupied with thinking about food. 
Having hobbies to distract from those thoughts is key to psychological wellbeing.”
 
Try a hobby with other people for added social support, such as a team sport.





Surce:  https://www.express.co.uk/life-style/diets/472771/Boredom-late-nights-and-watching-TV-What-s-stopping-you-from-losing-weight
 
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