Tricks of the Trade

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My own suggestions... There are a few tips/tricks I use that have kept me from going off my diet. + Diet Coke/Pepsi, anything carbonated. It can bloat your stomach, making you feel less hungry. + Gum- I can go a longer time in between meals if I've been constantly chewing on gum + AVOID THE SCALE-especially when you've been working out! When you work out, you gain more muscle, and we all know that muscle weighs more than fat. Therefore, you could be 2 sizes smaller and still weigh the same! (trust me, this has happened to me!) So go more by measurements, or the fit of your clothes. + Distract yourself- for me, the more time I spend around others, the more conscious I am of what I'm eating, when I'm eating, and how others view me. This can often keep me from snacking too much, this knowledge of others judging my every move. + When I'm bored is when I tend to eat most. So if you find yourself drifting to the fridge, find something occupying to do! I like the cleaning idea, or dye your hair, or build a website! Anything that keeps you so involved you won't think about food as much!
Common Tips *Drink two quarts of water each day. This helps control your appetite. Sometimes a feeling of hunger is actually thirst. Additionally, water is necessary to carry away the breakdown byproducts of fat. Carry a little sport bottle at all times. If you feel hungry, take a drink. *Use small plates and eating utensils. You will feel that you have eaten more, because the portions will look bigger. This will reinforce your mental perception of eating a "full plate." *Slow down your eating pace every way you can. For instance, if you are right-handed, eat with your left and vice versa. Put your fork down after each bite and don't pick it up until you have completely swallowed the last bite and taken a drink of water. *Chew every bite at least thirty times. Your food will taste better and you will be much more satisfied. Don't swallow until all the flavor is gone from of each bite. *Brush your teeth after every meal. Brush and floss after your evening meal; many people agree this helps avoid late-night cravings for snacks. *Both sodas and juices are loaded with calories that are simple carbohydrates. These trigger insulin production and hunger and are pretty much "empty calories," lacking other important nutrients such as protein. Drink water instead. *Pay attention to when and what you are eating. Ask yourself: "Do I really want to eat this?" *Don't keep junk food snacks around the house. Eat healthy snacks like carrots, celery-even beef jerky. Avoid eating lots of fruit, which are high in carbohydrates; reasonable quantities are ok. *Eat lots of fiber. Fiber is great for helping you feel full as well as helping to cleanse your digestive track. The natural cleansing helps improve both your energy level and overall feeling of wellness. *Before going to a restaurant or party, think about what you will eat. When you get there, remember your plan. Alcoholic beverages can add lots of calories. Drink a glass of skim milk or some healthy snacks before you leave. *Don't get discouraged when you plateau. Realize this up front. Plateauing is healthy and necessary. During these times, focus on drinking more water and a little extra walking each day. Remember the three laws of success in dieting: "Consistency, consistency and consistency." *Use visualization. Picture yourself as you would like to be and focus on that picture as often as possible. Find an old photo that you like of yourself when you were thinner. Have copies made and put one in your purse or wallet, on the refrigerator door, at your desk, on the bathroom mirror and anywhere you can think of to help you visualize your new, thinner self. *Above all-WRITE IT DOWN. Keep an eating diary. Carry a piece of paper folded up or an index card in your pocket, purse or wallet and write down everything you eat during the day. Look up the foods in a reference book at home in the evening and add up the calories actually consumed. *Drink one glass of water every hour. Set your watch alarm to go off every hour to remind yourself. *Eat negative calorie foods when you feel like binging. *Weigh yourslef before and AFTER every time you eat. Not only will it eliminate unnecessary eating, but it will make you want to eat LESS when you see the numbers creep up. *Diet coke is always in hand. If you get hungry reach for it and sit down with a magazine to read. *Treat yourself to something you love once a week and only once. Still, make sure you don’t go more than 200 calories above your daily limit, or else you can hinder your progress. *This tip will only work if you live alone or live with someone who dieting (or just doesn't care!). Find pictures of overweight people and put them in various places around your house...put some near the tv, to remind you to exercise, put some near the trigger foods (you know the ones..) to remind you that THAT is how you will look if you eat that. If you are living with someone on a diet they will most likely agree to this if you tell them its a proven fact that it helps weight loss (and it is!). *Find a buddy. Compete. This works so very fast and effectively. *Once a week treat yourself. And i dont mean with food! (the weekley binge does not count.) - take a bubble bath, listen to relaxing music, get a massage, give yourself a manicure, a facial, etc. Anything to pamper yourself...to relax ...as a destresser, and to reward yourself for your good work for the week. *If you didnt have a good week the above does not apply. You will begin to look forward to the little treats and be good simply so you can have them! *Use symbols. This may sound funny to some of you...or even most of you. Wear an anorexia ring. Its like any other ring but when you wear it, you can't be bad. Wear it all the time. (hint..get a ring a little too small for your fingers...push it on...you'll have a hard time getting it back off and while trying you'll realise you don't really want the food.) *When dining out, no matter what the waiter says about the fat or calorie content of food assume everything is covered with butter, even the silverware! *Plan your day~ Try to decide what you will eat and when, so you don't have to discover after the fact that you have gone over your calorie limit. *Put up inspirational photos in the cupboards, in the fridge, near the scale, anywhere that you need encouragement. Put pictures depicting obesity near foods you are likely to binge on. *Read the nutritional information. Remember, fat-free does not mean calorie-free. Also keep an eye on fiber content. Get as much fiber into your diet as you can, while cutting fat and calories. *Get more exercise. On top of working out or dancing or whatever you do, increase your daily exercise other ways. Take stairs instead of elevators or escalators. Walk your dog. Walk to the corner store instead of driving. Choose the parking spot farthest from the store when you do drive. Sneak extra movement in wherever you can. Every little bit burns a few more calories. *Clean something. Cleaning something dirty can make you lose your appetite. The toilet, the litter box, under the kitchen sink, scrubbing out the garbage bin, anything grimy or smelly. The mess, along with the smell of the cleaner, can put you off food for a while. *When you feel hungry, exercise before you give in to the hunger. Make a rule about it, a set amount of crunches, squats, whatever, that you must do before you eat. Either the craving will pass, or you won't feel so bad about eating if you've exercised. *Make a stack of magazines that weighs the amount you want to lose. As you lose, take off the appropriate amount of magazines. Seeing the weight like that may help you realize what a difference it will make when it is all off. *Buy a nice, expensive pair of jeans which are one or two sizes too small for you. It will motivate you to refrain from eating so that you can fit into you new, stylish pants! Every time you feel like eating, try on your pants, see how tight they are, and you will have no choice but to be good.