Food gives our bodies the energy we need to function. For many people,
changing eating habits is very hard.
You may have had certain eating habits for so long that you do not
realize they are unhealthy. Or, your habits have become part of your daily
life, so you don't think much about them.
Keep a
journal
A food journal is a good tool to help you learn about your eating
habits. Keep a food journal for 1 week.
·
Write down what you eat, how much, and what times of day you are eating.
·
Include notes about what else you were doing and how you were feeling,
such as being hungry, stressed, tired, or bored. For example, maybe you were at
work and were bored. So you got a snack from a vending machine down the hall
from your desk.
·
At the end of the week, review your journal and look at your eating patterns.
Decide which habits you want to change.
Remember, small steps toward change lead to more success in making
long-term changes. Try not to overwhelm yourself with too many goals.
Also, take a look at the healthy habits you have and be proud of yourself
about them. Try not to judge your behaviors too harshly. It is easy to focus
only on your poor habits. This can make you feel stressed and give up trying to
change.
Taking on new, healthier habits may mean that you:
·
Drink skim or low-fat (1%) milk instead of 2% or whole milk.
·
Eat fruit for dessert instead of cookies (or skip dessert all together).
·
Schedule times to eat your meals and snacks.
·
Plan and prepare healthy meals and snacks to increase your chance of
success.
·
Keep healthy snacks at work. Pack healthy lunches that you make at home.
·
Pay attention to your feelings of hunger. Learn the difference between
physical hunger and habitual eating.
Now reflect
Think about what triggers or prompts may be causing some of your eating
habits.
·
Is there something around you that makes you eat when you are not hungry
or choose unhealthy snacks often?
·
Does the way you feel make you want to eat?
Look at your journal and circle any regular or repetitive triggers. Some
of these might be:
·
You see your favorite snack in the pantry or vending machine
·
When you watch television
·
You feel stressed by something at work or in another area of your life
·
You have no plan for dinner after a long day
·
You go to work events where food is served
·
You stop at fast-food restaurants for breakfast and choose high fat,
high calorie foods
·
You need a pick-me-up toward the end of your workday
Start by focusing on one or two triggers that occur most often during
your week. Think about what you can do to avoid those triggers, such as:
·
Do not walk past the vending machine to get to your desk, if possible.
·
Decide what you will have for dinner early in the day so that you have a
plan after work.
·
Keep unhealthy snacks out of your house. If someone else in your
household buys these snacks, devise a plan to keep them out of sight.
·
Suggest having fruits and vegetables during workplace meetings, instead
of sweets. Or bring healthier selections in for yourself.
Replace
your old habits with new, healthy ones
Find health choices for snacks and plan ahead.
·
If you are in the habit of eating candy at the end of the day for
energy, try having a cup of herbal tea and a small handful of almonds.
·
Eat fruit and yogurt in the mid-afternoon about 3 or 4 hours after
lunch.
Control your portion sizes. It is hard to eat only a few chips or other
tempting foods when there is a lot in front of you. Take only a small portion
and put the rest away.
Eat slowly.
·
Put down your fork between bites.
·
Wait until you have swallowed your mouthful of food before taking the
next bite.
Eating too quickly leads to overeating when the food you have eaten has
not yet reached your stomach and told your brain you are full. You will know
you are eating too quickly if you feel stuffed about 20 minutes after you stop
eating.
Eat only when you are hungry.
·
Eating when you are feel worried, tense, or bored also leads to
overeating. Instead, call a friend or go for a walk to help you feel better.
·
Give your body and your brain time to relax from the stress of daily
life. Take a mental or physical break to help you feel better without turning
to food as a reward.
Plan your meals.
·
Know what you will eat ahead of time so you can avoid buying unhealthy
foods (impulse buying) or eating at fast-food restaurants.
·
Plan your dinners at the beginning of the week so you can prepare
healthy, well-balanced meals each evening.
Get rid of unhealthy foods.
·
Replace your candy dish with a bowl of fruit or nuts.
·
When you do have unhealthy foods in your house, put them in a place that
is hard for you to reach.
An old saying goes: "Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a
prince, and dinner like a pauper."
Breakfast sets the tone for the day. A hearty, healthy breakfast will
give your body the energy it needs to get you to lunch.
Plan a good lunch that will satisfy you, and a healthy afternoon snack
that will keep you from becoming to hungry before dinner time.
Avoid skipping meals. Missing a regular meal or snack often leads to
overeating or making unhealthy choices.
Once you have changed one or two old unhealthy habits, try changing one
or two more.
Practice
helps
It may take a while before you can turn your unhealthy habits into new,
healthy ones. Remember, it took you a while to form your habits. And it may
take just as long to change them. Do not give up.
If you start an old habit again, think about why you went back to it.
Try again to replace it with a new habit. One slip does not mean you are a
failure. Keep trying!
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