Obesity is running rampant in America

Tips on how to eat less to lose weight
Obesity is running rampant in America. Here are some tips on how you can eat less to lose that extra weight.

It is so incredibly easy to pick up a burger and fries or go out to a Chinese buffet for lunch with our colleagues. When we get home from work and we’re exhausted, we’d rather just pick up some take-out or pick at all the different snack foods we have in our pantry. Overeating is evident in our society as we see the obesity rates skyrocket. This is something we may even notice in our own lives as our “fat” jeans have now become our skintight jeans and we have less energy and are less active. Many of us are on a quest to lose that extra weight not only to look great, but to feel great about ourselves and to become more healthy.

Most studies have shown that 3,500 calories equals one pound. Suffice it to say, if we consume 3,500 “extra” calories a week, we’ll gain one pound that week; if we cut down 3,500 calories that week by eating less and burning calories through exercise, we’ll lose one pound. Never follow any diet that suggests you will lose more than one to two pounds a week. Not only is this not healthy, but chances are, with a weight loss that rapid, you will not have much luck keeping the weight off for any extended period of time. You can easily find out from your doctor or nutritionist or even online how many calories you will need to maintain your current weight, given your sex, your height, your weight and your activity level. By cutting out 500 calories a day from that maintenance level, you can drop one pound in a week. Of course, before beginning any weight loss regimen, you will want to speak to your doctor to make sure this is healthy for you. Now, how do we begin to eat less to lose our extra weight?

I hate to say it, but counting calories is a must. Scan the back of some typical foods in your pantry and, more than likely, you will be shocked at the number of calories in your “normal” serving of food. Two slices of pizza can contain a whopping 600 calories, while a normal fast food burger meal with fries and drink can push you right up to your necessary caloric intake for the day! By counting your calories and keeping a food diary, you will be able to see what eating mistakes you have been making. Sure, you may be having a salad at lunch, but that fast food you had at night may push your daily calories overboard. There are many sites online that will tell you the nutritional value of foods and drinks at most restaurants and pretty soon you will know which foods are safe and which foods should be eaten in moderation. This, alone, can cause you to rethink your normal eating habits and force you to eat less.

When going out to a restaurant, most items you order are enough to feed two people. As soon as you get your order, ask for a to-go box and put half of your meal in there to enjoy later. You will find that eating only a portion of a restaurant meal is more than sufficient. Always drink water before and during your meals. This will give you the effect of feeling full faster and help you to not overeat.

At home, when you make a meal, serve your portion on a smaller plate. When you eat off a bigger plate, you will want to serve yourself more than you actually need because you will want to pile enough food on the plate to cover the whole thing. By eating off the smaller plate, you are instantly eating a smaller portion, but your mind will see that you’ve eaten a “full” meal. Once you have served yourself a portion of the food, immediately package up the rest of the meal. For example, if you make a lasagna and have already served yourself a slice, seal up the lasagna with foil and put it in the refrigerator. By doing this, you have made the possibility of having seconds and even thirds a little bit harder. When you leave your dinner on the stove, it is easy for you to go back to it and serve yourself some more since it is still warm and available. By having it already put up and in the refrigerator, by the time you have convinced yourself you want some more, the food is already cold and you will have to reheat it. Most of us won’t want to do that, so we’ll just stop eating.

Most of us overeat later in the evening, when we’ve finished working around the house and we are more relaxed. Commit to not eating anything past 7 or 7:30 in the evening. This will eliminate any of that late night snacking. Put a picture of your “why” on the refrigerator door. What I mean by that is, if you are losing weight so you can be more active for your children, put a picture of them on the refrigerator. They are your “why” for losing weight. This will keep your priorities in order.

Always eat breakfast, even if it is something tiny like a piece of toast and a glass of juice. This will kick start your metabolism and make you less hungry for lunch. If you can, breakfast should be your biggest meal of the day, lunch your medium-sized meal of the day, and dinner your smallest. It has been said that by eating six small meals a day instead of three large ones, you will lose weight because you will be less hungry for snacking during the