Are you overeating? Stressing out about how to stay fit and healthy?

Eating too much at once or taking in too many calories at once is a common habit, a tendency that is difficult to break in today’s sedentary lifestyle patterns. While some label this as behavioural, many call it an overeating disorder, as over a period of time such a habit can lead to not only weight gain but also the possibility of developing chronic heart disease as well as obesity issues. Thus, here we are today giving you 10 hacks to avoid overeating and a healthy guide.

So are you one of those who is also a victim of the vicious cycle of overeating? 

Maybe for the fun of it, for the craving of eating more yummy food, you simply overstuffed yourself owing to some exterior reasons such as stress, diversion, or as part of a “ritual” or “imbibed culture” that perhaps does not allow you to stop consuming food at a middle-sized portion? Well, join the gang of the growing anxious then. Since obesity has increased its presence and impact on our generation, it hardly comes as a surprise that a large portion of the population indeed does indulge in the wrong, overindulgent, gluttonous eating habits and patterns.

No surprise here actually, as I have always felt that, be it an individual or a community, eating healthy and staying fit are actually parts of one’s own inner regime and resolution, and one’s culture or environment has less to do with it. If one decides that he/she wants to maintain a healthy lifestyle, following the proper dietary discretions, they are easily able to do so after a point, if they steel their resolve. Stress is a major driving key factor, I feel. Today, it is one of the major reasons why people tend to fall into the cycle of overeating disorder. Also, people, in reality, have different health goals and needs. It can thus be very tricky to determine the optimal calorie intake for any individual since it is an individualistic number.

Related: Plant-Based Eating: Tips, Tricks, and Recipes for a Healthier You

But you know what? I personally feel that looking at food, especially what I love to eat, and having grown up in a country where food is actually more than a language or religion is surely kind of difficult, I’d say. So, it is not like I do not want to stay healthy. But the reality remains that I simply cannot avoid it. For starters, there is this enormous problem of overeating, which I feel most of us face for sure. That is something so basic that we tend to just ignore it and really don’t know how to go about it further.

While the typical signs of the overeating disorder include:

• Eating beyond the point of being full.  
• Finding oneself mindlessly eating because one is bored or distracted.
• Eating for reasons other than to supplement one’s body.
• Experiencing physical symptoms after eating include nausea, abdominal discomfort, bloating, gas and such.

So what do we do then? Well, I want to stay fit and healthy. Taddaaa! Here I am today with some basic dos and don’ts. Your very own dost, here are 10 hacks to avoid overeating and a healthy guide.

So, while people may say that initially practising mindful eating, planning proper mid-sized meals, and cutting down on sugar intake and deep-fried and heavy foods is the main way, believe me, that is barely scratching the surface. To avoid overeating, one needs to ensure a well-planned and chalked-out routine, one that incorporates the following hacks:

1. Familiarise yourself with the proper portion sizes recommendable for you: I would say try and eat off smaller plates to achieve this well. Remember, portion size is critical, so be accountable and eat appropriately.
2. Include a source of fibre in all meals compulsorily: This is crucial since fibre is helpful to satiate the feeling of fullness after eating. So, if you have a plate full of veggies vis-à-vis several chunks of cheese, although both might have the same amount of calories, the veggies will fill you up faster since they contain fibre. Eating them helps you feel fuller and can help to reduce overeating.
3. Identify and restrict foods that you may overeat: Yes, it is crucial to demarcate and write off foods too, as per your individual body preferences. Make and maintain a food journal to be able to keep perfect track of things.
4. Slow down: It is essential to slow down whilst consuming a meal since it is crucial that you chew each bite of food properly to be able to digest it well. Simply gulping food so that you can enjoy the initial flavour of it on the palate is not reason alone to be consuming it in excess.
5. Think twice before the second serving: yes, you might be hungry and need the second serving. But still, wait for at least 5 to 10 minutes before you move on to the next serving to make sure you consume only how much you need. Your body will learn to speak to you. 
6. Turn off that device: A major problem with most of us. Watching the TV/computer/devices while eating is a big no-no. Make it a wholesome and distraction-free experience, making eating a process of connecting to your body and nourishing it, which is what eating is all about, isn’t it?
7. Drink more water: Yes, it is important to stay hydrated at all times in order to avoid the vicious trap of overeating. Many times it is actually thirst which we mistakenly address as hunger guys. So choose to sidestep those pangs which might not be hunger at all, in the first place.
8. Listen to your body: it is essential to be mindful about what you are eating and also pay proper attention to hunger cues your body might be displaying at certain points in time. Remember, food is eaten to energize and nourish your body, so better keep in mind that.
9. Don’t skip meals: Extremely important since this will only cause intense hunger which will cause you in turn to inadvertently overeat the famine-feast kinda scenario where you will end up eating more than before.
10. Give yourself some cheat meals in moderation: Finally, it is important that you intermittently allow yourself some good cheat meals, once in a while albeit in moderation, so that you stay motivated on the path to eating properly, mindful and healthy. Letting your guard down, albeit in a balanced manner once in a while is a good mindful way to fall in rhythm with the entire process of eating healthy.

So, these were 10 hacks to follow if you want to avoid overeating.

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Adios Amigos!

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