Losing weight can seem like a daunting task, and it’s often difficult to determine which habits in your day to day routine are serving your progress, and which are holding you back. It’s been said time and time again that the key to successful weight loss is maintaining a calorie deficit, but what goes into that deficit and the way you approach your meals can make all the difference in your weight loss journey.
We spoke with Susan E. Wilson, RDN, LDN to get her thoughts on the best habit you could add to your evening routine in order to promote healthy weight loss and increase satiety, and her solution doesn’t boil down to depriving yourself of your favorite foods.
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Stop Distracted Eating
We are all living busy lives and with that it can sometimes be difficult to take the time to sit down and enjoy your meal. However, it’s when you slow down and actually listen to your hunger cues that you will more easily be able to stop yourself from overeating, and distracted eating could be setting you up to consume more calories than you need. “It's easy to ignore the feelings of hunger and satiety if we are distracted. Try to reduce the distractions while you are eating and pay attention to how your body feels while you're eating,” suggests Wilson.
When you’re involved in other tasks and not thinking about what’s going into your body, you will be more inclined to finish a portion that pushes you over the edge into being too full, so focusing on your meal can take this risk away. That means no more TV or working dinners in 2022 in order to promote healthy weight loss.
Prioritizing high-fiber foods at dinner is another trick for increasing satiety, and while you’re eating more mindfully without the distraction of television or work, you’ll be able to stay aware of when your meal has filled you up. “Fruits and vegetables are very high in fiber, but have very few calories. Make half your plate full of these foods,” says Wilson.
“Sometimes it is hard to get enough fiber, so taking a fiber supplement can help on those days,” she adds. For men, the suggested intake of fiber per day is about 38 grams, and women fall at 26 grams.
Changing the makeup of your plate to be filled with fibrous, satisfying foods will naturally promote healthy weight loss, and these foods are often also packed with other nutrients which can help to bolster your overall wellness. But ultimately it’s in your approach to eating that you’ll see the most changes.
In taking the time to sit down and enjoy your food, you’re opening up a line of communication with your body so you can more effectively listen to hunger cues and limit overeating. This will help you to create a calorie deficit without cutting out your favorite foods, and stopping eating when you’re full will create a healthier relationship with food that doesn’t leave you feeling like you need to deprive yourself in order to see results.
