Four Ways To Control Your Weight

Posted on May 16th, 2008 by leon

It is only a very few cases that you will find these little tricks do not work, and in these cases you will need to exert more control over yourself to stop from overeating, but you will still find that these little tricks can help you.

And all of the methods which I have mentioned below work along those lines, and are quite easy for you to incorporate into your busy lifestyle as the most effort you will need to put into it will be to get a few plates and mugs.

1. Use smaller plates and tall thin glasses

This is actually one of the most effective ways of controlling weight. Instead of using the oversized mugs and plates which are becoming standard
these days, you can use smaller mugs and plates which will help you control your food portions. By fooling your eyes into believing that you have more food on your plate than you really do, you can go a long way to helping yourself control your weight.

Although you know logically that you are fooling your stomach through your eyes, we have been so conditioned to these little signs and signals (such as stopping only when our plate is empty), throughout our lifetime, that we tend to respond to them automatically.

Using smaller plates and things, is also a great way to control your portion sizes, as it helps you to control the sizes without your having to think too hard about it.

2. Portions count – get the correct portion size

For those who don’t want to go to the trouble of changing your plates and things, or maybe you just favor the oversized mugs, you can use the method called portion sizes control.

The key to doing this properly though, is to know your portion sizes. If you don’t know what size portion of pasta you can eat in one sitting, or how much butter you should really use at one time, or even how much a proper portion of cereal is, you will go over the limit – even with small plates and glasses.

For example, I like to have my coffee out of oversized mugs so I have therefore learnt to take only half of the mug as my quota.This works for me, and fits in nicely with my portion sizing. For things such as juice, which is good for you but which, in excess, can be bad for you too, just remember to take half of a small tumbler at one setting. To get correct portion sizes for foods and things, you can consult with your doctor to find out exactly what constituted as a portion for different foods.

3. Eat slowly, chew your food properly

This is also a good way to fool your stomach into believing that you have had your fill of food. In reality, because it takes time for the message to go from your stomach to your brain telling you that you have had enough to eat, eating your food slowly is a good way to stop yourself from overeating.

To do this, you have a choice of either chewing your food slowly, (which also has added benefits of making your food smaller and more easily digestible), or of prolonging your meal.Take the time to savor the food you are eating and to enjoy the company, or your surroundings.

4. Drink plenty of water

Another great way to help you lose weight is to drink plenty of water. Not only do you require plenty of water to keep you hydrated throughout the day, but it can also give you that feeling of fullness which can help you to curb your snacking. Keep a small bottle of water with you at all times.This way, you will be able to keep hydrated without even having to think about it.

Or if you can’t take the thought of drinking more water than you have to, you might want to consider topping up your water tank with natural juices, herbal teas, black teas, or black coffees. These are all good alternatives to water as long as you keep the sugar to a minimum. For that matter, you might want to keep the juice to a minimum as well, since although it is good for you, fruits carry many natural sugars.