How to replace bad eating habits for good

Identify your bad eating habits and find out what causes them. And then gradually replace them good.

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1. Keep a food diary

It helps to understand what eating habits you have now. Take notes during the week.

• Write down what you eat, how much and at what time.
• Take notes about their well-being "hungry", "stress", "boring", "tired." This will explain why you have something to eat. For example, you bored at work, and you bought a candy bar.
• At the end of the week, review records and identify their dietary habits. Decide which ones you want to change.

Do not put a lot of goals at once, move slowly. To begin, limit yourself to two or three goals. For example, these:

• drink skim milk instead of whole;
• drink more water during the day;
• instead there is a sweet dessert fruit;
• take with you useful snacks and homemade food for lunch;
• learn to distinguish when you eat, because hungry, and when - from stress or boredom.

2. Identify triggers

Think, which is why having these habits. Maybe something in your environment triggers you to eat when you are not hungry. Or to affect the choice of food emotions. Look at the entries in the food diary and draw repetitive triggers. For example:

• you saw something delicious in the kitchen or at the vending machine;
• you eat while watching TV shows;
• you are experiencing stress at work or in another area;
• you are tired after a working day, but for dinner you have nothing prepared;
• you have to eat junk food at work;
• fast food you eat breakfast;
• by the end of the day you want something to please yourself.

Focus on one or two triggers, which are triggered more often. Think about how to avoid them.

• Do not pass by the vending machine on the way to work.
• Prepare a dinner or prepare foods to quickly deal with this evening.
• Do not keep the harmful snacks at home. If they buy one of the household, keep them so that they do not get you in the eye.
• Offer to buy for workshops fruits instead of sweets. Or bring them separately for themselves.
• Instead of juice and soda drink the mineral water.

3. Replace old habits with new

Find alternatives to harmful snacking

• If you eat dessert at the end of the day, to recharge your batteriesBetter to choose a cup of herbal tea and a handful of almonds. Or go for a little walk, when you feel the energy slump.
• At lunch eat fruit and yogurt.
• Instead of vases with candies set on the table a plate of fruit or nuts.
• Keep an eye on portion sizes. It is difficult to eat a few chips or other harmful food, when in front of you the whole pack. Set aside a small portion on the plate, and the rest is clean.

Eat slowly

While chew, put a fork on a plate. Bite off a piece of the next only when swallowed last. If there is too fast, your stomach will not have time to give a signal that the hunger appeased. As a result, you overeat.

How do you know that you eat too fast? Approximately 20 minutes after a meal, you will notice that overeat.

Eat only when hungry

Do not try to calm down with food, you are going to move. To feel better, call relatives or go for a walk.

Give the brain and body to relax. Take a break to relieve stress without resorting to food.

Plan your meals

• Decide in advance what will be there, not to make impulsive purchases.
• Earlier this week, decide that you will cook for dinner, and purchase products. So there will be less temptation on the way home from work to eat fast food.
• Prepare the ingredients for the dinner in advance. For example, cut vegetables. Then in the evening to cook will leave less time.
• Try hearty breakfast to lunch before you are not attracted to a sweet snack. If the morning is not hungry, eat fruit, drink a glass of milk or smoothies.
• Hearty lunch and snack on something useful to dinner. Then you will not die from hunger in the evening and do not eat too much.
• Do not skip meals. Otherwise, the next time you overeat or eat something harmful.

When you change one or two bad food habits, continue to the next. Do not rush and do not blame yourself. It will take time. The main thing - do not give up.