How to stop snacking?

One of the things that changed in the last 40 years is the addition of snacks in a lot of eating plans…If there was a plan to start with. This recent addition to our routine resulted with eating MORE. So there is a need to stop snacking. Even Though, I am not someone that looks at calories (know why in Don’t Count Calories), snacking loaded us with unnecessary calories… and please don’t tell me your snack are fruits and vegetables…if so, you are rare.. 

Most calories that come from snacks are calorie dense… Researchers found, even when people tried to balance out the calories by eating less during the meal, so they can have more snacks… they failed… they ended up exceeding the total required calories.

I don’t want to say Snacks are bad…but what is happening nowadays, with snacking, is BAD and I can’t defend snacks and snacking anymore… we are having it instead of proper meals. With the excuse that they are easy, cheap and time-consuming that fits perfectly to our busy lives….

Tips to stop snacking 

Eat proper meals 

3 meals a day  was first brought up by British people as a normal eating pattern, shaped based on their living habits but… not always the case.. Roman had only one meal… The idea is that they didn’t eat as often as we are doing now. They cared only about having proper meals… meals that can fill them up till they finish what they are supposed to do. They were busy thinking about food or snacks… Dr. Jason fung shared once that eating frequently or adding snacks made us busy thinking about food more than being busy on something else, thus we eat more… Then how can we lose weight??!!

Make sure to have enough protein and fats 

Continuing on proper meals, is having enough protein and fats. Both keep us full for a long time. Not mentioning that they are the essential nutrients, not carbs. In addition, What you are eating affects what you want later… CRAVINGS…a tip for you, since most people don’t snack early at morning, it might help if you plan wisely what to eat at morning, as it affects what you eat later during the day

and  eat until you are satisfied and full… then you are less likely to feed your cravings between meals… Protein and healthy fats help 😉

Dr.Berg shared that even healthy snacks aren’t a good idea… he considers snacking as the biggest weight loss trap. It calls for a massive insulin… meaning your sugar level drops and you react to it by eating a snack, then it raises and then again it drops and then raises…and so on… it might lower your stress levels and boost up your energy but the fact that it continuously raises your insulin is a problem. 

Have enough liquid

Sometimes you are just thirsty, and you sense that emptiness in your stomach… that could be understood as hunger BUT IT IS NOT.

I already counted this point in previous posts 

ASK YOURSELF: AM I ACTUALLY HUNGRY OR JUST BORED? Do I really need to eat… Dehydration is often mistaken as a hunger 

DISTRACT YOURSELF

One last point is keep yourself BUSY… The more bored and have nothing to do the more frequent you will eat, cravings, more insulin, more hunger, and bad habits…..

None-ending cycle… with expensive consequences. Try to include some activities in your daily routine, cook for yourself, eat fewer times, and exercise…

A lot has agreed that snacking makes you think of food all the time… then how you can hold yourself back from it. But if you distract yourself, keep yourself busy away from  food.. You are less likely to think about food, then you are eating less. 

In sum,  

Snacking is the biggest weight loss trap as Dr. Berg and a lot has agreed. The fact it constantly increasing your insulin levels, where it needs to be normalized is doubtful. Constant hight levels of insulin is never good. EVEN IF IT WAS A HEALTHY SNACK… Thats why it is a TRAP…

References

• https://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-20243692
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xgEG6C_Bdk&t=643s
• https://www.wikihow.health/Stop-Snacking
• https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZKpiH7R8HS8