Habit #1- Eating over a long period of time. (20-30 mins)
Why does this work you might ask? Well, let me tell you.
It takes about 20 mins for your body to signal fullness after you start eating. If you stuff your face as fast as possible you will not feel full until around 20 mins because hunger hormones have not yet been released. The faster and the more you eat before then, the more calories you will consume.
This is why people who eat really fast tend to eat more than those who eat slow. If you eat slower and over 20-30 minutes you are more likely to stop eating when satisfied.
Eat slower and listen to your body!
Think of it this way. When you eat a big meal and you don’t feel miserably full until after you’ve eaten and finished your food, it’s most likely that you did not realize that you were eating too much because of the pace you were eating at.
How does your body know you’re full? – Hilary Coller
Here is a video if you want to understand and nerd out on this:)
Another thing, it reduces calorie intake. Naturally slower eaters end up eating less food which normally means less calories consumed.
It also improves digestion and satiety. Chewing slowly can help the digestive hormones begin working effectively. This will help with longer-lasting satiety and help you snack less later.
Eating over this period also helps promote mindful eating. This can lead to people listening to their bodies more and listening to hunger cues.
Habit #2- Eating mostly real God-made foods
Eating mostly real food will lead to eating less processed foods and more low calorie high protein foods in general. So, foods like meat, dairy, fruit, vegetables, grains, starches, beans,etc. WHOLE foods made by God Himself!
This doesn’t necessarily mean that all those foods are low calorie, but in general they are. Single ingredient foods tend to have less added calories than processed foods.
Water, fiber, and protein make you feel the most full. These food groups contain more water, fiber, and protein on average, which leads to more satiation than eating something like a croissant.
Examples: watermelon, fruits, beans, whole grains. They all have lots of fiber and water.
Cucumber would be an example of a food that is not high in calories but makes you feel full because of water content.
Habit #3- Eating a Plate Made Up of Mostly Lean Meats, Vegetables, and Some Grains/Dairy
Eating mostly lean foods like lean sirloins, turkey, chicken breast, 90% lean ground beef can help make you feel full but limiting calories. Fat is valuable but it is the highest calorie macronutrient. 9 calories per gram for fat. 4 calories per gram for carbs and protein.
Something to keep in mind but make sure you understand that I am not bashing or telling you not to eat them because you actually need fat, carbs, and protein. Just be aware, especially when trying to lose fat and gain muscle.
A problem I see from time to time is we label foods “good” and “bad”. A lot of the time it isn’t entirely wrong. However, when someone has the mindset of “oh well, if I eat good clean food I won’t get fat” and then they do, they often don’t understand why. The reason 99% of the time is the calories. In terms of fat loss and fat gain, all your body cares about is the total number of calories at the end of the day. Not what you ate or how clean it is. Now hear me out, quality food and “clean” food matters in terms of how your body functions, digestion, diseases, and so on. BUT, calories in and out = fat gain/loss.
People need to realize that you can get fat by eating good food.
Habit #4- Not Drinking Calories
Drinking calories is probably the biggest issue I see with clients. I am talking about juices, smoothies, cokes, sodas, etc.
For example, I went to Tropical smoothie the other day because I was craving a smoothie and I looked at the calorie makeup and boyyyy was I surprised. 500-800 calories per smoothie. Shoot dawg, that’s a whole meal and a half. And guess what? I drank it! haha. But I did not feel as full as if I ate a 600 calorie meal. I ate dinner that night too, why? Because I was hungry and didn’t feel those 600 calories in my smoothie.
ALSO,
The sugar is crazy in those drinks. I will say, after I drank that smoothie, which was delicious by the way, I felt great. If I would’ve eaten processed low quality ice cream instead I would’ve felt horrid. Bloated and gross.
Why is that? Because the quality of food is how you FEEL, but I ate more calories with the smoothie than if I had a serving of icecream. If a serving of ice cream was 300 calories and the smoothie was 600, I’m going to gain more weight with which one? You guessed it, the smoothie will make me more fat. Shocking… I know.
Habit #5- Eating Bigger Meals and eating Lower Calorie/Higher Volume Foods at Meals
Okay this one I really like. I often hear on calls with clients that they don’t eat much at meals or they don’t think they eat much in general. The more digging I do when they say that, the more I realize the problem at hand. Normally, if people are overweight and don’t eat many calories at meals or they don’t think they eat much in general, there is always a reason for that fat gain. A lot of the time it’s because they go on this restricted binge cycle where they eat baby meals with not enough protein and then they get so hungry they go crazy with one meal or with snacks. Another thing I see is when people restrict themselves during the week and then eat super high calorie foods on the weekend as well as drink. This leads to a restrict-then binge cycle. This still causes fat gain because that person is probably over their calories by a lot on weekends and it ends up averaging to a total calorie count that is putting them in excess calories. And what do those excess calories get stored as? Ladies and gentlemen, it’s stored as fat.
With all that being said, I think it is beneficial to space out your food. Eat 30-40 grams of protein per meal. Eat 2-4 meals a day and choose low calorie high protein options. Continue that on weekends. Now listen, I am not saying you cannot have a sweet treat. I have them almost everyday! Moderation is key, and taking into account what type of sweet treat and how much are you eating. That matters most. At chickfila you get a number 1 meal and a drink. You’re gonna be pushing 1000 calories just for that meal. These are the things to be thinking through if you want to reach your goals.
Habit #6- Meal Prepping
This one will get you, PREPPING. I love it when clients tell me they eat leftovers for lunch, or they pack their lunch. People don’t do this enough and they pay for it. Stop eating out so much! It’s messing with your progress. If you do eat out, look up the menu with calories and protein. The best thing you can do is cook, and then save the leftovers either for lunch or dinner the next day. Every time you cook, save the extras. Don’t try to cook separately all the time and just make enough, because then you’re gonna want to eat out. Trust me, I have been through it myself.
Habit #7- Planning Ahead
This is most of the battle. We shoot ourselves in the foot when we don’t think ahead. I am constantly trying to do this. Planning out my weeks and thinking through that when I go to the grocery store. Speaking of, go to the grocery store! I try to go once a week and get everything instead of going every time I want to make a new recipe. We all don’t have time for that lol. My husband is in seminary and in one of his classes, his professor said: “proper prior planning prevents poor performance.” So plan!
Are you ready to lose fat week after week with a sustainable plan?
At Steel Strength Training we’ll help you get lean, strong, and healthy with a plan that fits your lifestyle so you can get great results and enjoy the process!
