New Eating Strategies

Portion Awareness

Remember “Supersizing & value meals” are causes for unwanted weight gain. A simple guideline is to reduce portion sizes by 20%, which is an amount that most do to not notice.

Food Labels

The three most helpful sections of the food label are right at the top:

• Serving Size
• Servings per container
• Calories per serving

For more information please see: Nutrition Facts Panel

Dining Out

Increased dependence on food prepared outside the home parallels the rise in obesity. By accessing online menus with nutrition information (a legal requirement for any chain with 20 or more establishments as of 2010), better choices can be made.

• Undress everything — ask for no mayonnaise, sauce, dressing, etc.
• Choose single- or child-sized options instead of supersized and “value” meals.
• Choose baked or grilled options when available (e.g., baked potato instead of fries, and grilled chicken instead of breaded cutlets).
• Pizza can be a good option. Opt for vegetable toppings, and limit sausage, pepperoni, extra-cheese, and deep-dish options. Order a side salad instead of a second slice.
• Mexican/Southwest chains can offer healthy items, but remind clients to minimize cheese, sour cream, and tortilla chips. Good choices include plain, small burritos, grilled chicken or seafood soft tacos, or fajitas with salsa and lettuce. Avoid taco salads in taco shell “bowls,” which can have as many as 850 calories.
• Salads also can be healthy choices, and many fast food chains are offering them as entrée options, but fitness professionals should educate clients about dressings and toppings. One well-known chain offers a bacon ranch salad that has more calories than its biggest burger.
• Sandwich shops can offer healthy fare. Good choices include whole wheat bread instead of large rolls, lots of vegetable toppings, and mustard. Limit cheese, mayo, and other dressings/sauces.
• Order an appetizer portion of a favorite entrée, or select an entrée from the appetizer menu.

Meal Replacements

MRs can be a useful tool for those where eating habits are hard to alter and can certainly act as a starting point. MRs support the following:

• Portion control
• Accurate calorie counts
• Cost
• Convenience/portability

Pace the Clock

Leptin is an active hormone during digestion which functions to inhibit hunger. It may take approximately 20 minutes after initiating eating for the inhibition of hunger to take effect. How much damage can be done in 20 minutes.

Build Volume for Fewer Calories

Focus on building volume as a means to control caloric density by substituting energy dense foods with nutrient dense foods (e.g., substituting fruits and vegetable snacks for candy & sequencing delivery of side veggies or lean salads before bread).

Focus on the cheapest and most calorically-inexpensive food possible (namely air and water). For example, by taking a portion of food (e.g., half pound burger) and substituting some of the calorically dense ingredients (e.g., meat) with less calorically-dense ingredients (e.g., lettuce, tomatoes), that person will achieve comparable levels of fullness with fewer calories.

In Sight Equals In Mind

America has a clean plate mentality. Research says raising our awareness as to how much we are eating (becoming mindful) will help with our “clean-plate” mentality. Sometimes visibly seeing what we plan to eat or have eaten may give us reason to pause and be more mindful.

Out of Sight Equals Out of Mind

Generally, when buying in bulk, we tend to eat more from these larger containers initially (i.e., in the first seven days). Then as we grow tired of the food, the containers become castaways in the refrigerator, freezer, or pantry.

Removing visible foods decreases temptations for mindless snacking. If snacks are going to be left in plain sight, aim to make them nutritious and healthy.

If you buy in bulk, consider repackaging larger containers into smaller, opaque containers and store all but one container out of sight – this helps curb subconscious eating. Even a small strategy, such as placing a lid on a container or covering it with foil or plastic wrap, will curb mindless munching.

Don’t Deprive Foods (Comfort Foods): Control Them

People seek out comfort foods when they:

• Feel happy (86% of the time).
• Feel the need to celebrate or reward themselves (74% of the time).
• Feel bored (52% of the time).
• Feel depressed (39% of the time).
• Feel lonely (39% of the time).

Start to become mindfully about your comfort food triggers, then strategize distractions. An effective distraction can take many forms such as calling a friend, writing, drawing, or playing with a pet. If the desire still persists after the distraction, then perhaps a small mindful indulgence will suffice.

The strategy here is empowering yourself to choose from several options, while concurrently becoming aware of the consequence of each choice such as a 100 kcal snack is equivalent to a 23-minute walk or standing for 52 minutes.

Control Choices

By restricting the number of food choices we can subconsciously develop a perception of less enjoyment from the food and may actually eat less. When there is more food–or when we think there is more food–we tend to think that eating more is appropriate, a concept that is called “sensory-specific satiety“.

De-convenience Convenience Foods – Create ”Pause Points”

• Moving snack foods outside of a six foot radius where an individual has to physically move to access the food
• Giving a person time to structure an opportunity for a ”pause point” where he or she can contemplate consequences (e.g., that 100 kcal snack will require 20 minutes of walking)
• Likewise, implementing strategies whereby eaters are given conscious ”pause points” to think about how much they are eating may also help curb mindless eating behaviors.

Expectation Assimilation

Become more mindful about the environment the its effects on eating behavior. Where do you find yourself overeating or choosing more calorically-dense foods?

Halo Effect

Don’t be fooled by “healthy marketing” where, because food appears healthy, it must contain less calories.

Know your Dietary Danger Spots