Stop Counting Calories with These 5 Tips
Counting calories is exhausting, depressing, and leaves you burned out and disappointed with the results. Check out these 5 ways to eat healthier. This post from Life Box Today presents tips to help you make healthier choices every day.
1. Hearing
We’ve been told not to eat in front of the TV because binge watching can lead to binge eating, but a new study finds that mindless eating can be a good thing: Participants consumed about 25 percent more apple slices and carrot sticks when a movie’s volume was turned up loud. “The subjects may have subconsciously matched the intensity with which they ate to the intensity of the sound,” explains study coauthor Gregory J. Privitera, PhD, an associate professor of psychology at St. Bonaventure University in New York.
2. Sight
We know that scrolling past a mouth-watering picture of a friend’s latest culinary creation on Instagram can make us hungrier, but you can use the images to your advantage if you don’t stop at just one photo. A 2013 study in the Journal of Consumer Psychology suggests that exposing people to repeated images of the same type of food (like salty or sweet dishes) makes them grow mentally tired of the taste, so it’s less enjoyable when they finally have a chance to eat. Before dining, look at images of food you intend to eat—the sensory stimuli may be enough to stop you from overindulging.
3. Touch
How you incorporate touch during a meal—like with a hefty wineglass or spoon—can influence how food tastes, according to a 2013 report in the journal Flavour. In one experiment, people rated yogurt as denser and more enjoyable when it was served in a heavy bowl than a lighter one. The tactile experience may lead us to focus more intently on what we’re eating, which can thereby help us be aware of when we’re truly full, says study coauthor Charles Spence, PhD, a professor of experimental psychology at the University of Oxford.
4. Smell
Go on, take a whiff of something really sweet. In a small 2012 study, participants ate vanilla custard in a lab while researchers released a cream aroma at different levels of intensity. When the strongest aroma was present, the subjects took smaller bites and consumed as much as 10 percent less of the treat. “We tend to regulate intensely pungent sensations by reducing our intake,” says study coauthor René de Wijk, PhD. “As a result, we can eat less but still feel satisfied.” You may get similar results when eating foods that have stronger aromas and flavors, like lemon pie or pineapple upside-down cake.
5. Taste
To get the most deliciousness from your food, chefs often recommend adding umami, considered the fifth taste after salty, bitter, sweet and sour. (Umami owes its savory or meaty flavor primarily to the amino acid glutamate.) A review in Nutrition and Health concludes that adding umami-rich foods (including Parmesan, shiitake mushrooms and tomatoes) to your dishes in place of high-fat extras and salt can help reduce fat content by up to 30 percent and sodium by as much as 40 percent—without compromising taste.
