Steps to Developing Healthier Habits
If you want to lose weight, start by making permanent changes in your eating habits.
Here are some suggestions:
- Make a list of what you perceive as poor eating habits.
- Keep a food diary for five to seven days of everything you eat and drink, what time
you eat, how much you eat, where you eat, and how you feel.
- Look at your food diary and try to establish patterns. You may have the Dietitian
or someone you trust look at it too. Do you eat when you're bored or stressed? Do
you eat a certain high calorie food daily or when you are with certain people?
- After you have identified undesirable behaviors, decide what you could do differently
to develop better habits. (You may have to determine the events that took place that
lead to the problem behavior.)
- Learn to listen to your body. Change only a few behaviors at a time so they will become
lifelong habits.
Try some of these ideas:
Substitute fruit and lower calorie foods for fried and high calorie foods.
- Eat slowly savoring each mouthful.
- Postpone a desired snack for 10 minutes or drink some water. The feeling of hunger
is also a symptom of dehydration.
- When bored, do something else that you enjoy or need to do.
- Put food in a smaller dish and take smaller portions.
- Listen to your body. When you are no longer hungry, stop eating.
- Leave the table as soon as you are finished eating.
- Try not to use food as reward.
- To stay within your desired calorie level on difficult days, use the Dining Services
website and the Nutrition Search.
This information can serve as a way to make sure you are eating a balanced diet or
as a sensible plan for weight control.
