Collaborative Post¦ Breaking bad eating habits is no easy task, but it is not impossible. To change your habits, you need to identify the bad habits you want to break and why they exist. You also need to determine how you will gradually change your bad eating habits into better and healthier new ones. Remember, you are more likely to succeed if you take things slowly. Switching to a healthier diet is not easy. But once you realize how good healthy foods can taste and how good a healthy diet can make you feel, you will have better chances of succeeding. You’ll find your oral health improving, something that any dentist (be it Dr Inna Silman or any other) will approve of. Not only that, but your cravings for unhealthy foods will disappear eventually. Here are some tips to help you break your unhealthy eating habits.
- Pay more attention to your diet
If you want to break your bad eating habits, you need to pay more attention to what you are drinking or eating. Reading food labels can help you make informed decisions about the foods you buy. Once you become more mindful of what you eat, you will realize how you should improve your diet, and therefore improve your health (both oral and generally). You can keep a food diary to monitor your progress.
- Create a plan
Coming up with a plan will make the transition easier for you. Having already decided to break your bad eating habits, your next step is to determine how you’re going to do it. How are you going to have breakfast every day or start eating more fruits and vegetables? For example, you can store up fruits and cereals for quick breakfasts or eat more fruits for snacks. Think about how and when you can fit your new eating habits into your lifestyle. For example, you could include regular dental checkups to get basic cleaning with the invisalign dentist in Boynton beach in your plan.
- Take things slow
You cannot change your eating habits overnight. The best way to break your bad habits is to take things slow. By making small changes in your lifestyle and diet, you can achieve your fitness goals and improve your health. If you usually skip breakfast, it is time to stop doing that. You should start the day with a healthy breakfast so that you will have the energy you need to do your tasks. When you are hungry, you should eat, and once you are comfortably full, you need to stop eating. Fatigue can lead to binge eating, so make sure you get eight hours of sleep every night. Here are other small changes that you can make in your daily life.
- Eat a healthy snack or meal every few hours.
- Reduce portion sizes by twenty percent.
- Use cooking spray and non-stick plans instead of butter or oil to reduce the fats in your meals.
- Drink more water.
- Try various cooking methods such as poaching, steaming, and baking.
- Flavor foods with vinegar, lemon, or herbs instead of fatty sauces.
- Include more water-rich foods in your diet, such as broth-based soups. Reduce your consumption of calorie-dense foods such as pizza and casseroles.
- Be realistic
It takes about one month for a new action to become a habit, so do not be stressed if you do not see results right away. You can set a mini goal every week to make things easier for you. For instance, if you want to eat more fruits, you should try a new fruit every week until you find one you really enjoy. You can also look for ways to add more servings of fruits to your diet every week until you achieve your goals. For example, you can top your pizza with dried mushrooms and tomatoes or add shredded carrots to your muffins. These small changes will eventually lead to a major change.
- Practice stress management
When you are stressed, you tend to overeat. That is why you should find ways to deal with stress so that you do not use food to cope with the situation. Meditation, relaxation, and exercise can help reduce stress.
Takeaway
You do not need to eliminate treats when you are trying to change your eating habits. Removing your favorite treats can lead to failure. Feeling deprived may cause you to overeat, so a severely limited diet is not practical and sustainable. Eating a small treat every day will not affect your weight loss efforts so long as you aim for only 150 calories or less, and will not compromise a hunt for better oral health. For example, you can eat a half cup of ice cream to satisfy your cravings. This habit is practical and sustainable because you are not depriving yourself of what you enjoy.
Disclosure: This is a collaborative post.