Did you know that most people end up eating more food when they are distracted?
If you eat your meals or snacks when you are watching TV, working at your desk, on your laptop, scrolling on your phone or eating whilst walking or driving you are more likely to end up consuming a greater amount of food than you would have done if you had just been, well eating
The reason we believe this happens is that when you eat whilst also focusing on other tasks you are less aware of your hunger and satiety signals and eat faster which results in eating more good before your brain registers that you are full
One study researching this found that people ate 73% more pizza when they ate it while watching TV!
So if you’re someone that often finds themselves overeating, constantly looking for food and want to reduce your food intake to support a healthier weight, you might want to consider simplifying your mealtime environments and taking just a few minutes of quiet to sit and eat your meal mindfully
Does this mean you can’t ever enjoy snacks on the sofa? Or are only allowed to eat in silence alone every night? Definitely not!
But maybe the tactic is to try and reduce or limit your distracted eating time. For example, you could look at trying to implement the following habits…
On weeknight evenings I will eat at the table, without any distractions
When I have movie nights, I’ll plate up a reasonable serving size of your snacks in a bowl and put the packets away before I sit down to watch my show, so you only eat what you have ‘served yourself’ and when the snacks are gone, they are gone!
These two example strategies will help you notice when you start to feel satisfied which will reduce your likelihood of overeating as well as encourage you to eat slower and chew your food, as opposed to inhaling it which will provide the added bonus of supporting your digestion.
Feel like you might need some more one on one support to gain back control of your eating habits? Book one of my complimentary introductory calls today and let's chat about how we can change your eating habits, for good.
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