Counter-Intuitive Tips for Weight Loss

I seem to always be telling people to eat more. They look at me like I’m crazy: they want to lose weight, how can eating more help? Shouldn’t they be eating less? Ah! Yes, the conventional wisdom is that you have to cut calories (and exercise more) to lose weight, but when and what you eat makes a difference. Eating more food early in the day can cut down on overeating later in the day.

Most people I work with need to eat more breakfast. This is one meal you should eat whether you feel hungry or not, and it should provide 25 – 30% of the calories you need for the day. I’m not talking about those oversized breakfasts of eggs, potato, sausage, pancakes, etc – although those foods can be included with thoughtful choices. A good breakfast includes lean protein, whole grains and fruits and/or vegetables. Scones and donuts are not good breakfast choices; they can be an occasional treat, but pay attention when you eat them – you’ll probably be hungry again soon and notice more cravings later in the day than usual.

There is a reason for all of this. Eating breakfast bumps up your metabolism following the overnight fast. What you eat will set you up for a day of out-of-control eating or healthy choices. If you eat too little, you are soon hungry again. If you eat foods high in sugar or refined carbohydrates, you end up with little swings in blood sugar. People with diabetes have big swings in blood sugar that create multiple health problems; the little swings I’m talking about are within the healthy range but still have subtle adverse affects.

A drop in blood sugar makes you feel hungry. If it is between meals, it could show up as a craving for a donut at a meeting, an sudden urge for a candy bar, or weakened resolve around the box of chocolates in the break room. You probably thought you had no will power, but usually you are just following the signals you are getting from your body. This vicious cycle gets perpetuated because eating these foods leads to craving more.

When you start the day with a substantial healthy breakfast, you are satisfied for several hours. The foods around you are less tempting, and you stay on track with your lunch plans. It sets you up for a whole different kind of food day. You might feel virtuous, but mostly you just started with smart choices that keep your blood sugar stable and you feeling satiated.

Lunch is similar. Eating a salad, half a sandwich or frozen entrée usually isn’t enough. True, restaurant salads can pack more calories than their burger counterparts, but unless you include whole grains (or starchy vegetables) and protein in your homemade salad, it is not enough calories to hold you until dinner. Lean protein and foods high in fiber give you the most satiety. You can often round-out these lunch choices easily: add whole grain crackers and garbanzo beans or cottage cheese to the salad, vegetables and fruit to a whole sandwich, a side salad to the frozen entrée (and pick a product made with whole grains). See my blog for ideas for healthy lunches: www.healthyhabitscoach.wordpress.com.

You have probably experienced the unintended consequences of eating too little at breakfast and/or lunch. By mid afternoon or dinner time you are starving! You keep finding yourself in front of the open refrigerator, deciding what looks good. I frequently hear stories about eating so much right before dinner: it causes a dilemma about whether to eat dinner or not.

Because there is often 5-7 hours between lunch and dinner, it is wise to have a planned afternoon snack. Planned snacks are different than grazing. With a planned snack you know ahead of time what your snack will be, and you have it on hand, ready to eat. Grazing is more ambiguous and can involve multiple ongoing snacks, which of course add up.

So you may be wondering how can you eat a substantial breakfast, lunch and dinner, and a snack, and still lose weight? Healthy meal foods are generally less calories than snack foods. Even healthy snack foods, like nuts can really add up, and most snack foods aren’t very healthy to start with. By wisely spending the bulk of your 1500, 1800 (or whatever) daily calories on meals, you can avoid the hundreds of unplanned calories that sneak into your mouth when you aren’t looking.

Eating more at meals is counter-intuitive, but it works!

Kathy Nichols is the Healthy Habits Coach. Kathy blends her background as a registered dietitian with life coaching to help you create healthy and sustainable habits. Contact Kathy at 707 431-7524, Kathy@HealthyHabitsCoach.com or www.HealthyHabitsCoach.com. Blog: www.HealthyHabitsCoach.wordpress.com