Managing Your Hunger

Listen to Your Body
About 60 to 75% of your daily calories are expended just keeping up your bodily functions (refer to my post of calculating calories for more info). They're used to maintain your body's temperature, for regulating your nerves, for breathing, and to keep your heart beating. Calories are also important for nourishing and repairing your muscles and cells. A simple rule to keep in mind is to eat when you're hungry and stop when you're not.

Don't skip meals
Avoid slowing down your metabolism by eating 5-6 small meals a day. Eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and snack on healthy choices throughout the day. Skipping meals doesn't help you to cut calories. People who skip meals actually end up overindulging at the next meal. Smaller portion sizes and choosing healthy foods will help you to cut calories, not skipping meals.

Water helps the burn
A majority of people don't drink enough water. Without enough water in your system, your metabolism slows down and you end up burning fewer calories. Always drink at least 8 glasses or 64 ounces of water each day. Not sure if you're drinking enough water? When you're awake, you should be taking a bathroom break at least every 4 hours. If you're not, it's time to hydrate.

Catch more Zzzzzs
Getting too little sleep triggers hormonal changes that lead to an increased appetite. Also, sleep deprivation will cause your body to have more cravings for foods high in sugar and fat. If you're tired, you often won't have enough energy to workout to your full potential. Your body will thank you for getting enough sleep each night, 7 to 8 hours is best.

Don't Let Your Hunger Manage You
When you're hungry, it's easy to let your stomach to the talking. Make sure you take control over your hunger before it gets out of control. Here are a few tips to help you manage your appetite:

Drink water 30 minutes before every meal

• Sometimes the effects of thirst are disguised as hunger pangs. Water will not only ease the hunger temporarily, it will also help you to reduce the amount that you eat at your next meal. Drink water instead of soda, fruit juice, or  sugary drinks during your meals and you won't be adding empty calories.

End your membership to the clean plate club

• Avoid overeating just because it's there. Yes there are starving children in Africa, but that doesn't mean that you have to overeat. Pack leftovers and eat the next day. When eating out, ask the server to brink a take-home container with your meal and pack half of the meal before you even start eating. That way you can enjoy the same delicious meal twice and get more bang for your buck.

Hold the dessert

• Don't eat dessert right after finishing your main course. Wait at least 20 minutes and then if you're still hunger choose a healthy dessert like fresh fruit or sorbet.

Eat slowly

• Your taste buds can savor the flavors longer and you'll avoid filling up quickly. Thoroughly chewing your food will also help your body to digest it properly. Try to chew eat bite 20 times before you swallow.