Savour every bite
How much pleasure can you really get from
your lunch if you wolf it down while hunched over a keyboard? Hoovering up food
without without thinking can make you eat bigger portions, too. In a recent
study in The Journal Of Clinical Endocrinology Metabolism, scientists found
subject released more hormones that made them feel full when they ate the same
portion of ice cream in 30 minutes instead of five. “The study has shown that
even at McDonald’s the French eat less and more slowly than British or
Americans”, says Young. “There’s something to be said for slowing down and
being in the moment.”
Savour
every bite
Sleep in
The latest diet trick? Eight
hundred-thread-count sheets. In a recent study published in the American
Journal Of Clinical Nutrition, subject ate more than 500 extra calories after
getting four hours of sleep than they did with eight hours. “When you don’t
sleep enough, your hunger hormones increase so you’re starving the next day,”
says Glassman.
.
“When you don’t sleep enough, your hunger hormones increase so you’re starving
the next day,” says Glassman.
Drink (a little)
New research in the Archives Of Internal
Medicine found that women who had one or two alcoholic drinks a day were 30
percent less likely to gain weight over a period of time than teetotalers.
Epidemiologist Dr Lu Wang thinks that one explanation is the subject’s
self-control, because women who don’t drink tend to compensate with other
‘pleasurable’ (but more fattening) treats, such as cakes and sweets. But as the
adverts say, ‘drink responsibly’: anything more than one or two glasses and
inhibitions (and willpower) fly straight out the window.
Women
who had one or two alcoholic drinks a day were 30 percent less likely to gain
weight over a period of time than teetotalers.
Indulge, but keep it small
A slice of rich chocolate cake. Scottish
lobster. Beef carpaccio. If that sounds tempting, so will this: upscale tastes
may go with lower dress sizes. Glassman encourages her client to choose
conscious indulgences, such as tiramisu or soufflé. “Save your calories for s
few bites of crème brulée at an amazing restaurant. Enjoy it, feel satisfied
and move on to the next healthy meal,” she says. You won’t be having Heston
Blumenthal’s lemon tart every day, so your indulgence won’t become a habit –
the way that a bar of Dairy Milk might.
Don’t count calories
Totting up your day’s calorie intake is
pretty time-consuming, and it turns out this can actually decrease weight loss.
Putting yourself under that pressure can release the stress hormone cortisol,
which when elevated can affect weight. “Calorie counting is an old-fashioned
concept that doesn’t take into account a food’s nutritional value,” says
Klauer. The secret: free your mind (of calories), and the number on the scale
will follow. “Even if the calorie count is a little bit higher, eating
nutritionally sound foods with ample protein, fat and fibre means you will feel
satisfied for longer,” says Glassman.
“Putting
yourself under the pressure of calorie counting can release the stress hormone
cortisol, which when elevated can affect weight'
