How to Resist Snacking
Chew gum when fighting urges., Limit unhealthy snacks., Read food labels to understand what you’re eating.Ingredients on food labels are listed by quantity from most to least., Distract yourself., Plan three healthy meals and snacks in between...
Step-by-Step Guide
-
Step 1: Chew gum when fighting urges.
Instead of indulging in a bag of potato chips, pick your favorite flavor of gum to chew.
This will keep you distracted and from eating snacks on impulse.
Consider sugar-free gum, as regular gum exposes your teeth to unnecessary sugar.
Sugar-free gum has lower calories with only 5 calories a piece, compared to 10 calories for regular gum.
Certain diet plans consider sugar-free gum a “free” food, which means that you can chew it as often as you’d like without adding it to your counted calories.Don't eat artificially sweetened products too often as this can have a laxative effect.Change up flavors now and then to keep it interesting! Some gums are even made to taste like your favorite desserts.
Experience the flavors of your favorite high-calorie foods without the calories! -
Step 2: Limit unhealthy snacks.
Keep unhealthy snacks such as cookie and chip to a minimum.
Avoid products with too much sodium or sugar.
Adults should have no more than 2300 mg of sodium per day.To put this in perspective, a 1 ½-ounce bag of Lays Potato Chips contains 255 milligrams of sodium.
The daily limit for women is 24 grams of sugar and 36 grams for men.One serving of Pillsbury chocolate chip cookies (2 cookies) contains 14 grams of sugar, well over half the daily recommended intake., Look for all natural ingredients in the first few items listed.
Avoid ingredients with long and complicated-sounding names as these are most likely processed foods you want to avoid!Sugar and sugar alcohols are found under a variety of different names.
Some of these include carbitol, glucosamine, maltodextrin, malts, malted barley, nectars, sorbitol, cane sugar, evaporated cane juice, and xylose.Ingredients containing sodium may be labelled as salt, sodium, baking powder, baking soda, "Na" (sodium's chemical name), disodium phosphate, or monosodium glutamate (MSG)., Look away if a food advertisement comes on.
Change the channel if you come across a cooking show.
Studies have found that your appetite can be stimulated by simply viewing food on television.
Go for a walk.
Sometimes all it takes is a little fresh air to get your mind off of that piece of cake sitting in the fridge.
Not only are you avoiding extra calories but you are burning some as well! Browse Pinterest.
Just avoid the food section! Pin ideas for a new craft or project you’re interested in. , Eating at regular intervals during the day will help to keep you feeling satisfied.
Eat breakfast soon after you wake up, lunch at around noon, and dinner at around 6pm.
You can also plan on having a healthy snack, such as an apple or some carrot sticks, in between meals, such as at 9am and 3 pm.
Make sure that each of your meals includes a good source of lean protein, such as skinless chicken, cottage cheese, or eggs.
Include at least one serving of vegetables and/or fruit with each meal as well.
Avoid late night snacking and eating in the middle of the night.
Eating late at night or in the middle of the night may disrupt your sleep and lead to weight gain.
Try to stop eating at least 2 hours before you go to bed., Look for snacks with no more than 5 grams of fat and under 100 calories.
According to research, snacking is usually mindless.
We often eat on autopilot without realizing what we're doing.You may not be snacking because you're hungry but instead because you're bored or used to the habit of eating during certain activities.
Help regulate your blood sugar to avoid overeating by planning small, healthy snacks around meals.Slow-churned ice cream is lower in fat and calories than regular ice cream.Other healthy snacks under 100 calories include a ½ cup of nonfat Greek yogurt with a drizzle of honey or half a baked potato with a tablespoon of salsa., Consider keeping a food diary to help you keep track of everything you eat in a day.
While it’s fine to write everything in a notebook, some find that using their smartphone helps them to keep better track.
There are several smartphone apps on the market to help you keep track of all your caloric-intake while on the go.
MyFitnessPal offers an electronic food diary that allows you to look up most products for their exact nutritional information.
This helps you to know exactly how many calories you are consuming.
The app asks you profiling questions regarding your height, weight, fitness and weight-loss goals to create a customized plan just for you.The Snack App helps you choose the perfect snack based on your cravings.
Find a snack that satisfies your sweet or salty craving.
Learn the calories and nutritional information of a variety of snacks based on your current preference.
Also learn new ways to burn the calories afterwards.Fooducate is an app to improve the grocery shopping experience.
Find out how healthy each item is by scanning barcodes.
Use this tool to plan healthy snacks before bringing them into the home. -
Step 3: Read food labels to understand what you’re eating.Ingredients on food labels are listed by quantity from most to least.
-
Step 4: Distract yourself.
-
Step 5: Plan three healthy meals and snacks in between.
-
Step 6: Choose healthy snacks.
-
Step 7: Use a smartphone tracking app.
Detailed Guide
Instead of indulging in a bag of potato chips, pick your favorite flavor of gum to chew.
This will keep you distracted and from eating snacks on impulse.
Consider sugar-free gum, as regular gum exposes your teeth to unnecessary sugar.
Sugar-free gum has lower calories with only 5 calories a piece, compared to 10 calories for regular gum.
Certain diet plans consider sugar-free gum a “free” food, which means that you can chew it as often as you’d like without adding it to your counted calories.Don't eat artificially sweetened products too often as this can have a laxative effect.Change up flavors now and then to keep it interesting! Some gums are even made to taste like your favorite desserts.
Experience the flavors of your favorite high-calorie foods without the calories!
Keep unhealthy snacks such as cookie and chip to a minimum.
Avoid products with too much sodium or sugar.
Adults should have no more than 2300 mg of sodium per day.To put this in perspective, a 1 ½-ounce bag of Lays Potato Chips contains 255 milligrams of sodium.
The daily limit for women is 24 grams of sugar and 36 grams for men.One serving of Pillsbury chocolate chip cookies (2 cookies) contains 14 grams of sugar, well over half the daily recommended intake., Look for all natural ingredients in the first few items listed.
Avoid ingredients with long and complicated-sounding names as these are most likely processed foods you want to avoid!Sugar and sugar alcohols are found under a variety of different names.
Some of these include carbitol, glucosamine, maltodextrin, malts, malted barley, nectars, sorbitol, cane sugar, evaporated cane juice, and xylose.Ingredients containing sodium may be labelled as salt, sodium, baking powder, baking soda, "Na" (sodium's chemical name), disodium phosphate, or monosodium glutamate (MSG)., Look away if a food advertisement comes on.
Change the channel if you come across a cooking show.
Studies have found that your appetite can be stimulated by simply viewing food on television.
Go for a walk.
Sometimes all it takes is a little fresh air to get your mind off of that piece of cake sitting in the fridge.
Not only are you avoiding extra calories but you are burning some as well! Browse Pinterest.
Just avoid the food section! Pin ideas for a new craft or project you’re interested in. , Eating at regular intervals during the day will help to keep you feeling satisfied.
Eat breakfast soon after you wake up, lunch at around noon, and dinner at around 6pm.
You can also plan on having a healthy snack, such as an apple or some carrot sticks, in between meals, such as at 9am and 3 pm.
Make sure that each of your meals includes a good source of lean protein, such as skinless chicken, cottage cheese, or eggs.
Include at least one serving of vegetables and/or fruit with each meal as well.
Avoid late night snacking and eating in the middle of the night.
Eating late at night or in the middle of the night may disrupt your sleep and lead to weight gain.
Try to stop eating at least 2 hours before you go to bed., Look for snacks with no more than 5 grams of fat and under 100 calories.
According to research, snacking is usually mindless.
We often eat on autopilot without realizing what we're doing.You may not be snacking because you're hungry but instead because you're bored or used to the habit of eating during certain activities.
Help regulate your blood sugar to avoid overeating by planning small, healthy snacks around meals.Slow-churned ice cream is lower in fat and calories than regular ice cream.Other healthy snacks under 100 calories include a ½ cup of nonfat Greek yogurt with a drizzle of honey or half a baked potato with a tablespoon of salsa., Consider keeping a food diary to help you keep track of everything you eat in a day.
While it’s fine to write everything in a notebook, some find that using their smartphone helps them to keep better track.
There are several smartphone apps on the market to help you keep track of all your caloric-intake while on the go.
MyFitnessPal offers an electronic food diary that allows you to look up most products for their exact nutritional information.
This helps you to know exactly how many calories you are consuming.
The app asks you profiling questions regarding your height, weight, fitness and weight-loss goals to create a customized plan just for you.The Snack App helps you choose the perfect snack based on your cravings.
Find a snack that satisfies your sweet or salty craving.
Learn the calories and nutritional information of a variety of snacks based on your current preference.
Also learn new ways to burn the calories afterwards.Fooducate is an app to improve the grocery shopping experience.
Find out how healthy each item is by scanning barcodes.
Use this tool to plan healthy snacks before bringing them into the home.
About the Author
Diana Cox
Specializes in breaking down complex home improvement topics into simple steps.
Rate This Guide
How helpful was this guide? Click to rate: