Curb Hunger While Losing Weight

By Leslie Austin, Gold's Gym

It’s 9 p.m. and you know just where that bag of peanut M&Ms is.  Out of sight, but not out of mind. How can you be hungry, you wonder, when you ate a mere hour-and-a-half ago? The answer isn’t so simple. Everything from stress to hormones to people, places, and situations can kick your appetite into overdrive. The good news: Whatever the cause, you can beat your hunger pangs. Here, the latest stay-full strategies from the experts.  

Whip up a side of potato salad  Surprise! White potatoes aren’t the dietary demons Atkins devotees led us to believe. Potatoes contain a type of starch known as natural resistant starch that acts a lot like fiber once it’s in your digestive system. That means they make you feel full longer, keep your blood sugar level after a meal, and may even reduce body fat. But there’s a trick to maximizing this benefit: Chilling cooked potatoes nearly doubles the amount of natural resistant starch in a serving. Try an Italian-style potato salad. Boil peeled, sliced potatoes until they’re fork-tender; drain, and toss them with salt, pepper, and your favorite red wine vinaigrette. Cool the salad in the fridge and garnish it with chopped parsley before you dig in. Not a spud fan? Try black beans (or any other bean) or split peas, warm or cold, for the same benefit.  

Front-load your day’s calories We all know that breakfast helps keep your waistline trim, but here’s more solid proof: In a recent study, University of Texas at El Paso researchers found that people who ate breakfast took in 5 percent fewer calories over the course of the day. That’s only about 100 calories (if you typically eat the 2,000 calories per day recommended for adult women), but, over time, it adds up. Saving 100 calories a day for one year equals a loss of more than 10 pounds. Experts estimate most of us eat 20 percent of our daily calories at breakfast, 30 percent at lunch, and 50 percent at dinner.  But you would probably be better off shifting more of your total daily calories to the morning, researchers say. If you can’t stomach a bigger breakfast (keep it healthy with a combo of low-fat protein, whole grains, and fruit or veggies), add a midmorning snack (a container of yogurt, some fruit with a few whole-grain crackers, or half a sandwich).  

Pull out the blender Froth beats fat. Researchers have found that study subjects who drank smoothies and other drinks blended for at least twice as long as necessary ate 12% less — and felt fuller — than those who drank beverages blended for a shorter period.   The last tip is to be sure you are hydrated and not dehydrated.  Often we feel like we need something to eat because we are actually dehydrated.  Drink water all throughout the day and if you get a craving, after you have just eaten an hour before, grab a glass of water wait 10 minutes and see if the craving goes away.  Another tip would be to flavor your water with a Sugar Free flavoring packet, such as a Crystal Light.  Often this "sweet' taste partnered with hydration will help you be victorious over an unhealthy craving!

Editor's note: This article was contributed by Leslie Austin. Please read here to find here bio and more information.