One of the most common dieting pitfalls is being hungry. Despite your best intentions to eat less and lose weight, when hunger sets in it can be difficult to stick to your plan or to make smart food choices. However, there are ways to eat fewer calories and still feel full and satiated; choosing foods that are energy-dense yet not calorie-dense, such as those that contain fiber, can help you to ward off a growling stomach.
Step 1
Eat often throughout the day. It might go against common sense to eat at more times during the day, but eating smaller amounts of food more often can keep you feeling full without giving hunger a chance to ruin your efforts. Watch your total calorie intake and split your usual three meals up into five or six smaller portions.
Step 2
Consume foods with a high water content, which will help you to feel full without piling on the calories. High-water foods will also help to keep you hydrated, which can keep your appetite at bay, too. Examples of high-water foods are grapefruit, which contains only 80 calories for a typical entire fruit, and carrots, which have only 25 calories per ½ cup.
Step 3
Load up on fiber. Not only is fiber good for your stomach, but it moves through your digestive system at a slow rate, which means that it fills you up and helps you to stay full for longer. Many fresh foods contain fiber, including beans, fresh vegetables, whole grain products, brown rice and oatmeal.
Step 4
Include some fat in your meals. Similar to eating often, consuming fat might sound strange when looking to eat healthy, but polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fats are actually good for your heart, digestive system, metabolism and for helping you to stay full, MayoClinic.com explains. Healthy choices include almonds, avocados, olive oil and olives.
Things You'll Need
- Grapefruit
- Carrots
- Beans
- Vegetables
- Whole-grain carbohydrates
- Brown rice
- Oatmeal
- Almonds
- Avocado
- Olive oil
Member Comments