Add spices to your food to add more flavor. It can help you feel satisfied. It will stimulate your taste buds so you won’t eat as much.
Intense sweets can do the same thing. Those little sugar-free Altoids and other powerful candies can do the same to curb cravings. Those and a hot cup of coffee can keep you going till you can have a protein filled snack or meal.
TODAY: KEEP UP THE FASTER PACE WHEN WALKING
One of the keys to eating less is knowing what it feels like to be full and what it feels like to be hungry. We tend to eat at the same times every day, and eat the same amount of food. But we don’t consume calories the same every day. You may mow the lawn one Saturday, but the next it rains and you sit inside watching TV. If you eat the same amount on both of thoe days guess what happens. Oh, I forgot, it already has.
When you are really hungry your stomach will rumble, you’ll feel sluggish, you get irritable. But think before you eat. How long has it been since you last ate? How much did you eat? How much are you planning to eat? Then get a nice big drink of water. Thirst and hunger are very similar to our brains. It’s not that you are filling your belly with water, you may be giving your body what it wants. The calories would have been bad. You would still be craving, and you would be craving that drink that you should have had in the first place.
TODAY: HAVE AN 8 OUNCE GLASS OF WATER BEFORE YOU EAT.
I ate at one of those “New American Cuisine” restaurants a while ago where the plates are large and the portions are beautiful but small. I’ve also noticed that those places also make a meal an event by drawing out the service over an hour or more. I ate well, though not much and it turned out I was full. It was the perfect demonstration of what you may have heard before. Namely, you won’t feel like you’ve had a satisfying meal until your brain tells you. It turns out that it takes 20 minutes until your stomach sends that signal. So slow down, even take a break mid meal to let the time pass. You’ll find that you will feel full on less. Maybe try eating with someone you like to talk with and share in conversation rather than calories. Your life will be fuller too.
TODAY: SPEND AT LEAST 20 MINUTES EATING YOUR MAIN MEALS.
Call them garbanzo beans, chic peas, or spanish beans but call them part of your diet. They’s really good for you in a number of ways. They are loaded with protein, fiber and polyunsaturated fatty acids. All those things are good for your diet and heart. A surprising bonus is that they actually lower your total cholesterol and (bad) LDL while raising your HDL (good) levels. Eating about 25 ounces per week for 12 weeks is all you need to make this magic happen. That’s not all though. Insulin levels also improved and participants in the study actually lost weight without diet OR exercise. (Imagine how great you’ll do!)
Toss some whole beans on your salads. Puree them with some seasoning and olive oil to make hummus. Add them to three-bean salad. I like them with shredded cheese and a sweet and sour dressing (Splenda NOT sugar) They’re tasty, inexpensive. and filling.
TODAY: ADD GARBANZOS TO YOUR MENU.
My brother has liked Root Beer since the days when the soda fountain at Kresge’s 5 & 10 had that big barrel dispenser sitting on the back counter. For some reason It’s not a thirst quencher. But it sure can quench cravings. Diet Root Beer is one of my favorite sweet treats with no calories. The extra sweetness seems to satisfy more than any other drink. Though Diet Dr. Pepper and cream soda also offer some variety.
TODAY: TAKE A NICE LONG WALK AT A PARK.
I’ve told you before that exercise counts even if it’s in small portions throughout the day. Well food does the same. Don’t fool yourself. A bite of candy here, a few chips there, it still gives you calories that you have to burn. Don’t have those things around and you won’t be tempted. You do want to eat several times a day to keep your metabolism up and burning. Just eat snacks that have high protein, low carbs, high fiber and low calories. Pay attention to what you eat don’t just open your mouth and stick in whatever is handy.
TODAY: AVOID UNNECESSARY CALORIES.
There is a difference between being hungry and having a craving. There is actually a book by Michelle May, MD, titled Am I Hungry? She says “Hunger is your body’s way of telling you that you need fuel, so when a craving doesn’t come from hunger, eating will never satisfy it” . When you’re done eating, you should feel better — not stuffed, bloated, or tired. Though you may not think it is this size, “Your stomach is only the size of your fist, so it takes just a handful of food to fill it comfortably,” says May.
That’s an easy way to measure portion sizes and punch up your diet success.
Remember, you might sometimes confuse thirst with hunger. You can end up eating when a glass of water is really what you need.
TODAY: DO SIT-UPS AND PUSH-UPS IN ADDITION TO WALKING
Daily Nag, Healthy Recipes | Diet Nag | 
August 25, 2010 6:05 am | 
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