Appetite is a Mental Not Physical State

What you’re eating is important when you are trying to shed unwanted pounds. However, how and what you’re eating can be equally as important. So, engage in mindful eating rather than starving yourself and then overeat during your next meal. Hunger is your body’s physical response to a lack of fuel that is usually characterized by a drop in blood sugar levels. Appetite is mental state that can become creatively annoying when you are thirsty or bored and not really hungry.

Since your body and brain are hard-wired to regain lost weight, it is important to adopt smart strategies to continue to lose weight and keep it off. Check out the proven tips listed below:

• Don’t Skip Meals – Since you miss out on essential nutrients, skipping breakfast will not help you lose weight and you may have food cravings throughout the day due to hunger.
• Eat Whole Foods – Fruits and vegetables are high in fiber, which increases feelings of fullness and may automatically reduce the number of calories you consume during the day.
• Be More Active – Being more active and adding some resistance training to your regime are ways to restore muscle mass and burn more energy throughout the day to maintain your caloric deficit.
• Drink Lots of Water – Since it is so easy to confuse thirst for hunger, it is much smarter to start by consuming a glass of water and see if that is what your body actually needed.
• Never Stock Junk Food – Junk foods are high in calories and typically contain too much sugar and fat while lacking important nutrients like fiber and vitamins. Studies connect junk food with obesity and chronic diseases.

Shedding pounds was hard but continuing to focus on small changes can make keeping the weight off a lot easier. There is no need to worry about every fluctuation you see on the scale but it is crucial to never lose focus on the things that led to your success. Long-term weight management depends on your commitment to adopting effective strategies to control true hunger as well as manage your emotional appetite for food.

When adding calories back to your menu plan, choose whole foods that are fiber-rich and high in protein. Consuming enough animal and vegetable protein is important for many reasons. In the beginning, it may help promote weight loss by decreasing your appetite to eliminate food cravings, so you can focus on managing real hunger. After you have reached your goal weight, the weight loss specialists at Metabolic Research Center can help you track your progress, spot new trends, and develop long-term strategies to get over any bumps in the road.