7 Fail Safe Ways to Start Recognizing Hunger ...

So many people overeat because they fail to understand the ways to recognize hunger. These same individuals ignore their body signals and continue to eat. Overeating is unhealthy and will lead to weight gain as well as other health issues. So get in touch with your body and learn the ways to recognize hunger. Once you can grasp this you will find weight loss and better health to be a cinch! Here are the ways to understand true hunger and how you can become in tune with better health.

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1. Understand What Hunger is

Before you can understand if you are hungry, you should understand what exactly hunger is. Is your stomach growling or do you feel stomach pangs? Hunger is simply a sensation that signals your body to eat. Analyzing how you are feeling is one of the important ways to recognize hunger. So let’s get to it!

2. Ignore the Distractions

It is dinnertime and you have work to do, family stress and other distractions, but you are feeling pangs of hunger, so what should you do? Slow down at meal time, listen to your body signals and make sure you are eating for health, rather than plain desire. If you focus on your health you will make wiser choices.

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3. Stay Hydrated

Often people confuse hunger with thirst. To eliminate this from occurring, drink a glass of water before you eat your meal so you will eat the appropriate amount rather than over indulge. This will help to eliminate you from overeating.

4. Write down What You Are Eating

In order to recognize hunger, you should understand when you are usually hungry because your body works best when on a schedule. If you always find you are hungry before you are going to work and you ate an hour prior, you may be desiring food out of pure emotion. So keep a food journal so you can better understand your body and make sure you are just eating out of true hunger rather than emotion!

5. Eat What Your Body Needs

When you finally do eat your meal, make sure it is a healthy balanced meal of lean protein and whole grains. Eat this food portion controlled rather than overeating. Often people eat until they are so uncomfortable, they can feel stuffed. Avoid this by eating a smaller portion. Wait 15 minutes and I guarantee you will be full.

6. Follow the Rule of 15

Wait 15 minutes for your cravings to subside. If you are still hungry after 15 minutes, replace your craving with lean protein and your craving will magically disappear. Why? Most of the time cravings are sparked by a deficiency in a vitamin or mineral so try protein first, next a veggie, then a fruit. Your body does not need the craving, it needs the protein.

7. Feeling Light Headed

If you are feeling light headed, you are past the point of initial hunger and your blood sugar level has dropped. Eat a small piece of fruit and get back on a schedule of eating lean protein every 2-3 hours.

Now that you have all these tips, get in touch with your body and get on a regular schedule of eating small, healthy meals every few hours. This will help you with managing hunger. Do you eat when you are hungry or snack in between? Do you ever find yourself eating out of boredom? If you answered yes, you are definitely not alone.

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A friend who has done a high protein diet, where you eat meat and vegetables and no carbohydrates or wheat worked out to be extremely expensive, yet it can leave you feeling constantly hungry, tired and even flatulant. A healthy mix of protein, fruit&veg, carbs and wheat products is what the doctor would prescribe. Have regular meal times that incl protein and carbs, eg. 12 and 8pm and try to eat slow (for the 15min rule). Finish the carbs on your plate, like a poor person who can only afford an onion with their plain rice. If not, have a smaller portion next time. Snack on fruit, yogurt, cereal or toast in between if you must. On days of exercise or regular training especially, meal times will increase by double, and portions may increase too, plus sugar intake. This is normal for muscle repair. But most importantly like mama always said, don't let your food go to waste!

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