Detecting flaws before we slip

[Drake Alexander]

Hello there.

 

Today I was debriefing my day counting my calories, macros and food consumption. I discovered that I was off in the calories, sodium and proteins. I didn't panic but, detecting this help me discover flaws in my current eating habits.

 

I changed my eating habits about a month ago. I started slowly, cutting obvious culprits (sodas, candy, large portions of fast food) and adding new wholesome alternatives. A month later, I keep a tighter track of my food items in order to control what I eat everyday.

 

Because of that, I saw a little "thing" affecting my consumption during the week. I was eating ok but, sometimes, hunger was choosing over my potions. I was eating the right things but the portions were a bit off. A little extra of this, another cup of that. An extra tablespoon of those. This little fluctuations were driven by hunger. Not my new found hunger but, the "one month ago" one. The calorie goal was being a noose more than a tool. Those little changes were attempting to take over sooner or later.

 

Now, I could end this here and say: I'm taking back the reins. The end. But, I want to learn and help others too so, I will tell you what I will do.

 

The root cause of this is that, even though I'm eating ok, I'm using my calorie goal as a excuse to eat until I get there and doing that I'm barely keeping under it. For that, the solution is analize the portion without using hunger to measure. After a time changing and watching your eating habits, identifying portions will become second nature. By measuring before hunger, you can avoid falling for the trick of "a little extra won't hurt". A good example is meal prep. If you have the time and ability to cook, this is a great way to cut ahead and control your consumption.

 

Sometimes we are outside unable to get home or to bring your meal. On this cases, restaurants and fast foods may be your only option to get a substantial meal. Hunger will try to sneak on you looking for a nice healthy meal. Keep tabs on the item you are going eat. Do not think if you will feel satisfied with that item. Get ahead and pick the healthiest items. During your eating, you can control your intake. This will help you get the control back until you get back home. A suggestion here is to create a plan of restaurants or fast foods in where you can get a healthy meal outside or at work. Design your own "eating outside" plan. Memorize the best places to go when you have no other choice. Planing ahead will help you keep tabs on you before hunger takes over.

 

So, in synthesis, planning ahead is an excellent tool to help you overcome posible slips in the future. I will design my "eating outside" plan to contrast my job that literally forces me to eat outside. Anyway, I will try to incorporate meal prepping when I can.

 

Detecting little things will help avoid disasters.

[Khuja, Dwarf Tank]

Hello there.

 

Today I was debriefing my day counting my calories, macros and food consumption. I discovered that I was off in the calories, sodium and proteins. I didn't panic but, detecting this help me discover flaws in my current eating habits.

 

I changed my eating habits about a month ago. I started slowly, cutting obvious culprits (sodas, candy, large portions of fast food) and adding new wholesome alternatives. A month later, I keep a tighter track of my food items in order to control what I eat everyday.

 

Because of that, I saw a little "thing" affecting my consumption during the week. I was eating ok but, sometimes, hunger was choosing over my potions. I was eating the right things but the portions were a bit off. A little extra of this, another cup of that. An extra tablespoon of those. This little fluctuations were driven by hunger. Not my new found hunger but, the "one month ago" one. The calorie goal was being a noose more than a tool. Those little changes were attempting to take over sooner or later.

 

Now, I could end this here and say: I'm taking back the reins. The end. But, I want to learn and help others too so, I will tell you what I will do.

 

The root cause of this is that, even though I'm eating ok, I'm using my calorie goal as a excuse to eat until I get there and doing that I'm barely keeping under it. For that, the solution is analize the portion without using hunger to measure. After a time changing and watching your eating habits, identifying portions will become second nature. By measuring before hunger, you can avoid falling for the trick of "a little extra won't hurt". A good example is meal prep. If you have the time and ability to cook, this is a great way to cut ahead and control your consumption.

 

Sometimes we are outside unable to get home or to bring your meal. On this cases, restaurants and fast foods may be your only option to get a substantial meal. Hunger will try to sneak on you looking for a nice healthy meal. Keep tabs on the item you are going eat. Do not think if you will feel satisfied with that item. Get ahead and pick the healthiest items. During your eating, you can control your intake. This will help you get the control back until you get back home. A suggestion here is to create a plan of restaurants or fast foods in where you can get a healthy meal outside or at work. Design your own "eating outside" plan. Memorize the best places to go when you have no other choice. Planing ahead will help you keep tabs on you before hunger takes over.

 

So, in synthesis, planning ahead is an excellent tool to help you overcome posible slips in the future. I will design my "eating outside" plan to contrast my job that literally forces me to eat outside. Anyway, I will try to incorporate meal prepping when I can.

 

Detecting little things will help avoid disasters.

Most restaurants serve larger than necessary portions. I have found a good way to combat that is to ask for a take home box before your food arrives and put half of your meal in it for another meal time. Now, this mainly focuses on eating in the restaurant, but for take away, you could take half of your food and put it back in the bag for another meal.