Nowadays everyone wants to live as healthy as possible, whichmeans saying no-no to a bunch of harmfulhabits, including munching on junk food. By now you’ve probably read a dozen ortwo of stories about why exactly junk food is so bad for you and what wonderfulmeals you can prepare instead, but they rarely talk about how exactly you canswitch from junk food snacking to healthy foods and drinks. That’s no easytask, we admit that! But there are a few tips you can use to make thetransition as painless as possible.
Keep your kitchen tidy
Studies have showed something truly remarkable – we tend tosnack on chips, cookies, and other junk foods more often when all this ishappening in a cluttered kitchen! Whereas women who were offered same snacks,but the kitchens were neat and tidy, didn’t have just as many cravings. Inoffice people tend to choose healthiersnacks when the workspace is tidy. It’s time to go an clean things up!
Put healthy snacks forward
Okay, you may not be ready to say no to all thoseguilty-pleasure snacks just yet, but what you can do is hide them away and, asa result, eat less of those pesky cookies, cereals, and sugar-packed yummies.Put forward all the healthy snacks, so when you feel a craving, your firstoption will be something that is actually good for you.
Drink more water
Water cravings are often mistaken for food cravings, so inorder to eat less junk food (and maybe eat less in general) we suggest you trydrinking a glass of water when you feel like having that burrito around thecorner. It may kill the craving altogether, and if not, you’ll be well hydratedand water will fill you up so you’ll eat less of junk food anyway!
Go buy some fruits
Make sure you have a bowl full of fruits on your counter atall times – it’s the healthiest way to snack when you need that extra boost ofsugars and calories. They will fill you up without adding extra pounds, anddon’t forget all those vitamins, nutrients, and fibre that will keep you fitand good-looking.
Turn off the TV
Whether it is Netflix or just some music videos, it’s a goodidea to turn off all the distracting factors and simply enjoy your food.Studies show that people who watch TV while eating tend to consume much more asthey get distracted and forget they are actually eating, doing thingsautomatically. You brain should be focused on food and food only! That’s howyou’ll know when you’re full and won’t eat more than you actually need.
Clean up your social feed
There’s a thing called “visual hunger” – a type of hunger youget from watching yummy foods, drinks, and meals on the Internet whilescrolling through your social feed. It just makes your cravings worse! So ifyou’ve decided eating healthier, it’s time to unfollow all those foodiesbecause they are not helping you at all. Instead, you can start following somehealthy eaters – looking at fruits and veggies is less agitating than at cakes,cookies, and ice creams.
Use smaller plates
Size matters, okay? Using bigger plates automaticallyencourages you to put more food – it always looks like you aren’t eating thatmuch! In smaller plates your portion of food looks bigger and your brain thinksyou’re eating more than you really are. It’s a simple trick, but it works!
Plan your meal ahead
There’s no harm in eating same meals every week, in fact,having a meal plan is absolutely necessary if you want to battle those nastyjunk food snacking habits. It reduces the stress of choosing what to have for breakfastand dinner every day and you always have all the necessary ingredients, makingit really easy for you in the kitchen. If you don’t plan ahead you are morelikely to go buy some junk food as it is the easiest way out.
Find the right motivation
If you really want to get rid of junk food snacking habits, you’ll need to figure out why exactly you want to do it and hold onto those reasons. Some people choose a healthier diet because it’s trendy, others want to shed some pounds before summer, but this is short-term motivation that will burn off in a few weeks or so. Try writing down why eating healthy is so important for you – this exercise might be very enlightening!
