5 Bad Eating Habits to Break

(I found this article and thought it to be a good read - thought I would share)

Written by Anika DeCoster, RD, CPT, CISSN - LifeTime WeightLoss


Habits are habits are habits. Good or bad, they are our daily behaviors that stem from repetitive practice. And when it comes to eating, there are certain modern lifestyle habits that greatly increase the chance of becoming overweight. Below are 5 really bad eating habits that you change today. But as always with habits, perfect practice makes perfect. So work on them every day until they’ve been replaced with healthier practices!

1. Bad Snacking
Snacks can play an important role when it comes to your eating. Intended to help keep you satisfied and your energy sustained throughout the day, snacks are great between meals to help you get to the next one. But don’t fall victim to buying foods labeled as “snacks” in your grocery store. Foods like crackers, cookies, chips, 100-calorie packs and granola bars won’t satisfy you. In fact, they’ll likely sabotage your nutrition plan, creating a negative effect on your blood sugar, cravings, body fat and energy.

Try This: Instead of buying fancy-packaged, processed snacks, make your own snack foods. Start each week by preparing snacks ahead of time. Fill several sandwich bags with nuts and seeds, cut vegetables or fruit, or even natural deli meat. For more ideas, see 6 Bad Snacks Get Makeovers.

2. Eating Somewhere Other Than the Table
The poor kitchen table. The frequency of meals around the dinner table drops every year for the modern American. This crucial family time of the day is replaced by afterschool activities, long commutes and even longer work days. Meals are eaten away from home, in the car, or even worse, on the couch while watching television. It creates a distracting environment and increases the likelihood of making poor nutrition choices.

The table provides the best environment to engage in healthy eating behaviors. In fact, studies show families that dine around a table together on a regular basis eat healthier and are less likely to have overweight children.

Try This: Set a goal for a number of times you and your family will eat around the table each week. Start small, just once if you need to, and build up your frequency. Over time, it should become a habit to eat together around the table most nights of the week.

Eating around the table isn’t just for families with children. My husband and I make it a habit to eat at the table, just us two, every night for dinner. We focus on how and what we eat. We enjoy the meal fully, without distractions. No phones, computers or televisions allowed.

3. Eating Too Fast
Many of us are on a fast train through life, overloaded and overcommitted, trying to work everything into a short 24-hour day. Rushing leads into our eating routine, with the average person spending less than twenty minutes eating each meal. Whether it’s just habit, or you’re not giving yourself enough time to eat, eating fast poses a huge problem for your body’s natural hunger and satiety signals. It often leads to overconsumption or unhealthy choices.

Try This: Eat Slow. Allow yourself at least 30 minutes per meal. It takes that long for your stomach to tell your brain you are full. Every bite you take should be savored. Put down your fork between bites and chew at least 20-30 times. You’ll not only be more in touch with your natural physiology, but you’ll appreciate the food you are eating even more. There is a time and a place where a meal or snack might need to be rushed, but that shouldn’t have to be at every meal time.

4. Multitasking While Eating
Do you work through lunch? Fold laundry or pay your bills as you eat dinner? We are a multi-tasking society! Because we have so much going on, we naturally try to complete multiple tasks to save time. Instead of doing a really good job at one thing, such as eating, we end up doing a so-so job on multiple things. But, we live in a nation of poor nutrition choices, which have played a huge part in our obesity epidemic. That alone justifies the need for eating to be a solely task in itself.

Try This: Take a break! Really practice not doing anything else while eating, unless it includes conversing or engaging with other people around you. It might drive you nuts at first, because you’ll probably think of a million other things you should be doing. Take the time to really download and enjoy your meal. Fewer distractions will allow you to think clearly about your healthy food choices. If anything, allow yourself to multitask while you are cooking or preparing food. When it comes time to eat, that should be the only thing on your plate!

5. Poor Planning
You may have every intention of eating healthy, but if it’s not yet a habit, you have to plan it. Otherwise, you’re setting yourself up for disaster. Our convenience lifestyles set up an environment of easy-access, unhealthy and processed food choices. Don’t count on healthy choices to be around all of the time. You may find yourself disappointed if you haven’t planned.

Try This: Healthy people meal plan. Plan your dinners a week ahead of time and stick to your plan. This naturally builds a great grocery list and helps hold you accountable to “what’s for dinner” each night. Keep a menu board on your fridge so each day you know what to pull from the freezer to help you keep accountable. You’ll waste less food and put you and your family on a healthy meal schedule. Don’t forget to make extra for leftover-lunches the next day.