These 3 tricks are stupid. I’ll admit it. However, they’re just stupid enough that they actually work.
Give them a try and watch your pant size shrink before your very own eyes.
Play some pickup basketball after you eat
Not really, but that’s how you should approach your meals to avoid overeating. After every meal you should be able to leave the dinner table, and if a random pickup basketball game breaks out in your neighborhood, jump right in and dominate. No puking. No loosening up your belt.
Why this works: Often times we just mindlessly eat. We’re either watching TV, in a conversation, or reading the newspaper. Our focus is not on our satiety, but instead on whatever we’re doing while eating. And worse yet, because we eat so fast, that feeling of fullness lags behind the rate at which your fork is going into your mouth. If you’d eat a little slower and give your body time to digest the food, you’d get that sense of fullness sooner, and thus eat less. By asking yourself, “Can I play pickup right now?” you don’t have to rely on your faulty sense of fullness and instead, just answer a simple question. And best of all, by tricking yourself into portion control, you can still eat your favorite foods without feeling their effects on your waistband.
Drink a protein shake 30 minutes before a big meal
Although I don’t want you to rely on supplements to lose weight, I’m also a realist. It’d be awesome if we all had the willpower to sit down in front of a Papa John’s Meat Lover’s pizza, after not having eaten since breakfast, and only have a few slices. But you and I both know that just doesn’t happen. Instead, we’re going to try our best to eat the whole damn thing, including that jalapeno.
So, because our willpower is no match for Papa John’s, consume a whey protein shake 30-45 minutes before a big meal that you know you’ll pig out at.
Why it works: Out of all 3 macros, protein is the macro that makes you feel the fullest. By consuming it in a liquid form, especially if using whey protein, your body can digest it quicker and thus create that sense of fullness just as you’re about to devour that delicious Papa John’s pizza. Don’t worry though. It won’t make you so full that you won’t eat any of it. You’ll still get to enjoy it. You just won’t overeat.
Become a giant
I used this little trick during our last vacation. Instead of buying normal sizes, buy the small, individual packages. Never buy the big bag of chips. Instead, buy the single serving size. And if you’re a chocolate lover like me, they even make a small, thin version of the Milky Way candy bars as well as almost every other candy bar.
Why it works: Again, we mindlessly eat. Our focus isn’t on our food nor is it on our feeling of fullness, but instead on the TV, newspaper, or the person sitting across from us. Like zombies, we eat without thinking or feeling. With individual serving size containers, we have our “stop button” that jolts us out of mindlessly eating and prevents us from overeating. Bam.
Hold up.. If you want to keep updated with the latest DadBod posts as well as my online training and nutrition journal, please visit my new site by clicking here.
