Losing weight by eating more not less is way easier than you think. Rather than going throughout the day feeling hungry, here are some very simple strategies to lose weight without feeling hungry.
Before we begin, let’s think about the stomach. Your stomach can only hold so much food before it starts feeling stuffed. When your stomach fills up with food, stretch receptors signal your brain to turn off hunger. No duh, right? Eat a bunch of food, and you’ll feel full.
Feeling hungry doesn’t work for weight loss. Hunger is a powerful tool designed to keep you alive.
Now let’s think about the types of food we are eating. Let’s take candy for example. Think about eating 2,000 calories worth of candy bars. It’s pretty easy to do because the calorie content is so rich and oftentimes, we are left still feeling hungry. So what do we do? We eat more.
Rather than eating more of the foods that are high in calories, why don’t we flip the coin? You can eat double the food for half the calories when you load up on low-calorie dense foods like fruits, veggies, whole grains, beans, and root veggies. You never have to count calories or cut portions, just eat MORE of the naturally lower calories foods to crowd out the higher-dense ones.
Here’s how to lose weight eating more food:
- Eat nonstarchy veggies and fruit. It’s physically impossible to eat more calories than you need and gain weight from just eating vegetables. By incorporating more vegetables and fruits into your diet, rather than subtracting something else, you are automatically reducing the calories of any given meal. You can still enjoy the more calorie-dense foods on your plate, and feel full at the same time by filling up on the lower nutrient-dense foods like fruits and veggies.
- Eat whole food starches like oatmeal, potatoes, rice, whole grains, and legumes. These foods are slightly higher in calories than fruit and veg, but they are needed to actually feel satisfied. Not to mention these foods are high in fiber, which will also help you feel fuller for longer.
- Nuts, seeds, avocadoes, and other higher-fat plant foods. These foods are incredibly healthy but they are very easier to overeat because they are so calorically dense. The goal is not to eliminate them from your diet but rather to be aware of the high-calorie content. Generally, I like to use high-fat foods as garnishes in my meals. I still get to enjoy them but in smaller quantities.
- Processed foods are not hard at all to overeat. They are designed to make them taste good which in turn generally results in overeating. I’m not one to tell individuals what to do, but if possible, limit processed foods in your day-to-day.
The main takeaway is to work WITH your hunger and not against it. The ultimate goal is to lose weight by eating more of the lower calorie density foods to diminish the feeling of hunger. It’s really hard to stick to any kind of diet if you are feeling hungry all time. This ultimately can lead to binging and overeating on high-calorie foods which in turn can take you further away from your weight loss goals. The old saying, “work smarter, not harder” really can be applied here.
In the end, remember to love yourself where you are right now. Focus on adding more to your life, rather than taking things away. With that my friends, I hope this was helpful and I hope you find joy in today.
Peace and love,
Nancy
