DIET

8 Habits that Cause Belly Fat

Stomach fat, we all hate it, especially when bathing suit season rolls around. However, without even knowing it, we often have bad habits that cause us to pack on more pounds around thewaist then we should. Attentions out these 8 causes that can add to your middle and the solutions that can help you kick that Santa belly to the curb.that Santa belly to the curb.

1. Consuming too many low fat foods
Many dieters know that one of the best secrets to losing weight it to eat small meals very often. This stokes the fire of your metabolism. Eat more avocados, seeds, and olive oil, which are all rich in those monounsaturated fats. These are good fats that can help to slim your waist. Low fat foods often contain lots of extra sugar and salt in order to make up for what they lack in flavor. Read more what foods contain sugar.
The solution: Eat often and check the fat content of the food you are eating. Avoid those overly processed low fat foods.


2. Lack of sleep
Your body increases its stress hormone, cortisol, when you don’t get enough sleep. Cortisol will cause you to crave sugar, which means you will end up eating too many empty calories. Getting enough sleep helps to control belly fat and increase your leptin level, which helps to control your appetite.
The solution: Keep those cortisol levels in check by getting at least 7 to 9 hours of sleep every single night.


3. Lack of protein
If you want to balance your blood sugar levels and reduce your insulin levels while increasing the body’s metabolism, then eat more protein. It’s protein that helps to control your appetite inducing hormones so you don’t overeat. Protein also makes you feel full for longer periods of time, so you shouldn’t reach for snacks as often. Protein is what will slim you down naturally.
The solution: Eat about 20 to 25 grams of protein every meal. Men, if you are working out intensely, then consume about 10 more grams of protein to keep those muscles in shape.


4. Drinking sodas
Tons of research shows that people who drink even just one can of soda per day gain weight five times faster than those who drink only one can per week. Even drinking diet soda won’t get you off the hook as these things contain tons of artificial sweeteners that trigger sugar and food cravings and you will end up eating more or eating more junk.
The solution: Try drinking glass of fresh juice if water doesn’t satisfy your taste buds. This will help keep that jelly belly at bay.


5. Eating from big plates
It’s been shown in several studies that eating off smaller plates help people to eat less. Large plates allow you to pile on the food and no one likes to waste food, so chances are really good you are going to eat it all.
The solution: Either don’t go back for seconds and be aware of portion sizes, or use smaller plates.


6. Eating late
When we sleep, our bodies tend to shut down many of our biological systems for rest. Our digestive system is one of these. When you eat late, your body won’t burn all those calories you just consumed. Also, lying down with food in your stomach can lead to indigestion and acid reflux disease.
The solution: Stop eating at least 3 hours before bedtime. If you wake up in the night hungry, try eating a small piece of fruit instead of sugar or salty snacks like potato chips.


7. Emotional eating
Some people tend to vent their anger, sadness, or frustration through eating. Eating ice cream mindlessly in front of the TV when your love life goes awry is sure to bring you only one thing: Santa Belly. Although it might make you feel better for a short while, in time you will come to hate and regret all that food you ate out of frustration, anger, pain, or boredom.
The solution: Next time you find yourself wanting to plop down in front of the fridge with that Ben and Jerry’s Chunky Monkey, call a friend, go for a walk, or just do something, anything, instead of mindless eating.


8. Fried foods
Yes, they taste great, no they are not good for those looking to lessen belly fat. Fast food, especially, is just dripping in GMO grease and has almost no nutritional content or fiber. Fried foods are loaded with trans-fats which clog up your arteries, as well as pile on pounds in the belly area.


The solution: If you must hit up fast food joints, opt for salads and drink water with a lemon twist. A better solution would be to pack your own lunch full of healthy goodness.

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6 Steps to Ending Bad Eating Habits

Whether quitting your addiction to snacking, too much sugar,
or quitting smoking it  starts with knowing what you want, checking obstacles then handling them in advance.
Follow these six steps and you'll more easily reach your goals.

A client wrote, "Help me! I thought I was finally getting a handle on my weight issue but the sugar is killing me. I had an awful day. I won't even tell you what I ate today because it is just so unbelievable. All I will say is that 90% of my food today consisted of sugar! I really, really need some help getting past these cravings. I am no doubt a sugar addict. If I could get past this there is no doubt that I will reach my goal."

If you see a little of yourself in this message, you're not alone. Many describe themselves as sugar addicts. They believe if it were only for that one thing, then they could reach their weight loss goals. If you believe only one thing stands in your way of losing weight, consider this: What if that one thing (an addiction to sugar for instance) were gone? Do you really believe, "If I could get past this, there is no doubt that I will reach my goal," or is it an easy excuse to stay stuck?

If I told you I could show you a way to stop craving sugar, would you want me to show you how?

Think about that for a moment. Close your eyes and really think it through. You've said if only you didn't crave sugar, then you could lose weight, but is that really true for you? Ask yourself these questions:

Would you eat differently, and if so how?

Would you act differently, and if so how?

What else would change, and what would stay the same?

What would you lose?

What would you gain?

Until you know what you want, know you can achieve it, and know what else will change (i.e. how your life may be different), you can't discover any obstacles that first must be considered. For instance, you may want to stop eating anything after 7 PM yet your husband doesn't come home from work until 8 and he wants you to join him for dinner. That's an obstacle.

If you've got a habit of watching your favorite TV show with a bowl of ice cream, then breaking that habit is another obstacle.

If you don't work out ways to overcome your obstacles perhaps through discussion and compromise with your husband, or habit breaking exercises for your ice cream habit, there's bound to be a problem. Just saying you're not going to do something any more rarely works. Instead determine what might stand in the way of achieving your goals, find a way around them, and you're much more likely to actually achieve those goals once and for all. 

The statement, "if this one thing were handled, then everything else would fall into place" is an "If Then" statement and gets people into trouble. They want a fairy godmother to make it all better. A strong belief that one single thing such as, "eating sugar is my problem," sets you up to fail, especially if you really like eating sugary foods.

Getting a handle on your cravings is not an all-or-nothing proposition. You must leave room for occasional deviations. It's not the occasional side trip that causes weight trouble; it's the road we usually travel.

In NLP (Neuro Linguistic Programming) a good starting point is the exercise called Establishing a Well Formed Outcome. "Well formed" means it meets all criteria of a well thought-out end result.

<b>NLP: How to Create a Well Formed Outcome & Get What You Want</b>

Here are the steps to creating a well formed outcome: 

1) State what you want (not what you do not want). "I want to weigh 135 pounds."

2) Determine whether you can achieve it (do you believe it is possible?).

3) What resources do you have and what do you need (time, money, gear, clothes, equipment, coaching, whatever).

4) Check whether anyone else is involved and any potential obstacles that may come up regarding others. Think of everyone involved in your day-to-day life.

5) Picture yourself "as if" you've obtained what you say you want and see if that picture fits. Do you like what you see?

6) Put together a plan of action for the achievement of your outcome.

While it may seem like a lot of effort simply to decide what you really want, going through these steps at the beginning helps you find potential obstacles which previously stopped you from moving forward. For example, if you decide you want to join a gym and start exercising everyday but you've forgotten you don't even own a car and just lost your job, that exercise plan might not work out right now. If you did join a gym, you'd end up not going and then you'd think you'd failed, yet it was the plan that failed, not you. You didn't think it through.

A better plan in this instance may be doing exercises at home, or within walking distance (or simply walking for exercise). Later, when you do have transportation, you can rethink the plan and perhaps join a gym then. There are always options.

It's better to look at what you want from every angle, then put together a plan you know can and will work. Then when you know what you want, you'll also know you can make it happen and begin by taking that first step toward making it a reality.

"Achieving a Well Formed Outcome" is one of the sessions in the Ending Emotional Eating 8-Week Workshop. You can also find more information on this popular and well known NLP process by searching for "NLP Well Formed Outcome" in your favorite search engine.

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