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If you want to change, it’s better not to do it radically, but to take action little by little. Author of “Atomic Habits” James Clear It shows what small changes you can make to your physical environment to make it easier on yourself and help you stick to good habits over the long term.
Many of the ideas Claire presents are credited to Professor Brian Wansink of Cornell University, who has done extensive research explaining how our environment influences our dietary decisions.
1. Use smaller plates
Bigger plates mean bigger portions. That means you eat more. If you think the principle of “I’ll just put less food on my plate” looks the same, it’s not.
When you eat a small portion from a large plate, your mind feels unsatisfied. When you eat the same portion from a small plate, your brain gets more food.
2. Keep water close to you
For example, during the day most of us imbibe without thinking. Drink a soda or take a sip of coffee while doing other tasks. Try this: Keep a large bottle or jug of water near you (when you’re at home) and leave it there throughout the day.
You’ll find that when water is within easy reach, you’ll choose it more often and naturally avoid unhealthy drinks. This principle also applies when you’re on the move, traveling, or riding in public transportation.
3. Do you want to drink less alcohol or carbonated drinks? Drink water from a tall glass
The human brain tends to overestimate vertical lines. In other words, a drink in a tall, slender glass looks larger to us than a drink in a shorter, round cup.
Since height makes an object look larger compared to width, you’ll actually drink less water from a taller glass. In fact, we typically drink about 20% less water from a tall, slender glass than from a short, “full” glass.
4. Contrast the color of the plate with the color of the food
When the plate and food are the same color, we naturally serve more food because the brain doesn’t differentiate between portion size and plate size. That’s why dark green or dark blue plates are great when we’re eating “bright” foods like pasta or potatoes – it makes us refill our glasses less often.
But when it comes to green vegetables like peas, then a plate of this color is not a good choice – we will pour more. And then try with red.
5. Place healthy foods in a visible place
Place a bowl of fruit or nuts near your front door or somewhere you walk by when you leave the house.
When you’re hungry or in a hurry, you’re more likely to grab the first thing you see.
6. Use pretty plastic wrap for healthy foods and foil for unhealthy foods
The old saying “out of sight, out of mind” really rings true here. Eating is not only a physical activity, but also an emotional one. Our brains decide what to eat based on what we see. Hence the term “hungry eyes.”
So if you keep unhealthy or not-so-healthy foods out of sight, or wrap them in “unattractive” packaging like aluminum foil, there’s a good chance you won’t eat them, or at least not as often.
7. Put healthy foods in bigger packages
The large containers in which we store food attract our attention and make it easier to notice them and reach for what’s inside. On the other hand, small packages of food can last for months in our kitchens.
Bonus tip: If you buy large packages of unhealthy food, “break it down” into smaller portions and package them – this will prevent you from overeating right away.
8. Serve food according to the “half plate” rule
When eating, fill half of your plate with vegetables or fruit (depending on what’s on the menu) and pour your prepared dish over the other half.
9. Use the “outer ring” strategy when shopping for healthy foods
In other words, don’t wander “sideways” through the store to see what deals, specials, etc. Look for the “edges,” which are most commonly where you’ll find vegetables, fruits, a variety of healthy grains, and meats.
If you shop along this “outer loop,” you’re more likely to buy only healthy foods and therefore eat healthily when you get home.
10. The step is application!
Let’s apply some of these nine principles to other areas of our lives.
If you want to make it harder for yourself to engage in bad behaviors or bad habits, increase the number of steps that lead up to those behaviors or bad habits. To be more specific, let’s look at the example of wrapping unhealthy foods in foil.
This means that when you decide to eat it, you first have to see the packaging, then unwrap or open it to see what’s inside, and only then decide if you want to eat it.
Contrary to the habit of keeping unhealthy foods in your bowl, just keep snacks easily accessible on the go.
As far as running is concerned, if you want to start the next morning, prepare your shoes and clothes in the evening so that you will shorten the heavy steps and start training right away.
Izvor: RTS
Photo: Illustration/Pixabay.com
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