Weight Loss: 5 Eating Habits to Break

The trouble is that most of us don't realize how much of an impact they have or we would make. There are many bad eating habits that seem like they are "no big deal" but that can lead to a yearly expanding waistline. These habits can lead to gaining 10 pounds a year, making them more than "no big deal." more of an effort to break them. Mindless eating habits can be broken, here's how:

1. Prime Time Eating

When you gobble up your food while watching TV, surfing the net, or reading a book, you are more likely to over eat. Such distractions make it difficult to register when you are actually full so you don't notice until you have finished eating. In today's fast paced world, multi-tasking seems like a must, but not if your concerned with your waistline. When eating, do nothing but eat, preferably at the dining table. Think about what you're eating and not what's going to happen on "Burn Notice."

2. Drowning the Greens

Nothing sabotages a healthy salad like getting squirt-happy with the dressing. Just 2 tablespoons of ranch can pack a 200 calorie punch, leaving your bathroom scale weeping. Try choosing low-calorie dressings or flavor options like lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, or even salsa. Then instead of dollop-ing your salad to death, try dipping your fork into the dressing before spearing each bite. That way you get a taste on each bite without busting a seam.



3. Drive by snacking

Leaving snack foods on the kitchen counter leads to hit and run munching. When we see food we eat it whether or not we are actually hungry. Avoid the temptation by putting snacks out of sight and make them difficult to get to. If you have to go through some effort to get a snack, you're less likely to get one unless you are really hungry. As an added precaution, pre-bag snacks in serving sizes to avoid taking more than you really want.

4. Coffee Crisis

A cup of coffee has a meager 2 calories a cup, but start adding sugar, at 50 calories per tablespoon, and whole milk (up to 140 calories) and you're talking about some serious caloric impact. Not to mention the whipped cream that could tack on 80-130 extra calories, along with 8-12 grams of fat. Try sticking with low-fat or skimmed milk and a bit of no calorie Stevia or low caloric Xagave.

5. Let them eat cake

Trendy portion control dessert options, available in stores today, lead us to believe that since it's only another 100 calories that it okay to have every day. Diet-friendly desserts and "light" options are deceptively seductive. But adding these to your current caloric intake could expand your waist line. 100 extra calories a day can equate to 10 to 15 pounds a year! So make dessert an occasional treat rather than a daily habit.