Remember
when you
were a kid and
someone told
you that you
Weren’t
allowed to have
something?
That made you
want it all the
lore. Food is
ce that# too.
LOSE WEIGHT,
GAIN HEALTH
NEXT MONTH: HEAD
OFF HOLIDAY
WEIGHT GAIN. In the
final installment of
our yearlong series
on weight loss, we
show you how to
make it through the
squeezin’ season
without feeling
deprived.
H E A L T H
b
e
t t e
r
it another way. “It doesn’t work to just say
you can’t have something, because junk
food can be an extremely powerful
stimulus,” he says. “You need to have
something else you want more.” With that
in mind, here are ways to crowd out the
bad with the good.
SHOP VIRTUOUSLY Load up on healthy
foods and reduce mindless eating cues. We
want to eat what we see, and
cookies on the counter have conditioned
many of us to want junk. To calm this
automatic response, put the healthy foods
in plain view. Keep a bowl of fruit on the
counter and a dish of cut-up veggies and
healthy dip in the fridge.
ADD IN A SCENIC ROUTE Don’t even go
near that drive-through window.
“Location is a stronger cue than many of us
realize when it comes to conditioned
eating,” Kessler says. You may not even
realize what you’re doing until you’re too
stimulated to stop. Bypass your favorite
fast-food place altogether by taking a
different path around it.
LET ANGER BE YOUR ALLY It may seem
odd to suggest adding anger to your dieting
efforts, but it’s vital to changing how you
think about food, Kessler says. “You realize
that you’ve been being manipulated into
overeating by foods that are hyper-palat-
able—loaded with fat, sugar, and salt—and
by portions that are too big,” he says. “You
start to see these foods as the enemy and
you don’t want them.”
SCHEDULE HUNGRY TIMES If you have
cravings at certain times of the day, add in
more food, not less. Plan a healthy,
calorie-controlled snack for those
moments, says Binks. “Don’t try to power
through it or distract yourself,” he says.
SUBSTITUTE SASS FOR SILENCE Anger or
sadness can create anxiety, and many
women eat to relieve that feeling, says
Denise Lamothe, a psychologist and
author of
The Taming of the Chew: A
Holistic Guide to Stopping Compulsive
Eating.
Sugary, fatty foods actually do
reduce stress hormone levels temporarily.
But it’s better to deal with the real issue.
“The solution is to recognize and respect
your feelings, and learn to say what is on
your mind,” Lamothe says.
CHANGE HORIZONS At Duke’s Diet &
Fitness Center, some people learned an
unusual diet strategy—bird-watching. “It
may not be aerobic, but it gets people
outside and interested in something else,”
Binks says. Make a list of things you love to
do that don’t include eating. Keep it in
your purse or pocket. “When you’re
tempted to eat something you don’t need,
look at the list and pick something you
enjoy even more,” Lamothe says.
BETTER HOMES AND
GARDENS NOVEMBER
2009
243
F i n a l l y a f r e s h b r e a t h f e e l in g t h a t la s t s lo n g e r .
For a fresh breath feeling that lasts up to 5x longer* -
and
whiter teeth - try
n©W Crest Extra White + Scope Outlast.
©2009
P&G
