8 Habits You Need To Break If You Want To Lose 5 Pounds
You’ve been eating your whole life, so it makes sense that you’d form some habits along the way. Maybe you can’t have a banana without peanut butter, or always eat lunch on the later side. Whatever it is, it’s normal to have some food routines.
But while many of these are no big deal, others can torpedo your weight-loss efforts. “For some people, bad habits can be the make-or-break factor,” says New York-based RD Jessica Cording.
Lisa Moskovitz, RD and CEO of NY Nutrition Group, agrees. “If you're someone that does have unhealthy habits or behaviors then just a good meal plan will only be so effective,” she says. “Weight loss is like an orchestra; everything needs to be in the right place at the right time for it to come together.” (Find out how to stop the craving cycle before it starts and burn fat around the clock with the naturally sweet, salty, and satisfying meals in Eat Clean, Lose Weight & Love Every Bite.)
If you’re looking to lose a little weight but don’t want to dramatically alter your life, take a closer look at these bad habits—they could be tripping you up more than you think.
A little wine every day has been shown to be just fine for your health, but people tend to have a heavy pour at home, Cording says. (A serving of wine is five ounces, which means a 750-milliliter bottle should technically last you five days if you’re having a glass a night.) Wine has calories, unfortunately, and they can add up. It also can ramp up your appetite, prompting you to graze when you probably wouldn’t otherwise. On the flip side, though, cutting down on how much you have or how often you have it can make a big impact over time.
This is your body on alcohol:
We get it: Sometimes things get crazy at work and you might forget to have lunch. But that can seriously mess with your weight loss, Moskovitz says, largely because you’re so hungry by the time you have dinner that you end up overeating.
Cream and sugar makes coffee taste amazing, but it’s easy for people to go overboard, Cording says. If cutting it out entirely is a nonnegotiable, try slowly scaling back and seeing where that gets you. People tend to become more desensitized to sugar over time, so it’ll take awhile for your tastebuds to catch up. You can also try using sugar and creamer packets instead of pouring it out of a container to be more aware of how much you’re using.
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Find out what sugar does to your body:
It’s so, so easy to fall into this habit, but Cording points out that all of those desserts can add up—and it can be hard to feel satisfied when something sweet isn’t an option. “You may just be craving something to signal the end of the meal or to change the taste in your mouth,” she says. Try having a piece of gum or a mint afterward instead.
MORE: ‘I Did A Low-Carb Diet For 2 Weeks—Here’s How Much Weight I Lost’
And you’re not alone. “A lot of people underestimate their portion sizes,” Cording says. “I see this all the time with rice, pasta, and meat.” Her clients will often think they’re just having a serving when in reality, they’re eating three servings, she says. And, if you’re regularly eating more than you think, it’s easy to overeat at a meal. The American Heart Association has a nice little breakdown of a few portion sizes for popular foods, but Google can be your friend when you have specific questions.
It’s super easy to get into the habit of mindlessly noshing on something salty when you’re frazzled, but regularly soothing your stress this way is only going to make you gain, not lose, weight, says Beth Warren, RDN, founder of Beth Warren Nutrition and author of Living a Real Life With Real Food. If you love the satisfying crunch you get from chips or pretzels, try carrot sticks for a similar feel.
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Sure, it can be tough to go to bed around the same time every night, but if you regularly stay up late, it’s going to impact your ability to lose weight, Moskovitz says. Here’s why: Research has found that not getting enough sleep can mess with the hormones leptin and ghrelin in your body, both of which impact your appetite. Plus, feeling wiped can just make you feel like eating more.
"Oftentimes, people are not hungry late at night, but it simply became a habit to eat then, which causes weight gain over time," Warren says. Your body doesn't burn those extra calories overnight as efficiently as it does during the day, so this habit really works against you—and cutting it out can make a big difference.
The article 8 Habits You Need To Break If You Want To Lose 5 Pounds originally appeared on Women’s Health.
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