Nowadays everyone wants to live as healthy as possible, which means saying no-no to a bunch of harmful habits, including munching on junk food. By now you’ve probably read a dozen or two of stories about why exactly junk food is so bad for you and what wonderful meals you can prepare instead, but they rarely talk about how exactly you can switch from junk food snacking to healthy foods and drinks. That’s no easy task, we admit that! But there are a few tips you can use to make the transition as painless as possible.
Keep your kitchen tidy
Studies have showed something truly remarkable – we tend to snack on chips, cookies, and other junk foods more often when all this is happening in a cluttered kitchen! Whereas women who were offered same snacks, but the kitchens were neat and tidy, didn’t have just as many cravings. In office people tend to choose healthier snacks when the workspace is tidy. It’s time to go an clean things up!
Put healthy snacks forward
Okay, you may not be ready to say no to all those guilty-pleasure snacks just yet, but what you can do is hide them away and, as a result, eat less of those pesky cookies, cereals, and sugar-packed yummies. Put forward all the healthy snacks, so when you feel a craving, your first option will be something that is actually good for you.
Drink more water
Water cravings are often mistaken for food cravings, so in order to eat less junk food (and maybe eat less in general) we suggest you try drinking a glass of water when you feel like having that burrito around the corner. It may kill the craving altogether, and if not, you’ll be well hydrated and water will fill you up so you’ll eat less of junk food anyway!
Go buy some fruits
Make sure you have a bowl full of fruits on your counter at all times – it’s the healthiest way to snack when you need that extra boost of sugars and calories. They will fill you up without adding extra pounds, and don’t forget all those vitamins, nutrients, and fibre that will keep you fit and good-looking.
Turn off the TV
Whether it is Netflix or just some music videos, it’s a good idea to turn off all the distracting factors and simply enjoy your food. Studies show that people who watch TV while eating tend to consume much more as they get distracted and forget they are actually eating, doing things automatically. You brain should be focused on food and food only! That’s how you’ll know when you’re full and won’t eat more than you actually need.
Clean up your social feed
There’s a thing called “visual hunger” – a type of hunger you get from watching yummy foods, drinks, and meals on the Internet while scrolling through your social feed. It just makes your cravings worse! So if you’ve decided eating healthier, it’s time to unfollow all those foodies because they are not helping you at all. Instead, you can start following some healthy eaters – looking at fruits and veggies is less agitating than at cakes, cookies, and ice creams.
Use smaller plates
Size matters, okay? Using bigger plates automatically encourages you to put more food – it always looks like you aren’t eating that much! In smaller plates your portion of food looks bigger and your brain thinks you’re eating more than you really are. It’s a simple trick, but it works!
Plan your meal ahead
There’s no harm in eating same meals every week, in fact, having a meal plan is absolutely necessary if you want to battle those nasty junk food snacking habits. It reduces the stress of choosing what to have for breakfast and dinner every day and you always have all the necessary ingredients, making it really easy for you in the kitchen. If you don’t plan ahead you are more likely to go buy some junk food as it is the easiest way out.
Find the right motivation
If you really want to get rid of junk food snacking habits, you’ll need to figure out why exactly you want to do it and hold onto those reasons. Some people choose a healthier diet because it’s trendy, others want to shed some pounds before summer, but this is short-term motivation that will burn off in a few weeks or so. Try writing down why eating healthy is so important for you – this exercise might be very enlightening!