When you try to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight, you mainly focus on following a diet plan, tracking calories and macros and trying different workouts. In fact, you try every possible way to lose weight. When it comes to losing weight, thinking about what you eat matters most but how you eat can make it easier for you to achieve your weight loss goals.
If truth be told, changes in eating habits can help you reduce your waist circumference, BMI, and lower your risk of being overweight. Eating slowly is one of the smarter approaches to lose weight. A study conducted on approximately 60,000 people shows that eating slowly, avoiding after-dinner snacks and not eating within two hours of going to bed were less likely to be obese and observed an absolute reduction in their waist circumference. Another research showed that mindful eaters were significantly thinner and had lower or no chances of obesity compared to those who eat fast.
When you eat slowly, it will lower your chances of overeating and makes it easier for you to recognize internal hunger and fullness cues. From improving digestion to increasing metabolism, reducing calorie intake to promoting better absorption of nutrients, there are several health benefits of mindful eating. I’m sure this post will make you slow/mindful eater.
Let’s check out some major health benefits of slow eating.
1. Make You Eat Less
According to many studies, eating slowly can help you eat less. When you eat without distractions, no TV, no phone, quickly, chances are you will eat less food. Because eating slowly decreases the secretion of a hunger hormone and increases satiety between meals. In short, slow eating will make you consume less food and feel more satisfied.
2. Reduce Your Calorie Intake
The feelings of hunger and satiety are controlled by hormones. Your gut releases a hormone called ghrelin that is responsible for controlling your appetite while releasing a hormone that makes you feel full. These hormones signal your brain that you are full, reduce your appetite, improve satiety, and help you stop eating. By eating slowly, your gut releases hormones that are responsible for feeling full, which will eventually reduce your calorie intake.
3. Improve Digestion
Eating slowly can help improve digestion. The process of digestion involves various steps – from the secretion of saliva in the mouth, enzymes, and acid from the stomach to the hormones in the gut. Fast eating will force your GI tract to deal with the digestive process. Large bites that are inadequately chewed will make it harder for your stomach to break it down and convert into the liquid mix of digested food that contains HCl, digestive enzymes, and water so that it can easily be digested while allowing your gut to better absorb nutrients. If food isn’t broken down properly it will lead to indigestion and other digestive issues.
4. Help You Lose Weight
There are many studies conducted on a different group of people that suggested that people who eat quickly tend to gain more weight than those who don’t. In fact, fast eaters have more potential to gain weight compared to those who eat mindfully. If weight loss is your goal, change your eating habit, slow down the speed of food consumption, and wait for the miracle.
5. Increase Your Enjoyment of Food
When you are eating in a calm environment, think about the taste of the food you are chewing, its texture in your mouth, and how it nourishes your body. By paying attention to what you are eating will increase your meal enjoyment and make you realize how important food is to your overall well-being.
Some Effective Ways Eat Slowly and Lose Weight
It takes longer to eat a handful of nuts or salad bowl compared to a plate full of French fries. Processed foods require less chewing. Focus on eating foods that require more chewing is a healthy approach that can help you achieve weight loss goals. Add veggies, fruits, nuts, and lean proteins to your diet as these foods require more chewing and provide you with a lot of nutrition.
Here are some easy ways to eat slowly and lose weight.
- Choose high-fiber foods that need chewing
- Eat more veggies, fruits, and nuts
- Drink more water
- Use smaller plates
- Set aside 20 to 30 minutes for each meal
- Eat some healthy snacks to avoid extreme hunger
- Turn off the TV, mobile and other distractions while eating
- Make connections with fast eaters
Bottom Line
Eating slowly is one of the most effective weight loss strategies that help you reduce your waist size and offer many health benefits. Besides promoting weight loss, mindful eating increases satiety, improves digestion, lower your chances of developing obesity, heart problems, and diabetes. Add high-fiber foods, organic fruits, vegetables, whole grains, dairy products, and nuts to your diet that require more chewing and take much longer to chew. Hopefully, these tips will help you become a slow eater and manage your weight.
