The long winter months are often to blame for consuming more calories. However, here are some bizarre tricks people use to help them limit calorie intake during winter. After all, there is nothing worse than starting each summer by going on a diet.
Consume fewer calories by sniffing these aromas
In Chicago, the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation used 3,000 volunteers to prove that sniffing apples, banana or peppermint make people feel full. Researcher, Dr. Alan R. Hirsch says the volunteers who frequently sniffed these aromas tricked their brains into thinking they had eaten it. As a result, the average weight loss among these volunteers was 30 pounds per person.
Burn breakfast calories throughout the day
In a study, one group of obese women had their primary meal in the morning. Their daily calories were 700 for breakfast, 500 for lunch and 200 for dinner. In contrast, another group consumed the same food, but they had their 700 calorie meals for dinner, and 200 calories for breakfast. The results after 13 months showed those who had their main meals at breakfast time lost an average of 18 pounds, while the other group who had bigger dinners lost about seven pounds.
Use the ribbon method to limit your intake of calories
A tip by a French fitness expert suggests people tie a ribbon around their waists to prevent overindulgence when they go out to dinner. Apparently, a ribbon tied underneath their clothes will get tighter as their meals progress, reminding them not to eat too much.
Do the junk mail jog to burn calories
Challenge yourself to run one lap around the house or up and down the stairs for every piece of junk mail in your mailbox. Essentially, it could help you burn from 35 to 149 calories each time you empty the mailbox.
Watch yourself in the mirror while you eat
A study determined that hanging a mirror opposite the dinner table help people to limit their food intake by almost one-third. It appears that the mirror reminds people why they are trying to lose weight.
Make an album of your food
Weight loss gurus always suggest people should keep a journal of everything they eat. An easier and maybe more effective way to keep a record is by snapping photos of meals, snacks and beverages. Knowing that every bite is snapped may make you think twice before indulging. Looking back through the images may motivate you to limit calorie intake.
Sabotage your dinners
Did you know that low lighting lowers eating inhibitions? It is one of the ways restaurants encourage people to order more food. In contrast, turning the music down encourages leisurely chewing instead of rushed, mindless and stress-related eating.
The color blue suppresses appetite
According to research, food in bluish light is less appetizing, as opposed to orange, red and yellow hues that encourage eating. Researchers say people surrounded by blue eat one-third less than those surrounded by other colors. Therefore, if you use blue plates, table cloths or place mats, it will help you to limit calorie intake.
Dampen dessert cravings
Researchers found that the aroma of vanilla satisfies the craving for dessert. Lighting a vanilla candle or wearing a vanilla-scented patch will help you to refuse dessert.
Love candy?
Does your love for candy jeopardize your attempts to manage a healthy weight? According to a Swiss study, choosing only wrapped candy is the answer. In fact, having to peel off wrappers could make you eat 30% less. Furthermore, if you make a personal rule to use only one hand when unwrapping candies, it could make eating candies just too much of an effort.
Try the one-less commitment
Commit to having one less treat per day. For example, one less glass of juice and one less spoonful when dishing up. In addition, to make this even more effective in maintaining weight you could commit to take three fewer bites of everything on your plate.
