When you're trying to lose weight, it's not merely about what you eat — it can also be about where you eat it. While foods don't have different caloric values depending on where you eat them, of course, you'll often find that you don't make healthy choices when you eat in certain locations. A good rule of thumb is to only try to eat when you're in the kitchen or the dining room. In these spots, you'll consume your meal and then move on. Here are some locations in which you shouldn't eat when you're trying to lose weight:
Your TV Room
Technically, you can take a healthy meal into the TV room and enjoy it without it compromising your efforts to lose weight. However, this behavior can often be an anomaly. Instead, it's easier to grab a bag of chips, a box of cookies, or even a tub of ice cream and plop down on the couch to watch a movie or a sporting event. The problem with this approach is that because your attention is primarily on what you're watching, rather than what you're eating, it's easy to overeat. For example, it doesn't take much effort to consume an entire bag of chips over the duration of a movie, and this behavior can be highly detrimental in your attempt to lose weight.
Your Car
If you're eating in the car, there's a high probability that your meal or snack won't be healthy. For example, common examples of "car food" are fast food and snacks from the gas station — and both can sabotage your efforts to lose weight. If you're going to eat in the car, you won't always visit a supermarket, buy some prepared healthy foods, and enjoy them while driving. It's too tempting to reach for something unhealthy when you are driving. Pledging to avoid eating in this environment can make a difference as you try to lose weight.
Your Home Office
Whether you work from home full time or you use a home office to catch up on work on evenings and weekends, this can be another place in which eating can be problematic. As with the TV room, it's easy to eat absentmindedly. In other words, whether you're looking at a spreadsheet on the screen, reading notes for an upcoming presentation, or reviewing other documents, you can munch away at unhealthy foods without paying attention. While it's true that you can take healthy items to your home office, it's also tempting to snack on chips, cookies, candy, or other similar items. By pledging to avoid eating in these areas and, instead, only in your kitchen and dining room, you'll be doing yourself a favor regarding your weight loss efforts.
Contact local weight loss centers for more information and assistance.
