With summer completed and school back in session, it’ll be time to settle back into another fall routine. And, even though the flexible schedules of summer have gone, this is actually a very good thing for your weight and health. In the summer, schedules can be hectic, haphazard, jumbled. This plays havoc with your weight control efforts because you end up eating on the run, at odd times during the day, or out of sync with any rhythm you have established. Just as your sleep is affected by its normal cycles, your body also needs predictability when eating. Uneven eating patterns leads to multiple between-meal snacks, and these only provide extra calories. Dr. Barbara Rolls at the Penn State University has shown that, when you eat between-meal snacks, you are not going to eat less at the next meal. In fact, they have no bearing at all on how much your body is hungry for later on. So all those calories are just piled onto the total. This really makes September very much like January in many ways. In the same way, we typically slip-n-slide off our normal eating schedules through the summer months, only to return to normalcy and "real life" in September. So September becomes like the dietary New Year. It’s the perfect time make fresh schedules and routines that fit a new, relaxed lifestyle. Put space in your day for relaxation, so you aren't so stressed through the day. This will keep you from cramming too many activities around your life this fall. Make sure you sit down for dinner (not in your car), and enjoy those around you. To create the schedule that serves you best, do right away, because once life kicks into high gear again, it will be more difficult to shift gears and shuffle priorities again. What to include on your schedule:
What to exclude from your schedule:
These tips are great starters for not only surviving September, but for living a thin and healthy life throughout the year.
|
Health | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|