1) You're stressed! - if you are under a lot of stress, it can cause you to overeat. A recent study showed that when we are little babies and toddlers, food is used to soothe us, and some people believe that is why we eat when we are stressed or upset in our later years.
2) You're dehydrated! - being dehydrated can lead to excess eating, because we can become easily confused whether we are hungry or thirsty, as the side effects are similar. So top up the tank with water to help lower your hunger.
3) You're skipping meals! - This is more of an obvious one. If you skip meals, at some point you are going to be starving, because your body hasn't received food when it expected to and when you need some. Skipping meals is just bad, bad, bad. Whether you are wanting to decrease body fat, increase muscle mass or just to be healthier, skipping meals ruins your 'eating pattern' and can make you 'pig out' in your next meal.
4) You're not getting enough sleep! - If you are always tired, you will respond to that by eating because you think you need energy (hence being tired). This is just a viscous circle. If you sort your sleep pattern out, your hunger will fade away, so you won't be tired all the time and won't be scoffing your face!
5) You're on a muscle building plan! - If you are training for muscle mass, your body will need extra calories in order to grow. So if you stick to an average diet during your gym plan, you will feel hungry, simply because your body is working harder to build and repair muscle tissue. That's why bodybuilders need so much food!
6) You always go for the easy option! - Having takeaways, or ready made food (chocolate bars, crisps etc) makes it so easy to overeat. Those kinds of foods are classed as 'empty calories' (no goodness in them) they don't really fill you up, so you go for another, and another, and another.... Then later down the road, it can lead to addiction. Avoid the easy option!
Lee Gregory Fitness
