How To Enjoy Your Favorite Foods While Dieting

https://unsplash.com/photos/idP6ct9jkmk 

 

If you’ve pledged to eat well this year, hopefully, you’re still going strong and have not fallen back into old habits. But, as good as you might be doing, you may feel like you miss some of your favorite foods. Oh, how you’d long for just a slice of pizza or a delicious pasta bake packed with chicken, bacon, and cheese. 

 

You can’t, though. You want to be good and stick to your diet. Or, can you? Is it possible to still enjoy your favorite foods and maintain your diet at the same time? While it is tricky to achieve, it’s certainly possible but only if you consider these five tips. 

 

Opt for Balanced Portions 

Balancing your portions and simply eating less seems like an obvious way for people to stick to their diet, but our brain has become conditioned to seeing a specific amount on their plate, making it difficult to cut down. 

 

It’s important to learn proper portion control so you do not consume too many calories and ensure you stick to your diet. There are many ways to do this during meal prep and while eating. Smaller plates are useful while taking your time can also help you feel full quicker.

Even while vacationing you can stay on your diet. For example, if you visit Philadelphia and find delicious cheesesteak you can’t resist. Instead of having all of your South Philly cheesesteak all at once you can save some for another day. You can eat it in small portions so you will still be able to lose weight while enjoying your favorite foods at the same time.

It can take your brain and body time to adapt to this, but you will soon become more comfortable with this amount of food without affecting the hard work you’ve put into your diet. 

 

Get Over Your Prejudices 

It sounds strange to consider prejudices regarding food, but you can find them anywhere you look. If you’ve ever seen or heard people talk bad about vegan or vegetarian options, you’ve seen someone’s food prejudices in action. 

 

Meat-free alternatives are more accessible than ever and provide a healthy option for your favorite meals. They may not taste exactly the same, but you can’t expect them to. You should still give them a chance because you might find them just as delicious. 

 

You could also look at options with fewer calories like a healthy low carb jambalaya rather than your usual meal that is everything you want but does not do your diet any favors. 

 

Combine Exercise 

As much as checking your calories is important, you’ll not lose weight just by that alien, at least not as quickly as you’d like. If you want to enjoy your favorite foods, you should combine your enjoyment with the best exercises for weight loss to help keep you on track. 

 

Everyone is allowed to enjoy a slice of pizza or a cheeseburger now and again, but it’s about what you do afterward that matters. If you’re serious about your diet, make sure you do the work to burn off the extra calories. It’s when you start to rely more on the food than the fitness that you will encounter issues.

Replace Your Snacks

A lot of dieting advice involves ditching snacks altogether. This is easy for some people, but others love to snack throughout the day, and it’s difficult to put a stop to it. 

 

Instead of abandoning your snacking habit, try to replace it with something healthier. Chocolate or cookies can be replaced by fruit or nuts, which will provide a good energy boost without the calories that come from other types of food. Eating these foods is useful for keeping you focused, especially if you’re starting to feel tired during the day, so consider what foods you enjoy and how you can incorporate them into your snacking habit. 

Add Fruit and Veg To Your Dishes

Fruit and vegetables can help you feel full without you stacking your plate with as much of the main meal as you can see. You can implement these additions for all your meals whether it’s breakfast, lunch, or dinner. If you want pancakes for breakfast, sprinkle some blueberries in there too, and use low-fat milk as an alternative. 

 

As for lunch and dinner, salads or heaps of vegetables like broccoli and carrots can act as the perfect side dish or even a way to bulk up your plate and make it look more full. If you’re someone who isn’t fond of vegetables, try different ways of preparing them and eat them first to get them out of the way. 

Delicious 

You are only human, and so you shouldn’t feel the need to deprive yourself of your favorite foods. Sure, you want to make a change in your lifestyle, but it’s still possible to do this while remaining happy. It’s never good to overindulge in anything, but treating yourself and maintaining a healthy balance in your life will help you see the results you are searching for.

UP NEXT: Vidalia Onion Casserole