Simple Solutions To Trick Yourself Slim

"Mind over matter" is a great idea, but can it really help you to lose weight? When we eat, we make hundreds of choices every day, many without even realising: eat that last potato or leave it on the plate, salad or rice? Many of these choices are made subconsciously. Willpower alone won't work. But, by employing a few simple tricks to the way we shop, cook and eat, we can all start to eat healthier without thinking about it.

In time, we can all lose pounds and feel better.

All it takes are a few little tricks.

Never shop on an empty stomach

Supermarkets are carefully-designed to make us buy more than we intend to, with the most tempting impulse-buy items at eye-level. To resist temptation, never shop hungry.

As an added way to resist temptation, suck a mint or chew some chewing-gum as you walk around the store. The minty-freshness cuts cravings, making it harder to imagine the sweet melting sensations of your favourite ice-cream on your tongue.

Browse the fruit and vegetable aisle first

It can be tempting to just gallop around the supermarket, but if you go to other areas of the store before the fruit and vegetable aisle, you're less likely to fill-up on healthy goodies. So make the fruit and veg aisle your first stop.

Studies show we're more likely to fill our basket with fruit and vegetables when it's empty than when it's half-full.

Don't think you'll lose a lot of time if you browse those veggies. Instead, you'll find yourself compensating by skipping all those sweet temptations you don't really need. This will save time, and your waistline.

READ Easy Ways to Reduce Your Portions: Cut Calorie Intake and Lose Weight

Say "I'll think about it" when you're tempted to reach for a snack

If someone asks to borrow your car or $500, what do you do? Do you immediately hand over your keys or get out your wallet? You might, but most of us probably say "I'll think about it".

Saying "I'll think about it" gives you time to weigh up the pros and cons, and evaluate if your car or that money is something you can really afford to lose.

Next time you want a bowl of ice-cream or a chocolate bar, try saying "I'll think about it" and wait 10 to 20 minutes to decide if you really want that sweet treat.

READ Junk Food and Its Impacts on Brain: Junk Food Addiction

Try junk-food substitutes

Some foods will never be healthy, no matter how much we pray to the Goddess of Ice Cream. However, you can seek out healthy alternatives that have the same qualities as the food you crave.

Instead of crunchy potato chips, try popcorn or kale chips. Instead of cool, sweet ice-cream, try a fruity frozen smoothie or yoghurt alternative.

Don't restrict anything

Deprivation is one of the leading causes of hunger pangs. So don't say any specific food is completely off-limits. Denying yourself your favourite foods makes it more likely you'll become fixated on them and fail in your new healthy eating regime. "You want to make changes you can do for the rest of your life." says Amy Goodson, RD, sport's dietician, "You can still enjoy one or two splurges during the week as long as you stay on track the rest of the time."

Snack like a preschooler

Do you remember when you mummy used to send you out to nursery school with lovingly-prepared baggies of carrot-batons and a tiny little wrapped biscuit for afterwards?

Prepare your own little baggies of pre-portioned snacks of popcorn, potato chips, and other snack foods, hiding the rest away in a cupboard. That way, you can have a little treat, and won't always be tempted to go back for more until you finish a whole 150g bag.

Trick Yourself Slim

Eat in a window seat

Restaurants aren't the dieter's friend, but if you go out, you can trick yourself into eating healthily by sitting in a well-lit sit. By the window is an especially-good spot.

Studies suggest that diners who eat in well-lit areas of restaurants are more likely to order healthy options such as salad, while diners who eat in dark and cosy corners are more likely to order fried foods and are 73% more likely to order dessert.

Watch the wording

Restaurateurs know what they're doing. They hire experts to craft their menus, and draw our eyes to particular dishes. They use descriptive words ("velvety", "buttery", "succulent") designed to make us "taste" what we're reading and salivate. Salivation mimics hunger by making our stomach contract.

Watch out for these words on menus:

• "Buttery" typically adds 102 calories to the dish
• "Crispy" typically adds 131 calories to the dish
• "Seasoned", "roasted" or "marinated" dishes tend to have 60 fewer calories

Change your dishes

Studies show that people eat less from bowls or plates that contrast with their food. For example, they spoon up 18% less pasta in tomato sauce from white plates than red plates (and 18% less pasta in cream sauce from red plates than white).

Switching to smaller plates - nine or ten inches - is another great way to cut your carb consumption by up to 22% without noticing. Serving with a tablespoon, rather than serving tongs, also cuts food consumption by an additional 14%.

So, just by changing to small dark dishes and a tablespoon, you could cut your food consumption by around 50% without even noticing.

READ Which Is Cheaper, Junk Food or Healthy Food?

Don't let people serve themselves

If people serve themselves at the table, they could eat 19% more than if it's served up by someone else away from the table.

The only thing that people should serve themselves is salad or vegetables, which should be kept on the table and be served in abundance on the plate (to cover half the plate). Everything else should be kept covered and out of the way.

The act of having to get up and leave the table if you want more is enough to prevent unconscious nibbling until overfull.

Hide your food

If you leave your food out on the side, you are more likely to snack on it without thinking. So hide it all away in cupboards.

Don't believe it makes that much difference?

This is the average number of pounds added to your waistline by having these items on display:

• Fizzy/soda drinks: 28lbs
• Diet drinks: 24lbs
• Breakfast cereal: 21lbs
• Cookies: 9lbs
• Chips: 8lbs

Don't exercise to lose weight

If you exercise to lose weight, you will quickly give up if weight loss is not immediately forthcoming. Additionally, people who tell themselves they're exercising to lose weight typically eat more after an exercise session.

So trick your mind.

Don't say you're going for a "calorie-busting jog", say you're going for an "energising jog". Rather than go for a "fat-burning power-walk", go for a "scenic walk". Your Zumba isn't "slimming", but "uplifting". Yoga is for "balance", "toning", and "relaxation".

READ Infertility And Junk Food: Is There A Link?

Create a top list of distractions

Sometimes, you couldn't be thinking about food more if there was a giant cake dancing in front of you, holding an "Eat Me" sign.

For those times when cravings seem to lurk around every corner, be ready with a list of your top distractions.

Useful ideas include:

• Watch a movie
• Play a video game
• Read a book
• Do a puzzle
• Paint your nails
• Call a friend
• Take a walk
• Read to your kids
• Walk the dog
• Brush your teeth
• Meditate

These thirteen simple tricks won't make you drop a dress size overnight. But they will, in time, help you lose weight and gain better eating habits that will become part of your life.

And that can't be bad news.