One way to lose weight is by reducing the amount of food (either healthy or unhealthy) that you consume.

It is obvious that, the more unhealthy foods you eat, the more weight you gain.

Although you may have great intention to eat less  unhealthy foods in order to lose weight, you might be doing a few things in the wrong way.

These few things  are defeating your noble efforts by causing you to eat more unhealthy foods than you intend.

Below are some of the ways causing most people to eat or drink more unhealthy foods than intended.

1. Large crockery. Using large plates or spoons automatically makes you to eat more food.

People who use large bows and spoons generally eat more than their counterparts who use small bows and spoons.

2. Great things does not always come in small packs.
There is craze of small packs of every snack food. Although the small packs are aimed at providing less amount of the snack, most people end up eating many packs hence more quantity of unhealthy foods.

Sometimes they consume more than if they bought just one large pack.

Next time you buy snacks in small packs, count the actual number the packs you consume, you will be surprised.

Chocolate companies are now packing individual small bars together instead of one big bar. Consumers end up eating many small bars than if they ate one big bar. This is also common with cans of drinks.

Watch the actual quantity you eat, do not be deceived by the small pack.

3. Narrow glass vs wide glass.
You drink more from a wide glass than a narrow glass.

Most of the drinks e.g. tea, coffee, spirits etc are normally put in large holding containers from which they are transferred into glasses. During the transferring of the drink into a glass, most people pour much more into a wide glass than narrow glass. This happens subconsciously because people look at the level (height) of the drink in a glass which is deceptive since wide glass holds more drink than a narrow glass.

When it comes to drinking, it is obvious culture to completely empty the glass. This leads to drinking more for those with wide glasses.  Next time be keen especially in a party or in the dinner table and watch how much people drink from wide glasses.

4. Slow vs Fast eating.

Eating slowly make you eat less food than eating very fast.

Research shows that those who eat slowly eat less perhaps because they assume they have eaten more. Also eating slowly allows body the time to digest. There are also other suggestions that those who eat slowly have less weight problems than fast eaters.

5. Avoid eating while under distraction.
You eat and drink more if distracted by either a good movie, music, under influence or a chat.

Eating or drinking while chatting, watching an engaging movie or listening to music makes you to dramatically consume more. This is because you don’t pay attention to the food you are eating.

Next time you go to a very good or boring movie, carry a bucket full of popcorn and you will be amazed, it will be over by the time the movie is half-way.

Watching football while drinking can result in drinking excessively more than if you were not. The same applies if you drink in a bar, pub or nightclub playing loud music or when drinking with rowdy friends.

In Kenya, I know beer drinkers eat more roast meat than average person while drinking.

6. Keep a Food diary.
Keep a diary of what you eat each day and review it every week. This way, it is very possible to note your eating patterns and be able to avoid negative eating habits.

Without food diary, it is impossible to control how much and what you eat.

7. Out of sight, out of mind.
Keeping unhealthy foods out of sight can dramatically reduce the amount you consume.

Put cakes, desserts and other sweet things in a convenient shelf in a fridge and they will be finished in a day. To eat healthy foods and less junk foods, place things like fruits, vegetables and other healthy foods on top of the fridge or on an easily visible and accessible location in the kitchen. Place junk foods in top shelf of a tall cupboard or in a basement.

Companies are very aware of this trick, they position vending machines right at the entrance of buildings where they catch your attention.  When you walk to the counter of a supermarket to pay, look and see the kind of items they place right in front you at the counter racks. How many times have you been tempted to pick those sweets or chocolates?

Also to reduce eating junk foods place them in opaque packaging materials like cartons.

Conclusion

Losing weight is a complex affair. However, eating less food can help in losing weight.  Both healthy and unhealthy foods if consumed carelessly can lead to weight gain but if healthy foods are consumed in moderation can be helpful.

Avoiding the above seven tricks can help in reducing the amount of food you consume.

If you like this article, subscribe for free at www.arimifoods.com to receive similar articles straight in your email.