​Best Hacks to Beat Hunger and Temptation

We become more conscious about our weight in warm-weather months for the obvious reasons: More of our bodies are showing in T-shirts and shorts and the dreaded bathing suits.

We need to be realistic on both sides of over-weight issue without shaming others about their weight. Girls and women have developed unrealistic views of their bodies because we are inundated with highly-altered photos of too-thin models and told, “This is what you should look like,” when even the models don’t look like that because their photos are highly-altered.

However, being overweight is a serious health issue and the main cause of our health problems such as diabetes, heart disease, strokes, and higher incidences of certain cancers.

Maintaining a healthy weight is important, but it is hard because we are inundated with junk foods in stores and a culture that has become obsessed with food-related television shows, recipe and diet books, magazines, specialty stores and restaurants.

In addition to people asking me about how I maintain great skin, I’m asked how I manage to stay thin. (Shameless plug: You can read my great-skin story and how-to in the book, The Skin Regime; Boot Camp for Beautiful Skin. Click here to read the first chapter free

You only need to spend a few minutes of day on your skin and you only need to be aware of your choices and maintain willpower for your weight. “Only”, however, is not easy; therefore, I’m going to share some of my best weight and hunger-busting secrets to help you in your efforts.

Some of these are obvious and you might have heard them before, but some you probably haven’t—and they all work great:

1. Realize it all starts in your MIND. Willpower is important but also being honest with yourself about your habits and re-training your thoughts. Instead of thinking, “I deserve this extra piece of cake,” or, “I have no willpower and I’m hungry,” tell yourself: “A little hunger is not going to kill me, it can wait,” and “I HAVE CONTROL over my choices and I choose to eat healthy.” If you feel hungry ask yourself, “Am I really and truly hungry? Or do I just want to munch out of habit? ” Stay aware and focused—and if you are truly hungry, eat some fruit. Read inspirational articles and books to keep you on the right path with the right thoughts.

2. PLAN. When I am going out to dinner, I want to have a nice meal and dessert. So, I will eat very little the day before, day of, and day after a special meal or treat. Plan your eating around these special times and you’ll enjoy them without guilt.

3. NEVER DIET. Diets work only during the diet phase, and as soon as you go off it your old patterns return and so will the weight. You have to change your entire mindset and lifestyle if you want to keep the weight off forever.

4. Keep junk out of your home Period. It is too tempting to have it around. Sure, the kids might complain at first, but it won’t kill them, and in fact, it is much healthier—you are showing them a better lifestyle. This means keeping healthy foods and snacks in the house and occasionally buy treats for special evenings, like a dinner party or birthday celebration. Who is the boss that says every dinner has to have dessert—and that the dessert has to be full of sugar and fat? Serve a healthy fruit salad with a dollop of yogurt if you must have something sweet after dinner. Always have fruits and veggies around for snacking.

5. Hunger Buster One: Start each day with protein, such as eggs or a protein drink. Protein is a hunger-buster and you’ll have less food cravings later on in the day. My breakfast is usually a protein powder that I mix with water and a teaspoon of raw chia seeds: The raw seeds expand slightly, like rice, in the stomach, which helps you feel full. And they are so healthy for you! I don’t feel hungry again for hours after drinking this mixture. A spoonful of raw chia seeds with water at any time is a great hunger-buster.

6. Hunger Buster Two: Eat a light lunch so you don’t feel weighed down in the afternoon. Avoid carbs like pasta or bread and try to include protein for extra hunger-busting. I tend to eat very light lunches such as yogurt with an apple because the combination is superb: The yogurt provides protein and the apple has natural sugars and fiber that help boost energy; the combo provides a long-lasting hunger-busting effect.

7. Hunger Buster Three: Drink lots of water. Many times, the brain misinterprets thirst as hunger. By drinking a glass of water, you dilute the acids in your stomach, quench your thirst, and feel more full.

8. Hunger Buster Four: This little trick works wonders for me. Late in the afternoon, I mix a glass of water with two tablespoons of apple cider vinegar (the “raw” variety) and some powdered pro-biotics and perhaps some chia seeds. I usually follow that with a tablespoon of cod liver oil (the fermented variety, such as those sold by Green Pastures). The healthy oils and fats in the cod liver oil combined with the mild acidity of the apple cider vinegar and chia seeds takes my hunger away quickly, and the pro-biotics are good for balancing my digestive system with healthy gut bacteria.

9. Hunger Buster Five: Work toward eliminating sugar from your diet as much as possible. Because sugar wreaks havoc on your insulin levels, it is actually addicting: The more you eat, the more you crave and the hungrier you feel. Instead, eat whole fruits with natural sugars—apples, peaches, pears are best. Avoid bananas and oranges and do NOT drink fruit juices, which are processed differently in your body than whole fruit, plus, they are high-calorie.

10. Hunger Buster Six: Exercise. Exercise is good for you for dozens of reasons, and the feel-good hormones released during exercise help suppress hunger.

Okay, enough about food. Now I’ll share a couple of my favorite products of the week:

Cotz Sunscreen: You’re going to be spending more time in the sun, so protect your skin!

Retinol Molecular Serums: Because you already spent too much time in the sun and need to reverse the damage!

Where can I buy Dana's Book?

The Skin Regime; Boot Camp for Beautiful Skin, available as a Kindle download or Buy paperback to buy your paperback copy from Platinum Skin Care. You can also read the first chapter--FREE--by click here to read 1st chapter.

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