Losing Weight Slowly Without Trying

The strains of modern-day living coupled with hectic schedules have left us with literally no time for anything. Not even to eat leisurely. With this mismanaged lifestyle, we gobble food and chow down too many calories before realizing we’ve eaten enough, which subsequently leads to a stressful, unhealthy living.

As per a study conducted on 4, 000 middle-aged adults, people who described themselves as fast eaters were found to be heavier and had gained the most bodyweight since age 20. In fact, people who eat quickly are up to 115% more likely to be obese than those who eat slowly and mindfully.

So, if you’re trying to lose weight, this study reveals that you not only need to focus on what you eat but also how you eat.

Guide To Mindful Eating: How To Eat Mindfully And Lose Weight

Slow and mindful eating helps lose weight in several ways. First of all, eating slowly increases the release of fullness hormones. As the name implies, these hormones make you feel full, thereby reducing appetite and decreasing the amount of food consumed during the meal.

This fullness factor is often missed when you gulp the food. Moreover, there are high chances of overeating when you eat at a faster pace, as the stomach doesn’t get adequate time to send signals to the brain that it is full.

Secondly, eating slowly promotes thorough chewing, which can help reduce calorie intake and lose weight. As per a study, the average calorie intake dropped by 9.5% when people chewed 1.5 times more than the usual rate and nearly 15% when they chewed twice the normal rate.

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Your food intake is primarily controlled by hormones. When you eat food, your stomach releases fullness hormones like leptin while also suppressing the hunger hormone called ghrelin. These hormones signal the brain that you have eaten enough food. This reduces your appetite by making you feel full and helps you stop overeating. This process takes around 20 – 30 minutes, so you should take at least 20 minutes to finish your entire meal.

You must also consider the time you chew your food. According to a study, chewing each bite for 30 seconds can help decrease unhealthy snacking between the meals – but also reduces satiety. Surely you must avoid that to enjoy your meal. So, you should chew every bite for 10 and 15 seconds before swallowing it. In short, chew well before swallowing it.

It’s pretty challenging to eat slowly when you’re starving. So, try to eat on a regular schedule and have healthy snacks in between meals.

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Start chewing each bite of food for at least 10 – 15 seconds before swallowing it. The ultimate goal is to allow the body to generate fullness hormones. For that to happen, you ought to consume your food at a leisurely pace.

It’s easy to shovel your food when you have a spoon in your hand. Try putting it down between each bite to help yourself eat more slowly and savor each bite.

Fibrous foods, such as vegetables, fruits, and nuts, require a lot of chewing and helps you eat slowly. Also, fiber can promote weight loss.

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Set a timer for 20 minutes and try not to finish your meal before the bell goes off. Maintain a slow, consistent pace throughout the meal.

Try to eat your meal with minimal distractions. Using a smartphone or watching TV while eating will increase your food intake as you won’t pay attention as to how much you are eating.

Diet plays a vital role in weight loss. However, if you’re focusing on slow and mindful eating, adding some physical activities can support your weight loss goal. App sets up reminders and ensures your weight loss goals are on the track like never before.If you’ve ever noticed a sudden drop in weight after an illness, you’ve experienced unintentional weight loss fluctuation. But if you can’t point to something that may have caused the change on the scale, losing weight without trying or unexplained weight loss can be very scary.

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It is normal for weight to fluctuate, typically between five to 10 lbs, and can be due to how much you’re eating, drinking, and moving in a given time period, explains Mir Ali, M.D., bariatric surgeon and medical director of MemorialCare Surgical Weight Loss Center at Orange Coast Medical Center. But any more than that, and you haven’t changed your diet, it could be a sign of something bigger, he adds.

If you drop at least 5% of your body weight in less than six months—and you can’t pinpoint a good explanation for that weight loss—it’s time to let your doctor know what’s up, says Anne Cappola, M.D., an endocrinologist and professor of medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

In fact, unexplained weight loss could be an early sign of a serious health condition, says Kerry Hildreth, M.D., an assistant professor of geriatric medicine at the University of Colorado. So if you’re experiencing unexplained weight loss, it’s best to see a doctor. They can then ask questions associated with the symptoms and potentially perform a blood test or imaging test depending on your symptoms, says Linda Anegawa, M.D., F.A.C.P., a double board-certified physician in internal medicine and obesity medicine and medical director at PlushCare.

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Weight loss is a common symptom of hyperthyroidism—or an over-active thyroid, Dr. Cappola says. This means your thyroid—the butterfly-shaped gland in your neck that helps regulate your metabolism and growth—is pumping out too many hormones, resulting in a slew of body changes.

“If I suspected a thyroid issue, I’d probably look for increased hunger or heart palpitations, ” she explains. Sleeping problems or feeling hot all the time are also common symptoms of an over-active thyroid, she says.

Dr. Hildreth mentions something experts refer to as the “obesity paradox.” Later in life, weight loss—not weight gain—is associated with a greater risk of death. “As we age, the stomach empties more slowly, which makes you feel fuller longer, ” she says. “Also, some of the brain signals that control appetite and fullness become attenuated, ” Dr. Hildreth adds. All of this can lead to older adults eating less, losing weight, and failing to get enough nutrients to support their bodies’ needs. Treatment: Consult a registered dietitian or healthcare professional and find a meal plan that works for you. Be sure you’re eating enough protein to help your body carry out important bodily functions, like curbing hunger, stabilizing blood sugar, and building muscle mass—which people lose as they get older. “Many medications can also affect your appetite, so you need to pay attention to how much and how often you’re eating, ” Dr. Hildreth adds.

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Celiac disease—an autoimmune disorder in which ingesting gluten causes damage to the small intestine—can lead to a drop in weight, and tends to be accompanied by other GI symptoms like bloating and diarrhea, says Jamile Wakim-Fleming, M.D., a gastroenterologist at Cleveland Clinic.

Why? If you have celiac disease and eat gluten, your immune system freaks out a bit. This reaction can mess with the lining of your small intestine, hampering its ability to help you absorb nutrients properly, according to the Mayo Clinic. Inflammatory bowel diseases like Crohn’s disease can also result in unexplained weight loss due to malabsorption as well.

Treatment: According to the Celiac Disease Foundation, the only treatment for celiac disease at the moment is to adhere to a strict gluten-free diet.

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Dr. Ali notes that not feeling well emotionally, stress, or depression can make weight fluctuate to some extent. Loss of appetite is a common side effect of clinical depression and one that can promote unexplained weight loss if you’re unaware that your mood swings are something a bit more serious. “In a lot of cases, the person doesn’t even notice they’re losing weight because they’re mired in the depression, ” Dr. Cappola explains. Irritability, heavy drinking, indecision, and problems sleeping are other common symptoms of depression.

Problems with your pancreas, which produces enzymes that aid in digestion, can also lead to unexplained weight loss, Dr. Wakim-Fleming says. People with chronic pancreatitis—a disease in which the pancreas becomes inflamed—tend to lose weight quickly (even if they are eating normally) because the body simply doesn’t produce enough enzymes for proper digestion of food to occur, according to The National Pancreas Foundation. Look for symptoms like stomach pain, discolored (or oily) poop, diarrhea, or nausea after eating fatty foods.

Treatment: Your doctor might prescribe painkillers, a change in diet, and antibiotics if you have an infection, according to the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases.

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“Especially early on, new-onset diabetes can cause weight loss, ” Dr. Cappola says. While this typically occurs in a type 1 diabetes diagnosis, it can occur in type 2 as well, per the Cleveland Clinic. You may also feel super thirsty and notice you’re peeing all the time. “Your body is literally peeing out glucose because you can’t absorb it, and that drives thirst, ” she explains. If you have continuously high blood sugar frequently, it can cause your body to suck nourishment from your muscles, which fuels the sudden weight drop.

Treatment: Your doctor may prescribe oral drugs for prediabetes or type 2 diabetes.