Monthly Archives: January 2012

No way! We say NO growling bellies, NO deprivation, and NO puny portions. We fill up our plates with healthy food, so the eyes and the stomach are satisfied. When it comes to eating right, losing weight, and feeling satisfied after a meal, it comes down to one word: satiety.

Satiety (suh-TIE-uh-tee) is that wonderfully pleasant feeling of fullness you get as you eat, when you’re no longer hungry but aren’t overly stuffed or uncomfortable. You are just satisfied beyond desire. The more satisfied you feel after a meal, the less you’ll eat later. So how do you increase satiety without eating more calories?

No. 1 tip to stay fuller longer is to lean on low-density foods. Calorie density refers to the number of calories per gram of food. Foods that are high in calorie density contain a high number of calories per gram; foods that are low in calorie density contain a low number of calories per gram. Calorie density is the key to feel full without overeating.

When you eat too many calorie-dense foods, you’ll end up consuming a lot of calories to fill your belly. If you focus on low calorie density foods, you can fill up on fewer calories because low-density foods contain a lot more water and fibre , which adds weight and volume to the food, but no calories.

Just drinking a glass of water along with the meal does not provide the same degree of satiety. Research, including a year-long study at Penn State University, has shown that to reduce hunger and boost fullness, the water has to be in the food. Why? Because there are separate mechanisms in the brain to control hunger and thirst. If the food you eat contains the water, it will stay in the stomach longer while the food is being digested. Beyond that, there is also the psychological component of eating food versus drinking water. When you eat food, even water-rich food, you get more sensory stimulation because you have more food going through your mouth and you’re eating for a longer period of time, both of which help you feel more satisfied with your meal.

So, what foods contain more water and fibre? You guessed it; vegetables!! Fruit also does, but fruit is also much higher in sugar, so try to stick to lower glycemic fruits, such as berries, apples and citrus choices. Consume as much vegetable as you can, accompanied by a lean protein source, and a quality starch choice….

More food will increase your metabolism so that your body WILL burn fat and not store it; not enough food sends the message to your brain that you are starving and you will store fat!!! Furthermore, you will burn lean! So, you will see a loss on the scale, but it is not the right stuff! This lost lean will be gained back as soon as you consume more calories…..and the yo-yo cycle begins…compromising your metabolism which will make it hard for you to lose fat every time you try!