Is Your Environment the Key to Your Long-Term Weight Loss?
Are you having trouble maintaining long-term weight loss? Do you find yourself dieting all the time because you keep gaining the weight back? Well, it turns out that dieting isn’t enough to achieve results for the long run. What you also need to do is change your environment. Keeping unhealthy foods out of your home and out of sight can work wonders at helping you get the long-term weight loss results that you’re after.
An Example of Just How Powerful Changes to Your Environment Can Be
According to the South China Morning Post, there is a great example of how changing your environment can lead to better weight loss results:
In 2006, 40 secretaries had their own candy jar. If the jar was within arm’s reach and transparent, they ended up eating a little less than eight pieces of candy every day, on average. But, when the jar was placed six feet away from them, and when the jar was opaque, the secretaries only ate roughly three candies per day. That translates to 60% fewer candies eaten when the jar was opaque (so the candy was out of sight) and far away from the secretaries (out of reach).
Why Does It Work for Long-Term Weight Loss?
Sometimes, you don’t eat because you’re hungry; you eat because you’re tempted and because something tasty is right there for the taking. Why not indulge in a cookie or a brownie, or even a piece of sugary candy, if it’s in your line of sight and it’s so easy to grab and consume, right?
The simple act of removing those foods from your environment, and replacing them with healthier options, can make a world of difference for your weight loss journey. Rather than keeping unhealthy snacks on your kitchen counter, for example, you can try putting a fruit bowl out so that you will be more inclined to reach for an apple when you’re feeling a bit hungry. Or, you could simply put the unhealthy foods in an area of your kitchen where they’ll be hidden so that they won’t be right in front of you all the time. Doing so can help reduce the number of treats that you eat so that you can stick to your healthy eating plan more easily.
Give It a Try!
Amazing what a simple little change to your environment can do, right? Out of sight is indeed out of mind when it comes to junk food. Keep it out of your kitchen and away from you at work to be on your way towards achieving long-term weight loss.
