One little tip... Stop eating before you feel full

by Mike
(UK)

I'd never been much concerned about my weight - I'm fit, young and fairly active - and although I knew I was a bit heavier than in the past, it didn't bother me at all.

Anyway, a couple of things made me stop and think. The first was being refused a horse riding lesson while on holiday. They had a weight limit on the horse as, in the past, an overweight woman had fallen and badly injured herself.

The second was when I went to my doctor to discuss sore knees (a problem since childhood sports injuries) and he commented that "they were carrying a bit more weight than before".

I decided to make a change and actively try and lose some weight. I struggled for a few weeks, yo-yoing all over the place with no system other than a goal.

What finally got me on track was a simple tip from a colleague at work. All they said was "stop eating each meal while you are still feeling a little hungry". That was it.

For the first few days, it was really hard, as I battled hunger in the afternoons, but pretty quickly my body adjusted and I found I needed less food than before, and was taking smaller portions at meals. It all kind of flowed from that one idea.

I think the principle is that while you are eating, your body can't tell if it is really hungry or not, so we inevitably over eat.

By stopping before you feel full, you give your body a chance to take stock and work out if it really needs that last piece of potato.

Anyway - the net result is that I have lost half a stone (7 pounds) since Christmas, and consistently kept it off. I don't feel like I'm dieting and I hope to carry on losing more over the coming months.