Continuing this list of nutrition skills, here are 5 more practices that can make your efforts stick long term;

1. Eat regularly spaced out meals.

Eating regularly spaced out meals helps limit extreme hunger (we’ve all been hangry or hanxious before). Evenly spaced out meals makes meal times more predictable and lowers the likelihood of rash food decisions that don’t align with our goals.

2. Change your environment (sit at the table).

Give meal times a specific environment. Eating at the dining table, cafeteria, break room helps build strong associations with food and that environment, avoiding mixed signals elsewhere. Eg. If you eat at your desk, work at your desk, scroll social media at your desk, take meetings at your desk, and have your quarterly existential crisis at your desk (personally experience), it becomes easy to misinterpret other emotions/feelings with hunger. 

3. Eat at consistent times each day.

Think of this like circadian rhythm but for your hunger signals. If you keep your meal times at the same times each day (or close) it makes hunger more predictable, and allows you to structure other projects and responsibilities accordingly. I know parents who feed their kids at the same times and intervals each day because it makes them (and the kids) less cranky.

Pro-tip; Pair this with #1 on this list for double the effect.

4. Keep meals simple.

The more complicated we make it the more total effort goes into it. Food is many things (nourishment, convenience, culture, experience etc.) Think about what you need your meals to be more often than not…practical, low maintenance, tasty enough, fast, easy to transport. The simpler the meal the easier it is to achieve these goals. Other times you might lean into other aspects of your culinary joy. If your principle goal is to stick to your health and fitness efforts, then simple meals are going to be more impactful.

5. Book it in your calendar and protect your meal times.

A quick scan of your calendar will highlight all the things you deem important. From your pals birthday, to your business meeting, to your long awaited vacation. These are all important to you, so you protect them…and now you know what I am going to say. If improving your health is important to you (I assume it is because you are still here) then I want you to protect your meal times. Book 15-30 minutes per meal into your calendar. If you don’t protect your meal times, you will lose them. Don’t leave it up to chance – prioritize it and protect it.

I have opened up 2 new coaching clients this month. If you’ve hit a wall in your motivation, a plateau in your progress, or just know you need professional accountability to break through to the next level in your fitness, then apply at the button below.