Happy belly: benefits of portion control beyond weight loss
Diet & Nutrition
September 29, 2022
How to have a healthy and happy belly? There are plenty of reasons to eat healthier, and weight loss is just one of them. But if you’re looking for a way to improve your quality of life, or just feel better overall, there’s one trick that can help you achieve that goal: portion control.
Portion control is a simple concept that can be applied to almost any meal or snack
Portion control is one of the first things you should focus on when it comes to eating healthy. It doesn’t matter if you’re looking to lose weight, or just want to feel better in your skin—portion control is a simple concept that can be applied to almost any meal or snack.
Here’s how I do it:
Make sure I’m hungry before I start eating. If I’m not hungry, then portion control isn’t going to help me feel full and satisfied. When we eat when our stomachs are hungry, we tend to eat too much food; this usually results in more cravings later on since our bodies aren’t getting what they need! Try waiting 20 minutes after each meal before deciding whether or not another serving is required—this will help ensure that you’re actually hungry instead of just bored/tired/etc., which tends to lead us down unhealthy paths like snacking on junk food when we’re bored!
Once you’re confident that your body needs more fuel, grab some fresh fruits or veggies! You can always add them into soups and stews as well; nothing beats a steaming bowl of soup with lots of greens mixed in for flavor (and fiber!)
The simple act of slowing down your eating may be beneficial for your gut
The simple act of slowing down your eating may be beneficial for your gut. By giving yourself time to feel full, you may find that you have an easier time managing portions and limiting overeating.
While there are many factors that can impact gut health, the foods we eat play a large part in the balance of good bacteria in our guts. Eating slowly can help regulate the release of glucose into the bloodstream—which is important for maintaining healthy blood sugar levels and preventing spikes in insulin production (which tend to disrupt healthy bacteria). This helps you feel fuller sooner and reduces cravings for sugary or fatty foods later on. If eaten too quickly, food has little time to break down properly; this can cause gastrointestinal discomfort such as bloating and discomfort after meals.
Eating mindfully and controlling how much you eat
Eating mindfully. Focusing your attention on the food you’re eating can help you feel more satisfied with your meals, no matter how much you eat. Many experts believe that people who eat mindfully are less likely to overeat than those who focus on other things while they are eating, such as television or social media.
Controlling how much you eat at a time. Another way to avoid overeating is by controlling how much you put on your plate in the first place and then taking smaller portions until you feel full. This strategy may help keep those unwanted pounds at bay and make room for healthier choices like fruits and vegetables!
Better blood sugar control
If you’re looking for a way to improve your blood sugar control, portion control may be the answer.
To understand why portion control can help with blood sugar control, let’s go back to the basics: our bodies use glucose as their primary source of fuel. Glucose comes from food and is what we use to create energy in our bodies. When we eat too much food at one time, it causes blood sugar levels to rise temporarily (until they are used up).
The body then responds by producing insulin, which helps lower our blood glucose levels so that they don’t get too high again. This process takes time—and when you eat more food than your body needs or can handle, it can take longer than normal for your body’s systems to respond appropriately and bring those levels back down.
When this happens repeatedly throughout the day (or even over multiple days), your pancreas doesn’t have enough time between meals or snacks to replenish its supply of insulin before another meal arrives—which means those high-glucose spikes keep happening over and over again until eventually, they become chronic issues long after meals are finished! That’s how diabetes happens…and no one wants that!
So if you’re trying not just to lose weight but also to improve your health overall by getting better at controlling those pesky sugars in your bloodstream…then maybe consider adding some portion control practices into every mealtime routine?
Improved Digestion
Portion control is one of the best ways to improve your digestion. It helps you avoid overeating, which in turn helps you feel fuller for longer. When you eat less food and retain more nutrients, your body can better process and digest what it does consume.
This can help with weight loss. When our bodies are able to properly process nutrients, we have fewer hunger pangs between meals.
Eating more slowly allows gut hormones time to tell your brain that you’re full
The gut has a lot of nerve endings, so it can send signals to your brain when there’s food in your stomach. When you eat slowly, the brain has time to receive these messages and respond in kind. When you’re full, the stomach sends signals to the brain through nerves in the gut. The brain then tells the body that it’s time to stop eating!
When we eat quickly or mindlessly (i.e., while watching TV), however, we don’t allow ourselves enough time for this process to happen effectively—which can lead us straight into overeating territory.
Keeping track of what you eat and drink could help you identify triggers
If you’re like me, keeping track of what you eat and drink has always been a bit of a challenge. It can be hard to remember what happened at that potluck last month, or which pizza place had the best deal this week. But tracking can help you identify patterns in your diet—and those patterns might give you some clues about what foods are causing problems for your gut.
When I started logging my meals, it was easy to see that I wasn’t getting enough fiber and protein in my diet (which was leading to blood sugar issues), but it also helped me realize that alcohol was making me feel bloated and tired. Knowing this made cutting back on booze much easier!
Conclusion
If you’re struggling with your weight, we hope this article has given you some helpful tips for how to begin a journey toward better gut health. One of the biggest things to remember is that eating mindfully and controlling how much you eat isn’t just about weight loss—it’s also about improving your health overall.