Bad Eating Habits

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Everybody has bad habits, especially when it comes to eating. Some of us snack incessantly while we work. Others are prone to guzzling a beer or three every night then crashing out on the couch. More than a few of us enjoy midnight snacks — usually delicious junk foods like devil’s food cake, cheddar cheese or salami slices. But even if you're a generally healthy guy, chances are you unknowingly engage in habits that are detrimental to your health and your physique.

Bad eating habits seriously eat away at your health. They can make you fat, sluggish and generally unhealthy. But cutting them cold turkey could be traumatic, at least to your psyche, so we’ll explore good alternatives to some of the most common bad eating habits. Follow these suggestions and transform your bad habits into good ones.



Drinking alcohol on an empty stomach

A bottle of Anchor Steam harbors about 150 calories. Even a watery bottle of Bud Light contains 110 calories. Just a few drinks can account for a quarter of your recommended daily calorie intake. Beer — and alcohol in general — is packed with calories, and if you consume it on an empty stomach it will go straight into your blood stream and get stored as fat. Added to that, it will make you overeat by increasing your insulin levels, which causes the levels to plummet even lower, making you crave food you probably don’t need.

How? Your body sees alcohol as a poison and tries to clear it from your body as quickly as possible, interrupting your normal glucose production. Low blood glucose makes you hungry, which makes you eat more. Have a few drinks on an empty stomach and you’ll be gobbling up everything in sight in an attempt to get your glucose levels up. But it won’t work until the alcohol is out of your system.

Bad eating habit solution: Eat before you drink.

Have a bite to eat before you take a sip of beer or booze. Food in your stomach will keep alcohol from being absorbed too quickly. If you don’t have time to eat anything, drink a glass of milk. The protein in it may slow the absorption of booze by as much as three times. That means your glucose production won’t be affected as much and you won’t get as hungry. You’ll eat and probably drink less, and, therefore, consume fewer calories.



Eating a heavy meal before bed

A nice big meal — or even a satisfying snack — will put you right to sleep. It’ll also go straight to your gut. While proof that eating before bed directly causes weight gain is debatable, if you eat a large meal that is high in carbohydrates before your body goes to rest, chances are that your body will not burn them all for fuel. Also, unless you haven’t met your daily caloric requirements, eating a large meal before bed can add unnecessary calories to your diet. When you sleep, your body goes into “repair and store” mode, so if you are not active enough throughout the day, your body may turn the food into fat.

Bad eating habit solution: Eat veggies and lean protein before bed.

Late-night hunger could be your body’s way of telling you that you are tired and you need sleep — not food. Make sure you eat enough veggies and lean proteins during dinner. High-fiber veggies and lean proteins will make you feel full and they’re low in calories. Pack them in and you’ll feel full for hours.

If you didn’t stuff yourself with veggies at supper, and you didn't consume your daily caloric allowance, go ahead and have a snack that is high in protein, as this macro nutrient helps your body repair itself. Choose lean proteins, such as chicken breast or cottage cheese, as they have far fewer calories than fatty meats and cheeses. Lean proteins and vegetables are less likely to be stored as fat because your body will use the nutrients in them to nourish itself.

If you think drinking juice is healthy, you might need to break one more habit...