It is always easier to give in to temptation than it is to gather your willpower in a fist and refuse something that beckons you. Unfortunately, this rule also works when it comes to the transition to a healthy diet.
However, you shouldn't give up if you're not yet able to make healthy food choices every time. Changing habits is not just a process based on fortitude and passion, it is largely influenced by the way our brain works.
And there are several ways to train this organ to want healthy, not unhealthy foods.
Constantly learn new things about proper nutrition
To reconfigure your brain to want to eat healthy, you'll need to convince your brain that you really need to.
By constantly learning new things about the principles of good nutrition, foods rich in vitamins and minerals, and the health benefits of a new diet, you are setting yourself up to make informed and healthy choices more often. Your brain gradually gets used to the fact that healthy food is a great solution, so you'll think about junk food much less often.
Identify your triggers
As a general rule, our brain tries to take the path of least resistance by choosing what it is already familiar with. And if your diet used to consist mostly of pizza and other fast food, and you thought these foods were the best, it can be difficult to deal with the need for them.
Still, it is possible to change your approach to eating by figuring out the triggers that make you reach for junk food time after time.
For example, you may use it as a reward for hard work or consume it in times of significant stress. It's important to recognize the moments when you snap and prefer something unhealthy but enjoyable, so you can tell yourself to stop and change your eating habits in time.
At first, it can be hard to stop and not give in to the urge to do things the way you've always done them. But the secret to readjusting your brain is to stop in time, recognizing another trigger, and replace habitual actions with new, more useful ones.
For example, if you are used to eating chips when you are bored, you need to replace them with fruit, nuts, yogurt. At first it will be associated with significant discomfort, but over time your brain will get used to the change, then you will want chips less and less often.
You should also do the same with the food you eat for your stress, or better yet, understand the causes of your emotional stress and learn how to recover from the upheaval in a healthy way.
Keep your balance
Abruptly abandoning the usual acts on the brain as a severe stress. That's why it can be difficult for you to start sticking to a healthy diet, completely eliminating fast food and other unhealthy foods from your diet.
The fact is that depriving yourself of something pleasant makes your brain associate healthy eating with a negative experience, and as a result, it will try to avoid it in every possible way.
Try to stick to a balanced eating plan that you can maintain in the long run, about eighty percent. Save twenty for momentary pleasures like candy or a hamburger while hanging out with friends.
Give yourself time to achieve this balance. Don't rush yourself and your brain so that your healthy lifestyle doesn't turn into a whole lot of stress and negativity. Gradually getting used to the changes, you will be able to continue your journey to proper nutrition and eliminate all unhealthy foods from your diet.
Get more rest
Often we resort to junk food when we feel tired. Lack of rest and energy always makes us reach for high-calorie, high-sugar foods because they help us get a quick spike in blood glucose and, as a result, feel energized and uplifted. The only problem is that they don't last long, but the damage to the body is enormous.
To train your brain to want healthy foods, it's important to take enough time to rest and relax. Establish a sleep schedule, don't give up your breaks at work - do everything you can to feel awake and energized without junk food.
Take pictures of your food
If you want to start developing a new healthy habit, you need to reinforce motivation and not give up.
To train your brain to eat healthy, take pictures of the meals you eat every day and then put the pictures in a separate folder. Such a food diary will help you compare your meals, stick to your goals, and track whether you're succeeding in reducing the amount of unhealthy foods in your diet.
In addition, a visual food diary acts as a subconscious reminder to make healthier choices at your next meal, and reinforces the feeling that you're on the right track.
Tense your muscles to fight cravings for junk food
No, we're not talking about exercise, the benefits of which everyone knows.
There is one simple but workable way to deal with junk food cravings, such as when you have to make a difficult choice at the store. Finding yourself at a crossroads and pondering whether to buy chips or apples, tense your calves, arms or any other muscles and hold that position for five seconds or more.
Why? Muscle tension signals the brain, forcing it to activate willpower and stamina. By mobilizing these internal sensations, you'll be able to say “no” to junk food and make the right choices.
Over time, such “training” will accustom your brain to the fact that between unhealthy and healthy, it will begin to prefer the latter, and the need for muscle tension will disappear.