How to Prevent Overeating When Working at Home

According to Dr. Wendy L. Patrick from Psychology Today, "Research ties weight loss to behavioral patterns and personal discipline. You didn't gain weight overnight, so you won't lose it overnight."

If you've been working at home and have been gaining weight or want to prevent weight gain, there are several steps you can take to avoid overeating and subsequently gaining weight.

Schedule Meals and Snack Times
Working from home is generally less structured than working in an office or cubicle at your job's actual facility. That's why it's important to prevent overeating by scheduling meal-times and snacks.

It will take self-discipline to follow the schedule, but you need to lay out the ground rules of when you’ll be eating meals and snacking. Otherwise, you're likely to eat throughout the day--and probably junk food like chips, desserts, and snacks.

Confide in a trusted friend, family member, or colleague that you want to prevent overeating. Ask this person to check in with you to make sure you're not overeating. You can return the favor and become their healthy eating buddy as well. Keep healthy snacks like multigrain chips or crackers at your desk and remove unhealthy snacks from easy access.

Plan a Healthy Meal and Snack Menu
This may sound like it could take a while, but it's worth the time investment. Take time on the weekend to plan out breakfast, lunch, and dinner meals for the week and any snacks you'll have throughout the day. Not only will you prevent overeating, but you can enhance the way you shop and cut your budget by only purchasing food necessary for your menu.

Make sure you're planning healthy meals and not eating processed foods high in saturated fats and carbohydrates. Eat healthy snacks like raw vegetables, unsalted popcorn without added butter, kale chips, granola bars, and trail mix. If you're experiencing mid-morning or afternoon cravings, you'll want to have healthy snacks planned out and prepared, so you don't rush to get quick, unhealthy snacks before getting back on your next conference call.

Drink Water During the Day
In a recent article in Shape.com, spokesperson for The Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, Andrea N. Giancoli, MPH stated, "Studies suggest that drinking one or two glasses of water before a meal can fill you up, so you naturally eat less. Mild dehydration will slow down metabolism by as much as 3 percent."

You may be a coffee or tea drinker and that's okay, but make sure you drink plenty of water throughout your workday. Get in the habit of filling a large 40 oz or 1-gallon water bottle and keep it at your desk or work area to drink during the day.

Value Your Health
Make a decision to improve your health while working from home by preventing overeating. Taking these simple steps like scheduling meal and snack time, planning healthy meals and snacks, and staying hydrated will definitely help you get started on this journey toward a healthier you. Don't forget to confide in your healthy eating buddy.