How Habits Affect Your Weight
Recent figures from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare show that 50% of all illnesses are caused by our behaviour, 20% by environmental factors and only 30% by germs or ‘bugs’. So if you’re feeling sick, your lifestyle is probably to blame. Many people make bad health decisions and develop bad habits which become so ingrained that they’re often not aware of them. Unhealthy habits usually involve eating more and exercising less!
Examples of bad health habits
Salting food before you try it Having peanuts or chips with a beer Having a piece of cake or a biscuit with tea or coffee Asking the kids to get you things rather than getting them yourself Driving to the shops instead of walking Eating while watching TV Having a cigarette with a drink Drinking alcohol when you’re thirsty
Unlearning habits
Learned habits aren’t all bad. By learning to do things automatically, we allow ourselves time and the mental space to do the other things which help us survive. However, we can analyse our eating and exercising habits to see what it is that is making us put on weight. Psychologists call this ‘self-monitoring’. It involves writing down everything you do and working out just what stimulus leads to what behaviour.
In terms of food, Garry Egger advises drawing a line down the centre of a piece of paper. In one column write down everything you eat during the day, and on the other side write down what you were doing at the time. Go back over your list at the end of the day and you will soon discover what cues or stimulus led you to eat particular foods. Being aware of these cues is the first step towards changing your bad health habits.
Further information
Dr Garry Egger started GutBusters, a scientifically based program which uses waist measurement, not weight, as an indication of fat loss in men. To contact GutBusters phone 1800 674 688, or visit their website: http://www.gutbusters.com.au