Wouldn’t it be nice to be able to keep up a trim figure without having to constantly be thinking about our calorie intake or when we can next squeeze in a gym session?
Well, scientists have now revealed the secrets of those who remain ‘mindlessly slim’ – secrets they probably never even knew they had.
The New Cornell Food and Brand Lab surveyed two groups of adults; those who didn’t follow strict diets or food rules, and those who did and who were very conscious of the food they ate.
The volunteers answered questions about diet, exercise and day-to-day routines, allowing the researchers to seek out similarities between the case studies – with some surprising (and some not) results.
Credit: Cornell Food & Brand Lab
The ‘mindlessly slim’ sample consisted of over 100 adults who’ve managed to maintain a healthy bodyweight throughout their lives without taking any drastic measures.
They conclude that this group of people tended to eat high quality foods, cook at home and listen to their insists of what to eat and when .
Of the 112 adults in this sample, whose average weight was 136Ib, many reported similar eating and dieting habits.
Credit: Cornell Food & Brand Lab
61 per cent said chicken was their meat of choice, 65 per cent said they have vegetable with every dinner, and 37 per cent said they steer clear of soft drinks altogether.
Another huge factor was that, unlike the flip side of the sample, they did NOT feel guilt about the overeating. Hey, it happens to everyone now and then!
A crucial different, it appears, was in the effortlessly slims’ mind set towards eating, as they were shown to have enjoyable relationship to food.
"These results are encouraging because they imply that instead of putting restrictions on one's diet and avoiding favorite foods, weight gain could be prevented early on by learning to listen to inner cues and putting emphasis on the quality instead of the quantity of food," says lead researcher Anna-Leena Vuorinen
Another recent study showed that eating a portion of berries such as grapes can help you maintain a healthy weight, thanks to the high flavonoid content.