Interior Design As a Key to Losing Weight? Maybe So. (Wa-hoo!)
March 18, 2008 by Liberty Kontranowski
Filed under Diets and Dieting, Easy Health Tips, How To, Nutrition, Psychology, Weight Loss, Your Body, Your Mind
I have a bit of a thing with interior design. I’m not saying I’m Martha’s prodigy or anything, I’m just saying I’m on the other side of obsessed with HGTV and the likes. But alas, if you love monkeying with design like me, we have a new (and very welcome) assignment: Redecorate to lose weight.
Here’s the scoop: Joanne G. Gould, M.A., R.D., of the OMS Wellness Institute says that by using our flair for making our homes lovely, we could cut our daily caloric intake by a cool 200 calories a day – that’s enough to melt 20 pounds in a year! Sounds like a plan. You with me?
Our assignment is this:
Ditch the red and orange paints/pillows/cushions in lieu of blue.
Why? Bright colors stimulate hunger by firing up a stress response within us (hm, no wonder so many restaurants are ga-ga for those red and mustard color schemes). Instead, opt to deck out a room in blue. Because aside from healthy blueberries, there are so few foods that are blue, your mind will subconsciously think of things other than eating (like sunny skies or ocean waves, perhaps?)
Turn off the tube.
Why? Research shows that when people chow down in noisy places, they are apt to eat more. The distractions around us keep us from really acknowledging how much we’ve actually consumed, making it far too easy for those fifteen extra chips to pass through our lips. Instead, hide the TV remote and pick up the one for the stereo instead. Soothing music makes you feel relaxed, mellow and more mindful of your surroundings (including those chips).
C’mon Baby, Light My Fire.
Well, not my fire, but a fire. Like on a candle. A vanilla-scented one to be exact. Filling your home with beautiful and tantalizing candles and lighting them before a meal will not only boost your mood, but will also curb your hankering for dessert. How’s that for a redecorating benefit? See, the vanilla scent tricks your brain into thinking you’ve already indulged in the sweets, making a smaller portion of dessert sufficient for satisfaction. Yes! A legitimate reason to add “buy more candles” to the top of my To-Do list.
Reach for the stars…and the cookie jar.
Finally, sweep that cookie jar (no matter how cute) off your kitchen counter and into an out-of-the-way cupboard. Doing so will not only give you more space to prep some healthy meals (ahem), but will also cut down on your between-meal snacking. I guess it’s that whole, “Out of sight, out of mind” thing. I call it another good reason to spring for more candles – to fill up the now-empty space!
So, have you tried any of these tactics? Do you plan to? Drop us a comment and let us know.
Interesting article with some nice tips on weight loss. A few additional thoughts:
Buy and use smaller plates for your meals.
Organize and declutter your pantry and keep it that way. Exercise willpower at the supermarket and don’t buy snacks – it’s easier than buying them and controlling yourself once they’re in the pantry.
Frame a picture of yourself in which you believe you look fat, place it on a shelf out of the way, then force yourself to look at it regularly. Extra willpower will follow. When you reach your goal weight, replace the picture with a new, more flattering one.
Ed Odom, MD
http://www.thehonestdoctor.com
Excellent points, Dr. Odom. Thanks for weighing in (heh. Definite pun intended!)
I take particular interest in your point about not buying snacks at the store. Wow! Something so simple, yet routinely people buy their favorite “cheats” promising to limit themselves to “just a little” and, well, next thing you know it’s all gone. I know I do this more than I care to admit. From now on, I’m going to avoid even subjecting myself to the losing battle of self-control and save some money in the process.
I also love your point about putting out a “fat” picture. Most people tend to put out “inspiration” photos – those of celebrities or of themselves from their skinnier/healthier days. In cases like that, I can see how people would get more discouraged than inspired, feeling like those goals are too unreachable. So, while your suggestion seems backwards to common thinking, I think it’s a fabulous idea. Now where is my photo album…?
P.S. Great blog, Dr. Odom. I’ll be adding you to our blogroll. Thanks for reading The Bolt.
I’m glad to hear your positive responses to the article. Other ideas:
1) Change the glassware. Most people don’t realize a tumbler glass may hold 8 or 12 ounces of fluid. OJ provides 120-150 calories per glass.
2) Take an inventory of your kitchen cabinets. Store the goodies in containers with nutrition information posted on the container.
Hi Ms. Gould,
Wow, thanks for stopping by! Not sure how your comment slipped by me, but thanks so much for your wonderful advice.
I agree completely regarding the size of glasses – it’s just like the “large plate” epidemic. Give us the space, and we are preprogrammed to believe we need to fill it up. Not good!
Your other tip is fantastic, too, especially for those who choose not to keep goodies out of the house completely – which is probably most of us!!