Many of us are subject to the necessity of multitasking. This holds true especially to those of you out there with custodial age children. There is simply not enough time in the day to complete the numerous tasks we need to perform to support ourselves and our families. This often requires us to engage in several different functions at the same time. As an example, for a number of people, listening on mute during a business conference call while performing another task is commonplace.
Turning to our eating behaviors: These are also often subject to a multitasking situation. Here are a few examples:
- Sitting at your work desk accomplishing some work-related tasks and at the same time, eating lunch (or dinner)
- Eating a meal while looking at your social media feeds on the smart phone
- Snacking at night while watching your favorite shows on TV
- Trying to eat a meal while helping your children with homework
“Distracted eating” is NOT conducive to effective weight control. The reason: When in a distracted mode, we will tend to not focus on portion control and also reach for foods that are often detrimental to our weight control goals. Eating a sandwich and chips while using your other hand to work the computer is lots easier than trying to eat a salad that requires a knife to cut the protein.
During your long-term weight control journey, try to NOT place yourself in distracted eating situations. By doing so, you will enhance your chances of weight loss success.
And here is a really smooth singer…Enjoy Al Jarreau’s “Distracted”.
