Admit it; you’ve had those moments of weakness when you gorged yourself with as much food as possible without breathing.  Yes, all that pasta may have tasted beautiful on the way in but now, there sits a humongous lump in your stomach that causes you to waddle hopelessly around like a pregnant lady. While this waddling is taking place, the question, “Why oh why has my life come to this?” seems to be the only dialogue worth repeating.

But don’t worry! Life does not have to be like this! The food baby can be prevented with these helpful tips to refrain from over-eating:

1. Out of sight, out of mind

It may be all too tempting to eat straight out of the carton of ice cream, but scooping yourself a decent serving and putting the ice-cream back into its respective place does wonders. Now, if you want more, the draining process of having to get up and walk all the way back to the kitchen seems like too much effort. You can continue to sit and watch the rest of your show guilt-free.

2. Eat more to eat less

food baby

Photo courtesy of chowbellabycassie.blogspot.com

Have a small serving of yogurt a half hour before a meal; it’s not going to hurt you and it’ll actually partially satisfy your hunger. Mix the yogurt with almonds or granola to add some protein to fill you up partially before you indulge in a huge dinner. It’ll keep you from journeying on that guilt trip of over-eating later. Go you!

3. Be out and about!

Boredom has reigned upon all of us; that moment when you have nothing to do and the void can only be filled with food, food and more food. But hold on, there are other things in this world that can keep us entertained and physically away from that all-too tempting pantry… take a walk, phone a friend, or leave your house/apartment for a shopping spree.

If you couldn’t resist the hunger and that food baby is now in its 2nd trimester… try these tips to help deflate:

4. Speed it up, Warm it Up

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Photo by Sandy Huang

Green Tea or coffees are proven to increase your metabolism (epicurious.com) which will quickly help to deflate that food baby. And the full, homey feeling you get from drinking these hot beverages will annihilate any last minute craving for more food.

5. Consolation and Forgiveness

Tell yourself it’s all going to be okay. The food baby will shrink and this will all be over soon; forgive yourself for that extra serving. Just try to remember for next time that the struggle of the food baby is real – but just to be safe, use the tips from above to prevent that food baby from resembling twins next time.