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Obesity And Divorce: How To Avoid Excess Weight Gain During Your Separation

22 January 2015

Alexis Garcia

Even though the running joke among divorced men is that they recently lost about 150 pounds, studies show that men who go through a divorce tend to pack on extra weight as they adjust to their new living arrangements. This is true for a number of reasons, but the end result is the same regardless. Extra weight adds to health problems and stress. 

Since most recently divorced men aren't looking for any additional stress, it's important to take active measures to preserve your health during this time. Fortunately, there are a number of simple things you can do to avoid adding weight problems to your list of things to deal with.

Learn to Cook In Bulk

The number of people who eat some bit of fast food every day is 1 out of every 4. Since fast food tends to be calorie dense and nutrient light, learning to avoid fast food is a key ingredient in any weight management plan. Avoiding fast food is easy if you learn to cook in bulk.

Instead of buying enough food to make one large meal, choose meals that can be easily saved and broken up into multiple meals. Some examples include:

• Pasta dishes
• Crock pot soups and casseroles
• Stir fried chicken and vegetables

Having these meals stored in containers will allow you to choose healthy options for your daily lunches. On top of that, you'll be less tempted to overeat when you cook them, since you'll be saving a great deal of the food for later anyway. The result is less need for fast food and better calorie management during your typical dinners.

Drink a Lot of Water

Water is a vital component of a healthy metabolism. In fact, studies show that drinking water can increase the metabolism of a healthy man by up to 30%--peaking about a half hour after drinking. Technically speaking, you could accomplish this pretty much every hour throughout the day, if you incorporate enough water breaks into your schedule.

The easiest way to do this is to carry a water bottle with you at work. However, you can accomplish the same effect by excusing yourself every hour for a brief water break. Also, if you're out drinking with your buddies, consider alternating a glass of water for every drink that you consume. You'll slow your alcohol consumption and maintain proper hydration.

Condition Yourself to Respond to Stress

Divorces can be extremely stressful experiences. Unfortunately, many folks turn to comfort eating in order to deal with their stress level. Emotional eating leads to the consumption of high-calorie foods and the over-consumption of the foods you typically eat.

The good news is that you can actually condition your body to respond differently--with a little hard work. If you find yourself craving a particular food or feeling hungry when you've already eaten enough, go for a jog instead. Conditioning can actually cause your body to begin to crave the jog instead of the food over time.

Stay Active

A natural tendency for men during a divorce is to shut off from the outside world. This creates weight gain in two ways--through increased inactivity and increased exposure to food. You'll need to avoid this at all costs.

The easiest way to do this is to stay active with your circle of friends. Basically, you'll be keeping yourself too busy to eat. Your emotional health will benefit from the increased support from the people you care about as well. You can also consider adding an active hobby to your lifestyle--divorce is a great excuse to invest in yourself a little bit. Above all, stay busy!

Very few people have an easy transition into life after divorce. That said, taking care of yourself, getting professional help from sites like http://www.madisonlf.com, and developing a few positive habits will go a long way toward helping you maintain good health as you move into the next phase in your life.

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