What did you eat four hours ago?

Gut check time.

• How does your digestive system feel right now?  
• Got gas?
• Got "hunger pangs"?
• Constipated?
• Quiet and comfortable?

Okay.  Now think about what you ate four hours ago.  Even if you had a snack twenty minutes ago, think first about what you ate four hours back.  How would you describe it?  Fibrous vegetable?  Starchy white food?  Sweet?  Protein-rich?

Now name the specific food:  Broccoli?  Baked potato with skin?  Chocolate cake?  Chicken?

The way your gut feels right now is largely the result of what you ate four hours ago.  Any food you've put into it since then has probably intensified the feeling of what already started.

If your gut feels good, then the food you ate four hours ago is okay for you.  If it doesn't feel that great, think about eliminating that food for a few days.  Then eat it again....the same amount...and see if you get the same reaction.  If you do, stop eating it.  Your system can't handle it, and it doesn't need it.  For example, not everyone does well on superfoods like oatmeal and sweet potatoes.  You can always reap those same nutritional benefits from other sources.

The result of eliminating the troublesome food item:  your cravings will stop, you'll have more energy, your appetite will diminish and you will lose weight.