4 Ways Eating Solo Meals Can Make You Gain Weight

Have you noticed an uptick in solo diners at restaurants these days—or that you and your friends are eating a lot of meals and snacks on your own? Thanks to our crazy-busy lifestyles and the fact that more people live alone than ever before (a record 27 percent of all households consist of just one person), solo dining is the latest food trend. A new report from the NPD Group, a market research company, found that 55 percent of meals and snacks are eaten alone. The majority of breakfasts and lunches are consumed solo, while 32 percent of dinners involve a table for one.

While eating on your own should be just as enjoyable and satisfying as a meal with friends or a partner, it often isn’t. “When you eat alone, you tend not to prioritize yourself by cooking a meal or choosing healthier options,” says Leslie Heinberg, Ph.D., director of behavioral services at the Bariatric and Metabolic Institute at the Cleveland Clinic Foundation. “You often eat while doing other things, and that prevents you from picking up on hunger and satiety cues, which increases the likelihood of weight gain.” Keep these waistline-expanding traps in mind whenever you find yourself noshing on your own.

You Dine at Your Dashboard, Rather Than in a Chair at a Table
It feels excessive, even indulgent, to set a place at a table when faced with a solo meal—and that leads a lot of people to hit a fast-food drive-thru or convenience store and eat in their car, says Heinberg. “This makes you more prone to picking up high-calorie and less-healthy food, as well as to eating it mindlessly—so you don’t feel full and are more likely to overdo it,” she says.
The fix: Whether you're eating al fresco on a park bench or at a table in your office's cafeteria, sit down and try to enjoy your meal as you would if you were eating with others.

You Turn on the TV or Laptop for Company
When you eat a meal while watching TV, catching up on e-mail, or browsing the latest viral videos, you aren’t paying attention to how much you’re consuming and whether you’re already full, says Heinberg. So it's basically a recipe for overeating.
The fix: Save screen time for after you've finished eating.

You Wolf Down Your Food to Get the Meal Over With
Eating with others means taking well-paced conversation breaks, and that gives your brain time to register fullness so you know when you’re done, says Heinberg. When you eat by yourself, you don’t have those talking and listening pauses, so you tend to eat faster and don’t feel as satiated.
The fix: If you have trouble simply telling yourself to slow down, try putting down your fork between bites. It will automatically stop you from speed eating.

You Order Takeout
Most recipes are designed to feed two to four people, and you don’t want to go to all the work of cooking a meal—and be stuck with lots of extra food—if it’s just you. Problem is, meals you cook or put together yourself tend to be healthier and have lower calories, says Heinberg. By not turning on the oven, you put yourself at risk of weight gain.
The fix: Focus on certain dishes—like stir-fries, egg scrambles with veggies, and pasta—that come together quickly and are easy to make in single-serve portions.

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