Wonder why JAPANESE are so slim and smart? Here are TEN REASONS why!

Wonder why JAPANESE are so slim and smart? Here are TEN REASONS why!

Japanese are not only slim and smart but have the longest life expectancy. Not to mention, lowest obesity rates. But the question that arises is, how? How have they managed to be so smart and so healthy. Not just a small percentage of population is but majority of population is slim. Keep reading this article as all reasons will be discussed in detail.

1-      Timing

Timing is everything. Eating on time is the key to healthy life, body and mind. They usually have their breakfast in the morning around 9 am, their lunch after mid-morning that is between 12pm and 1pm. While their dinner is in between 6pm till 9pm.

Having a routine, makes an individual make smarter choice. If you have a routine, you are likely to make wise decisions about what to eat and not rush to your nearest fast food point to satisfy your hunger. If you are one of those people who like to eat whenever they feel like, then you’re in trouble.

2-      Exercise

The form of exercise they normally follow is of walking. Due the lowest crime rates in Japan, children usually walk to their schools. This becomes a habit and walking becomes a way to travel in to different place within a city.

3-      Transportation System

Transportation in Japan is mainly through train. Since, everything is connected in Japan, people don’t own much cars there. Their mode of travel is walking, bicycling or train.

By walking and bicycling, Japanese don’t put up extra weight.

4-      Diet

Diet plays a crucial role in your weight and Japanese are very much aware of that. This is evident by diet they follow.

Before heading towards what they eat, let’s talk about what they don’t eat. They stay away from foods that have high salt and sugar in them. Can you guess those foods? Take a minute to think about it.

Well, the highest amount of salts are present in processed foods. These foods that come in this category are the food that we eat and drink outside like burgers, sodas, pizza and fries and what not. Japanese deter themselves of eating outside.

Now, you ask what do they eat? They prefer eating fresh foods and home cooked meals. Their overall day to day diet includes heavy carbs and low saturated fats. Grains, vegetables, fish as well as meat. Whereas they consume fruits and dairy products in moderation.

Apart from their diet, they have THREE wholesome meals every day.

5-      Portion Sizes

Have you ever noticed the portion size of Japanese people? It’s comparatively smaller then ours. Their food is normally served into smaller plates rather than one large plate. Their dinner table is filled with all kinds of variety in small portions.

6-      No snacking

Most important part is, no snacking. As you read above, their diets are pretty heavy due to carbs presence which makes an individual feel full. They have three wholesome foods and due to these two reasons they don’t feel hungry. Despite having so many vending machines, they stay away from snacking.

Even if they do snack, they will snack in a very small portion.

7-      Fast Food

Apparently, McDonalds and all American fast food chains are present in Japan. Despite their presence, Japanese do not eat these. Their own fast food chains are pretty much healthy.

The reason for that being is that during their time in schools, they have been taught the importance of nutrition. So, when these school children grow up as adults, they make wise decisions since nutrition has been well incorporated in their minds.

8-      Use of chopsticks

Japanese uses chopstick and so they eat slower.

Imagine yourself in front of two plates. One is filled with burgers and fries. The other one is filled with small portions of healthy food. The deal is that you have to eat burgers and fries and the other plate with the use of chopsticks. What will be consumed at a faster rate and what will be consumed at a slower rate? I’m sure you all know the answer.

9-      Beverages

So, the main beverage they consume is tea. Green tea, to be more specific. The amount of green tea Japanese consumed is a lot.

For benefits of green, you can see this blog - Unknown Numerous Benefits of Consuming Green Tea In Moderation!

However, over consumption is not recommended. Reasons you wonder why? You can check this link out Downfall of Consuming Green Tea in Large Quantities

Also, not to forget, green tea has zero calories compare to other beverages like soda and lemonade.

10-      Mindful

Being mindful is what Japanese do. They do not have any distractions while most people do. For instance, they do not watch television while having their meals. This makes them more mindful of what they are putting into their bodies.

All types of distractions can lead to people forgetting how much they are consuming and they might not even feel satisfied after the meal they have consumed.

This is how Japanese people live a healthy lifestyle. They do not need to hit the gym since their routine is so much better than going to a gym. They eat everything except for excess of salt and sugar as well as saturated fats.