There's Always More Where That Came From

I have this awful tendency to stuff my face full of food, well past the point when I'm full, because I love food. This is probably my primary hindrance keeping me from a healthy weight. I've increased my workout activity by quite a bit and decreased my inactive "couch potato" time as much as possible; I've made drastic changes in what I eat, and have even done well reducing my portion size - I often use one of my daughter's toddler plates. The problem is I go back for seconds. (To be fair, I have to have made some improvement here as I used to go back for seconds with my normal overly large adult dinner plates and now I go back for seconds with Emerson's itty bitty toddler plate, but it's still seconds. The initial serving is actually an accurate serving - I don't need more.)

As I mentioned, part of the problem is that I just love food. I could never be anorexic because I love the taste of food way too much. I really thought about how this impacted my eating habits and I realized this causes me to eat for the wrong reason. I usually eat because I want to taste something and not because I'm hungry. And all that causes me to do is want to taste it again... and again... and again. For me, satisfying my desire to taste something doesn't satiate the desire, but augments it instead. I have to have more.

This leads me to the next part of the problem. Did you know that the American culture is one of the only cultures that uses an external cue to indicate when we should stop eating? When our plate is cleaned, when the tv show is over, when the lunch break ends, etc. Almost all other cultures use an internal cue to alert them when it's time to stop eating - when they feel about 80% full. The reason they stop at 80% is because it takes about 20 minutes for the effects of fullness to be manifested. Do we as Americans have any idea how to even tell when we're about 80% full? Would we stop eating then even if we did?

For me, historically these answers have been 'no.' I am not in tune with my body so I have no idea how full I am until I'm about to pop and have to unbutton the top button on my pants just to be comfortable. (Just in case you're wondering, that is a really bad thing!) And given the fact that I often keep eating even after I feel completely full because I liked the taste of what I was eating, I'd have to say I probably wouldn't stop eating at 80% either. (Again, that's a really bad thing!)

Lately I've been trying to remind myself of one large American (or any first world) blessing: There is always more where that came from. I am beyond blessed to live in a place where there really is more where that came from. I don't have to try and eat it all at once in case there isn't any more later. Sometimes this reminder works, sometimes it doesn't. Hopefully over time it will work more and more. For now, I'm trying to serve myself only one serving for whatever I'm eating and then wait 20 minutes before deciding if I want more or not. Generally, giving myself a 20 minute hiatus is enough to break the need for just one more bite (just one more!). After that pause, I can honestly judge whether I'm full or not.

And the added benefit of allowing myself to have leftovers is that there actually will be more the next day! And it saves money!!