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Self-Portrait
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About Me
- M
- I am a middle-aged woman, who's recently grasped the fact that her longevity genes are stronger than she had supposed, forcing her to face the fact that she'd better start taking care of herself. Who knew I'd live this long??
Random thoughts. One way to control how much you eat at a sitting is to make sure that you don't hoover it. This tends to be my problem, especially when eating alone. If you eat more slowly, you'll realize when you've had enough to eat before you pass over into gut-busting fullness. If you're eating with other people, carrying on a conversation while eating is a good way to do this. My friend Alix swears by chewing her food 30 times before swallowing, and I believe Grandpa was a fan of this as well. This has the added advantage of aiding digestion (smaller bits mixed with saliva). I personally don't count my chews, but I do try and savor each bite and make sure that I've chewed it thoroughly. Eating in front of the tv or computer is maybe not the best idea, but one advantage is that it usually slows down how fast you eat. My suggestion for eating at the table is to bring along a book or magazine or puzzle like a crossword or sudoku.
ReplyDeleteGood thoughts, Sarah! Hoovering is definitely a problem for me, especially if I've allowed myself to get too hungry before eating.
ReplyDeleteYeah, and eating in front of the tube or monitor is kind of a double-edged sword; it may slow you down a bit, but you're not really focused on tasting your food, so it's kind of mindless eating... another one of my foibles.
Yes, I think I might have to disagree on the distracting yourself while you're eating to slow down. I find that I feel less satisfied after I eat if I haven't been paying attention to eating. I like to try taking a deep breath and focusing on what I'm eating and why, then doing it again when I'm feeling full, but still just want to devour the rest of the tasty thing. Sometimes I still take guilty pleasure in eating it all anyway, then feel like crap. So I try to listen to myself when I say, I'm going to feel crappy if I keep eating this. BTW, Have you guys ever read "why french women don't get fat"? the theory is that the french have learned from their long culinary history, that you get the most satisfaction out of your food, flavor, texture, temperature, etc. in the first few bites. So they make really rich food, but in tiny portions, and are satisfied with the good experience of the food, knowing that even if they ate more it wouldn't be as enjoyable because your taste buds get desensitized. But Americans try to recreate or sustain the good feeling/tasting food experience by eating more and more of the same food. Leaving us stuffed, yet ultimately unsatiated and overloaded with calories.
ReplyDeleteHaha, Marnie, I actually own that book! Haven't cracked it open, but maybe I should. Actually, it was Mom's book, but I think I still have it here somewhere.
ReplyDeleteI certainly know that scenario very well, where you know you've had enough but plow through it, anyway... then seriously regret the impulse. I think I mentioned before Deepak Chopra's wise advise - to eat with attention and intention to get the most satisfaction and fulfillment from your food.
Oh, all these lessons. I still like to eat at the computer, though. ;P