Day 2–100 Days To A Healthy Relationship With Food
Eating slower: a simple win for weight loss
Knowledge and perseverance, that’s what this is about. Knowledge first. For Day 2’s article I’ve researched pace of eating. You can check how perseverance (and my progress toward a healthy weight using 16:8 Intermittent Fasting) is going further down the article.
Pace Of Eating
I wolf down my food. Always have done. I think it got worse at school, when — due to a weird timetable with a 2hr15min lunch break to allow time for daily sports practice — we had an impossibly small window to eat. The coaches wanted all lunch break to be spent training, not eating.
We hear that eating quickly is “bad for you”, but is there any evidence?
Yes, there is. This study showed that if you eat quicker, you end up eating more because you don’t realise you are full.
30 people were given a plate of pasta and asked to eat until they were full. When told to eat quickly, they consumed more calories, quicker, before they were full. When told to chew more often, they consumed less calories, slower, before they were full.
It’s hard to change. Our pace of eating is ingrained. Psychologically, I think comfort eating has a part to play here too (certainly for me). Comfort eating involves a whole maesltrom of self-sabotage and self-medication that I will research later in this project.
But, if you have ever got any comfort from shoving in food quickly, then that sticks with you. It becomes a (unhelpful) way you can gain pleasure, or “a hit” from food. Plus you have effectively practiced eating at speed.
I would imagine that anyone who has comfort eaten (I have) would be more inclined to rush their meals, which, could be increasing calorie intake needlessly.
It sounds so simple. Eat slowly and eat until your full. It isn’t that simple for many though. And not for me. But, trying to remember to eat slower (and knowing there is evidence to back it up), is useful.
I have resolved to trying to chew each mouthful 15 times (the same amount they asked the participants in the research I mentioned earlier in the article). Let’s see what happens.
Progress Report
It’s very early days but I am hopeful that the daily commitment to writing an article boosts motivation and perseverance. I’m in for 100 days. I feel up and full of confidence at the moment. So, 2 days in and I have had no problems maintaining my 16:8 approach.
It has helped so much experimenting with it before starting this project, I know how to get it to work for me. The daily research for the knowledge part is helping me with perseverance too, which is a lovely added benefit.
I want to make lasting positive change, so any way in which I increase my understanding of my relationship with food, the easier each daily step towards a healthy weight is.
2/2/100 (Number of days into project / number of days goals met / total days in project)
Why I’m Doing 16:8 Intermittent Fasting
Be responsible about food and weight management. Research a healthy weight, and healthy methods of weight management for you physically and mentally. Remember, you are not defined by what you weigh. I am not a nutritionist.