How I Stop Myself from Overeating
Several years ago, when one of my closest friends was dieting, she said one little thing that came back full circle for me in Slim by Design.
She said her “diet plan” was that she cut all her portions in half. Even if she was still hungry after half, she told me she would not continue. She would just have to be hungry.
I expressed concern. “That doesn't seem healthy,” I told her. “You shouldn't always be hungry. You shouldn't starve yourself!” I cried.
That's when she told me that she always got up and went to do something else—put in a load of laundry or clean something if she was at home, go back to her desk and answer emails or calls if she was at work, or even just read a book or look at cat videos on YouTube. It didn't matter what she did, but that she did something. Before long she'd forgot all about the food and being hungry. A few times she said she was still hungry 15-20 minutes later, and in those times she did eat more, but almost all of the times she “forgot” she was hungry, felt satisfied, and went about her business.
Many years later, tired of always feeling overstuffed because I always ate way too much and way too fast, I started my own similar approach: I ate until I felt 75% full. If I was still hungry and wanting more food 15 minutes later, I could have it. Like my pal, I typically found myself satisfied and not wanting more. My problems with overeating were practically gone!
In Slim by Design, Wansink's research confirms the same about chocolate and desserts: “Once you eat two or three bites, put the rest away and distract yourself for 15 minutes—in 15 minutes all you'll remember—in your head, mouth, and stomach—is that you had a tasty snack.”
I've tested this with my ultimate weakness: dark chocolate. I was surprised how well it works.
One of the things I love most about the meal plans is that it's already perfectly portioned out for me. I have limits in place—if I eat all the breakfast, lunch, or dinner prescribed, even with a side or snack, I know that I've probably had enough even if my mind says otherwise and my tastebuds are begging for more... I just need to wait 15 minutes and distract myself to be sure!