Speed eating...

[kccc]

Every diet I've ever been on advised something along the lines of "Slow down when you eat. It takes 20 minutes for your brain to figure out you've had enough."

I find that advice very difficult to follow. Always have. I'm the first one finished with my meal most of the time (though, to be fair, my family - the one I grew up in - all eat pretty fast).

The one-plate rule compensates for that a good bit, because it gives other cues that "you're done" - like, when the plate is empty, silly!

This really hit me today. I walked in the house STARVING. Not only was dinner about an hour late, but lunch had been about an hour early - just one of those days. I had a fast dinner planned, though: chicken/spinach quesadillas. My serving size is one 10-inch flour tortilla, filled, folded, and cut in half, with fruit/veggies on the side. I ate that and WANTED another half-quesadilla. And I could probably have eaten it then. Ten minutes later, I felt STUFFED from what I had eaten, and glad I'd stopped.

But I wish I could slow down. It feels a bit embarrassing to finish first when I'm eating with colleagues, and more noticeable now that I'm not eating seconds....plus, I have the sense that eating fast is leftover diet-think in some way. (Not sure exactly how, but that feels accurate.)

Tips, anyone? "Just eat slower" doesn't seem to work very well.

[blueskighs]

KCCC,

I have been a speed eater as well. I am not sure why we develop these habits.

I have noticed with NO S since I only get one plate three times a day I truly WANT my meal to last longer. I just take much smaller bites. I have actually found that when I take smaller bites I actually taste the food more.

Maybe just plug into your desire to make the meal LAST LONGER and see what you do to make that happen?

Blueskighs

[Betty]

KCCC,

I'm a super fast eater, too. And it's especially noticable because my kids are SO SLOW.

One thing I do is eat with little utensils. Use desert forks rather than regular ones, and the size of each bite gets smaller. I'm not sure how your colleagues would react, but at home you could try it.

I try to remember (but usually don't ) to put down my silverware when I'm chewing. That helps a lot, too.

Betty

[wosnes]

I'm generally not a speed-eater. I'll have to say that there's something to the 20 minute rule. It helps to talk with family/friends during dinner. Although, I'm frequently alone and find that sitting at the table and reading something does it, too.

Last night I went to a favorite little restaurant for dinner. I had their special. I noticed a couple who came in just after I did -- and also ordered the special. They were served after me, done and gone before me. I was reading while I ate -- and pleasantly full when done. Just one plate of food.

I'm currently reading The Blue Zones -- it's about the habits of long-lived peoples throughout the world. Okinawans practice hara hachi bu which roughly means eating until you're 80% full. The interesting thing is that at least some of the Okinawans repeat this almost like a grace before eating. They don't rush through meals, either.

[OrganicGal]

I'm also a fast eater, not sure why...I think I'm the fastest one in my family...my one bro is the slowest I noticed recently.

I'm going to try a couple of the above suggestions....eating smaller bites and chewing thoroughly...the 80% full rule...I like the idea of saying it like a Grace before I start eating, even though I don't actually say Grace before meals.
I'm also incorporating a new rule about my plates, rather then switch to a smaller plate which would look odd and have friends and family asking me about it, I'm going to only put food on my plates that fill that inner circle. All of my plates & the plates at my b-friends have an approx. 1" rim, either just coloured differently or with an actual 'dip' in the plate center. So from now on my food must fit within the inner circle.

Oh ya....and I'm going to try eating slower, using probably a combination of ideas...reading if I'm alone, talking a little more if I'm not....or not putting stuff in my mouth if I'm listening to someone else talk...that way I'm giving them my full attention to.

[wosnes]

I think part of our speed eating or rushing through meals is due to the way we view not just the meals, but life in general. For many others, meal time is a time to relax and socialize with family and friends. For many of us it's something else on the "to do" list, to be completed quickly so we can get on with other things. Beyond filling our bellies, it's pretty low on the list of importance. For others, it's no less important than anything else -- and more important than many other things.

[babyprrr]

I try to chew 15 times every bite. I read in some magazine that this helps you better enjoy the taste of whatever you're eating. Regardless of whether this is scientifically true I find sticking to this makes me more conscious of the act of eating, and eating is less a frenzied event.

I don't follow this when Im having one of my bingeing episodes. I suppose this is what distinguishes emotional binging from enjoyable eating. I am less conscious of what I'm eating if I'm bingeing and the main aim is to stuff down as much food as possible.

[fkwan]

I think part of our speed eating or rushing through meals is due to the way we view not just the meals, but life in general. For many others, meal time is a time to relax and socialize with family and friends. For many of us it's something else on the "to do" list, to be completed quickly so we can get on with other things. Beyond filling our bellies, it's pretty low on the list of importance. For others, it's no less important than anything else -- and more important than many other things.

Exactly. I'm either eating while working or eating in a less than congenial atmosphere.

f