Everyday Systems

Just wondering if I'm the only person that has ever experienced this. Please note that this has not happened to me since I've been on the diet, but it might be applicable to S-days anyhow.

Sometimes I noticed when I apparently ate too much at a restaurant. I felt "normally full" at the the end of the meal. Then upon standing up to leave the restaurant, I would suddenly notice that I was "uncomfortably full".

At this point I would realize that I ate way too much.

I most often noticed this at mexican restaurants where they bring out bowls of chips to munch on while you order and wait for your entree.

I probably ate a bowl full of chips, then the entree on top of it.

You're not the only one; it's still something I have to watch for after three years, mostly at restaurants. I think it manifests more when eating out as portion sizes vary and it's harder to judge how filling unfamiliar food is going to be.

I think it might have something to do with the fact that there's a delay between being satisfied/full and our brain's recognition of that. This could be behind the "eating until you're 4/5 full" practiced in Japan. When you feel 4/5 full, you're really full.

I feel full when I see the plate empty.

Seriously, it's amazing, if you stick with the "no seconds" rule, how powerful the sight of an emptied plate becomes. It's like Pavlov's bell -- in reverse. Instead of making dogs start to salivate, it gets you to stop.

Reinhard

reinhard wrote:I feel full when I see the plate empty.

Seriously, it's amazing, if you stick with the "no seconds" rule, how powerful the sight of an emptied plate becomes. It's like Pavlov's bell -- in reverse. Instead of making dogs start to salivate, it gets you to stop.

Reinhard

There are some folks who think that's part of the problem in the U.S. Supposedly the French (and others) stop eating when they feel satisfied, even if there's food left on the plate. Americans stop eating when the plate is empty -- no matter the size of the portions.

I appreciate both Reinhard and Wosnes' comments here. As someone who ate seconds and maybe thirds for most of my life and couldn't gain even when I tried (Yeah, my mother warned me that my day was coming!), getting used to that ONE plate rule, no matter the size of the plate, has made a huge difference to me. It is really a mindset that I've had to take on in order to just stop at one plate. But it has slowly become a habit, thank goodness and even more than the pounds that are slowly dropping, I no longer feel miserable after my meals because I overdid it.

Regarding how long it takes to feel full, it is my understanding that it takes between 20-30 minutes for the brain to register that fullness. I've learned now from living it, that the one plate really will sustain me to the next meal.

And now that I've been doing No S for a number of months, one little tweak that I do is to intentionally leave just a little empty space on my larger plates when I'm helping myself or use a fairly large size "salad plate" which is probably as large as the dinner plates that my grandmother used.

Also once you get the hang of the no snacks, no seconds and no sweets rules and they are have been firmly established for a few months (yes, at least a couple of months!), THEN you can tinker with the size of your plates. . . but in the beginning, just focus on one plate per meal along with no snacks or sweets.

And regarding finishing off that plate, although I would have never thought this was a possibility for me, I have found that when I do have a pretty full plate, now that I've been doing this a while, that I really can stop even before the plate is empty because I know another chance to eat is only a few hours away! Even on a recent S day when I didn't HAVE to limit my food, I chose to bring some of that wonderful Shrimp Fettucine Alfredo home to have for lunch the next day because I didn't want to sit around like a beached whale for the rest of the evening!

I have heard that you should stop eating when you're 80% full. This may mean not eating everything on your plate. This may rid you of the very full feeling when you stand. When you sit down to eat, remember that feeling and that may encourage you to eat just the bit less, knowing that you'll feel full when you stand.
I was taught that "if you take it you eat it!" It's hard to get away from that but now I leave some food on the plate just to let my tummy know I am in control and I am trying to shrink it.

Good luck! Carole