Re: eating/weight/everything:
The thing is, I have a very very very healthy diet. I have will power, and I don't have a sweet tooth. Every single meal that we eat in this house is balanced and high in protien/veg, low in filler/starch/refined crap/sugar, etc. We NEVER eat dessert. I drink at least 2 litres of water per day. There is NOTHING fried in this house. I hardly ever drink beer. AND I do regular exercise. OK, the exercise is nothing like the old high school days of running cross country and track... it's not even like the old college days of rugby. But it's regular light exercise at the very least (yoga, soccer, tag rugby). Not to mention a 30 minute walk every morning. So why do I still have the gut roll? Why do I have to go into a fit of depression every time I see myself in a changing room mirror? Why the spare tire? UGH!
So I read a really interesting article on men's health (DOH!) on msn.com the other day and it said that one of the reasons men have such a hard time losing weight is because of the vicious "But I go to the gym all the time!" -circle. They go to the gym and work out like crazy. But then they're starving. So they stuff themselves because their bodies are going "hungry! hungry!". And they're going "aw hell, I worked out today, I need to eat a bunch!" And even if it's healthy food (amazing to read about what men think "healthy food" is, but anyway...) they shove it down their throats so fast, in fits of hunger, that their brain doesnt get a chance to catch up with their belly and say "HEY!! STOP!! You're full!!!". And so strikes the vicious speed-eating/overeating 1-2. Which of course, when done consistantly, outweighs the exercise. And weight is gained, despite all the "good" you think you're doing at the gym.
So in the article, the nutritionist recommended the following behaviour-changing routine for overeating habits. On a whim I decided to give it a bash, because I know I eat a shitload for a 5'2" little runt of a beast. And I have to say, it's changed the last 2 days of my life immensely. It's very simple, and at best, you can lose a little bit of stubborn poundage, and at worst, you get a higher water intake and don't look like the tasmanian devil when you eat:
Take one bite of food.
As you're chewing, set your utensil down.
(on your placemat) Once the food is thoroughly chewed,
Take a sip from your water glass.
Set the glass down.
Repeat.
Until your stomach is full. NOT "Stuffed", just "full". As in "comfortably satisfied". As in "not hungry anymore".
THEN the most important part comes in:
You MUST stop eating.
And THAT is how much food your body requires at that particular meal. That is the perfect amount of food that your body needs at that given sitting. It's natural regulation. We just ignore the built-in food monitor because we're eating too damn FAST, and being too damn GREEDY.
HOLY FRICKIN BALLS!!! this is so damn enlightening. You would not BELIEVE the amount of time it takes to finish a dinner like that. I've done it for the last 4 meals and I swear to anyone reading this that IT IS AMAZING. You wouldn't think that the process of simply putting one's fork down, and reaching for one's glass of water, taking one drink of water, putting the glass down, and going back to the fork, would make such a huge time difference!! We timed ourselves the other night and sure enough, it lengthens the eating process by like 300%. Whereby your stomach is able to actually GET the message to your brain, that you're full. OK now actually STOPPING is the part that takes willpower. But it's crazy when you see how LITTLE you really need to eat in order to be full. Here's an example.
I often eat a cheese and salad sandwich for lunch. Same brand every time, same ingredients, same everything. Normally I would eat one of these sandwiches, and have something supplemental like a banana or a bowl of soup or god knows what. Nevermind that. Yesterday I took said sandwich, and much to the hilariaty of the boys at my table, I ate it as per the above regime. Guess when my stomach said stop? BEFORE I EVEN FINISHED the 2nd half!! I literally had 3 bites of the sandwich left. No banana, no whatever. OK now it was extremely hard to wrap up the remaining 3 bites of the sandwich into the paper towel, but I forced myself to do it. and then kept it for later, because I was SURE I was going to be starving in an hour. I mean who can get full on one cheese and salad sandwich?!?! But I wasnt even hungry until I got home that night. That last nibble of sandwich was still there for the taking, today. And then I did the same thing again. This time with fajitas at dinner. Normally, the Mr. and I would both eat about 3. Well, most of the time, he'd make a 4th one, and I'd even eat half of that!!!!! (JEEZ!!! oink oink) Let's evaluate the sense in that: HE's 6'3".... *I* am 5'2". Hmmm and yet I'm so bamboozled by the spare tire!!
Anyway, it took me a long-ass time to eat ONE fajita, and I was full. Yes, they were delicious. 3 different peppers, mushrooms, beautiful strips of chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, and a wee bit of shredded cheese. So I had to reeeeeeallly hold myself back from attacking his 2nd one, but I did it. I'm on a friggin mission. A mission of moderation. Not even moderation, just THE RIGHT AMOUNT. Something I've managed to go 30 years without learning.
And the proof of my experiment's logic is in the pudding, er, the proportions... the 6'3" man ended up needing 2 fajitas to get full, while the 5'2" little girl needed one. MUCH more reasonable than before.
Now I'm just REALLY boggled in the head when I think back to all those times I finished a whole large pizza by myself. UGH! How many times have I literally ROLLED away from the table going "uggggggghhhhhhh".
Since the last 4 or so meals, I've realized that at each meal, had I not been doing "The Thing", I would have definitely, no-doubt, sure-as-hell eaten at least 100% more than what it really takes to get the message to the brain that I'm full.
I'm interested to see what happens to the waistline. Who knows, maybe nothing, but at least I've woken up to the fact that I have a serious tendency to overeat at about 9 out of 10 sittings when given the chance.
The thing is, I have a very very very healthy diet. I have will power, and I don't have a sweet tooth. Every single meal that we eat in this house is balanced and high in protien/veg, low in filler/starch/refined crap/sugar, etc. We NEVER eat dessert. I drink at least 2 litres of water per day. There is NOTHING fried in this house. I hardly ever drink beer. AND I do regular exercise. OK, the exercise is nothing like the old high school days of running cross country and track... it's not even like the old college days of rugby. But it's regular light exercise at the very least (yoga, soccer, tag rugby). Not to mention a 30 minute walk every morning. So why do I still have the gut roll? Why do I have to go into a fit of depression every time I see myself in a changing room mirror? Why the spare tire? UGH!
So I read a really interesting article on men's health (DOH!) on msn.com the other day and it said that one of the reasons men have such a hard time losing weight is because of the vicious "But I go to the gym all the time!" -circle. They go to the gym and work out like crazy. But then they're starving. So they stuff themselves because their bodies are going "hungry! hungry!". And they're going "aw hell, I worked out today, I need to eat a bunch!" And even if it's healthy food (amazing to read about what men think "healthy food" is, but anyway...) they shove it down their throats so fast, in fits of hunger, that their brain doesnt get a chance to catch up with their belly and say "HEY!! STOP!! You're full!!!". And so strikes the vicious speed-eating/overeating 1-2. Which of course, when done consistantly, outweighs the exercise. And weight is gained, despite all the "good" you think you're doing at the gym.
So in the article, the nutritionist recommended the following behaviour-changing routine for overeating habits. On a whim I decided to give it a bash, because I know I eat a shitload for a 5'2" little runt of a beast. And I have to say, it's changed the last 2 days of my life immensely. It's very simple, and at best, you can lose a little bit of stubborn poundage, and at worst, you get a higher water intake and don't look like the tasmanian devil when you eat:
Take one bite of food.
As you're chewing, set your utensil down.
(on your placemat) Once the food is thoroughly chewed,
Take a sip from your water glass.
Set the glass down.
Repeat.
Until your stomach is full. NOT "Stuffed", just "full". As in "comfortably satisfied". As in "not hungry anymore".
THEN the most important part comes in:
You MUST stop eating.
And THAT is how much food your body requires at that particular meal. That is the perfect amount of food that your body needs at that given sitting. It's natural regulation. We just ignore the built-in food monitor because we're eating too damn FAST, and being too damn GREEDY.
HOLY FRICKIN BALLS!!! this is so damn enlightening. You would not BELIEVE the amount of time it takes to finish a dinner like that. I've done it for the last 4 meals and I swear to anyone reading this that IT IS AMAZING. You wouldn't think that the process of simply putting one's fork down, and reaching for one's glass of water, taking one drink of water, putting the glass down, and going back to the fork, would make such a huge time difference!! We timed ourselves the other night and sure enough, it lengthens the eating process by like 300%. Whereby your stomach is able to actually GET the message to your brain, that you're full. OK now actually STOPPING is the part that takes willpower. But it's crazy when you see how LITTLE you really need to eat in order to be full. Here's an example.
I often eat a cheese and salad sandwich for lunch. Same brand every time, same ingredients, same everything. Normally I would eat one of these sandwiches, and have something supplemental like a banana or a bowl of soup or god knows what. Nevermind that. Yesterday I took said sandwich, and much to the hilariaty of the boys at my table, I ate it as per the above regime. Guess when my stomach said stop? BEFORE I EVEN FINISHED the 2nd half!! I literally had 3 bites of the sandwich left. No banana, no whatever. OK now it was extremely hard to wrap up the remaining 3 bites of the sandwich into the paper towel, but I forced myself to do it. and then kept it for later, because I was SURE I was going to be starving in an hour. I mean who can get full on one cheese and salad sandwich?!?! But I wasnt even hungry until I got home that night. That last nibble of sandwich was still there for the taking, today. And then I did the same thing again. This time with fajitas at dinner. Normally, the Mr. and I would both eat about 3. Well, most of the time, he'd make a 4th one, and I'd even eat half of that!!!!! (JEEZ!!! oink oink) Let's evaluate the sense in that: HE's 6'3".... *I* am 5'2". Hmmm and yet I'm so bamboozled by the spare tire!!
Anyway, it took me a long-ass time to eat ONE fajita, and I was full. Yes, they were delicious. 3 different peppers, mushrooms, beautiful strips of chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, and a wee bit of shredded cheese. So I had to reeeeeeallly hold myself back from attacking his 2nd one, but I did it. I'm on a friggin mission. A mission of moderation. Not even moderation, just THE RIGHT AMOUNT. Something I've managed to go 30 years without learning.
And the proof of my experiment's logic is in the pudding, er, the proportions... the 6'3" man ended up needing 2 fajitas to get full, while the 5'2" little girl needed one. MUCH more reasonable than before.
Now I'm just REALLY boggled in the head when I think back to all those times I finished a whole large pizza by myself. UGH! How many times have I literally ROLLED away from the table going "uggggggghhhhhhh".
Since the last 4 or so meals, I've realized that at each meal, had I not been doing "The Thing", I would have definitely, no-doubt, sure-as-hell eaten at least 100% more than what it really takes to get the message to the brain that I'm full.
I'm interested to see what happens to the waistline. Who knows, maybe nothing, but at least I've woken up to the fact that I have a serious tendency to overeat at about 9 out of 10 sittings when given the chance.
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