CHANGE #6

Redo How You Chew

SIMPLY PUT… Do these three things every time you eat a meal:

1. When you take a bite of food, chew a minimum of twenty times before swallowing.

2. Take a sip of water after every bite.

3. Once your plate is empty, wait twenty minutes before going back for seconds.

Why It Works: Chewing twenty times before swallowing may be difficult if you’ve chosen to eat apple sauce for lunch or yogurt or pudding (but please… don’t eat pudding for lunch), but it’ll definitely keep you from overeating.

Keep in mind it takes about twenty minutes for your stomach to tell your brain it’s full so it can flip off your hunger switch. And in those twenty minutes, you could do so much damage throwing back excess calories.

So how do you slow it down? It’s time to really think about chewing your food. A lot of people mindlessly take a bite and swallow it in three chews—and I’m probably being generous with that number! But when you take the time to chew your food at least twenty times before you swallow, you’ll give your brain the time it needs to catch up. Sure, it might take you three hours to finish lunch, but consider it “me” time… Or forget about me, consider it “you” time.

Slowing down your eating pace with all those extra chews will also make you more aware of what you’re eating. Bad processed foods earn their reputation as junk (is that a technical term?) because there’s usually nothing of value in them. No fiber, no nutrients—nothing but surplus calories and shame. (They won’t list shame in the ingredients, but it’s there. Trust me.)

When you chew junk food for a longer period of time, that point really hits home. Good luck getting to twenty, because without anything of substance inside them, the bad stuff typically disintegrates in your mouth, which is usually why we go back for more. But nutrient-dense, high-fiber foods that have more to offer take time to gnash. Before you know it, you’ll be gaining a deeper understanding of the foods you’re eating—and may find yourself making smarter choices—simply by taking the time to get to know them better.

DON’T STOP THERE…

I’m sure you’ve heard the advice, never finish all the food on your plate. Well, that may work for you, but it’s never worked for me. I love food. I look forward to eating food. I love the satisfying feeling of finishing every ounce of food on my plate (OK, you get the idea). But since this is great advice, I had to adjust.

When I got pregnant with my first daughter, Harper, my only true craving was cold cereal. Not pizza or ice cream or Hot Pockets, but cold cereal. I couldn’t be left alone in the cereal aisle at the supermarket for fear I’d never get home. Narrowing down my choices to three or four boxes was like being asked to choose which child I loved most. I literally wanted everything off every shelf. From Cheerios to Fruity Pebbles to Bran Flakes, Cookie Crisp, Apple Jacks, Total, Honeycomb, even Grape-Nuts. And don’t get me started on Cinnamon Toast Crunch.

There was something about the sound of the flakes hitting the bowl, the swish of the cold milk joining in, and the throwback to my youth as I sat with my pregnant belly and devoured my morning (and midmorning and afternoon and midafternoon and oftentimes early evening) crunch.

Do you know what the Today show gave me as a going-away present when I went on maternity leave? Not flowers or candy or bibs. They gave me cereal. Remember those adorable little travel packs they’d sell bunched together and wrapped in cellophane? The ones that were sold as one serving per box but everyone could eat all eight boxes at once? Yeah, well, the Today show wrapped up about sixty of them for me. Excessive? Hardly. I could have eaten sixty-one.

So the way I saw it, I had two choices: Put on an extra twenty pounds or adjust my craving. I had to choose option B. Here’s what I did: Instead of the big bowl I wanted every morning, I compromised and ate my guilty pleasure only out of a small coffee mug, reducing the amount I was eating per serving by almost half.

Using smaller plates and bowls (and thinner, taller glasses) makes it feel like you’ve eaten and drunk more than you really have. What that really does is force you to serve up smaller portions. In fact, a few scientists with time on their hands already figured out that swapping larger plates for a medium-sized dish (about eight or nine inches in diameter) causes most people to consume roughly 20 percent less food.

Once your plate, bowl, coffee mug, kiddie cup (whatever you choose to downsize to) is empty, then wait a few minutes. If you’re still hungry after twenty minutes, then I won’t stop you from going back for seconds.

Twenty minutes may seem like an eternity for you—especially after you’ve already managed to eat more slowly by chewing more—and I get that. But just try it for three days and trust in the system. You’ll be so surprised, because you won’t be going back for seconds as often as you think. Your body will begin to adjust itself automatically, and within a few days you’ll begin to realize that you’re never as hungry as you think you are.

Tips and Tricks

Chewing longer and choosing smaller-sized plates aren’t the only ways you can give your brain enough time to register how full you really are. Here are some other handy tips:

Put your fork or spoon down between bites. Holding that utensil in your hand only makes it easier to unconsciously stab or scoop up another taste, even if you may not really be ready for another bite.

Slice and dice your food as small as possible. Not only does cutting up your food into tinier portions give your stomach more time to talk to your brain, research has shown it may actually trick your brain into believing you’re eating more by giving what’s on your plate more volume.

Go bold. When the color of your food matches your dinnerware, you tend to pack on more of it. Instead, pick plates and bowls that are a contrast to whatever it is you’re eating, so your meal never blends into the background.

Pick up two sticks instead. Using a pair of chopsticks may be challenging, but that’s the idea. Not only do they force you to eat smaller portions, but all that precision makes it even harder to eat faster than you should.

Lend a hand when it’s time for dinner. Whenever you’re dining with others, offer to set the table. That will give you more control over dropping a plate, bowl, or glass where you’re seated that’s slightly smaller than everyone else’s at the table.

Eat everything in reverse. Instead of just digging into your main course, change the order of how you nibble. Start with the healthiest food on your plate, then work your way around your plate from most healthy to least healthy. That way, if you get full before clearing your plate, anything left on it will most likely be something you shouldn’t be eating too much of in the first place.

Make your dentist proud. Who really brushes after every meal? Well, now you do! Having fresh minty breath makes it a little easier to resist snacking so soon between meals, and peppermint is also a natural appetite suppressant. I didn’t believe this worked until I tried it for a week. As soon as I ate my last bite of dinner, I brushed my teeth. It immediately curbed my appetite for dessert and for a late snack. Call me lazy, but the thought of having to brush my teeth again (along with the fresh minty taste in my mouth) kept me in check.

Try to munch only when you’re mellow. If you’re racing to eat because you have no time, your body’s already under stress—not a good place to be in, because stress shuts down digestion. Instead, try to schedule more time for your meals and snacks so that everything you eat gets broken down more efficiently.

Use a dish—not your digits. Sneaking a handful of food from the fridge or a box or bag in your pantry adds up if you never keep track. But it’s much harder to eat mindlessly if you always use a plate or bowl.

Grab a seat whenever you eat. Walking while you eat makes you less conscious of what you’re eating, so plant it. Just avoid sitting and eating in front of anything that may steal your attention away (the TV, your computer or tablet, a movie screen, etc.).

Never dine where it’s dim or dark. The lower the lighting, the easier it is to ignore what you’re putting into your mouth. It may also leave you feeling more relaxed, which can lower your inhibitions and leave you more likely to snack away.

Turn your back to your food. Try not to sit facing either the kitchen or serving area if you can help it. Research has shown that those more in control of their weight tend to sit with their backs to their food. That goes for putting serving plates or bowls on the table too. The more food that’s placed in front of you, the more likely you’ll be to reach for another helping, so keep any extra food on the stove or kitchen counter.

Surround yourself with appetite-curbing colors. Seeing green, orange, red, and yellow objects seems to stimulate appetite more than being around blue, black, and brown objects, which tend to be more appetite-suppressing colors. That doesn’t mean you have to repaint! Just rethinking the color of your tableware—including your plates, napkins, glassware, placemats, and table runner—can subdue your eating habits.