There are so many bad eating habits out there, I barely know where to start. But if you follow these four simple steps, you'll find you eat less at every meal, and you'll enjoy each mouthful so much more. Why will you eat less? Because your body will have an opportunity to tell you you're full when you are actually full, not over-full. And you'll get more nutrients out of every bite, which will satisfy you more.
It all starts with your fork. Don't overload it! If you can barely get your fork to your mouth before the food falls off, your fork is carrying too much weight, and you will too. Put a small mouthful of food on your fork; then...
Chew slowly. Grandma was right - you absolutely should chew every mouthful 30 (or more) times. If your food isn't a mushy liquid, it's too soon to swallow! Far too many people can actually recognize foodstuffs as they are exiting their body. This is a BAD sign! You shouldn't be swallowing food whole! Chewing thoroughly is the first step in the body's digestive system. It breaks the food down into pieces that are more easily digested, while saliva mixes with food to begin the process of breaking it down into a form your body can absorb and use. Chewing slowly also gives you time to enjoy every mouthful, and it gives you time to recognize when you don't need any more mouthfuls.
Which brings us to the third, very important point: Don’t shovel your food. Eating quickly inevitably leads to over-eating! When we eat very quickly, our body doesn't have time to tell us we are full. To avoid this, don't load your fork with the next bite until you have chewed the current mouthful 30+ times, swallowed, and taken a deep breath. Then put the next small bite on your fork.
The final suggestion is this: Pay attention to what you are eating. Don't eat in front of the TV. Don't eat while you're catching up on Facebook or calling your Mom. If you're not paying attention, it's easy to eat too much, or eat the right amount but not feel satisfied and end up going back for something else for "dessert".
Remember too that the food commercials on TV are designed to make you hungry! Many studies have shown that people eat more (especially snack-foods) while they are watching TV. So try this: record all of your favorite shows, and when you watch them, fast-forward through all of the commercials.
I don't know who first coined the phrase, but it's 100% true: You are what you eat. Who do you want to be this year?
- Alysia Gadson







