By Chef K.T. Murphy
Return To Food Sanity:
The most effective way to develop eating habits that are simple and sustainable is by listening to your body. You should eat when you are hungry, you should eat slowly, and you should stop when you are satisfied, as opposed to stopping when you’re stuffed. This is something that everyone should practice because it truly works.
Be Less Critical
We are all guilty of sometimes being too critical of what we eat, with certain things being seen as bad while others get the thumbs up. One of the most common habits is after experiencing a slip-up you will guilt yourself and write off the day, weekend, or entire week. This is counterproductive to your relationship with food and it can even carry over to the guidelines of listening to your body. You are human, you are prone to mistakes, and it will happen regardless.
The thing about listening to your body is that it isn’t an all or nothing thing, you may still have days where you slip up and overeat and make the wrong dietary choice. You shouldn’t judge yourself if you eat beyond satisfaction, nor should you shame yourself for eating before you are truly hungry. This isn’t a pass-fail exercise; this is simply getting back in tune with your body and eating for fuel as well as pleasure.
No human can attain perfection, so why on earth would you put that type of pressure on yourself at every turn? You should expect to make mistakes throughout your life rather than expecting flawless behavior at every meal.
If you enjoy eating out you can still do so, but as we, all know the portions in American restaurants are overindulgent and you shouldn’t feel the need to clear your plate. Nor should you feel driven to attempt any ridiculous food challenges in your local eatery, no matter how great you think you would be.
Many of us were raised with the clear your plate mindset and it was a case of clear your plate or you don’t leave this table, or you don’t get dessert. It is that habit and that mindset that you need to break to achieve a healthy relationship with food.
Slip-ups are just that, a small mistake that can be overcome provided you don’t write yourself. Keep your focus on your long-term habits. One slip-up doesn’t equate to total failure.
Big Picture Thinking
Your nutritional needs are simple so you should keep your goals and guidelines sane. Don’t even think you need to strive for perfection, this will only fuel your anxiety and stress over food. This isn’t a new diet we are talking about, this is a lifestyle. So, it’s about making the right choices and doing the right things most of the time. That doesn’t mean beating yourself up when you don’t comply or you make the wrong choice.
You need to focus on big picture thinking – it isn’t just what you’ll be eating today, or even over the next four days. It’s about a lifestyle that covers months and then years. To return to sanity when it comes to your relationship with food you have to learn to be comfortable and okay with the fact that there are days you won’t make the right choices. Whether you under eat one day only to over eat the next, for the most part, you will listen to your body and make the appropriate decisions.
Don’t focus on the bad days or the minor slip-ups, celebrate the good days and take pride in what you are accomplishing by eating according to your body’s needs.
