Hey Balanced Life Family,
Don’t you just love to go out and eat a meal at your favorite restaurant? There are so many great restaurants to choose from these days. When you go out, there is something you must be mindful of, and that is food portions. They’re usually TOO BIG!
So many of us grew up being told to clean our plates, and we’re programmed to think that we simply must eat everything on our plates. Not so! Overeating is bad for your health. How many times have you left a restaurant and felt like a “stuffed turkey”? I can’t count the number of times I’ve done it. Believe me, it’s not a good feeling.
It takes about 20 minutes for your brain to get the message that your stomach is full, which is why many people tend to overeat. If you eat fast, you’ve gotten all of that food inside of you in less than 20 minutes and before your brain can tell you “STOP! YOU’VE HAD ENOUGH!” you’ve cleaned your plate.
So, what can you do? First, stop eating so fast. Slow down, that’ll give your brain time to communicate that your stomach is full. Sometimes I actually use the stopwatch on my phone to time my meals.
Secondly, you may want to drink a glass of water before your meal. That will give you a feeling of being full, which helps to discourage overeating. That’s a simple little trick, but it can be very effective.
And finally, here’s another method that I often use myself. When I dine out and my food is served, I divide it down the middle before I start eating. I’ve already decided that I’m only going to eat half of it. No, I’m not going to throw it away and waste my money. I’m going to take the other half home to enjoy it the next day. That way I get two meals for the price of one. Smart!
No, it’s not necessary to clean our plates. And no, we don’t have to leave the restaurant feeling like a “stuffed turkey”. So, enjoy dining out, but use wisdom. WATCH YOUR PORTIONS, and get two meals for the price of one.
New Readers: If you would like to have inspirational and health blogs sent to your email twice a month, please send your email address to me at getsomebalancenow@gmail.com I’d love to have you join our family of readers. Be sure to add this address to your email contacts to avoid it ending up in spam.
