I have always been the type of person to eat quickly and finish my plate. I never viewed this trait as a particularly bad thing. I ate fast! I never really thought to consider slowing down.
Recently, however, I have become a lot more health conscious in thinking about what I put into my body. I have started cooking most all my meals and have greatly reduced my daily intake.
I have never been very confident in my body. It was not that I was incredibly out of shape, I have always played sports and been a fairly active person, it was just that I knew I could perform better if I lost a bit of weight and thought a little more about how much I eat.
So that is what I have been doing for the past 3 weeks or so, and things are actually going well. One of the most nuanced but large changes I have made to my diet is actually how I eat. It sounds stupidly simple, but eating slower, taking smaller bites has basically changed everything.
I realized that, in the past, I was basically swallowing my food. I was effectively eating as much as I could fit into my mouth. I was going to restaurants optimizing for the largest portions. I left the table physically full.
I realize this is not sustainable or good for me. This is short term pleasure, if that. I want a long term motor.
So I have made it a priority to do things differently and, again, that is all it takes. A mental intervention of sorts to convince you that perhaps your priorities need to change.
I have a long way to go, but excited.
Small, slow bites.
Also published on Medium.