What about the 20 minutes until your brain thinks you’re full?
Actually, the fullness scale we talked about yesterday is not the same as the 20-minute signal to your brain that indicates you’ve reached satiety.
Think about what you do when you feel way too full. You hold your stomach, not your head.
So by noticing the way your stomach feels, not what your head thinks, you’ll be able to recognize the early signs that indicate you’re feeling satisfied.
What if you actually enjoy the sensation of being full? Maybe you’ve connected stuffed with also feeling powerful, nurtured, or safe.
Perhaps large family meals always helped you feel connected to others. If so, you might still relate feeling full to memories of happy times and good food.
If you realize that you like feeling stuffed, you may need to work on changing your belief that full is a good sensation.
Instead of enjoying the sensation of being overly full, begin labeling it as uncomfortable. Make a clear decision that you no longer want to feel that way, and instead, you want to feel comfortable or satisfied.
It may take some time to adjust to the goal of never letting yourself get way too full. But eventually, you can learn to appreciate having a healthy, positive body that doesn’t want to feel stuffed.
Today’s assignment (my answers are in blue)
1. Eat a meal or snack but stop right at the point of feeling comfortable or a plus one on the scale. Describe how this level feels to you.
For me, this comes as a very subtle awareness that I’ve had enough food. Sometimes I don’t like the plus one feeling because even though I know I’m satisfied, I still want to eat more.
2. Recall times in the past when you’ve eaten until you felt stuffed. Write a note that describes that, and then compare the two feelings.
On a family visit a few months ago, I got started eating ice cream, and even ate a second helping with a bunch of toppings on it. My stomach actually hurt later. For me, I’ve decided that is NOT fun and that I prefer feeling “satisfied.”
3. Think about what it means to feel full or stuffed. Is it comforting or nurturing? Does having a full belly make you feel stronger or more confident? Are you getting away with something you couldn’t do as a child? Record your insights.
Being stuffed reminds me of really good times in my childhood. Mom was happy because we loved her cooking. I thought it was normal to feel stuffed after a great meal. As I said yesterday, I’ve had to really work on re-training myself on this one.
Excerpted from Day 34 in the book, 100 Days of Weight Loss