My experiment and biggest challenge.

LadyL2012

I have realised my problem with food, is not what I eat, but the amount and my feeling of guilt about wasting food.

If I'm really enjoying a meal, I don't stop eating when I'm full because I'm enjoying the taste too much, so I keep going until I've finished. That plus a deeply ingrained feeling of guilt if I waste food (I grew up poor - food was precious) means I find it incredibly difficult to stop when I'm full.

So I've decided that as of today, I will refuse to eat another bite once I feel full. I will take a picture of the food I've left to get a great idea of how much I overeat by and reduce my portions by that amount but also to hammer the message home.. If I don't get full, I'll finish my meal.

Tonight was the first night and I got through 3/4 of my dinner, felt full and really quickly threw the rest in the bin so I wouldn't be tempted to go on. I do feel really guilty, but I think this will pass if I keep at it.

So here goes my experiment....

strong_curves

You should look into getting a food scale too.

kk_inprogress

Second that ^

Good luck

Ironmaiden4life

I think it's great that you took the time to really examine your relationship with food and see where your behavior patterns may of originated from. Then try a practical approach to overcoming your issues

If you're not doing so already journaling your experiences may be of huge help as well.

Keep us posted I'll be following for sure

jaga13

If you feel guilty, could you quickly pack it up into a container and freeze the rest for another day?

I have been successful with weight loss, but still struggle with feeling full. I find it helpful to get up and refill my glass of water (or just get up for any reason) mid meal...that helps me become aware of how full I actually have become.

tulips_and_tea

Mindful eating and learning when you are full (preferably, satisfied) are keys to learning to eat moderately. Good for you for discovering this and wanting to learn from it!

Using a food scale and learning portion sizes is also important. Learning to disassociate emotions and food will be a life-changer. Keep at it - you can do it!

TavistockToad

Or save the leftovers to eat another day?

RaeBeeBaby

I used to have very similar issues and would always clean my plate, no matter what. (Plus the plates of my husband and children, as well.) I absolutely HATE to waste food.

My solution is to save whatever I don't eat and put it in the fridge for later. I do this even with very small portions of food, which I can combine with other things (salad greens, rice, quinoa, veggies) to make a small snack or lunch. I almost always leave a restaurant with a take-out container to save for another meal. Ask for the take-out container when you order your meal and put part of it away right off so you're not tempted. No overstuffing, no wasting food, and you get the anticipation of enjoying the taste of it a second time. Sometimes it tastes even better than the first time!

caroldavison332

my grandmother survived WWI Germany. She and my parents lived through the great depression. It was a SIN to waste food. If you didn't eat it, she would feed it to you. I can sympathize. You can also put leftover in the fridge and eat them for breakfast.

lorrpb

Many of us have heard these messages most of our lives. I finally had to DECIDE that it was better for me to throw out food than to make myself fat. You do not help hungry people by making yourself overweight and unhealthy.

Also, use smaller plates at home, eat with a salad fork rather than regular size fork. Look for dishes that hold less food or "need" less food to look filled because of border designs, type of edging, molding, etc. I discovered this quite by accident! You can have 2 plates the same diameter and one holds more food than the other because it had more "flat" surface than the other. Thrift stores such as Goodwill are a great source of inexpensive dishes.

LaurenNotLaura

jaga13 wrote: »

If you feel guilty, could you quickly pack it up into a container

Yes, that! I had that food wasting guilt too! But to not waste, and not overeat, I started saving my leftovers! When i go out to eat, I ask for a take home box when I order the food and immediately put half the meal in there. This way I'm not tempted to eat the whole thing. Even if I still feel a little hungry when I finish, I wait 1 hour and then reevaluate how I feel. I tend to eat fast, so waiting the hour allows my body to digest.

Kimegatron

I was the same exact way my entire life. I think that a lot of it was the "You can't leave the table until you eat all of the food on your plate," being ingrained as a young child. I would feel so guilty thinking about the times when we were poor, and food was precious to me. I still hate to waste food, and I loathe when my guy will not eat leftovers, because leftovers were LIFE in my house. I would look at him likes he's crazy for not having yesterday's dinner for lunch. Now I feel like I'm also wasting food because I'm not eating everything in front of me. I used to keep eating and eating because I didn't want the good tastes to ever stop. I feel ya.

LadyL2012

Thanks everyone. I've been successful in losing weight. I've lost 2 stone and am at goal weight give or take and I've kept it off (apart from holidays - because I let myself indulge on holiday, but lose it again when back home).It's just a struggle to maintain and I really think this is why. I will re-use leftovers if possible, but some things I can't. The positive of growing up with little money is I really know how to use leftovers!

I'll document it and post here.

sherbear702

strong_curves wrote: »

You should look into getting a food scale too.

This. Also, why don't you start with small portions? If you eat it all and feel full, great! If you're still hungry, go back for a little more. That why you're not throwing food away.

atypicalsmith

lorrpb wrote: »

Many of us have heard these messages most of our lives. I finally had to DECIDE that it was better for me to throw out food than to make myself fat. You do not help hungry people by making yourself overweight and unhealthy.

It's great if you or your family will eat uneaten portions, but not good if you stick them in the refrigerator then throw them out when they start growing mold. If you've served yourself a bigger portion than you can eat, then yes, throw the rest away! It's one thing to make a big casserole (or whatever) and freeze most of it for future use; quite a bit different when it's food left over on the plate. Ugh!

Machka9

Why not just make the right amount instead of making too much?

Get a scale ... calculate out exactly how much you want to eat ... eat that.

For me, it has been more useful to do that, than to make too much and leave some, because when I make exactly the right amount day after day after day, I see how much it is and get used to eating that much. And when I end up in situations where I can't measure everything out (eg. going out for a birthday dinner), I have a pretty good idea how much I'm eating and when to stop.

LadyL2012

It's not so much about poor portion control with me, it's more about the psychological hurdle of feeling like I HAVE to finish.

EmmaFitzwilliam

I struggle with this - I had some really bad incidents in childhood. But - "waste or waist". You choose. Sometimes you can mitigate with portion control and eating leftovers; sometimes that doesn't work and leftovers are just a detour to the waste bin. But if it comes down to "waste or waist", I take a deep breath and choose "waste".

WBB55

I put "half" a "portion" (as in I put in half what my eyes tell me I want) on my plate and immediately refrigerate the rest in a lunch container for work. If it's already cold by the time I finish the first portion, I'm unlikely to say to myself "one more portion won't kill me" and dollop the rest on my plate (or eat it out of the pan...). And by eating it at work, I'm in NO WAY wasting it. In fact, I'm saving money.

knitapeace

I obviously don't know about your living or family situation, if you prep food for more than just yourself or whatever, but I agree with many of the other posters that you'll feel much more relaxed if you start out with less food to begin with. If that means not bringing serving dishes to the table and filling plates in the kitchen, try putting less on the plate. If you're just cooking for yourself, fill your plate then box up any extras for lunch the next day before you even sit down to eat. They're put away, there's a plan for them for tomorrow, and you're not obliged to eat them all tonight. You're smarter than that sneaky guilt, and having a "physical" plan in place to deter the "mental" demons is really helpful!

LKArgh

Why don't you start by simply putting half portion sizes in your plate? If you still feel hungry, you can always get a second serving. Otherwise you just save the rest for the next day, without ever going over the "I have to empty my plate" feeling.