I'm not doing this anymore

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  • kshama2001
    kshama2001 Posts: 27,952 Member
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    I never understood the clean plate club - that's teaching kids to eat past the point of being full just because you have likely overserved them.

    The Clean Plate Club wasn't so much a problem when I was a child at home, but sure was in American restaurants until I got into the habit of planning to bring half home.
  • rspeelman1234
    rspeelman1234 Posts: 5 Member
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    I feel you! Realized I was doing that too. My toddler never finishes her food so I was always finishing her pretzel bites, ice cream, Mac and cheese, etc. So hard to get out of that habit! But it's been 3 weeks and I've done well with passing over what's left. Good job!
  • rugratz2015
    rugratz2015 Posts: 593 Member
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    urloved33 wrote: »
    Maybe this is something that only a parent would get.
    So I would go out to eat with my family, and no doubt I would end up finishing what they did not eat (Wife and 2 little guys (8, 12)) Man.. I just really hated to throw that away knowing it cost good money...and I'm not like broke or anything..just..well..you know.
    So one of the things that I have been NOT doing since I started my diet is that.
    I didn't even really think about it till the other day when I was at Chick-fila..my wife was like "Do you want the rest of my sandwich"..my first inclination was "Hell yeah I want the rest of that sandwich!" BUT instead I said..."Thats the devil half a sandwich! I want none of it!" :)
    (BTW for those of you that don't know me, I really don't think that the devil has anything to do with that sandwich, I just joke a lot)
    Guess the point is..don't finish other peoples stuff.

    Good for you, well done, definitely tip I'll follow
  • AmyBethBoothroyd
    AmyBethBoothroyd Posts: 32 Member
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    Devil's half! Love it! Your awesome encouragement! Friend me if you want. Love encouraging people!
  • Alatariel75
    Alatariel75 Posts: 17,959 Member
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    I used to be like that too, I'd finish my husband's meal on the basis that I'd be throwing good food away and wasting it. Guess what? It still ends up waste... it just goes through me first and some sticks along the way. Now I put what I haven't already logged into the bin.
  • hapa11
    hapa11 Posts: 182 Member
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    When I was little, people still smoked in restaurants. My Nana was a smoker and a very thin person - the minute she had eaten what she wanted from her plate she would light up, and ash into her plate - so she wouldn't pick from it. Gross, I know - but it kept her from eating another bite :)

    I read an interview with some celebrity who said she poured water on her fries when she had had her fill. I do that now too.
  • SherryTeach
    SherryTeach Posts: 2,836 Member
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    I have learned to box up half of restaurant meals before I take a bite. Then I spread out the rest on the plate. I'm not wasting food, I don't have to decide when to stop, and I have a nice meal the next day. I was raised to be a member of the clean plate club. And I'm very glad my grandson is not being raised that way.
  • bkerr30
    bkerr30 Posts: 131 Member
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    This is one thing I have really been conscious about while raising my son, I never ever force him to finish his plate, but rather give reminder questions like "is your tummy full?". If he says yes, I can always wrap it up for later, especially since small children can only consume small meals at a time, and he will likely be hungry again before bedtime. Good for you OP, every little bit helps, especially the "devil's sandwich" lol :D
  • Werk2Eat
    Werk2Eat Posts: 114 Member
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    I like to cook and i always make too much food. Now i vacuum seal and freeze small portions for consumption through the month. This way i get to eat good food without eating over my weekly calories. Sous vide cooking makes reheating easy without over cooking.
  • hotnumber
    hotnumber Posts: 222 Member
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    Yep, good lesson. Add that to my list, right below "stop eating those samples at Costco". Every little bite adds up
  • thereshegoesagain
    thereshegoesagain Posts: 1,056 Member
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    If I don't want to take left overs home with me, I'll dump a whole lotta salt all over the plate. It stops me from picking at the food and overeating.
  • momoharuno
    momoharuno Posts: 141 Member
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    kshama2001 wrote: »
    Hey...I thought the French fries I steal from my fiance's plate had no calories...???

    Exactly! Food from other people's plates is zero calories everyone knows that lol but seriously though I grew up the same way, you can't leave until you clear your plate etc., and my husband and I agree that when we have a kid we won't do that to them. I really think it just leads to bad habits and honestly the kid isn't going to starve, they will eat when they're hungry you don't have to shove food down their throats to keep them alive lol
    That actually reminds me of a friend my mom had, their son was 8-9 years old and would LITERALLY only eat Wendy's chicken nuggets. They bought them for him every single meal for years. To this day I still think they're crazy because 1) they let it get to that point, and 2) if they had called his bluff and just served him what everyone else was having he would eventually have to eat. I remember them talking about how the therapist said it was just a preference and there was nothing wrong with him, it still amazes me to this day lol
  • SLLRunner
    SLLRunner Posts: 12,943 Member
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    Maybe this is something that only a parent would get.
    So I would go out to eat with my family, and no doubt I would end up finishing what they did not eat (Wife and 2 little guys (8, 12)) Man.. I just really hated to throw that away knowing it cost good money...and I'm not like broke or anything..just..well..you know.
    So one of the things that I have been NOT doing since I started my diet is that.
    I didn't even really think about it till the other day when I was at Chick-fila..my wife was like "Do you want the rest of my sandwich"..my first inclination was "Hell yeah I want the rest of that sandwich!" BUT instead I said..."Thats the devil half a sandwich! I want none of it!" :)
    (BTW for those of you that don't know me, I really don't think that the devil has anything to do with that sandwich, I just joke a lot)
    Guess the point is..don't finish other peoples stuff.

    I relate. It's all about what you want more...to stick to your calorie deficit or that extra food.

    Love your humor!
  • jsmestflowers
    jsmestflowers Posts: 52 Member
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    Thanks all! :)
  • FatMoojor
    FatMoojor Posts: 483 Member
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    I have always been known as the human trash can when it came to food. Something left over, it would be passed to me to eat and I would. It is one of those things which I have made a massive effort to stop. I won't finish up the families left overs and generally keep my self to 1 serving of whatever food is on offer.

    As for the children thing, my wife and I make our daughter clear her plater at meal times, but we also make sure she has a small portion of food and we keep extra back in the oven if she is hungry.

    It's amazing to me when I see children who are "full" from their main dinner suddenly have huge amounts of room for the dessert.
  • mitch16
    mitch16 Posts: 2,113 Member
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    I never understood the clean plate club - that's teaching kids to eat past the point of being full just because you have likely overserved them.

    I think the whole "clean plate" thing was impressed upon my mom, who was born in the post-WWII era... Growing up I can remember her being on Weight Watchers many times... She never impressed clean plate upon us for just that reason--she thinks it led to her weight issues. I think my membership in "clean plate" is more because I'm a bit (well maybe a lot) OCD.

    My son is 15 now and I'm trying not to be the clean plate police, but it's tough because he's in the midst of his pubescent growth spurt and he's an athlete with about 5% body fat--he needs to eat more but he just picks at his food usually (and he's a super-slow eater). Maybe that bodes well for him later in life, but right now it's so frustrating!

  • wonko221
    wonko221 Posts: 292 Member
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    Excellent post, thank you for sharing!

    I only recently read a quote on these forums about coming to terms with throwing away "perfectly good food" when you're full:

    "It's wasted either way; the question is, do you want it to damage you on the way out, or not?"

    It has helped me really come to terms with the idea of being conscientious when making food choices BEFORE i fill my plate - i can cut waste ahead of time, rather than struggling with foolish guilt at the table.
  • rune1990
    rune1990 Posts: 543 Member
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    I am still a member of the clean ur plate club, it's ingrained deep. But I never ever spouted that mantra to my children and I am amazed that they can eat till they are full and then push a plate with food still on it away from them! Half of me is going "omg the WASTE", the other half is thinking "thank god, thank god" and I toss the leftovers to the chickens. My children are teens and young adults and never been overweight.