NutriTips | A Simple Guide to Eat Less and Feel Great

September 22, 2017

You just had a great meal, but instead of feeling satisfied, you feel tired and sluggish. You know the feeling. But do you know what your body is telling you?

 

More often than not, your body is sending you signals of overeating.

It is tough to control this, especially when you often dine out - North American portion sizes are huge! If you decide to cook at home, try these simple tricks to make you eat less and feel satisfied after every meal.

 

1. Serve Your Meal on a Smaller Plate
   
   It is all about perspective and psychology. The average plate size in our homes are about 12 inches. A normal meal portion may make a plate of this size seem empty. Seeing the empty space on your plate might make you feel like you haven’t been fed enough. Opt for a 10-inch plate, and watch how it makes a big difference on how you perceive your meal.
   
   Use a 10-inch plate, and a good meal portion will give you the illusion that you are eating more as the plate looks full. Your mind, therefore, thinks that you had enough to eat, making you reduce your food intake without you noticing the difference.
   
   
   
2. What’s the Colour of your Dinnerware?
   
   Believe it or not, the shape and colour of your dinnerware can affect how you perceive portion sizes and the taste of your food.
   
   Let’s say you are about to serve Alfredo pasta for dinner. Friend A takes a white plate, and Friend B takes a black plate to serve themselves. If you are to weigh and compare your friend’s meals, you will find that Friend A’s portion is much larger than Friend B's.
   
   When the colour of your food blends in its background, your eyes are tricked into thinking your plate is not full. The high contrast of the food against the plate makes you more mindful of the actual amount of food you take.
   
   Use bright or black dinnerware to serve light coloured foods, or light dinnerware to serve darker coloured meals. Want to trick yourself into eating more vegetables? Serve it on a green plate!
   
   Find out more about the Smaller Plate Study here.
   
   
   
3. Savour your food
   
   We all live the fast life nowadays. Since we are always in a big rush, meal times often mean scarfing down our food on the go.
   
   As you know, our body takes time to digest the food we eat. But do you know that the digestive process starts the moment you start chewing your food? The more time and effort you put into breaking down the food in your mouth, the less effort and time it will take for your stomach to do its work. By eating slowly, you are also allowing your body to alert you when it has had enough food.
   
   Use the same practice of slow eating, and you can eat your sweets and fried foods without suffering the consequences.
   
   Let’s face it: you want that cheesecake not because you’re hungry, but because of its taste, yes? Go ahead and have that cheesecake, but train yourself to eat smaller bites at a time, and allow yourself to dwell on the flavours. Your body will thank you, and you will find that you still have some left to share with your friends.

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