We know better.
We promise ourselves we will slow down.
Then the food arrives…
and somehow the inner animal grabs the fork.
I said I would not do it.
YOU said you would not do it.
We have done it enough times to KNOW not to do it.
And then…
when the moment comes…
we do it anyway.
That is what makes overeating at one sitting such a strange little paradox.
The experience begins as pleasure.
Then somewhere along the way, we cross a line.
What was enjoyable becomes uncomfortable.
What was satisfying becomes regret.
And the person responsible?
WE ARE.
OVEREATING AT ONE SITTING
You tell yourself:
“Not this time.”
You begin with good intentions.
The meal is on its way.
You can smell it.
You are looking forward to it.
Eating is one of life’s simple pleasures and there is nothing wrong with enjoying food.
So why do we sometimes turn enjoyment into a stuffing contest?
Why do we keep eating after the experience has already delivered what we wanted?
PAUSE FOR CAUSE.
The problem is often not the first bite.
It is everything that happens after we stop paying attention.
THE MOUTH & THE TONGUE
Food gives us pleasure partly because the mouth is built to detect and enjoy flavor.
The tongue responds to basic tastes such as:
sweet,
salty,
sour,
bitter,
and savory.
Aroma, texture, temperature and even the feel of food in the mouth add to the experience.
That means something important.
You do not need twenty bites piled on top of each other to enjoy a meal.
The mouth already knows how to enjoy ONE.
If you let it.
SHOVEL IT IN…NO NO NO
All you really have to do is slow the process down.
Put food in your mouth.
Chew it.
Taste it.
Let it stay around long enough for the experience to register.
Then take another bite.
Sounds simple, doesn’t it?
That is because it IS simple.
The trouble begins when we hurry.
Fork loaded.
Bite.
Next fork loaded before the first bite is even finished.
Another.
Another.
Now we are no longer enjoying food.
We are transporting cargo.
LOL.
And somewhere during all that shoveling, the natural signals that say:
“That was good.”
and
“I am getting satisfied.”
do not get much attention.
WOOF WOOF WOOF IT DOWN
You can still get pleasure from eating quickly.
Of course you can.
But fast eating can make it easier to overshoot comfortable fullness because the meal is moving faster than your awareness of the meal.
That is where the problem shows up.
You wanted satisfaction.
Instead…
you got STUFFED.
Now the chair feels smaller.
The belt suddenly has an opinion.
And the wonderful meal that you were looking forward to has become something you want to END.
WE KNOW BETTER
This is the strange part.
Once we are overly full, we often begin giving ourselves the lecture.
“I knew better.”
“Why did I do that?”
“I should have stopped.”
“No more.”
And for the next hour or two, you are no longer celebrating the meal.
You are waiting for the whole episode to pass.
And yes…
watch the pun.
You may not be far from feeling like a beached whale.
The point is not to beat yourself up.
That does nothing useful.
The point is to NOTICE the pattern.
BAD BEHAVIOR PROGRAMMING
This is where the real subject begins.
Many overeating habits are learned patterns.
Fast eating.
Finishing everything automatically.
Eating while distracted.
Going back for more before deciding whether you are still hungry.
Treating every meal like the last supper.
These habits can become so familiar that we stop noticing them.
The inner animal says:
“MORE.”
And the conscious mind says:
“Apparently we are doing this again.”
That is exactly why awareness matters.
You cannot change a habit you refuse to notice.
TAME THE INNER ANIMAL
The answer is not to hate food.
The answer is not to fear eating.
And it is certainly not to turn every meal into a courtroom trial.
The goal is much simpler.
Enjoy the experience without allowing the experience to take over.
Taste the food.
Chew the food.
Notice the food.
Notice yourself.
There is a tremendous difference between:
I AM ENJOYING THIS
and
I AM NO LONGER PAYING ATTENTION.
That little gap is where self-control lives.
RICHIE SPEAKS
Here is one Richie rule:
Do not eat so fast that your stomach has to send a search party for your brain.
Another:
The first bites deserve more appreciation than the last ten bites of regret.
And one more:
If eating is supposed to be pleasurable…
why rush through the pleasure?
PEARLS FROM THE BOOKS
From the spirit of Pearls for the Soul:
“Awareness changes ordinary moments because it puts you back inside the experience.”
From the spirit of God I AM:
“What has been given for enjoyment is best received with attention rather than excess.”
From the spirit of It Is Finished:
“A familiar pattern does not have to become a permanent one.”
PEARLS INSIGHT
Eating more slowly can help a person become more aware of taste, comfort and fullness during a meal.
The goal is not to turn eating into a complicated ritual.
It is simply to give the body and mind enough time to participate together in the experience.
When eating becomes automatic, distracted or rushed, it can be easier to consume more than intended before comfortable fullness is noticed.
Small changes in pace and attention can interrupt that pattern.
PEARLS CONNECTION
This connects directly with THE LEARNING CURVE.
We learn habits…
and we can learn different ones.
It also connects with DOING THE BEST YOU CAN…MONITOR THIS DAILY.
You do not have to become perfect at eating overnight.
You simply begin noticing what you are doing while you are doing it.
And that awareness prepares us for PART 2…
where the question becomes:
WHAT CAN WE ACTUALLY DO ABOUT IT?
FINAL SAY
Food is meant to be enjoyed.
So enjoy it.
Do not attack it.
Do not shovel it.
Do not race it.
CHEW YOUR FOOD.
Give each bite enough time to be what it was supposed to be.
Pleasure.
Nourishment.
Satisfaction.
Then when the inner animal starts barking:
WOOF WOOF…MORE!
You may finally be able to smile and say:
“Easy there.”
Because the goal is not to leave the table defeated by the meal.
The goal is to leave satisfied…
comfortable…
and glad you ate it.
PART 2:
Now that we have identified the animal…
we are going to train it.
— Richie
Pearls for the Soul
when you feed the soul, you feed everything.
https://pearlsforthesoul.com
Been expecting you