Eating Less: The Multi-Purpose Solution

Like nearly every American woman, I'm intrigued every time I hear the promise that if I just eliminate "x" from and/or add "y" to my diet, any extra pounds will magically vanish. Every time my husband senses that I'm tempted to try a new Eating Plan for Life, he says, for the hundredth time (we've been married a long time, so we've heard everything each other has to say more than once), "Eat less, exercise more." And, every time, I have to acknowledge that that's the deep dark secret indeed, the one that we all wish wasn't true but all know is. I'm sure some people do have medical problems preventing them from losing weight no matter how carefully they exercise and watch what they eat, but I tend to feel they are in the minority. Most of us just shouldn't have eaten as much as we did.

So eating less should help eliminate extra weight, and it has the bonus of cutting down on the grocery bill. The three things that eating less food positively affects--vanity, health and money--are some of the most powerful forces in our lives. So how do we do it? Why is it so hard? Just stop eating when you're hungry, right?

Well, sometimes stopping when you're full works (when it's summer and 100 degrees outside), and sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes what you're eating is just really good and it's hard to keep your spoon out of the chocolate chip cookie dough (before you eat three cookies right out of the oven). Sometimes it's a social event ("buttered" popcorn at the movies, barbecue at the Fourth of July, second helpings of cornbread dressing at Thanksgiving). But not every day is a special occasion or a day when you are or should be unable to resist the siren call of mashed potatoes made with lots of butter and heavy cream, right?

For me, trying to eat less requires reshaping my thinking in a couple of ways. First of all, it seems to me, it helps to stop thinking of food as "snacks." "Snack" is such an innocent little word; why, it makes it seem like you're not really eating anything at all. What's the harm in a few peanut butter crackers here, or half a candy bar, or a slice of cheese? Well, nothing, individually, but when you start eating all those things in one day in addition to your meals, your calorie count and your grocery bill inevitably go in the wrong direction. I don't obsessively count calories, but recognizing that all calories count can go a long way. If I eat something in the afternoon, then I need to remember that at dinnertime and not take that second helping of whatever.

The other, and admittedly more depressing, thought to keep me on track is to remember how comparatively luxurious my pantry and refrigerator are. There are people all over the world who can't just go to the refrigerator at all--not having a refrigerator, or even electricity--let alone open it up and be tempted by sliced roast beef and Gruyere cheese and Ben & Jerry's oatmeal chocolate chip ice cream. Thinking of food as a precious commodity that I should not take for granted can help prevent mindless eating. And thinking of how scarce food is for some people helps make reasonable servings of plainly-cooked and inexpensive food seem like more of a blessing and less of an annoyance. Which in turn, is good for my weight and my checkbook.

Recommended reading: "The Healing Foods," by Patricia Hausman and Judith Benn Hurley. I can't guarantee that it is, as advertised on the cover, "The Ultimate Authority on the Curative Power of Nutrition," but it is a good place to look when you're wondering what the health benefits are of some commonly available fruits, vegetables, dairy products and meat. Its tips on what to look for when shopping for fruits and vegetables and how to store them are valuable too.