How Fast Do You Eat?

Here's a question most people don't think about when trying to lose weight. Not how much you eat or what you eat but instead, "How fast do you eat?" Are you a fast eater, a moderate eater, or a slow eater? Most people tend to be fast eaters. We live in a world that wants everything at lightning speed. We want fast restaurant service, fast Internet connections, and fast results when it comes to losing weight.

If you’ve been trying everything to lose weight but without lasting success, then maybe it’s time for some slow. Consider this: if you really love something and thoroughly enjoy it, like eating or sex for example, would you really want to get it over within just a few mere minutes? If something is pleasurable, don’t you want to make it last?

Nutrition experts love to remind us, and rightfully so, that it takes the body approximately 20 minutes to realize that it’s full. The science of Mind Body Nutrition tells us that If we eat fast or while in an anxious rush, which usually means without paying any attention, the brain literally does not have enough time to assess the nutritional profile of our meal. The central nervous system and our digestive tract are short-circuited in their ability to determine if our nutritional needs have been met.

In the absence of this important information, the brain plays it safe and tells the body, “I’m still hungry.” So many people believe they have a willpower problem when it comes to food and appetite. We recognize when we’ve eaten a robust meal, and we can’t understand why we want to keep eating. The good news is that there’s nothing wrong with our willpower. We just eat too fast. Slow eating is a natural appetite regulator and powerful nutritional practice when it comes to losing weight. But please, don’t be afraid that slow eating means chewing each bite 50 times while staring into space. Eating slow means eating sensuously, it means tasting your food, loving it, celebrating it, and feeling warm and fuzzy no matter what you eat.

This blog post is a summary of Emily Rosen's All About Dynamic Eating Psychology video series. For more info go to her video series HERE