Habit Change: Observations

I'm amazed at how well I did during the past few days with eating 'just enough' at all 3 meals. I suspect motivation was key to my success. Rather than let rationalizations like, "I'll starve if I don't leave the table stuffed" or "I don't need to lose any more weight, so I should ignore fullness", I wanted to just see if I COULD stop at comfortably full. I doubted that I could even recognize 'just enough' or 'satisfaction'. I sometimes ate beyond 'no longer hungry', but I stopped at 'comfortably full' at each meal.

This experiment of stopping when I feel satisfied, 'just enough' and/or comfortably full reminds me of what Karen Koenig suggested in her "50 Tips to Help You Succeed at 'Normal Eating'". In the section about hunger, she said:

"14. Consider your hunger as a signal that you need fuel, not that you have to go out and seek the most fantastic eating experience of your life.

15. Practice believing that hunger is for fuel and pleasure, not for meeting emotional needs."

Those tips reminded me that eating can be pleasurable, but I have many other physical pleasures. However, overeating to the point of physical discomfort is NOT pleasureable. Above all, not every eating experience will be the 'most fantastic experience of (my) life'. Considering each meal as a way to nourish my body, rather than reward myself for enduring daily struggles or procrastinate unpleasant tasks, helps me stop eating when my BODY tells me (with slight fullness cues and absence of hunger) that the food served its purpose of nourishing my body.

This morning during my long hot shower, I contemplated what other physical pleasures I enjoy as much (or more than eating) and recalled the following:

Long hot showers

Wearing comfortable warm clothes on cold days and light clothes on hot days;

Long walks in any weather;

Aerobic exercises and/or yoga stretches;

Sound, restful sleep;

Drinking water when I'm thirsty;

Drinking ginger tea when I feel nauseas or have a cold;

Biking or playing tennis during the summertime;

Ice skating during the wintertime;

Active household chores when I feel energetic;

Smelling flowers in my garden or lavender scented pillows;

Restful activities (like blogging or sewing) when I feel tired.

I suspect I've overlooked other physical pleasures. However that list is enough to remind me eating is not my only physical pleasures.