The headlines:
If you’re trying to get or stay lean, it’s OK and normal to feel hungry occasionally.
Eat only when you are hungry. If you eat each time there is food around you, or whenever you get sad, bored or happy - it's time to recognize that behavior and change.
Hunger is not an emergency.
Getting to a point where you’re slightly hungry between meals is a healthy sign. If you are eating every 2-4 hours without ever feeling hunger, you are likely eating more than you need.
What you eat, ie food quality, matters......a lot!
Eat slowly and chew your food well.
Eat till you are 80% full, not till you are stuffed or cannot eat any more.
The details:
Hunger
If you’re trying to get or stay lean, it’s OK and normal to feel hungry occasionally. It’s important to accept this feeling because it’s not going anywhere. Hunger plays a very important role so we want it to show up! So wait for it to show up and when it does, that's when it's time to eat. If you eat each time there is food around you, or whenever you get sad, bored or happy - it's time to recognize it and change that behavior. Many a time, what you think is hunger is actually thirst, so have a glass of water first. Remember - Hunger is not an emergency.
If you are in doubt about whether you are hungry - you're probably not. When real hunger shows up, there will be no doubt 😊
Food quality
What you eat, ie the quality of food you eat, matters a lot! Modern life pushes us to have 'enriched', 'fortified' and 'ready to eat' options. We did not evolve with highly processed foods. These foods confuse our natural appetite mechanisms. Unprocessed foods help keep hunger/satiety cues clear, and it’s easier to make adjustments. Also, unprocessed foods come naturally 'enriched' and 'fortified' with all of nature's goodness 😄. If you’re not hungry enough to eat fresh, steamed or sautéed broccoli, you’re probably not hungry (and you probably don't need that muesli bar either!).
The D9 is designed to make sure that you only give your body, high quality foods.
Eat slowly
The most important benefits of eating slowly is that it gives your body time to recognize that you’re full. It generally takes about twenty minutes from the start of a meal for the brain to send out signals of satiety (being full). Most people’s meals don’t even last that long! Eating slowly also helps our digestion.
Most of us lead hectic, fast-paced lives, so it’s understandable that we might try to rush our meals. But eating quickly does us no favors. When we eat too quickly we end up eating more than we need, which leads to poor digestion, weight gain, and lower satisfaction from eating. Eating slowly, in contrast, makes for better digestion, easier weight maintenance – and much greater satisfaction from our meals.
When to stop eating
Eating when hungry and stopping when satisfied is something that nearly all mammals are programmed to do from birth. Yet, we tend to “unlearn” this and only stop eating when we are “full.” Many cultures discourage this.
Japan has one of the highest life expectancies in the world at 84 years. Men and women in Japan live longer than almost any other country. What’s their secret? As you can imagine, there is no single reason, but one important aspect is "hara hachi bu". It means, eat until you are 80% full. You’ve probably heard of the Okinawan people who often live to 100. They still practice hara hachi bu.
Ayurvedic tradition advises eating until 75% full.
The Chinese specify eating until 70% full.
There is a German expression that says, “Tie off the sack before it gets completely full.”
When someone is finished eating in France they don’t say “I’m full,” rather, “I have no more hunger.”
.....See a trend here?
So stop eating when you satisfy your hunger.
Getting to a point where you’re slightly hungry between meals is a healthy sign. If you are eating every 2-4 hours without ever feeling hunger, you are likely eating more than you need.
Explore the D9 Help Centre
The D9 Help Centre has many such interesting and useful articles for you. Browse the different sections or type in your question in the search bar to see what is thrown up! Or start by clicking below to read the following highlighted articles: