I posted the other week about macro tracking being the most efficient and effective way to lose body fat.
But is it the only way?
No.
And does tracking your food oftentimes backfire and cause you to actually gain weight?
100%.
Lead to stress eating. Perfectionist, all in/all out mindset. But more importantly, losing the mind to stomach connection.
You basically are eating on autopilot.
Not actually eating because you're hungry or stopping because you're full.
I picked this up from a past Mindful Eating program I did around 2012.
If you're a chronic under eater, this isn't for you.
But if you're a chronic over eater, stress eater, comfort eater, etc, then this is for you.
What we're basically doing is creating a calorie deficit by connecting our mind with our hunger and fullness cues.
If you meditate and/or have experience with "body scanning," this will be easy for you.
If not, you may have to spend some time and energy getting this down.
1️⃣ The first step is deciding whether you're actually hungry or not. Are you eating just to eat? Because this is the usual time you eat? Are you just psychologically hungry and not physically hungry? Lose the idea of meal times and just eat when you're actually hungry.
2️⃣ Clear all distractions. Make sure you're sitting down and not standing. Keep the phone, TV, work, and any other distraction out. Try doing this alone to start.
3️⃣ Make a plate of food that you're actually craving. Not what you think you should eat, but what you're actually craving at the time. Hot? Cold? Crunchy? Soft? Sweet? Find a meal that matches your craving, and create a plate that looks nice. Don't eat out of a carton or ugly bowl. Make a nice plate for yourself (it doesn't have to look like a food influencers, but you get the point).
4️⃣ Focus all your attention on your stomach. Not the belly, but the actual stomach organ.
5️⃣ Assess. Assess your current fullness level by imagining your stomach as a gas tank. How full is your tank? How empty is your tank? Do you have physiological hunger cues such as stomach growling, lethargy, etc?
6️⃣ Eat your food SLOW AF. Actually taste it. Pay attention to how fast or slow you're eating. Your meal should take about 20 minutes to eat.
7️⃣ Each time you swallow food, reassess your gas tank. Is it fuller? By how much? Is it the same?
8️⃣ You'll notice you'll need a lot less food than you've been eating in the past. Feel free to box up the rest once you've reached a satiated fullness level. The human body can survive 30 days without food.
This isn't supposed to be perfect.
You will still stress and comfort eat from time to time.
Fly off the rails sometimes.
Forget to eat without distractions.
The goal isn't perfection.
The goal is progress.
Commit. Create an accountability structure. And execute.
-DC
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