Small Spoons, Small Plates

This is sort of another aside, but very important. Judith Beck points out the cultural issues around overeating. Our society is all about huge portions these days. (If you haven't seen the movie Super Size Me, run out and rent it right now!) American restaurants serve much larger portions than is the norm in other countries or was the norm here a generation or so ago. We are used to seeing big plates filled up with big portions for every meal, so a normal portion looks small to us and makes us feel deprived.

Think of this: your stomach is only about the size of your fist. Of course it stretches, like a balloon, but think about how much food it would actually take to fill it up without blowing it up: not much, huh?

My friend Terri commented about eating her ice cream (actually it was low fat frozen yogurt, wasn't it?) with a small spoon and how that changed her experience (THANKS for commenting, Terri!!!): that's something I hadn't though of that would be fun to experiment with. I also recommend serving yourself on a small plate. Check out The Small Plate Movement at www.smallplatemovement.org. It's an easy thing to try.