Do you clean off your plate even when you are already full?
Do you finish the dinner scraps just because you can't stand
the thought of throwing out the food? Do you eat that last
spoonful of chili in the pot just because nobody in your
family wanted to finish it? To get rid of this extra food,
do you choose to throw it right in your mouth?
If that sounds like you, you are not alone. This behavior
is very common. Most of us have been taught not to be
wasteful. When we were little, we were told to clean off
our plates, so it is deeply ingrained in our minds. We feel
guilty about throwing out good food, especially since we
know that there are so many starving people in this world.
In addition, since we paid money for the food, we perceive
leaving food on our plate as wasting money. It is
especially true in restaurants - if there is not enough
leftovers to take home, most of us will clean off our plate
because we feel we have to get our money's worth.
Even I often struggle with this food waste issue, because I
grew up in Russia where there was a food shortage. Not only
was the food expensive, but also you had to stand in
several-hour-long lines to get it. Of course, I was
conditioned to never waste food. Even though now I live in
the United States where food is plentiful and easily
accessible, I still have a hard time throwing food out when
I need to.
Obviously, those last pieces of food that we eat just so we
don't have to throw them out go right to our waist and hips.
Day after day, it really adds up. All this food that we eat
after we are already full turns into tens of pounds of
body fat.
You avoid wasting the food, but instead you waste your
health, your goals and your weight loss efforts.
Next time you are about to eat because you feel guilty for
the wasted food, tell yourself:
- You Are Not A Garbage Can!
Instead of throwing the unwanted food in a trash, you are
throwing it into your stomach. By doing that, you are
treating your body as a garbage can. You are not the medium
to gather stuff that nobody wanted to eat!
To get over the guilt associated with wasted food, think of
it from the perspective that this excess food is actually
serving a better purpose when it's thrown out than it would
have if you'd eaten it. If you'd eaten this excess food,
this food would do harm (make you gain weight). If that
food is thrown out, it has no benefit, but it does not do
any harm either. No use versus harm - throwing the food out
is the lesser of the two evils.
When you do clean off your plate, it definitely does not
help any of those starving people that you feel so guilty
about. Also, don't think that you are wasting your money if
you don't finish all the food you paid for. The money is
already spent - you are not going to gain more money by
eating more!
If you break the habit of cleaning off your plate when you
are not hungry, you will automatically start losing weight.
Treat your body well. Don't use it in the same way you'd
use a garbage can.
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About The Author
Melanie Mendelson is one of those select few people who succeeded in losing
weight and keeping it off. She lost 23 lbs and got down to her ideal weight,
and she reveals all her weight loss secrets in her special guide. Visit her
website http://www.30-day-diet-plan.com
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You are advised to consult a medical professional before attempting any kind of therapy based on the information on this site. For further details, please read our disclaimer.
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