Not Another Diet — Principle 1
Eat To Eliminate Hunger, Not To Get Full
The meal isn’t over when I’m full. It’s over when I hate myself.
As funny as that Louis C.K. quote is, he’s revealing a deeper truth. We don’t know how much to eat, not to nourish ourselves or satisfy our hunger.
It’s not terribly surprising and not a personal failing. We are overfed at every turn. Some of us starting with our parents, at gatherings, certainly at restaurants, parties, our partners, you name it. We have grown accustomed to outsize portions to the point where we are no longer in touch with our own sense of hunger and fullness.
To make matters worse, 70% of the American diet comes from ultra-processed calories in the form of simple carbohydrates. The very foods that compel over-consumption.
We weren’t designed as human beings to have constant suggestions to eat, we evolved as animals scavenging and hunting for food. Calories were scarce and they needed to be consumed quickly and plentifully. Now calories are abundant and we still eat this way. You probably know this, but it’s worth repeating. We live in a world unsuited to our evolutionary purpose.
In experiments done on overconsumption, larger plates and servings were accurate determinants…
