My client was looking forward to her trip to Maui with her husband.  It was to be her second time there and probably her last.  Traveling that distance was proving to be difficult, but nonetheless she was really looking forward to it.  During our training session just prior to her trip she mentioned more than once, with a look of enchantment and dread “ah the food!”  She’d lost some weight over the summer and was concerned about her ability to keep that weight off while still enjoying herself on vacation.  We talked about it not being such a crisis.  “Enjoy yourself” I told her, “it’s a vacation and it’s only 10 days.  You are not going to get into terrible irrevocable food and weight trouble in that short of a time.  Plus,” I reminded her “we’ve been working really hard lately and you are strong and fit.  You will be fine and we’ll be right back here in the gym together the week you get back.”  At the end of that last session – I took a few moments to share some additional inspiration.  I wanted her to relax about her trip and focus more on enjoying her time away rather than being quite so anxious about any buffet she happened to find herself within 20 feet of. 

Listening intently as if I were about to reveal the deep dark Fitness mysteries of warring calories against the evil taunting of vacation breakfast spreads – I looked to this woman and with the revered whisper of a prayer I advised her to “taste”.

She looked at me with a measure of utter disbelief and confusion so I repeated the ancient secret – “taste” the food you eat.  “Take the time to breathe and eat.  Allow yourself to enjoy the tastes and textures of the food offered on vacation.  You don’t have to EAT it all and you don’t have to EAT everything new and splendid you see.  You have 10 whole days to try a little of it all, and do that.  But make sure you savor and really taste what you eat.”  A few moments of comprehension and she smiled at me.  She had a plan – one that worked for her; her desire to maintain her weight and her desire to enjoy.  It was simpler than she’d imagined. 

A few weeks later another client was finishing up her workout with me.  It was the Wednesday before Thanksgiving.  We’d talked about her family holiday plans.  Not until the final few moments did I catch the nonchalant eye roll accompanying the detailed listing of desserts to be offered the next day.  With calm reassurance I fell back on that tried and true advice.  When she looked to me for help - like I was going to throw her a life preserver to get her through the brutal current of Thanksgiving calories and temptations - I used the word again: “TASTE”.  Take the time to enjoy what you’re eating.  Breathe and Taste it.  No doubt you will enjoy it more and most likely eat less because you are not filling up and missing out on the flavors, smells and textures.  Try a little of what you want, but the rule I set for her was she had to really taste the food. 

The combination of eating quickly and eating until full trebles the risk of being overweight, according to a study published on the British Medical Journal website. …
with the increased availability of inexpensive food in larger portions, fast food, and fewer families eating together and eating while distracted (e.g. while watching TV), eating behaviours are changing, and this may be contributing to the obesity epidemic. 2.
So often we are eating on the go.  We have places to be, things to do, needs to satisfy.  Sometimes it’s comfort and fast foods we consume, sometimes even the healthiest of choices.  While we know the value of Eat to Live, versus Live to Eat, along the way we forget we have the privilege of savoring the taste as well as the ritual. 

Do you ever notice the fast eaters in your life?  Maybe you’re one of them!  If you’ve ever shared a bag of popcorn with someone, or even shared a meal and you find you’re absently rushing to keep up.  Or perhaps you find you finish eating your meal before everyone else and wonder how that happened.  I believe there’s a personal cadence to eating not unlike a personal walking gait.  When we walk or run with someone else we have to match pace.  We adjust and sometimes so do they.  When we eat though – that matching pace is most often not necessary.  Hopefully we’re at least sitting in the same stationary spot as the other person and not jogging down a trail or running along a track!   

“It takes 20 minutes for most people to feel full after starting to eat.”3.  That’s the time it takes for your stomach and your brain to recognize you are satisfied.  If you finish what’s in front of you in that time or less you aren’t giving your body sufficient time to properly respond to you.  Do your meals even last 20 whole minutes? 

Interesting Fact: There are almost 10,000 taste buds in our mouths –
why rush each morsel past them!


“A fast eater can eat three to four times the calories they need before their body has a chance to tell them they've had enough.” 3

When was the last time the last meal you remember really SAVOURING?  This is nourishment – nourishment you are putting directly into your body (temple if you will), and if you are one who considers caloric or nutrient value why not also consider and enjoy what you are DEVOURING.  Hmm – isn’t interesting that it becomes a whole different ball game when you change the language!

"When you have a reduced sensitivity to palatable foods, you tend to consume it in higher amounts," said Andras Hajnal, associate professor of neural and behavioral sciences at Penn State College of Medicine. "It is a vicious circle." 1. 

By encouraging my clients to Taste the foods they desire, especially during vacations and holidays I am in no way a suggesting they snub their noses at the caloric or nutrient values their food.  Of course that’s important and directly relating to energy spent and stored, but our purpose for food is multi-fold.  It’s not only to nourish (good word!) our bodies, but also to satiate (ooh-another one!) ourSELVES; our personal preferences.  Why not enjoy and savor the experience?

I’m happy to report that my client returned from her vacation in Maui refreshed and ready to work focused again in the gym.  She’d maintained her weight while she was away and enjoyed her experience – food and all.

My other client gracefully survived the Thanksgiving dessert course.  Letting go of the holiday anxiety; she enjoyed the Day of Thanks and was able to appreciate the tastes of the Holiday. 

My hope is that we all work towards experiencing the 20 minutes of Taste it takes to feel satiated by our meals.  Breathe, Smell, and Taste the food we put into our bodies. 

1. Penn State (2008, November 28). Route To Obesity Passes Through Tongue. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 5, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com¬ /releases/2008/11/081126133409.htm

2. BMJ-British Medical Journal (2008, October 22). Eating Quickly And Until Full Triples Risk Of Being Overweight. ScienceDaily. Retrieved December 5, 2008, from http://www.sciencedaily.com¬ /releases/2008/10/081021210307.htm

3. http://www.healthandage.org/Home/gm=20!gid2=2670