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Have you ever found yourself at the bottom of a bag of chips with no recollection of how it happened? The same feeling as when you’ve driven home from work without the slightest idea of how you got there.

We live a surprising amount of our lives on auto-pilot. We don’t have to think about breathing or walking, and many of us can type, drive, ride a bike and apply lip gloss without calling on our conscious mind for guidance. This type of auto-pilot comes about when we become highly practised at something by doing it repeatedly.

Mostly our subconscious patterns serve us well. However, our subconscious habits make excellent slaves but very poor masters. 

Take eating, for example. Like any other habit, it can be done without thinking and can be either self-serving or selfsabotaging. Incidental eating is something we do on auto-pilot, when our conscious mind and all its comments on what we should be doing turns off, and our subconscious – with all its easy-going, hedonistic tendencies – turns on.

In the days when we had to think about food, select and prepare it, we were very conscious of what we ate. Now, with lifestyle changes and access to foods that do all the thinking and preparation for us, we think and know a lot less about what we eat. With bars and bite-sized foods at our fingertips, we barely even need to chew! Much of our eating is now incidental to actual meals.

You may recognise these two forms of incidental eating:

• Picking and grazing all day without actually planning, preparing or sitting to eat a meal. You may find yourself saying “I’ve hardly eaten all day”, but in fact you will have incidentally eaten a number of times. (Mothers of young children take note!)

• Mindlessly eating foods even if you are not aware of whether or not you are enjoying them or finding them satisfying. (People who like crackers, nuts and confectionary beware!) 

So how do we know when our subconscious eating patterns are serving us poorly? 

Most of us, when we’re in subconscious mode, tend to go from the enjoyment of the first mouthful to “oh my god, I need to lie flat” and the ensuing guilty aftermath. Some of the more enlightened people I know have a “five- mouthful” rule when it comes to treats and food we are eating purely for enjoyment. Most of these people have a healthy BMI and seldom agonise about what they eat. So I believe they might be on to something.

The five-mouthful rule works on five principles and ultimately comes down to self awareness, portion control and planning:

1. Eat what you enjoy and do not deprive yourself when you know you are going to love it. Be honest about how much you will love it and don’t tempt yourself with sub-standard treats.

2. Never buy things you don’t actually want to end up eating. If it is in arm’s reach it is ripe for the incidental picking.

3. Never upsize anything and always opt for the smaller versions of everything. Say goodbye to the jumbo pack and mega bar. Family packs are for families, not individuals. Don’t kid yourself; you will not save some for later. Do not say, once it’s gone, it’s gone. Once it’s gone, it’s gone to your hips!

4. If the portion is too big then cut it down to size before you even start, and push the plate away. Do not under any circumstances stand near a buffet table at a party.

Angela Hook is a behavioural psychologist and qualitative market researcher.

 

 

Article contributed by

Healthy Food Guide
www.healthyfoodguide.com.au