In Japan, they have a practice called hara hachi bu. Basically, it teaches one to eat only until you’re 80 percent full. This helps them to live longer and stay in better health.

Other cultures practice similar things: the Aryuvedic tradition in India advises eating until you are 75 percent full. The Chinese specify 70 percent full. The prophet Muhammad described a full belly as one that had 1/3 food, 1/3 liquid and 1/3 air. In Germany, they say: “You need to tie off the sack before it gets completely full.”

I learned this practice about 20 years ago and I’ve been practicing it ever since. In our household, we often eat our biggest meal in the late afternoon. Our smaller dinner is done by 6:30 (there are a few exceptions, of course) and we forgo the late-night snacking. If we have a craving, it’s butterless popcorn – the mini bag – split between us.

Problem is, most people can’t (or don’t want to) grasp this concept. They think it’s living in denail, without pleasure. Really? To me, living with a bloated belly and excess weight is not how I want to go through life. Not anymore, anyway. 

I always say, if you want to be fit and lean and stay that way, then you have to think like a fit and lean person. It’s not about denial or going without. People ‘like us’ just think differently. We want to feel good. We want to be well. We see food as both a pleasure and a gateway to an amazingly healthy and vibrant life.  

Try hara hachi bu, if only for a few days. Not only will you feel great, pretty soon you’ll learn what many of us have already learned, that the true path to health and wellness must first come from within.

Change your thinking, change your life!

karen

PS A Reminder that my next Lift n Lose class starts November 7th, and sign up has begun for my monthly Keep it Up Class starts November 1st! Limited class size! For more info, please CLICK HERE!