Beginning to see how I stayed so large.
 

So this weekend I've noticed how much more aware I am about what I put in this mouth of mine. I've been writing down everything I eat so I've noticed more than ever. What I never noticed is when I'm cooking everyone elses food,I taste. Taste everything for seasonings make sure it's "okay". Also...and this is a biggie! Clearing the table my son hadn't eaten all of his corndog. I wasn't even paying attention until it was in my mouth. I clear these kids plates. I'm standing there with a bite of corndog in my mouth wondering how it got there without me knowing it. :dizzy:
So I guess since my oldest is nearly 13 years old I've played the role of garbage disposal for at least 12 years! Crusts of sandwiches,half of corndogs,the rest of their fries. Good God no wonder I stayed fat!!

Knowledge is power right???

I use to do that... chewing gum while making dinner help, i use to get Big Red and never wanted to taste afyer that,,,try it:)

We use reduced sodium soy sauce, alot!!! So, before I clear the table, I douse everyones leftovers in soy sauce. It may seem wasteful, but better to keep kikkoman in business, than to put fat back on me!!

One other suggestion. He's 13. Make him do it himself.

Don't mean to sound rude, but when I started this lifestyle change, I put DD and DH in charge of clean up. I told them that I can't be around the leftovers. I would come in the kitchen and do the dishes, but all food had to be already put away, plates scraped, pots cleaned out, etc. After a few months I was able to go back to clean up, but there are still days when I walk out of the kitchen and tell DH or DD that I need their help.

And the gum thing is a great idea during cooking time. (Thanks for the Big Red idea!)

Your welcome....its like brushing your teeth and eating cake after,...does not taste good :)

I guess I just need to get up
 

from the table and walk away. I just thought it was odd that the bite was in my mouth before I knew it.(lol) I thought back to when the kids were small and thought about when they hated the crust on the grilled cheese and I cut it off and ate it along with my 2 grilled cheeses. They didn't finish their Spaghetti O's...mom cleaned the bowl. So strange how I never thought anything about it. :?:

I know! It's so easy to "eat mindlessly". But it does get easier, you just have to keep it in your head not to take any extra bites.

I guess we are all members of the clean plate club. I do the same thing with my 5 year old son. I hate throwing out food but I don't want to eat his leftovers on top of the meal I've just had. A lot of the time I'll pack whatever is leftover from the meal and take it to work (I work night shifts so I have something to eat around midnight). Alternatively I'll put it in the fridge and then toss it later in the week if it doesn't get eaten. For some reason I have less guilt about throwing something out that's been sitting in the fridge than I do tossing it out right after the meal.

Oh, penor...I could have written your post myself! I came to this realization since I have been religiously recording EVERYTHING I EAT onto Fitday! For me it was finally being accountable to SOMETHING like Fitday for each and every bite of everything I put into my mouth!

I figure that in the past, by the time I was ready to serve dinner to my family I had ALREADY EATEN a full dinner...just by all the tasting and finishing up the portion of cheese that wouldn't fit onto the pizza or the TWENTY OLIVES that I would rather eat than put into a Zip-loc container! The list goes on and on!

I think now that somehow I had it in my mind that these "tastes" just didn't count towards overall calories! How I ever could have thought that boggles my mind, but I guess the tasting is in the "mindless eating" catagory like bizlawchick said!

Knowledge IS power, and so is AWARENESS! You are now AWARE of this as a struggle for you, so it is a lot easier to deal with now.

Good Luck! You can do this!

Cheryl

Ha. I have done that very same thing. I just did it instantly without thinking and it wasn't until it was in my mouth that I was like, "what am I doing?"

I have a hard time at work because for one of my 2 jobs I work at a grocery store. There is food everywhere.. and I know there are healthy options but EVERY tempting food is right next to them. I try to pack a meal but the temptation is always there.. literally. Sometimes extra sweets from the bakery or Deli and such end up in the breakroom.. almost every day they put goodies on the table..

I must have looked crazy because I walked up to the table, stretched out my arm and practically had my hand on a cookie.. when I froze.. pulled my hand back and said out loud, "No. I don't think I'll have one of those." Then I walked away. Haha.

I used to do the same exact thing. I would nibble and pick as I was making dinner. Who knows how many calories I ingested just preparing the stuff. And then I would pick at my 3 kids leftovers. To make matters even worse for a bunch of years, I would serve my kids dinner first, clean up their plates via my mouth, then hubby would come home late and we wouldn't eat our dinner til 8:30 or 9:00, so I was eating at least 3 dinners worth - the nibbling during cooking, the kids leftovers and mine. Sheesh. I guess looking back, it's a good thing I wasn't even heavier then I was. Oh the wonderful habits we get into.

Throwing food out is one thing that was hard for me to learn how to do. It took a couple of weeks of forcing myself to put it in the trash versus putting it back in the frig. I now know it is much better for it to be wasted in the trash than to be added to MY waist!;) It's automatic now - all the leftovers on the plates are scraped into the trash. PERIOD.