Diet Advice and by Advice I Mean Lies

This line. THIS LINE: "Order an individual dessert to share among three people. One or two bites, and you'll be satisfied."

What a load of horse crap.

I mean sure, if you're at Shoney's order a brownie sundae thing and it's the size of your head, or you go to the Cheesecake Factory. Fine. Whatever. But let's be real. Most of the time you do not eat two bites of cake and then go "oooh nooo. Now I'm perfectly satisfied. You guys eat the rest."

COME. ON. I think there's two problems going on here.

1) The idea that we have to have dessert after every meal. This is a falsity. I think it is largely brought on by the idea that "oh, well I was GOOD today, so I deserve something." Listen. Food should not be something we punish or reward ourselves with. That creates a weird and unhealthy relationship with our dinner plates. If you want a piece of chocolate eat a piece of chocolate but don't tee hee hee about how bad you are being. And eat dessert if you want dessert but don't eat dessert every day after every meal because you're "supposed" to have dessert.

2) The idea that we should keep eating if we are full. This goes back to the idea that we eat dessert because we are "supposed" to eat dessert. Or clearing our plates so we don't waste food. This one was actually hard for me to learn. I felt so strongly that I was SUPPOSED to want seconds or SUPPOSED to clear my plate or OF COURSE I want dessert that I would literally ignore my feelings of fullness to keep eating. I would eat until y stomach hurt and I would eat until I was sick and then I would (of course) be miserable. And most of that was simply because I felt an obligation to EAT.

3) We should quit eating even if we're not full. So much of diet advice is conflicting. Eat! Don't eat! Eat this, not that! Eat that not this! Eat what you want it doesn't matter, only calories matter! Don't eat carbs!  Don't eat protein! It's not a diet it's a lifestyle change! etc etc. What it really comes down to is that we are TRAINED TO IGNORE OUR BODIES.

As a group, our relationship with food is messed up. And pretending we're happy with a bite when we want a slice is part of that.