Weight gain happens slowly, creeping up, like a monster in a horror movie. Sometimes, it is barely noticeable until you have hit a new 5-10 pound increase. How does this happen? Our yoga pants (or other comfortable clothes) may be to blame.
When it comes to food intake, there are 2 basic factors that regulate our consumption. These are our internal and external cues. Internal cues, are those signs that your body is physically no longer hungry and you can continue on with your daily activities. Our external cues, however, can positively (meaning encouraging you to eat more) or negatively (meaning you eat less) influence your intake greatly.
Internal cues, in my opinion, is how our relationship with food was "meant to be", The best example of a human following their internal cues is a typical 4 year old. The child is presented with a full meal, including dessert. He is allowed to eat how much of each item he wants (not forced or coerced). Lunch time is over and he is done. Now as adults, we may look at his plate, and think, "Hmm, I don't think he ate enough". Or maybe, "There are children starving in Africa and he is so wasteful" (By the way, I have never understood how someone eating excess calories in America solves world hunger on another continent). Or perhaps, a million other things that our brains have been programmed to tell our gastrointestinal tract in order to manipulate it into consuming more. Simply put, internal cues are noticing when your body is hungry and eating until it is comfortably satisified.
External cues, in contrast, are all of the outside influences that affect our food choices, including how much we eat. These can vary from time of day, how many people we are eating with, mood, portion sizes, cost of the food, and even what we are wearing!
In his book Mindless Eating by Brian Wansick, Ph. D., he cites an observation that occurred in county jails:
"The food served in county jails is not typically awarded any Michelin Stars. In fact, complaining about the food is one of the great inmate pastimes. This is why a sheriff at one Midwestern jail was puzzled when he noticed an odd trend: The inmates, with an average sentence of six moths, were mysteriously gaining 20-25 'prison pounds' during the course of their 'visit'. It wasn't because the food was great. Nor did it seem to be because they hadn't exercised or because they were lonely or bored. They generally had access to exercise facilities and to daily visitors.
In fact, upon release, no inmate blamed the food, the exercise machines, or the visitation hours for their weight gain. They blamed their jailhouse fat on the baggy orange jumpsuits they had to wear for six months. Because these orange coveralls were so loose-fitting, most of them didn't realize they had progressively gained weight-about a pound a week-until they were release and had to try and squeeze back into their own clothes".
Hopefully, you are not in county jail and wearing orange coveralls. However, we can all benefit from these jail house subjects because we practice similar behaviors, such as wearing stretchy yoga pants in lieu of jeans or fitted pants, pull on shorts, or loose dresses. All of these types of clothing are known for their comfort value, however, when our calorie intake starts increasing and affecting our waist line, it may go unnoticed if our pants aren't talking back!
Our clothes do communicate with us if we tune in and listen. The notch in the belt is let out or taken in. Our pants only zip half way or are too loose entirely. Researches in Dr. Wansick's lab reported these 8 signals that indicated weight loss to them more often than just the number on the scale.
-"When my jeans feel comfortable again."
-"When I have to start wearing a belt".
-"When I suck in my stomach, and I can see some definition, like a four pack".
-"When my belt notch moves back to where it used to be".
-"When I don't get tired walking up two flights of stairs to my office".
-"When I can see my cheekbones".
-"When I don't have to inhale to button my pants".
-"When friends or colleagues ask me if I've lost weight".
So, a few take home messages:
1) Wear some "fitted clothing", at least some of the time for a REAL gut check!
2) Be mindful of your eating, when your actually hungry and when you are actually satisfied. I like to encourage my clients to close their eyes, take a deep breath and exhale, and ask themselves to rate their hunger before a meal on a scale of 1-10. After assessing their hunger, make sure that the food intake matches their hunger level. During their meal, eat slowly, noticing what the foods taste like, how their body feels. About half way through the meal, reassess the hunger and respond accordingly until satiety is achieved, and get back to your four year old self!
Happy and healthy eating!
For more information on nutrition or counseling services, please contact Leslie Goudarzi, MS, RD, LD at 903-239-1551.
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