Chapter 14: Learn the Art of Joyful EatingStrategies 17–21 Joyful Eating is an exciting new tasting technique I developed for experiencing
peak pleasure from every glorious bite of food. It’s based on
a great deal of research in how our sense of taste works and, as you
might imagine, a lot of very fun experimentation!
Earlier I talked about how Joyful Eating helped me stay on my diet when
I was about to give up. How could a method of tasting food make such a big
difference in my life?
Most weight loss diets feature denial as their key element. To lose weight
you are supposed to deny yourself certain foodsusually those you love the
most--forever.
The problem is it’s tortuously hard to stay on a diet over the long run
by denying yourself the foods you love. Food is fun. Food is a great source
of joy in life. The loss of joy is one of the biggest reasons diets fail. For many
it simply isn’t worth it. Being thin doesn’t feel better than how food tastes.
That’s why so many people would rather feel the pleasure of food than stick
to a denial-based diet.
Following a diet isn’t the only reason people deny themselves the foods
they love. Many people are on health-restricted diets as part of their treatment.
As a diabetic, for example, I avoid high carbohydrate foods. People with heart
conditions, high blood pressure and many other diseases must watch what
they eat too. Many feel like outcasts when they can’t eat what other people
are eating. It’s often easier just to give in and eat everything.
How could you have the best of both worlds? How could you fully enjoy
food while sticking to your diet? That’s what Joyful Eating does for you. By
reveling in the power of food, Joyful Eating allows you to eat as little as one
bite and feel satisfied. That’s why Joyful Eatingtasting to its fullestis one
of the secrets of eating in moderation. You can feel more satisfaction from
perfectly tasting a few bites of truly excellent food than from mindlessly eating
a truck full of junk.
Now clearly, if you have an allergy or your doctor says you should never
eat certain foods, then don’t use Joyful Eating for those. But maybe you can
use Joyful Eating for others.
I will never eat a full piece of cake for the rest of my life. It would send my
blood sugar numbers to the moon. But I can safely eat one glorious perfect bite
of cake. The trick is learning how to extract enough pleasure from that one
bite so that I will feel satisfied enough not to eat more. Joyful Eating teaches
you how to make one bite enough. One bite of anything won’t have too many
calories or other bad things, so it should be safe. And if you can stop eating
after one bite, you will lose weight.
Joyful Eating works for any food. Use it for eating dessert, bread, potatoes
or whatever else you must be careful about eating. You can eat one, two, or
even three bites and feel satisfied.
The reason this approach works so well is because your sense of taste is
designed to make it work. Your brain encourages you to eat a wide variety of
foods by dialing down the taste after a few bites. You actually stop tasting a
flavor after just a few bites.
So why eat more than a couple of bites when you won’t taste it? Why not
spend your calorie budget on foods you can enjoy? If you can learn how to
extract the most pleasure from those few bites then you’ve learned how to
eat any food in moderation while still feeling satisfied. You’ve maximized
pleasure while minimizing calories.
This is incredibly powerful, potentially life changing stuff. At least it was
for me. You can eat all the foods you love in moderation using Joyful Eating.
You can go anywhere with anyone and not feel like an outcast. You don’t have
to abandon your health-restricted diet to feel like a real person again. And
you will enjoy yourself more than you ever have before.
The strategies in this chapter are: Strategy 17. Joyful Eating Step-by-Step Strategy 18. How to Eat Joyfully in Different Situations Strategy 19. Tricks for Maximizing Your Food Pleasure Strategy 20. Refine Your Palate Strategy 21. Twenty Tastes to Try Before You Die
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