I was having dinner with my husband and children last night, we had all pitched in and cooked three courses. Lovely you may say and it was that. My eldest son Matt and my middle daughter Jemma had cooked and served the starter. When we got to the next course it was my turn to serve what I had prepared for our main. There were six people eating as my youngest daughter Saranne had her boyfriend Ciaran over. So I needed six dinner plates. No surprises there then, my math was on form ! The dinner set we were using, only had five main plates as one had been accidentally broken at Christmas. Which left me wondering what to do. Swift action was taken and the problem solved. I served 5 meals on the normal main sized plates and mine on a smaller side plate.

The smaller plate meant I had less food, no points for my powers of observation here, and found I was surprisingly full, with less food. This got me thinking about the things I teach my clients when educating them on weight management. I made a note of some of these things last night to save for a future blog post to share with you all. Today I posted on facebook and a friend of mine Tracie commented on the post and asked about feeling full when working busy 12hr shifts. I thought aha that fits in with my thoughts and experience last night now is the time to write the blog and share my tips. So here I am sharing my top 10 Tips On How To Feel Fuller When Eating. I looked around the internet and there is some good information out there, I have combined these with my ideas and experiences and come up with a list that will benefit many of you, I have compiled them right here for you to read and share with anyone you think may benefit also. So here we go :

1. Dine without distraction

People can eat more when they dine in company or with the television on because they become distracted as to what exactly is going into their mouth. Make sure mealtimes are all about the food, no distractions focus on it entirely and you'll feel full sooner. Avoid fast-paced music too, this can increase the speed you eat, resulting in a clean plate before your body is able to recognise it is full.

2. Chew and smell

When you eat make sure you give your meal a good sniff as concentrating on the smell of your food as well as the taste also switches on satiety signals. Secondly, chew, chew, chew, and chew some more, Mastication the act of chewing signals the body to begin digestion and all systems to go into action and burns calories. Also Some of the hormones needed to send the satiety signals to the brain are released by your chomping.

3. Think bulky and moist

The rationale behind the bulky and moist rule is pretty straightforward, simply the more air and water in food the quicker it will fill you up, calorie for calorie. So, in terms of food swaps have a vegetable soup rather than a past, plain air-popped popcorn instead of crisps and grapes in place of raisins.

4. Wait after fat
If you do have a meal with a high-fat content then make sure you allow time for that feeling of fullness to come. It can take longer for sense of satiety to come from a fatty meal compared to meal high in protein for example, so allow time for the feeling of fullness from the fat to kick in. Put your cutlery down between mouthfuls, chew and relax.

5. Lack of sleep, increases weight

When your body is deprived of sleep it produces more ghrelin and less leptin..These are the hormones that are involved in the regulation of appetite; ghrelin is produced largely in the stomach and accelerates your appetite, while leptin decreases appetite as it's the hormone that signals satiety.So lack of sleep and tiredness can make you feel hungry. Take regular power naps and ensure a goodnights sleep.



6. Water works

My clients hear me bang on about this all day long. The daily recommended amount of water to drink is around the eight glasses mark, but many of us don't get anywhere near that amount and as a result when we feel hungry, it is often because we're actually thirsty. Get a 2 litre bottle from the time you get up to the time you go to sleep ensure you have drunk it. Drink a glass or two of water before a meal, and when you do eat, the food will feel more filling.



7. Plate or platter

People tend to fill their plate however big it is, and most of us eat until it is empty. It’s how the mind works and the aim of getting a 'clean plate' makes us more likely to override the satiety signals that stop us eating. So, swap your normal plate for a slightly smaller one, and you'll find your 'full' switch will flip a little faster. It really works try it.


8. Eat with your fingers

If you eat foods that take a little time and effort to eat, this will allow time for your body to recognise the fullness feeling. Good examples of fiddly foods are corn on the cob, a crunchy salad or fish with bones, these types of foods force you to eat more slowly and help you to feel full quicker. Sticky meat with bones. That does not mean tuck into a ‘KFC’ because its fiddly to eat !!! 


9. Apples to curb your appetite 

Apples help to promote a feeling of fullness and research has shown that eating an apple 20 minutes prior to eating a meal reduced the amount of food that was consumed at that meal. So, including an apple for your daily snack will not only contribute to one of your daily recommended fruit or veggie portions but the fibre will fill up your stomach too. Easy to pop in your bag and not to expensive to add to your food bill.


10. Au naturale

Try to eat food that is as natural as possible as most manufactured foods tend to be very energy-dense which means they contain more calories bite-for-bite. However, raw fruit and vegetables take a lot of chewing and occupy a lot of room in your stomach so they fill you up much more per bite. Celery is a great one. Freeze some grapes and chew on them. 

Don't forget you can go to my website www.debbiehuxton.co.uk and get you FREE MP3 full of some good information

Have a great week.

Much Love

Debs xxx


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