Lesson from Weight Loss 101: You Are Not a Trash Can

What?! That’s the big secret?!

Yes, it is, and if you do not learn it and apply it, you will have a lot more trouble losing weight. Treating yourself like a trash can is shockingly common, and you may even be doing it to yourself without realizing. Well, take note and see if you can give yourself a weight loss boost.

Symptoms of Trash Can-itis

Funny as it may sound, you may not even realize how much you treat yourself like a trash can. A trash can is where you put things you do not want anymore. Have you ever…

• Eaten a few servings of a creamy casserole because your neighbor was kind enough to bring it over?
• Finished off your child’s sack-lunch sandwich because you want to set a “good example?”
• Eaten the entire slice instead of a few bites of pie because that’s what was on your plate?

Do you see the resemblance to a trash can? Things you don’t want go into the trash can. Food you do not need goes into the trash can. If it is going into your body instead, you are treating yourself like a trash can.

You Versus a Trash Can

Like a trash can, you can hold a lot of unwanted food. Also like a trash can, you’re a convenient receptacle for the food. Just think about how easy it is to spoon the last few bites from the pot into your mouth instead of the garbage, or clean your plate instead of carrying the leftovers back into the kitchen to toss them.

Unlike a trash can, unfortunately, your unwanted food does not go out to the curb each week. It goes to your hips. And belly. And thighs. And a lot of other places that you know all too well.

Why Are You Eating?

Consistent with the rules of the WLS diet, your goal is to eat the amount your body needs. If you’ve gotten into the habit of eating for other reasons, it may be time to retrain your brain to remember that you should eat what you need, and not what is “there.” Eat what you intend to eat based on your hunger or meal plan; don’t eat food that you had not intended to eat just because you want to finish the box or clear your plate, or because it happens to be there. Put the rest away if it is salvageable; if not, throw it away.

Opt Out of the “Clean Plate Club.”

For many of us, being part of the “Clean Plate Club” meant making our parents proud. It meant you were a good eater. Sometimes, cleaning your plate at dinner was what earned you dessert. Times have changed, and it is time to grow up and get out of the club. There is no need to clean your plate!

Still, those habits can be ingrained for life. So, if you grew up as a proud member of the Clean Plate Club and you find that you are not able to cancel your lifetime membership, use a smaller plate.

Do Some Good with Your Good Will

Your conscience can be of the biggest barriers to throwing away food. You may wonder that if 1 billion people in the world are starving, how can it be conscionable to throw away perfectly good food? The truth is that what you throw away has nothing to do with what children in India or sub-Saharan Africa are eating (or not eating). Whether you eat the bread that came with the hamburger or you throw it away does not affect starving children.

If you really want to lend a hand, donating money would be far more effective than eating too much.

Respect Yourself

Treating yourself like a human being and not a trash can do wonders for your WLS journey even aside from skipping the extra calories that come with eating extra food. Treat yourself with respect, and you can have more confidence in your daily decisions and behaviors. After all, isn’t it more worthwhile to treat yourself right than to treat a trash can right?

Stop treating yourself like a trash can, and you might lose a lot more weight. You will not only be skipping extra calories that you do not need, but you will also have a lot more respect for yourself – which can add fuel to the fire of your weight loss intentions.