Do you remember, back in 2006, when a book called "The Secret" came out? It started the whole "think it and you will attract it" self-help craze and ended up selling over 30 million copies and translated into 50 different languages.
We agree with Mark Manson that it's probably bulls**t. And yet, a piece of interesting news just swooped into our cold, pessimistic palms that might suggest otherwise...
Fascinating new research suggests that having a positive perspective on eating healthy food may have a positive effect on your satiety levels i.e. how hungry you still feel after consumption.
The studies involved telling participants that a 380 calorie milkshake was either a 640-calorie "indulgent" shake or a 140-calorie "sensible" shake. The mindset of indulgence produced a dramatically steeper decline in ghrelin (a hormone linked to hunger) after consuming the shake, whereas the mindset of "sensibility" produced a relatively flat ghrelin response.
Even though the calorie level was the same in both drinks, those who had an "indulgent" mindset did not feel as hungry afterwards. "Participants' satiety was consistent with what they believed they were consuming rather than the actual nutritional value of what they consumed."
All this information comes from a great podcast featuring Alia Crum, a Professor of Psychology at Stanford's Mind & Body Lab. She sums this up by saying, "the total effect of anything is a combined product of what you're doing and what you think about what you're doing."
An example being, "if you approach a diet with a mindset of restraint, it could counteract the benefit or objective benefits of the diet - the brain is telling you to eat more food because you are telling yourself you're being restricted."
She's not saying The Secret is correct, but what's remarkable is that it's a rare study that links mindset directly to physical changes within the body. But it still matters what you eat. It's easy to enjoy a Rudy burger with fries. A green salad with chicken? Not so much.
Here are some simple (but not easy) ways to see healthy food as indulgent and get excited about eating...
💥 Reset your taste buds. Try and cut more sugar out of your diet so the flavours can flourish
💥 Slow down your eating
💥 Nerd out about a food a little more. Research healthy foods that play off each other. Sometimes just adding a nice dressing can make a big difference
💥 Prepare food with people you love
💥 Make the place, setting, or environment you eat in a bit more special or ritualistic
Have a great week!
Kevin & Victoria
