lesson 3 strategies that transform eating habits

Strategies That Transform Eating HabitsLESSON 3

FOOD SECRETS THAT CHANGE LIVES

PART 1

3 diet experiments that can change your clients’ eating habits (even if they seem way too easy to work).

These simple strategies could help stop overeating for good.

By Julia Malacoff, PN1, CPT

LESSON 3: STRATEGIES THAT TRANSFORM EATING HABITS 3

PRECISION NUTRITION THE ESSENTIAL GUIDE TO FOOD FOR HEALTH, NUTRITION, & FITNESS COACHES

As his weight climbed to nearly 300 pounds, Dominic Matteo thought he knew how to turn things around: Just stop eating chips, ice cream, and other highly processed foods. (You might remember him from Lesson 2, by the way.)

“I’ll will myself through this,” he told himself.

Then he’d see the ice cream in the freezer and think, ‘Just one spoonful.’ Soon Matteo was staring at an empty container and wondering, ‘Why am I so weak?’

But Matteo’s willpower wasn’t the problem—his kitchen was. It was stocked with tempting junk foods, and it needed a serious overhaul.

Here’s the thing: Back then, Matteo didn’t believe a kitchen makeover would actually work. It sounded too easy.

He tried it anyway, though… and went on to lose over 100 pounds.

“If I hadn’t done that experiment, I probably wouldn’t have been successful,” says Matteo, who’s now a Precision Nutrition Level 2 Master Class coach. “It’s all about self-discovery and awareness.”

At Precision Nutrition, we often use experiments to help our clients discover important clues about what they really need (and don’t need) to reach their goals. Such experiments serve as powerful tools for uprooting the limiting and often false beliefs that tend to derail lasting habit change.

In this lesson, you’ll find three of our most transformative experiments. Try them yourself (or use with a client). What you learn may help you finally clear your biggest hurdles… even if the experiments sound too easy to work.



Limiting Belief #1: “If I had more willpower, I could stop eating so much junk food.”

Many of us assume, much like Matteo did, that willpower is something we’re either born with… or we’re not.

So when we find ourselves reaching for the second (or third … or fourth … or fifth) chocolate chip cookie, we beat ourselves up for being “weak.”

But portion control and healthful food choices are less about motivation and willpower and more about your environment. Give this experiment a try, and you’ll see what we mean.

The experiment: Do a kitchen makeover.

Use this two-step process to clean out your fridge, pantry, freezer, and other places you stash food. In the process, you’ll make some foods a lot harder to eat and other foods a lot easier to eat.

Step 1: Make a list

Determine your red, yellow, and green light foods.

But keep in mind: At Precision Nutrition, we don’t believe in universally good or bad foods. Everyone’s red, yellow, and green lists will be different.

Here’s how to identify yours:

Red light foods = “no go” foods. These are foods that present such a difficult challenge for you that they just aren’t worth the struggle. Red light foods may not work for you because:

� They don’t help you achieve your goals

� You always overeat them

� You’re allergic to them



� You can’t easily digest them

� You just don’t like them

Ultra-processed foods often fall into this category.

Yellow light foods = “slow down” foods. Maybe you can eat a little bit of these and stop, or you can eat them sanely at a restaurant with others, but not at home alone.

Green light foods = anytime foods. They’re nutritious and make your body and mind feel good. You can eat them normally, slowly, and in reasonable amounts. Whole foods usually make up most of this list.

Live with other people? Try these client-tested strategies.

So what if your partner or kids love the foods that you want to get out of the house?

Matteo confronted this exact predicament. Here’s what he suggests doing.

Talk about it. Explain that you want to make a change—and why. You might say, “I really need your help. I can’t do this alone.”

Take small steps. Focus on removing or reducing a couple of foods at a time rather than every single red light food at once.

Compromise. For example, rather than purchasing half-gallon containers of ice cream, Matteo’s family now buys eight single-serving cups—just enough for each family member to consume two single-serving desserts a week.



Stash it out of sight. If you must keep a red light food in the house, make it as difficult to access as you can. For example, you might keep chips on a shelf in the basement rather than in the kitchen. One of Matteo’s clients asked his wife to store desserts in a safe for which only she knew the combination.

Step 2: Get cleaning.

You’ll probably need a large garbage bag (maybe a few!) and a compost bin, if you have one.

First, get rid of the red light foods. If you struggle with the idea of wasting food, consider donating unopened, non-perishable, unexpired items to a charity. Compost what you can’t donate.

And remind yourself: Overeating is no less wasteful than trashing the food, given your body doesn’t actually need the calories. Plus, you just might find, as Matteo did, that your kitchen purge actually saves you money over time because you’ll stop buying certain foods.

Next, deal with the yellow light foods. You have a few options here. You can remove them, keep them in smaller quantities to prevent overeating, or put them somewhere hard to see and reach (on a high shelf in an opaque container, for example).

Lastly, stock up on your green light foods. Put these foods front and center and take steps to make them easy to grab and eat.

For example, maybe you make your own trail mix, storing it at the front of the pantry where you’re more likely to see it. Or, perhaps you peel a couple of oranges and keep them toward the front of the fridge, for easy snacking during your laziest moments. Or maybe you keep a half dozen hard-boiled eggs at the ready.



One note: Don’t overdo it when purchasing new green foods, especially produce, as they’re likely perishable (unlike most of the red and yellow foods you’re replacing). Remember, it’s okay to start small and build from there.

Step 3: Take notes.

The next time you get a craving for a red or yellow food, notice what happens. Do you reach for something on your green light list, since that’s what’s right in front of you? Or do you drive to the store to get food you crave? Or… do you decide not to eat anything at all because it requires way too much effort?

The lesson: Your environment makes it harder to practice healthy eating habits.

“Understanding that your environment guides your decisions can facilitate better actions,” Matteo says.

What he’s getting at is something we refer to as Berardi’s First Law (named after our co-founder, John Berardi, PhD — you may remember it from Lesson 1):

If a food is in your house or possession, either you, someone you love, or someone you marginally tolerate, will eventually eat it.

There’s also a corollary to this law:

If a healthy food is in your house or possession, either you, someone you love, or someone you marginally tolerate, will eventually eat it.

This is why relying on willpower or motivation is a fundamentally flawed plan. No matter how much or how little willpower you actually have, you’ll eventually default to the easiest food options, especially when you’re tired. Or stressed. Or ravenous.

By removing red light foods, you make the choice to eat green foods so much easier—almost no willpower required.



Limiting Belief #2: “I hardly eat anything, and I still can’t lose weight.”

Feeling this way can be incredibly frustrating and confusing. Sometimes, it even stops people from trying to get healthier altogether.

But in every case, the principle of energy balance applies:

When you eat more calories (energy) than you expend, you gain weight.

And when you eat fewer calories than you expend, you lose weight. (Which sounds way simpler than it is, of course.)

So what gives? Let’s find out.

The experiment: For one week, track everything you eat.

All you have to do: Write down what you eat every day for a week.

Yeah, yeah. You’ve heard this advice before—maybe hundreds of times.

But have you really done it? By actually writing it down (versus keeping a mental tally)?

For every single meal and snack?

Every day?

For a whole week?

If not, give it a try. It’s actually a lot easier than it sounds. You can write it down in a notebook, use a record-keeping app like MyFitnessPal, or even just snap a photo of everything you eat.

Make sure to include everything you eat and drink. Don’t forget to record the cream and sugar in your coffee, the dressing on your salad, and the lone fry (or was it eight?) you stole off your kid’s plate.

(Note: Unless you enjoy it, we’re not recommending you or your clients



track this way regularly. This is just a short-term experiment.)

Treat these notes as if you were a scientist. This isn’t about judging your food choices. It’s merely about noticing them. Be kind, curious, and compassionate with yourself.

For the most accurate snapshot of your eating habits, try to do this during a typical week without any big events, and don’t change how you normally eat just because you’re keeping track.

At the end of the week, take a look at your log. Is it in line with how much you thought you were eating?

The lesson: It’s easy, and incredibly common, to underestimate how much you eat.

Research shows that, on average, people underestimate their food intake by around 47 percent—for all sorts of understandable reasons.1

First, mindless nibbles can be even less memorable than the storage location of our car keys.

Second, though humans are great at a lot of things, estimating portion sizes just isn’t one of them. We don’t always recognize how caloric certain foods are (hi, peanut butter), and sometimes we deceive ourselves. (‘I had, like, five chips… not three-quarters of the bag… right?”)

Point is, this is a real thing. And it happens to a lot of people—even nutrition experts, like dietitians.2



That’s why many people need nutritional guard rails—calorie counts, macros, or hand portions—to guide what and how much they eat… at least for a little while. Here at PN, we use hand portions to help clients make better food and portion judgments. (We’ve seen some incredible transformations using this method alone.)

If you haven’t already checked out our Nutrition Calculator, go ahead and plug in your goals and personal info. You’ll get a full report of how much to eat, along with the corresponding hand portions, and everything you need to know about how they work.

Using this approach, in combination with mindful eating practices like eating slowly and to 80 percent full (more on these later in this lesson), can help you eat in a way that makes weight loss feel more effortless.

3 more experiments to try

Want to keep learning more about yourself? Or have a client who loves experiments? Try the following to keep gathering intel.

Experiment: Eat nothing but sugar packets (read: pure sugar) for a day. (Good luck!)

What it shows: Sugar itself may not really be a problem food for you. Read: Most people won’t stuff themselves with sugar alone. Instead, it’s more about what the sugar is mixed with. For example, you may be okay consuming it when it’s in fruit, yogurt, or even ketchup, but not when it’s inside your personal red light foods like cookies, chocolate, or ice cream.

https://www.precisionnutrition.com/hand-portion-transformations

https://www.precisionnutrition.com/hand-portion-transformations

https://www.precisionnutrition.com/nutrition-calculator



Experiment: Eat slowly every day for a month, trying to make every meal last a little bit longer. (Start by taking a breath between bites. We'll provide more ideas on how to do this in Lesson 3.)

What it shows: You may discover that you feel more satisfied sooner, so you eat less automatically. You may also notice eating slowly brings up uncomfortable feelings—ones you’ve been quashing with food.

Experiment: Use this article to make breakfast a little bit healthier.

What it shows: You don’t have to do a complete 180 in order to see progress. Could you swap cold cereal for oatmeal? Could you have fruit instead of hashbrowns? Could you try eggs on a bed of greens instead of with a bagel? It’s not just about the substitutions; it’s about being thoughtful about what you eat… before you eat. Small changes, done consistently, pave the way to lasting habits.

Limiting Belief #3: “I seriously can’t handle being hungry.”

Hunger is a lot of things: annoying, uncomfortable, distracting…

One thing it’s not: such a big deal that you should do everything in your power to avoid ever experiencing it.

Problem is, hunger feels like a big deal. Some clients have even told us that hunger feels like an emergency. They worry that if they don’t eat right away, their hunger will continue to get worse and worse and worse until… they die.

Or wish they could.

https://www.precisionnutrition.com/meal-plans-usually-suck



For these reasons, many people eat as soon as they feel even the slightest pang—physical or mental. That often means they consume more than really needed, which leads to weight gain (or stalls fat loss). They also reach for whatever they find first (see experiment #1).

But what happens when you don’t immediately meet hunger with food? Let’s find out.

The experiment: Try fasting for a day.

We know it sounds scary. Nothing bad will happen—promise.

We include this experiment, lovingly called “fasting day,” in our year-long coaching program. Over the years, our coaching clients have told us this day is one of the most impactful experiences of the entire program.



Here’s how it works: Consume no calories for 24 hours.

Zero. Nada. None.

Enjoy calorie-free drinks such as water, flavored water, unsweetened tea, or plain coffee. But other than that, avoid all food and caloric beverages.

Obviously this isn’t something we recommend long-term. It’s just one day.

And it just might be the most challenging and insightful day you’ve had in a long time.

A couple of important caveats:

You can do this on a schedule that works for you. For example, you could fast from dinner to dinner, or lunch to lunch. If 24 hours feels like too much, consider just skipping a meal or two instead. This isn’t about getting it “perfect.” Also, it might go without saying, but you probably shouldn’t try this experiment on a day when you need to be 100% “on your game,” such as when you’re flying a plane or doing open-heart surgery.

Fasting isn’t right for everyone. Do not fast if you:

� have a medical condition that requires you to eat

� struggle with disordered eating and have been told never to fast

� know that periods of food restriction—even if done carefully and consciously—can lead to bingeing later on

The lesson: Hunger isn’t an emergency.

It’s natural to worry that hunger will keep getting worse and worse—making us feel lousy and preventing us from getting anything useful done.

But hunger doesn’t work like that.



Hunger hormones are released in waves based on when our bodies are expecting food.

As you’ll probably experience while doing this experiment, hunger is strongest around the three- to four-hour mark of a fast. Then it subsides.

It’s an incredible feeling (and often a great relief) to learn that you can feel hungry—truly hungry—and choose not to do anything about it.

There are several benefits here:

� Benefit #1: If the available food choices don’t make sense for you, you know you can wait until something better is available. No biggie.



� Benefit #2: You learn what true hunger feels like. This awareness can help you distinguish psychological hunger (“I feel like eating something”) from physiological hunger (“My body is telling me it’s time to eat”).

� Benefit #3: If it’s not “time to eat,” waiting until your next meal or snack won’t feel like a problem. This is not only convenient if hunger strikes somewhere food isn’t accessible (such as on your commute), but can also be extremely helpful if you’re trying to lose fat.

Keep experimenting, keep growing.

You can probably see why we’re such big fans of self-experimentation: It’s quite literally a win-win. You’ll either get a reaffirming boost of confidence and confirmation that you’re already on the right track, or you’ll get valuable information about how you can change things for the better.

By simply paying attention to how experiments make you feel, you empower and energize yourself to make better, more informed choices.

And remember: Self-experimentation isn’t about getting it perfect. It’s about finding out what works for you, and then putting it into practice—one small step at a time.

1 Lichtman SW, Pisarska K, Berman ER, Pestone M, Dowling H, Offenbacher E, et al. Discrepancy between self-reported and actual caloric intake and exercise in obese subjects. N Engl J Med. 1992 Dec 31;327(27):1893–8.

2 Champagne CM, Bray GA, Kurtz AA, Monteiro JBR, Tucker E, Volaufova J, et al. Energy intake and energy expenditure: a controlled study comparing dietitians and non-dietitians. J Am Diet Assoc. 2002 Oct;102(10):1428–32.

References

https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/1454084/




PART 2

The 30-day eating challenge that can blow your clients’ mind—and

transform their bodies.By Krista Scott-Dixon, PhD



“You want the next level stuff?” I asked.“Do this first, and let’s see if you can handle it.”

The nutrition advice I’d just given Cameron Lichtwer wasn’t what he expected, so I made it a challenge.

As an instructor at the British Columbia Personal Training Institute, a strength and conditioning coach, and a former competitive athlete, Cameron was no stranger to exercise and nutrition. In fact, he thought he’d tried it all.

But my advice? It was so… basic. Wasn’t he far beyond that?

Well, no. Because what I told him can help almost anyone, from the most advanced dieters to those who’ve struggled with healthy eating for a lifetime.

“Eat slowly and mindfully.”

I know: It sounds too ridiculously simple to work.

But guess what? It was exactly what Cameron needed. In two months, his body fat dropped from 13.9 percent to 9.5 percent, the lowest level he’s ever achieved. This was without weighing and measuring food, or following a restrictive meal plan.

Soon after he started, he sent me this text:

“I can’t believe it. I’m losing fat and destroying my workouts. I’m sleeping better. I feel awesome.”

Cameron was surprised by the results he got from such a simple process.

But I wasn’t.

Eating slowly is one of the core practices of the Precision Nutrition Coaching program.



Because it works.

So why not try the slow-eating challenge yourself or with your clients?

Practice it for just 30 days, and you may be shocked at what you achieve—even if you don’t change anything else.

5 ways this 30-day eating challenge will change your body and mind.

When it comes to eating better, most folks worry about the little details:

� “Are potatoes fattening?”

� “If I don’t drink a protein shake after my workout, is it even worth exercising?”

� “Is keto really the best way to lose weight? Or should I be doing Paleo? Or what about the alkaline diet?!”

Yet they eat over the kitchen sink. Or in their car. Or in a daze while in front of the TV.

And who can blame them? We’ve been taught to think about what we eat, not how we eat.

That’s too bad since…

Eating slowly and mindfully can actually be more important than:

� what you eat

� when you eat

� getting anything else “perfect”

Now, this may seem a bit controversial. After all, if you only eat Oreos, the speed at which you consume them isn’t your biggest problem.



But setting aside the extremes, slow eating may be the single most powerful habit for driving major transformation.

Instead of having to figure out which foods to eat, in what frequency, and in what portions—all important factors, of course—eating slowly is the simplest way anyone can start losing weight and feeling better, immediately. (Like, after your first slow-eaten meal.)

That fuels confidence and motivation, and from there, you can always tighten up the details.

Because why go to the complicated stuff right away, when you can get incredible results without it?

Slow eating isn’t just for nutrition newbies. Nutrition nerds can also see big benefits. If you’re like Cameron, for example, it could be the key to unlocking never-before-seen progress. In fact, we’ve seen it work for physique competitors, fitness models, and even Olympic athletes.

Slow eating is like the secret weight-loss weapon everyone has access to, but nobody knows about.

That’s because it can help you…

1. Eat less without feeling deprived.

Sure, many popular diets claim this as a benefit. But with slow eating, this phenomenon can occur even if you don’t change what you’re eating.

For example, in one study, University of Rhode Island researchers served the same pasta lunch to 30 normal-weight women on two different days. At both meals, participants were told to eat until comfortably full.



But they were also told:

� Lunch 1: Eat this meal as fast as you can.

� Lunch 2: Eat slowly and put your utensils down between every bite.

The results:

� When eating quickly, the women consumed 646 calories in 9 minutes.

� When eating slowly, they consumed 579 calories in 29 minutes.

So in 20 more minutes, the slow-eaters ate 67 fewer calories. What’s more, it also took them longer to feel hungry afterward compared to when they were speeding through their lunch.

These effects, spread across every meal and snack, could add up to hundreds of calories saved over the course of a day.

Granted, this is just a single study, but it demonstrates what we’ve seen with our clients over and over.

(Feel free to try this experiment at home right now, if you like.)

Why does this happen?

Reason 1: Physiology. It takes about 20 minutes for your body’s satiety signals to kick in. Slow eating gives the system time to work, allowing you to better sense when you’ve had enough.

Reason 2: Psychology. When you slow down, and really try to savor your meal, you tend to feel satisfied with less, and feel less “deprived.”



CLIENT STORIES

Rachel Levy: Facing fear and anxiety.

Rachel Levy’s initial reaction to this challenge: “I can’t possibly eat slowly. I will die!”

As you can guess, she didn’t perish after giving it a try. In fact, she went on to be the female winner of our July 2018 transformation contest.

How’d she make it happen?

“I decided to just try. Just put one foot in front of the other, and only do what was being asked of me—eat just a little bit slower.

“I faced the fear of doing something different.”

During her first two weeks of eating slowly, Rachel had one of those “aha moments.”

“I suddenly realized that the reason I ate quickly was actually a feedback loop: I ate quickly to calm my anxiety, but eating quickly was making me anxious.”

The upshot: Discovering this connection immediately made it easy for Rachel to eat slowly.

2. Look and feel better.

Have regular bloating, cramping, or stomach pains? Many of our clients say slow eating helped solve their digestive issues.

Why does speed matter?

Because when you wolf down your food, you take larger bites and chew less.



Your stomach has a harder time mashing those big chunks of food into chyme—the sludgy mix of partially digested food, hydrochloric acid, digestive enzymes, and water that passes from your stomach into your small intestine.

When food isn’t properly broken down into chyme, it can cause indigestion and other GI problems. We may absorb fewer nutrients, depleting ourselves of valuable vitamins and minerals.

Besides making you uncomfortable (maybe even miserable), shoddy digestion can also affect your mindset.

For instance, if your meal leaves you bloated, burpy, and sluggish, you may interpret this as “feeling out of shape,” and become discouraged about your efforts. On the other hand, slowing down and digesting your food properly may help you “feel leaner.”

3. Learn what “hungry” and “full” feel like.

Ever have a meal because it’s a certain time of day, even if you’re not particularly hungry?

Or clean your plate, though you’re pretty sure you’ll regret it?

These are just a couple of ways people tune out their internal hunger and satiety cues. There are plenty more, but the point is:

Many of us eat when we’re not hungry, and keep eating when full.

Slow eating can help get you right again. With regular practice, it improves your appetite awareness. You learn to recognize —and more importantly, trust—your body’s own internal signals.

Over time, this retrains you to eat when you’re hungry and stop when you’re full. Not because some rigid meal plan demands it, but because your body (a.k.a. your new best friend) tells you so.



This is the difference between being “on a diet” and learning how to “listen to your body”… a valuable skill that allows you to make healthier choices for the rest of your life.

Voila—lasting body transformation in a way that doesn’t suck.

CLIENT STORIES

Nellie Long: Tackling food addiction.

Nellie was already “healthy” when she started Precision Nutrition Coaching. She went to the gym three to five times a week, ate mostly whole, unprocessed foods, and wasn’t really looking to lose weight.

There was just one problem: She struggled with food addiction. “I needed to face the reason I was eating a pound of carrots in one sitting,” she says.

When first introduced to the habit of eating slowly, Nellie was so worried she couldn’t do it, she considered leaving the program. But instead, she accepted the challenge. And although there were setbacks—like the day she ate seven cupcakes—little by little, it started to get easier.

Now, it’s revolutionized her relationship with food. On a recent backpacking trip, Nellie’s friend brought some Fritos along. At the end of their 13-mile day, Nellie started craving those chips.

“Before, I would have pounded them down. But this time, I put one in my mouth and savored it.” She still ate the chips—slowly—but instead of feeling ashamed and overstuffed, she felt nourished and satisfied.



Big lesson for Nellie:

“I’ve learned that when I listen to my body, it tells me everything I need to be successful.”

4. Disrupt patterns that derail your progress.

For people who struggle with binge eating, learning to go slow can help.

That might sound odd, since a binge is driven by an overwhelming urge to consume as much food as possible, as fast as possible. (This quality is what differentiates binge eating from run-of-the-mill overeating.)

But the skills you develop from slow eating can help you mitigate the damage, and build resilience over time.

Here’s how: When you’re in the grip of a binge, slow down as soon as you realize what’s happening.

Pause. Breathe. The food will wait for you. Even just one breath between bites will help.

You might not be able to stop eating right away, and that’s okay. How much you eat isn’t as important as getting back into a more thoughtful state of mind.

With this “binge slowly” technique, most people can regain a sense of control. And the more you practice it, the more effective it will be.

If you keep slowing down, even during your most difficult moments:

� You’ll become more aware of why, where, and how you’re binging (so it won’t seem random, and eventually you can break the chain).

� You’ll likely eat less and stop sooner.

https://www.precisionnutrition.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/break-the-chain-worksheet.pdf



� You’ll feel less panicked and powerless.

� You’ll be able to soothe yourself more effectively, and get back into “wise mind” faster.

In time, this’ll help normalize your eating, boost your physical and psychological health, and improve body composition (or help you maintain a healthy body composition more easily, without restriction-compensation cycles).

5. Gain a tool you can use anytime, anywhere.

We don’t always have control over what foods are available to us. But we always have control over how quickly we chew and swallow.

Think of slow eating as the low-hanging fruit of nutrition: super accessible in any situation.

It doesn’t require specialized meal plans or a food scale. No matter what’s going on in your life, or what’s on your plate, you can practice eating slowly.

CLIENT STORIES Elaine Gordon: Finding a better way.

When Precision Nutrition Coaching client Elaine Gordon started the program, she already knew a lot about nutrition from years of working with coaches and researching on her own.

“I knew the ‘whats’ of eating well, but really benefited from the ‘hows’ that PN teaches,” she says.

“It’s incredible to see how your relationship with food changes when you bring awareness to the process of eating.”



Thanks to her new, more mindful relationship with food, Elaine began to get the results she’d been after all those years. And after seeing how effective it was for Elaine, her husband even started eating slowly. Now they practice the habit together.

The best part? Elaine knows she has this tool at her disposal, no matter where she is or what she’s doing.

“If all else fails with my diet, I can always choose to eat slowly.”

How to eat slowly.

Eating slowly and mindfully is simple and effective—but not necessarily easy.

Most people have to work at it.

Thankfully, you don’t have to get it “perfect.” Shoot for “a little bit better” instead. You might be surprised at how effective this can be.

Try one of these tips. You can experiment with them for just one meal, or take on a full 30-day slow-eating challenge, if you feel up to it.

Take just one breath.

Before you eat, pause. Take one breath.

Take one bite. Then take another breath.

Take another bite. Then take another breath.

Go one bite, and one breath at a time.

That’s it.



Add just one minute.

At first, most people panic at the idea of “wasting time” on eating or having to be alone with their thoughts and the sounds of crunching for too long. Plus, life is busy and rushed. Having long leisurely meals may feel impossible.

So, start small. Add just one minute per meal. Or two, or three, if you’re feeling sassy about it.

When you start your meal, start the clock (or use an app to time yourself).

The game: Stretch out that meal as long as you can. Then try to make your next meal last one minute longer.

Over time, you can gradually build up how long you spend at meals.

Don’t be hard on yourself: If you forget to slow down during one meal, no biggie. Just slow down next time, and notice what happens.

And remember, even one minute better—or one breath-between-bites better—can help.

Put down the remote.

For the next level of challenge, don’t eat while you drive, watch TV, or play with your phone. Sit at a table, not on your living room couch, and for heaven’s sake, don’t eat standing over the sink. Try to relax and experience your meal.

The whole point is to pay attention to your food and body. So, over the next 30 days, try to eat in a calm environment with minimal distractions.

Eat foods that need to really be chewed.

Try this experiment: Eat a whole food, like an apple slice, and count how many chews it takes to swallow a mouthful. Then grab a highly processed snack, like a cracker or cookie, and count your chews.



What differences do you notice?

Which food do you think will be easier to eat slowly?

Now act accordingly.

Minimally processed lean proteins, fruits and vegetables, whole grains, beans and legumes require more effort—and time—to eat.

The more you have to chew, the longer it’ll take you to eat, giving your fullness signals a chance to catch up.

Do something between bites.

Pacing yourself is easier when you have a specific action in mind to break up mouthfuls of food.

Between bites, try:

� setting down your utensils

� taking a breath (or three)

� taking a sip of water

� asking someone at the table a question

Savor your food.

When you eat… eat. Enjoy it. Really taste it.

Is it salty? Sweet? Does it coat the roof of your mouth? What’s the texture like?

Notice these little details with each bite.

To really tap into this experience, try “wine tasting” your food. Practice chewing slowly, sniffing, and savoring your food, as if it were a fine wine.



Notice what affects your eating speed.

As you experiment, identify what affects your eating speed or focus.

Consider factors such as:

� who you eat with

� when you eat

� what you eat

� where you eat

Once you’ve made some observations, ask yourself:

� What could you do to improve on what is already working well?

� What could you change, given what isn’t working well?

Refine your practice.

Pay attention to the eating speed of those around you. Observe the slowest-eating person in the group and match their speed.

If you find yourself rushing, that’s okay. Put your utensils down and take a minute to re-focus. If slow eating isn’t habitual for you, this will take some time to master.

Embrace an experimental mindset and notice what you learn.

Remember: every meal is a chance to practice.

CLIENT STORIES Phillip Wilson: Getting leaner and learning to be present.Like many others, Phillip was skeptical about eating slowly.

“I never expected it to work. It sounded too easy,” he says.



Eating slowly was more challenging than he expected, but with practice, things started to click, and the results have been major.

“The simple act of making time to eat slowly has gotten me closer to my goals than anything I’ve ever tried,” says Phillip.

And the results aren’t just physical: Slowing down his eating helped Phillip set a more comfortable pace in other areas of his life, too.

“Not only am I leaner, but life doesn’t just pass me by anymore. I’m more aware of the moments that are right in front of me.”

I ate slowly, now what?

At the end of your 30-day challenge, tune into what’s different.

You’re probably going to observe some changes in your body—such as how your stomach feels after a meal or how your pants fit. You may also notice mental changes, like what you think about while you’re eating, or how you react to feeling hungry or full.

Look at how much has changed in just 30 days, and imagine:

What would happen if you continued working on this habit… forever?

There’s a good reason to do just that: No matter what other habits you adopt or “next level stuff” you try, eating slowly will always enhance your efforts. And how often can you say that about anything?

But don’t just keep it to yourself: Share the 30-day slow-eating challenge with your clients, friends, family, and co-workers. It could be exactly what they need, but never even knew to try.

PART 3

Never press “pause” on your health and fitness again. This tool is your secret weapon.Use this genius dial to keep making progress—no matter how tough your day...

or week... or month.

By John Berardi, PhD, Krista Scott-Dixon, PhD, and Julia Malacoff, PN1, CPT



“I’ll get back to the gym as soon as…… work slows down.

… the kids are back in school.

… we’re done working on the house.”

Most of us, and our clients, can come up with any number of worthy-feeling justifications for taking a “breather” from our health and fitness efforts.

But often, it all comes down to the one essential reason:

“Life is busy and stressful. I need to press ‘pause’ until things slow down and are less crazy.”

Except… things never really slow down permanently.

So we get stuck in an endless cycle: Giving health and fitness our all, then inevitably giving up when there’s something standing in the way of getting to the gym, eating well, or heading to bed at a reasonable hour.

With that all-or-nothing approach, we never really get anywhere.

But what if there were a way to keep you (or your clients) making progress—even during the busiest days, weeks, and months?

Introducing the “dial” method: an incredibly simple tool for scaling your (your clients’) health habits up and down based on what’s going on in your life.

Instead of getting stuck in “all or nothing,” this method helps you strive for “always something.”

The best part? You’ll never have to worry about “falling off the fitness wagon” again.



Work deadlines...social commitments...new baby...vacation: It’s tempting to wait for the “perfect time” to address health and fitness. Here’s why that doesn’t work, and what to do instead.

6 genius “dials” to help you keep making progress, even when life gets crazy.

HOW TO STOP PRESSING PAUSEON YOUR HEALTH AND FITNESS

LIFE DOESN’T PAUSE...

experience stress at home.

60%

of students experience moderate to high

school-related stress.

83%

have trouble exercising regularly

because of the demands of daily life.

62%

of those with jobs usually work 8 or more hours/day.

65%

of those who work deal with moderate to high job stress.

89%

of caregivers deal with moderate to high

caregiving stress.

88%

find it difficult to deal with stress, at least some of the

time.

87%

Challenges reported by Precision Nutrition Coaching clients when they enter the program:



Nix the play/pause buttons, and instead think of your health habits as having volume knobs.Turn them up or down depending on what you're ready, willing, and able to do today.

...SO HEALTH AND FITNESS SHOULDN’T, EITHER

THANKFULLY, EVEN SMALL EFFORTS ADD UP OVER TIME.

6 WAYS TO ADJUST YOUR “LIFE DIAL”TO KEEP MAKING PROGRESS.

What your progress looks like when you keep pressing pause.

Pounds lost

11

17

2429

5%7%

11%13%8

1216

20

2 4 5.5 6

11 1215

19

6% 7% 9% 10% 1115 17

21

3 3.5 4 5

Percent bodyweight lost

Total inches lost Inches fromwaist lost

10-49%CONSISTENCY

50-79%CONSISTENCY

80-89%CONSISTENCY

90-100%CONSISTENCY

TIME

PR

OG

RE

SS

Body transformation at different levels of consistency after 12 months of Precision Nutrition Coaching.



MOVEMENTPark farther from

office to walk moreIntense daily training for tactical/military job

3 30-min. workouts/week + daily 20-min. walk

Take stairs instead of elevator

10-min. workout next to bed in

the morning

Reasonably challenging 30-min.

workout 3x/week

3 1-hr. gym workouts/week + daily walk

Challenging 60-90 min. workout 6x/week

5 1-hr. workouts/week + daily 1-hr. walk

Gym routine 4x/week; hike on weekends

1

2

38

4

10

9

7

6 5

NUTRITION

SUN MON TUE WED THU FRI SAT

1

2

38

4

10

9

7

6 5

Replace 1 meal w/ less processed one

Run organic farm and health spa; all meals prepped by sports nutritionist; eat slowly with no distractions

Protein w/ each meal

Add side salad to your lunch

Try 1 new healthy

recipe/week

Sit at table for most meals

Protein + portion of fruit or veg. at most meals

Eat mostly local/organic; plan all meals in advance, each “perfectly” balanced

Prep food in advance; protein + veg. at each meal; balance fats

Prep food for week in advance; 6 servings of veg./day



SLEEP

1

2

38

4

10

9

7

6 5

5 min. of wind-down time before bed

No screens outside working hours; advanced sleep tracking and coaching; specially-engineered sleep pod

Shut down screens 1 hr. before bed; get outside for natural sunlight during day

Have less alcohol, caffeine,

and very heavy meals in evenings

Calendar reminder to

go to bed 30 min. before

bedtime

Leave phone outside bedroom;

have a regular bedtime

Do purposeful relaxation exercises before bed; keep bedroom tidy and cool

Restorative yoga before bed; wake up with the sun; high-tech cooling mattress

Elaborate bedtime routine with Epsom salt baths and aromatherapy

Buy blackout shades and white noise machine; break up with snooze button

SOCIAL

1

2

38

4

10

9

7

6 5

Ask a loved one for a hug

Live on commune with soulmate

Organize a book, cooking, or sports

club with friends

Call an old friend to catch up

Do something nice for

someone else

Practice active listening;

compliment others

Let go of relationships not serving you; invest in ones that do

Fulfilling volunteer work; weekly activity meetups with friends

Find and work with a mentor you look up to

Take a class with new, like-minded people



STRESS5 min. snuggling

with a pet Fill days w/ joy, play, fresh air; fulfilling, relaxed job; quiet contemplation and meditation; weekly massages

Established meditation practice; frequent hugs; walking meetings when

possible

1 min. of deep breathing most

days

Regular 5-min. breaks

from work for fresh

air/sunlight

After-dinner walk with a

loved one each day; avoid

multitasking

15 min. in nature daily; self-compassion practice

No social media; counseling once a week; engaging hobby

Unplug once a week; regular sex; balance of scheduled productivity and sponteneity

Mix of gentle and intense exercise; drink alcohol moderately and mindfully

1

2

38

4

10

9

7

6 5

ENVIRONMENTRemove one “trigger”

item from kitchen Live at wellness retreat; meals prepared by private chef; state-of-the-art home gym

Put “red light” foods in a hard-to-reach place; sign

up for CSA box

Keep dumbbells and resistance bands at home

Serve meals on smaller

dishes

Move TV to a room you don’t use very much;

keep healthy snacks in office

desk drawer

Kitchen cleanout and restock once a month

Get treadmill desk at work; meal delivery service; give up car for bike

Meal prep each week; organize social activities around sports

Get a dog that needs walking; spend time with friends who eat healthy

1

2

38

4

10

9

7

6 5



TRY IT OUT FOR YOURSELF

Step 1: Consider areas of life where you’d like to change or improve.

Step 2: Ask, “What’s the absolute MOST I could do?” That’s your 10.

Step 3: Ask, “What’s the absolute LEAST?” There’s your 1.

Step 4: Use 1 and 10 to fill in the other points on the dial.

Step 5: Refer to your dial when life gets busy (or slows down!).

1

2

38

4

10

9

7

6 5

For the full article explaining this infographic, visit: https://www.precisionnutrition.com/pause-button-mentality

If your career path includes coaching people to make lasting change, check out the #1 rated Precision Nutrition Level 1 Certification. It’s the most respected nutrition and lifestyle coaching education program in the world—and the next group kicks off soon.

Created specifically for people working in all areas of health and fitness, our self-paced nutrition certification teaches you the science of nutrition and the art of world-class coaching.

Developed over 15 years.

Proven with over 100,000 clients.

#1 recommended nutrition certification.

Trusted by professionals.

Discover how to help anyone make better food choices—starting now.

Whether you’re already mid-career or just starting out, this self-study nutrition certification will give you the knowledge, systems, and tools to make real, lasting change with anyone you work with.

Visit this link for more information.

(Already a student or graduate of the Level 1 Certification?

Take the next step and check out our Level 2 Certification. It’s an exclusive, year-long Master Class for elite professionals who want to take their nutrition knowledge and skills to the highest possible level.)

https://www.precisionnutrition.com/nutrition-certification-level-1-presale?utm_medium=internal&utm_source=course&utm_campaign=course-essentialguidetofood



lesson 3 strategies that transform eating habits

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