Repattern your relationship with food - Habit 1: Eating mindfully, slowly until 80% full.

Tyler Key

09 Dec 2025 — 7 min read

Eating mindfully, slowly and until 80% full is the most effective habit for changing how food impacts our lives.

You can practice it at any meal, and makes a difference before you make any changes to your whole diet.
Unlike other nutrition strategies - this CAN be used situations you are eating out socially or have less choice of your food.

TL;DR

Why NOT to eat fast and stressed
It makes it much easier to overeat.

When we eat stressed, we connect food to stress and stress to food - reinforcing food as a way to manage our stress.
When we eat fast, we can outpace our bodily signals of fullness.

Benefits of eating mindfully, slowly to 80% full.
1. Better appetite regulation: Eating slowly gives your brain time to register fullness, so you are likely to feel more satisfied after each meal
2. Reduced calorie intake and weight support: stopping at ~80% full reduces overeating and supports long‑term weight management and sustainable, healthy weight loss.
3. Greater meal satisfaction: Chewing mindfully boosts flavour, enjoyment, and the sense of fullness from each meal.
4. Improved digestion - Chewing more increases breakdown of food for absorption and chewing slowly limits rushed swallowing which can both reduce bloating and indigestion.

How to do it

Before eating:
Try create or find a calmer, distraction‑free spot.
Say a short reminder of how you want to eat e.g. slowly, mindfully
During:
Sit, breathe and take a moment to relax, take a sip water, then start eating
Chew each bite slowly, and more than you might usually (10‑20 chews).
Place utensils down after every bite.
Notice the food - texture, taste,
Notice your body - how your body feels sensing into fullness as you approach it
Adjust and be compassionate as you go
After - Briefly reflect:
Did you stay present?
How did you feel?
Use the insight to improve next meals.

The opposite of this habit, is how I used to eat

I used to eat stressed, fast and until 110% full

For example back in 2013 - I had a really shit day - I can't remember why - but I remember that I wanted to eat all my feelings

do you reckon I can eat a whole family pizza?

I asked my friend before our weekly catch up and before she answered I ordered it.

I listened to her day while shoveling in my pizza and 10 minutes later what would feed a family of four was finished and she had eaten two regular, non-family sized slices.

Eating stressed and fast was a regular occurrence until I learnt about relationship with food - and it was one of the key reasons I would overeat.

Why NOT to eat fast and stressed

When you eat quickly, your brain doesn’t get the time it needs to register the gradual rise of satiety hormones - so you don't notice when you are full, which makes it easier to over eat, and keep eating

When you eat regularly when stressed or with negative emotions, you build a number of relationships in your brain:

when stressed or emotional, I eat food
the difference between hunger and stress or stress and hunger are unclear to your body and your brain
when your body experience stress, this can be felt as hunger
when your body experiences hunger, this can be felt as stress

This makes it very easy to overeat in a world of ever increasing stress -
and is a great reason to always take your food away from your desk, and take a break while you have your lunch.

How to eat mindfully and slowly until 80% full

Before a Meal

Find, create and choose to eat in less stressful environments.
Before you get your meal - you need to choose where you will eat it.
Try to eat your food in lower stress environments free of distractions - so not your desk at work.
We want to build relationship with food that is neutral and then maybe eventually positive, rather than stressful.
Our environment always influences how we feel, and how we eat.
Eating distracted doesn't allow our body to notice the food, and we miss bodily signals.
Remind yourself how you want to eat food before you start and why
After reading through the following steps:
create a phrase that you can tell yourself before each meal

e.g. "I am going to eat this meal mindfully, by taking in the scenery, slowly, by putting down my utensils or food between each bite, and remembering to chew my food slowly. I am doing this to nourish my body, and look after myself - there is no need to rush."

Adapt to something that works for you.

Reminding ourselves why we are doing something helps us reconnect and build our internal motivation

During the meal

Sit, Breathe, Hydrate, Eat
Take a seat, breathe deep but relaxed, have a drink of water - and then, start eating.
Breathing and hydrating are all signals to your body to begin to relax.
This reinforces that meal times less stressful times of the day.
Hydrating has the added benefit of increasing the volume consumed in a sitting which influences how satiated/full you are/feel.
Chew slowly, chew more
Chew slowly - sometimes our jaws take over and we are chewing really really fast.
Intentionally slow down how fast you are chewing and savour your food.
Chew more than you might think - this aids with digestion along with the time it takes to eat your food.
It takes roughly 20 minutes for your body to release satiation hormones to let you know you are full. Take your time.
Put it down between bites
By it, I mean between each bite - that you chew slowly, and chew more than you usually do - put down your utensils or the food your holding e.g. sandwich
Notice, Sense, Monitor, Adjust
Notice the texture, taste, and as your chewing slowly you have more time to enjoy your food (learning to cook tasty food does make this easier! will cover this in another article)
Every couple of bites - listen on your body and brain - what is it telling you?
Do you feel the urge to speed up? How can you stay present?
Are you getting full?
Take note and listen to your body - there may be discomfort during early stages of implementing this strategy, is normal when trying new things.
Allow feelings to arise, while practicing kindness and compassion to yourself.
Make adjustments as necessary and return to the practice as you can.
At any point, know that you can drop the practice and continue your day.

After the meal

Reflect
How did you go implementing the strategies above?
Did you:

find or make your environment calmer?
move away from distractions or work?
chew each bite more, and slowly?
put your food or utensils down between bites?
listen and notice how your body responded to your food?
how did you feel, before, during and after?

We evolved for slow meals

Eating food slowly and with gratitude is an act of resisting western views of consumption in the purest form of the word.

Most cultures around the world have some form of this practice to honour here and acknowledge.

Indigenous cultures worldwide: food and meals are based on connection to land, animal and plant kin, and community. Food has always been central to gathering, caring for each other and for all living beings.
Japan: The Okinawan principle hara hachi bu (stop at 80% full) and the broader cultural value of savoring small portions slowly with gratitude before meals itadakimasu (I humbly receive).
Mediterranean cultures (Italy, Greece, Spain): Meals are social events, often lasting hours, with emphasis on conversation, savoring food, and multiple small courses.
France: it is normal to take lunch for up to two hours, even during work
India: traditions encourage mindful eating, focusing on awareness of taste, digestion, and gratitude.
South Korea: bapsang - many small dishes eaten slowly with family.

Give it a try, adapt it to work for you over time, let me know how you go!

References:

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