Meeting Dr. Brian Wansink. Last Thursday I was lucky enough to attend a small student lunch with
Dr. Brian Wansink, author of Mindless Eating (among other books), Professor of Consumer Behavior at Cornell University, and the 2007- 2009 Executive Director of USDA’s Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion.
I was first impressed by the fact that he took the time after a long plane trip, multiple meetings and plans to give a talk later that night to spend his lunch hour sitting and chatting with ten of us. Dr. Wansink basically invited us to spend the hour interrogating him about anything we wanted, not just his book but also life, successes, and how to deal with failures.
He told us to seize opportunities, even if they seem (in his words) "weird" because it is often those roads that lead to unexpected and even successful moments. He talked about his experiences as a student, getting started with writing, and I even got to pick his brain on how he comes up with his innovative research ideas.
Later that night I went to see Dr. Wansink's talk with my boyfriend. I had read his book, so I was familiar with many of the studies he discussed, but what really stuck with me was his discussion of the ripple effect.
He closed his talk with real life examples of people who had made one small change, and that small change had led to such amazing results as a 25 pound weight loss due to habit change. He gave examples of people who had merely changed the size of their plates to control portion sizes, or a man who had taken to eating cottage cheese every day right after work so his appetite remained controlled for the rest of the evening leading to his eventual weight loss.
This concept of small changes has stuck with me. If you are like me you tend to think big picture and make big goals to work towards.
These big goals may end up daunting in the long run leading to frustration. But it's those small goals, the idea of changing one small thing that can lead to lasting effects. We are much more inclined to stick with something that feels both successful and at the same time not a drastic change. If we make a bunch of small changes over a period of time, we win.
It's often the case that we decide to make changes once there is already a problem, if it ain't broke don't fix it right?
That is why preventative nutrition is often so difficult, because people don't see a need until they are already on a less than healthy path. I am a victim to this. A few months ago I had a bit of a health problem, nothing life threatening but enough to change my lifestyle and my comfort level for awhile. I felt terrible, and no doctor could quite figure out what was going on. I wasn't able to stick to my normal exercise routine which drove me crazy. While I am a generally clean eater, I decided to really clean myself up for awhile to keep my body in the best state possible to promote the healing process. I began juicing fresh vegetables everyday, eating green kale smoothie drinks, and cutting back on my sweet tooth.
I am happy to report that it's been three months since I have experienced any of my previous symptoms, and I have continued my clean eating habits. As a result my skin looks better, my energy levels are better, and I just feel good. Maybe it's because I appreciate feeling well, or maybe it's the overload of antioxidants, vitamins, and phytochemicals running through my system. Whatever the case may be, I am sticking to my clean eating because I want to try to be one step ahead of the game. My small change was adding in those extra fresh veggies, and now they are a habit. Sure I'm back to the occasional sweet treat, and I don't always have time to juice, but I do it as much as possible. Why wait until I'm not feeling well to clean things up?
You only have one body, you might as well take care of it.
Try making one small change this month. Don't think ahead to the big picture, just do it. It can be as simple as swapping your processed, white grains for whole grains, brown rice instead of white, whole wheat instead of sourdough. Maybe you skip breakfast, try eating a piece of toast before you leave the house. Add an extra veggie to your meal each day. Take a walk on your lunch break.
Don't make it complicated, make it doable. And go check out
Brian Wansink's website here.
Or his blog. I promise you will be thoroughly entertained, and probably learn a bit too.
Meeting Dr. Brian Wansink.
Last Thursday I was lucky enough to attend a small student lunch with Dr. Brian Wansink, author of Mindless Eating (among other books), Professor of Consumer Behavior at Cornell University, and the 2007- 2009 Executive Director of USDA’s Center for Nutrition Policy and Promotion.
I was first impressed by the fact that he took the time after a long plane trip, multiple meetings and plans to give a talk later that night to spend his lunch hour sitting and chatting with ten of us. Dr. Wansink basically invited us to spend the hour interrogating him about anything we wanted, not just his book but also life, successes, and how to deal with failures. He told us to seize opportunities, even if they seem (in his words) "weird" because it is often those roads that lead to unexpected and even successful moments. He talked about his experiences as a student, getting started with writing, and I even got to pick his brain on how he comes up with his innovative research ideas.
Later that night I went to see Dr. Wansink's talk with my boyfriend. I had read his book, so I was familiar with many of the studies he discussed, but what really stuck with me was his discussion of the ripple effect. He closed his talk with real life examples of people who had made one small change, and that small change had led to such amazing results as a 25 pound weight loss due to habit change. He gave examples of people who had merely changed the size of their plates to control portion sizes, or a man who had taken to eating cottage cheese every day right after work so his appetite remained controlled for the rest of the evening leading to his eventual weight loss.
This concept of small changes has stuck with me. If you are like me you tend to think big picture and make big goals to work towards. These big goals may end up daunting in the long run leading to frustration. But it's those small goals, the idea of changing one small thing that can lead to lasting effects. We are much more inclined to stick with something that feels both successful and at the same time not a drastic change. If we make a bunch of small changes over a period of time, we win.
It's often the case that we decide to make changes once there is already a problem, if it ain't broke don't fix it right? That is why preventative nutrition is often so difficult, because people don't see a need until they are already on a less than healthy path. I am a victim to this. A few months ago I had a bit of a health problem, nothing life threatening but enough to change my lifestyle and my comfort level for awhile. I felt terrible, and no doctor could quite figure out what was going on. I wasn't able to stick to my normal exercise routine which drove me crazy. While I am a generally clean eater, I decided to really clean myself up for awhile to keep my body in the best state possible to promote the healing process. I began juicing fresh vegetables everyday, eating green kale smoothie drinks, and cutting back on my sweet tooth.
I am happy to report that it's been three months since I have experienced any of my previous symptoms, and I have continued my clean eating habits. As a result my skin looks better, my energy levels are better, and I just feel good. Maybe it's because I appreciate feeling well, or maybe it's the overload of antioxidants, vitamins, and phytochemicals running through my system. Whatever the case may be, I am sticking to my clean eating because I want to try to be one step ahead of the game. My small change was adding in those extra fresh veggies, and now they are a habit. Sure I'm back to the occasional sweet treat, and I don't always have time to juice, but I do it as much as possible. Why wait until I'm not feeling well to clean things up? You only have one body, you might as well take care of it.
Try making one small change this month. Don't think ahead to the big picture, just do it. It can be as simple as swapping your processed, white grains for whole grains, brown rice instead of white, whole wheat instead of sourdough. Maybe you skip breakfast, try eating a piece of toast before you leave the house. Add an extra veggie to your meal each day. Take a walk on your lunch break. Don't make it complicated, make it doable.
And go check out Brian Wansink's website here. Or his blog. I promise you will be thoroughly entertained, and probably learn a bit too.