Peter Kaminsky is a longtime food writer and author of a new book, “Culinary Intelligence: The Art of Eating Healthy (and Really Well)”. His theory is that selecting high quality, high flavor foods is key to keeping your weight down. When your taste buds are tantalized, you simply need less food.

You can check out the New York Times profile on Mr. Kaminsky here.

Well, Mom was onto something, because this type of visual over-eating is a very real phenomenon. Though most of us have grown out of the pillowcase-full-of-candy phase, you may be familiar with the shock of polishing off an entire bag of potato chips… when you intended to have just a handful.

In his brilliant book, How We Decide, Jonah Lehrer offers an example of this type of behavior, using M&M’s:

“One day (psychologists) left out a bowl of the chocolate candies and a small scoop. The next day they refilled the bowl with M&M’s but placed a much larger scoop beside it. The result would not surprise anyone who has ever finished a Big Gulp soda or a supersize serving of McDonald’s fries: when the scoop size was increased, people took 66% more M&M’s.“

How many is "just a few"?

In short, this means that we tend to let our eyes do the thinking – not our stomachs. A big part of the 80Bites program is learning to listen to your stomach. It’s about more just counting daily bites. It’s about training your whole body to assess a food situation before digging in. When faced with a buffet of tasty treats, you’re able to step back and ask yourself some questions: “How hungry am I? Based on how much I know my stomach needs to feel satisfied, how much food do I really need to take?” More often than not, your stomach is less excited than your eyes at the prospect of stuffing yourself silly.

So the next time you’re faced with food that’s a feast for the eyes, let it be just that.

In this day and age of snacking, the Single Food has become king. Individually wrapped granola bars, single servings of potato chips, a quick piece of fruit…  these foods are designed to be grabbed and gobbled on the go. The foods themselves aren’t the problem, though – it’s eating them by themselves that’s trouble.

If you’re going to go to the trouble of “waking up” your stomach and putting your digestive system to work, you may as well get some mileage out of it! A snack should leave your taste buds satisfied and your stomach sustained. A single food item can rarely accomplish this, so we abide the simple Rule of Two:

PROTEIN + SOMETHING ELSE (Carb, Fruit or Veg) = SNACK 

We realize the “Something Else” may not be the most scientific explanation, but it’s easy to remember! The reason for the Rule of Two is that snacking becomes worth your while when you treat it like a Mini Meal. Just like at breakfast, lunch or dinner, the goal is to combine flavors and textures to excite your taste buds. Adding protein to the mix ensures that you’ll feel satisfied and energized.

So what does the Rule of Two look like in practice? Just look at what you’re already eating, and fill in the missing part of the equation. So if you’re grabbing an apple in the afternoon, add a handful of almonds. Half a bagel? Try a slice of cheese. A piece of dark chocolate goes beautifully with a banana for a sweet treat. Cottage cheese and fresh veggies are a great combo.

Fruit and Nuts: a match made in 80Bites snacking heaven.

With a bit of planning and practice, it’s quite simple to adopt the Rule of Two and create on-the-go snacks that fit in with your busy lifestyle. And by making sure your snack foods are never lonely, you’re ensuring that you’ll have the energy to keep up with it all.

We got a shout out recently from Quantified Self aficionado Sean McColgan on his blog, BodyHacker. We love nothing more than a good 80Bites success story, but when it comes from a fellow self-tracking enthusiast, we’re even more excited!

People often express initial reservations about bite counting. They’re worried that self-tracking will become too time-consuming, and may take some of the fun out of an otherwise enjoyable experience (i.e., tearing into a 5 course steak dinner). What newbie 80Biters soon realize, however, is that there is freedom in knowing your limits. Before you know it, the act of counting becomes unnecessary – you’ve trained your body and mind and developed an (unconscious) positive habit. Track on, everyone!

Results from over 4,000 participants were surprisingly… not surprising at all (to 80Biters, at least)! The #1 method used by people who had successfully kept weight off? Simply eating less.

And what didn’t work for hopeful dieters? Drinking more water topped the list of weight loss methods that failed. And of course, all those pills, potions and quick fixes were recipes for failure as well.

The moral of this story is that slow and steady does indeed win the race. Time and again, simply putting down your fork (or bottle of Evian) is the surest way to long-term weight loss.

Our resident dietician and 80Bites co-creator, Meredith Luce, checked in with Everyday Health about the downside of juice cleanses. Check out the article here.

Particularly in Okinawa, where heart disease and obesity are nearly non-existent, the practice of Hara Hachi Bu is widespread. In Okinawa, no one stresses about calorie counting or eating fat-free foods. Instead, they simply tune in to how their body is feeling. Hara Hachi Bu is about paying attention to how full you are, not how much food is left on your plate. Because your stomach receptors take about 20 minutes to tell the body how full it really is, stopping at 80% is a great strategy. Chances are, you’re fuller than you think you are.

Hara Hachi Bu and 80Bites share more than just the number 80. Both practices are about getting your stomach (naturally and gradually) to accept less food. Next time you sit down to a meal, pay close attention to the “line” of fullness. When you feel yourself getting close to crossing it, you’re done eating. As you practice this technique, Hara Hachi Bu (and 80Bites) starts to become second nature.

The (other) Rule of 80: listen to your stomach, not your plate.

Here are some simple steps to take to make your next meal a mindful one:

1. Eliminate distractions. Turn your cell phone off, flip off the TV, step away from your computer. Complete silence isn’t necessary, but the goal here is to make your food the focus. Without outside elements fighting for your attention, it’s easier to make your food the focus.
2. “Plate” your food like a chef would at a restaurant. Even if you’re just having a sandwich and an apple, lay everything out before you and take a moment to regard your food without touching it. Notice the colors, smells and textures.
3. Take 5 deep, full breaths and check in with yourself (you might want to close your eyes). How are you feeling? Anxious? Relaxed? Distracted
4. Take your first bite. Really allow yourself to experience the texture and flavor of the food. Notice how the food feels in different parts of your mouth. How does your body feel after you’ve taken a bite?
5. Slow down. Chew each bite thoroughly, taking care not to rush. Take a moment between bites to rest and breathe, always checking in with your body. What sensations do you notice as you continue with your meal?

When you’re finished with your meal, take a moment to feel grateful for the food you’ve just eaten. Think of this lunch time break as a little as giving a gift to yourself – now you’re ready to face the afternoon with renewed energy and clarity. It’s a great way to hit the “Reset” button in the middle of the day!

Anyone who has ever been to Argentina, however, knows this theory is full of holes: a country of 40 million people who wouldn’t dream of sitting down to dinner before 9:30pm. The truth is that eating late has no more impact on your body than eating at any other time of day. It’s how much you eat and how often that dictates your size!

The origins of the “eat late, get fat” myth stem from traditional dieting. When you’ve spent the day nibbling on salad and fat free cookies, your body is craving real sustenance. As any veteran yo-yo dieter will attest, willpower starts to fade as the sun goes down, and before you know it you’re standing in front of the fridge at 11pm eating ice cream out of the carton!

Of course, this behavior  - which boils down to fasting and bingeing – will lead to weight gain. But time of day really has nothing to do with it. Eating a large amount of food – whether it’s in the morning or evening – will stretch your stomach and throw your digestive patterns off balance.

So the moral of this myth is: if you train your body to start thinking in terms of quantity instead of time, you’re on the right track to shedding pounds.

Our inaugural pick for 80Bites Inspirations was an easy choice: Ms. Eleanor Weber. Ellie is an 80-year old woman who was born and raised in South Carolina. At just over 5 ft. tall and growing up on rich Southern cooking, Ellie has struggled most of her life to maintain her weight.  In fact, she’s lifetime member of Weight Watchers. Decades of point counting and manuals became tiresome, however, and she wasn’t seeing results on the scale. Fed up, Ellie tried 80Bites when our App first debuted in 2010.

Bite-counting clicked right away for Ellie – it was simpler than any portion control method shed tried so far, and she could take it anywhere. Results followed soon after, and in December of 2010 Ellie wrote to thank us:

“I have gotten to a point now that my counting is automatic and I eat very little – after about 6 weeks of using 80Bites it has fallen into place and I am seeing a comfortable slow weight loss. (80Bites) is simply a very smart and simple way to change your relationship with food.”

2 years later and Ellie is still going strong! The weight has stayed off – no more fluctuations. And most importantly, her time is spent enjoying food… not obsessing about points or calories.

Ellie in late 2010, after shedding extra weight with help from 80Bites.

As one of the early adopters and greatest champions of 80Bites, we’re happy to call her an Inspiration. We’re always on the lookout for success stories – send us yours!