Having the right size bowl...

Cereal really has a way of getting all of us to eat more of it than we mean to. I've spoken before about this alarming talent and thought that I should probably bring it up again as this blog is OVER a year old and a lot of the peeps here now are not the ones here then. You may or may not know that the average serving size for a kid's cereal (meaning all things bright, fun, sugary and having a cartoon who helps us love it more) is a cup. This has to do with two things - size of the big rainbow pieces, and calories per day for kids being higher than us chubbed up grown folks. I know, it sucks. Anywho, the average serving size for adult cereal and "healthy" cereal (meaning boxes that make you think that the cardboard the writing is printed on may taste better that what it's holding and all things whole grain, wheat, added fiber) is 3/4ths a cup, with many granolas being 1/2. That's true and it has to do with us requiring less on a daily scale and with the cereal being smalled in individual size and with the fact that to make that "low calorie" claim they slap on the box they decrease how much you get (M&M's are low calorie if you only eat 10) and finally, in the case of granola, you really do need less to be satisfied if you take the time to eat and enjoy your breakfast.
Still, we are a fat minded society (you know, and a lot of us are a fat minded or previously fat minded person and that never really goes away) and what we see has a lot to do with how we feel after a meal. If you put an 8oz. (TWICE the serving you should be having) steak and a side of grilled veggies on a huge plate with lots of empty space we feel like we were slighted, like we will still be hungry, we pick up our utensils just KNOWING we will need to eat more. That mind set is a powerful thing and the next thing you know you are finished that meal and your stomach is hungry.
SIDE NOTE: Through this journey SO many people I have talked to about hunger bristle when I indicate that they can not be hungry. They get upset and say things like, "BUT I AM HUNGRY. YOU may not be, BUT I AM ALL THE FUCKING TIME." Please understand that I am not saying you don't feel hunger, just that if you are doing things right - i.e. water, good meals - and still hungry then that hunger is mental hunger, which is no less real and in actuality is harder to overcome because simple eating right and staying hydrated doesn't help you get over the mental crutch you have given yourself by using food or eating incorrectly for so long. (Or, in my case, both.)
Back to this blog: Below I have three pictures of a serving of cereal in three different bowls, you will see as we go further down that the smaller the bowl, the more satisfying the cereal looks. (If you want to know what kind of cereal I have a Wednesday "What's in your... 3 Bowls Edition" coming up next Wednesday. The first bowl is what I would have used in my adult life. I would have filled it up and then added all the whole milk I could, honestly I probably would have eaten two or three bowls.
The second bowl is what my mother would have used, still over filling by default because the bowl just looks like it calls for more.This is my new favorite bowl, it has enough room for the cereal and milk (I now use skim and only 1/4 a cup) and also for cereal and yogurt if I want a spunky snack. Can you see what I am talking about?