Written By The 3 Fat Chicks

Every Thanksgiving our mother sets out the good china, which is much larger than her everyday dinnerware. We make our way around the holiday buffet, filling our plates as close to the edge as possible. The smell alone is enough to bring us back for a second helping. By the time our plates are clean, our bellies are so distended that the only thing missing is the "Baby on Board" t-shirt. We slowly lie back and groan things like "I can't believe I ate the whole thing" and we give thanks that we wore elastic band pants.... Why didn't we stop sooner? Holidays aren't the only times we stop to ask ourselves that question. The fact is, we're overeating and we don't even realize it. Dr. Brian Wansink knows why we do it, and he is eager to share what he knows in his new book Mindless Eating.

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A food psychologist shares his secrets
After reading this book from cover to cover, we realized it was written by the Dr. Ruth of Diets. He answers all of these questions, plus he tells us more dirty little secrets about our eating habits than we ever knew existed. This isn't a structured diet book with menus and recipes. But if you read and follow along, you will lose weight. Wansink is a food psychologist that has performed little tricks like a 'bottomless soup bowl' to help him learn exactly why and how much we are going to overeat. He has conducted his research for many years, and he knows how companies get us to buy products over and over again. He knows firsthand why "Lays" bets we can't eat just one!

We're all mindless eaters at some time. Have you ever grazed on French fries while you drove home, arriving at your destination with a nearly empty bag? We have, and we've even suffered the embarrassment of grazing the bottom of somebody else’s bag of spuds! After reading the book, we learned how to ditch fry thievery, and feel stronger about ourselves. We learned that it's really just a mind game, and willpower isn't always about our own strength to just-say-no. It's also about our ability to outwit the shiny wrappers and artificial aromas.

Small changes are key
Wansink's diet revolution begins and ends with small but powerful changes. First, give up on restrictive diets. Fad diets that cut out whole food groups work because they are boring. You'll lose weight because you have less to choose from. You're probably not going to binge on boiled eggs and broccoli, right?

You probably won't last long with food group monogamy. Instead, learn to eat less while still enjoying most foods. Do this the mindless way! It's time to get rid of your Jethro Bodine size bowls and serving spoons. Get out the smaller plates and decent size forks and spoons. Fancy, petite dinnerware or even SpongeBob toddler plates will work just dandy. The book is loaded with simple tricks: don't eat in front of the tv, replace 20% of your pasta with 20% more veggies, and many others that can save you 100-200 calories a pop. Incoporate a couple of these in to your day and you can mindlessly lose about 30 pounds per year.

Maybe next Thanksgiving will be the year we finally walk away from the table without Rolaids and a nap, but also without feeling that we are 3 Fat Chicks on a Diet. Wansink says "The best diet is the one you don't know you're on."