Eating nutritious food at the right time and in the right proportion is the secret mantra for a healthy life. This bit of advice might not be new but serving main course in eight-inch dessert plates to avoid food pile up is definitely the in-thing.
Amid the crystalline mountains of the Western Ghats, Maharashtra, lies one such wellness retreat, Atmantan. Though the thought of having food on a dessert plate is not appetising at all, Executive Chef Shubendu Kadam assures, “We work on the philosophy of healthy food combinations in smaller portions every two hours. Research states that our intake isn’t based on our hunger levels but on the plate size, so we end up piling on large plates.”
The ‘Journal of Experimental Psychology’ published by Professors Brian Wansink and Koert Van Ittersum’s states that on an average, people prefer a plate or bowl that is about 70 per cent full irrespective of the hunger level. “Initially it is a psychological shock for our guests but then they get used to it as the brain gets tricked into thinking the stomach is full,” the chef said. The stomach is actually the size of two palms. The food it can take at a time is the amount that fits in two palms. It takes about 20 minutes for the stomach to send signal to the brain that it is full. “So one should savour and enjoy every bite slowly, which in turn brings in mental satiety and better digestion,” adds the chef.
Eating mini meals with enough water every two hours is the need of the hour. Sudhakar, a marathoner and a software engineer from Pune carries roasted peanuts, fruits, salad and dry fruits along with his lunch box daily to office.