Do you eat fast or slow?

I’m about average, neither fast nor slow.

I’m a gobbler.

I spent my earliest years in rural West Virgina. My grandmother owned a chain of restaurants.

The food was considered to be of reliable quality but the miners and truckers from the area didn’t exactly have world class standards.

Such Jed Clampett cooking was passed on to my mother. Nothing was ever harmful but it made for a rather skewed perception of food for me as a child.

Years later I move to Atlanta, I go to all manner of great restaurants.

I learn that food doesn’t automatically come from a can. I’m talking everything from green beans to salmon.

I start eating so slow and deliberately that sometimes my tongue would be sore, or at least fatigued.

I still eat slower than everybody I know, this includes by classically trained Italian wife.

Working in the dining industry has taught me that it is rude to linger on with eating when it’s obvious that all others at the table have clearly finished up.

I eat fast. One time my dad and sister commented on it, said it was amazing how fast the food disappeared, but I didn’t appear to be gobbling.

Pretty fast.

For decades I ate really fast, but I seem to be getting slower and slower. Occasionally now, I’m even the last one to finish. That’s all right, I seldom eat a meal unless it’s at the Mexican restaurant, and they still have Margaritas, chips and salsa to entertain them.

@ibstubro You seldom eat meals? How does that work?

It depends on the meal. Some I eat fast, others slow.

My father was the fastest eater I knew. You give him food, blink, and it’d be gone.

Fast, unless i’m with someone.

Very slowly. I’m always very happy to be with another slow eater. I really believe eating slowly is in the minority. It’s troublesome too. When you are young school lunch lasts a very short time. As an adult, if work wanted to give less than an hour I rarely complied and took a whole hour. Screw that. I’m not shoveling it in and rushing through lunch.

I realize now how tortured I am. I’m not a morning person and I eat slowly. Two things frowned upon in our society.

I DEVOUR EVERYTHING.

Slowly, though it’s something I only came to realize relatively recently. Very odd, because I can’t figure out whether its always been this way or if I’m slowing down.

I almost never eat a meal, @livelaughlove21. When I get hungry (usually about 1–3 o’clock in the afternoon) I can grab a sandwich, and be good for the day. If I’m starved, with chips. There are days that I know I’ll have to eat a meal at a restaurant around 6–6:30 and on those days I promote a noon “snack” of cheese and/or crackers.

I imagine you’re appreciating the food more, @stanleybmanly, from knowing you for a while. Savoring.

I eat fast, I’m a foodie, but also, I am usually really hungry by the time I eat. I have good manners, but eating is serious business. haha
I have a friend that eats so s-l-o-w-l-y it takes her 30 minutes to finish a sandwich, I’m bouncing in my chair by that point and doodling on the napkins and reading everything on the table. haha

I’m a fast kinda girl. On to the next thing. lol

@ibstubro You might have a point. In the days when I was razor thin, I was rather indifferent to food (except for desserts). But this town is just saturated with so much wonderful food, and the hedonists who appreciate it that anyone who can afford it is probably doomed to become a foody! Even if you can’t afford fine dining, the abundance of cheap good food can be daunting for those watching their waistlines. The town is a virtual traffic jam of people jogging and biking in a perpetual effort to burn up calories so they can devour all the marvels. In a very real since San Francisco is obsessed with food, and the pressure on the residents is irresistible. Folks compelled to walk around in the town are all but doomed.

I wouldn’t call myself a slow eater, but I’m often the last person to finish their plate. I like to enjoy my food and taste what I put into my mouth.

There are benefits to eating slowly. Most Americans eat too fast, and, as a result, they take in too many calories before they realize they’ve eaten enough. It takes approximately 20 minutes from the time you start eating for your brain to send out signals of fullness. Leisurely eating allows ample time to trigger the signal from your brain that you are full. And feeling full translates into eating less.—source

I gobble up food like a turkey and end up with severe indigestion. Bad habit which is hard to kick.

I eat way too fast. More that just a couple time the food got stuck lower down in my throat. This can be very painful especially at a formal dinner party.

When I am alone I am eating fast but when I am eating with company or outside I am eating very slowly.

I am invariably the last to finish her meal, whatever group of people I’m with. Possibly it’s because I dislike eating. After my initial hunger pang is satisfied in the first few bites I often have a hard time forcing myself to keep going.

@wildpotato Why on earth do you dislike eating?

@Coloma I can definitely see you Bouncing Around the Room.

@GloPro Haha…nice little tune.

@dina_didi Interesting. I often have to speed up or not finish eating when I eat with others.

I don’t eat “meals” very often either.

Eating is a pain in the butt for me and I wish I didn’t have to do it!

This is making me really sad…

Eating is one of my favorite things to do. I suppose thinking of it as a chore/hassle would help me stay thin, but I’m doing a pretty damn good job of that eating 6 times a day.

@livelaughlove21 there is no problem in eating six meals during the day. I used to eat four large meals when I had more weight but I reduced the amount of food, I stopped eating sugar and I am eating five meals. Instead of reducing your meals you could reduce the amount of food and continue eating 6 times a day :)

When I’m really on a health kick I eat 6x a day. Right now I’m trying to figure out how to work my food into my 12 hour shifts. I get one 30 minute lunch and 2 10 minute breaks, although we’re pretty lax about taking time when you need to.

I feel like I’m eating like a speed racer just because I need to eat and don’t have much time.

@dina_didi You might want to read my response again. No issues with weight control here.

I often eat only once a day.

@livelaughlove21 I understand you love eating. So did I. When I felt I had to do something for my health I reduced the amount of food and in the beginning it was hard. But I continued and after some time (not too long) I began feeling better, I stopped needing more food and food tasted better! You will understand when and if you need to change your diet. If you need any diet tips I will be glad to help you!

@livelaughlove21 I’ll give you some diet tips, too ;-p

oh, ok @livelaughlove21! I misunderstood because you mentioned that you could stay thin before.

@GloPro I just wanted to help… You don’t have to be ironic!

I’m all ears, @GloPro. Haha.

@dina_didi No problem. I’m actually a bit of a nutrition/fitness nerd, so no assistance needed here. :)

@dina_didi I just thought it was funny. She knows her nutrition inside and out. All good.

Well. I just ate a piece of angle food cake!

I just ate some Reeses Peanut Butter Cup Oreos really fast.

@jonsblond Nooooo! I resisted regular Oreos just last night at the checkout line. Peanut Butter Oreos are another story. I must walk to the grocery now. I will walk fast and eat slow.

We’ll get there fast and then we’ll take it slow!

That’s where I wanna go… Go down for Or-eo.

@GloPro IBS – food turns into pain. After so many years the association eliminates much of the pleasure in eating. I still like many things for their taste, but never have very much of anything; after 1–2 bites most food becomes disinteresting and soon after starts to seem downright revolting. I also never eat until I’m full because it’s a good way to avoid IBS flare-ups, and eating really slowly allows me to determine that point more precisely.

I’m very lucky to have a fiance who likes to cook and makes sure I eat. I always joke that I probably would have starved to death long ago if we’d never met, but really I don’t know what I’d do without him.

@jonsblond Well, I bought the Oreos. Now they call to me from the cupboard.

Ours didn’t last long @GloPro. They are great dipped in coffee for breakfast, or a midnight snack with milk. The guilt comes later.

@jonsblond midnight snack: check. Morning snack: check. Packed for lunch: check.
You are the devil, but I like that about you.

@Dutchess_III, why eat only once a day? I do the same, just curious why you do.
Slice the angelfood cake thin, and put it in the toaster. Delicious! Kind of a cotton-candy flavor.

I’m waiting for the Almond Joy Oreos, @jonsblond.

Because it’s a hassle @ibstubro.

I chow down pretty fast. I am trying to slow down and enjoy my food more.

Actually I am trying to slow down to eat a little less.