I recently sat down for breakfast with my two-year-old daughter and was struck by our different eating styles. Though we were having identical breakfasts (toast with peanut butter and honey, fresh fruit), I was amazed that what I could gobble up in 60 seconds would take her a full 10 minutes to eat. I had already completed my meal while she was only one bite in, so instead of reading the newspaper as is customary, I watched her with awe. She put her toast down after every bite, and it took her three bites to get through a single grape. Then I had a thought: Could I eat like a toddler for six months?
There is no shortage of resources describing the best ways to feed your toddler, and not being one to research a whole lot, I’ve let only a few thoughts guide me thus far. I once read that since toddlers can make a battle out of anything, food should not be one of those battles. So for the past two and a half years I have allowed my child to eat without much argument….I don’t require her to clean her plate, I offer her lots of veggies, and on occasion she will eat them. Some days she is hungry, gobbling up the food almost as fast as I can get it on her plate, and some days she is not too hungry, taking just a bite or two. The most important thing she does is listen to her body, an uncanny skill that has been lost on adults for too long.
I decided I would like to eat like my toddler for the next six months. This is an experiment to see if I can enjoy food with the blissful ignorance of a child. She has surely not thought about what is healthy, caloric, high in protein, or low in fat. She only thinks about eating what she wants when she wants it. And, as the mother of a girl, I would like this healthy relationship to continue as long as possible.
There are, of course, a few rules I will set in place for myself.
• First, we will eat different quantities of food. My daughter is 32 pounds, and I am more than three times her weight. This challenge will be more about quality than quantity. I remember once serving her V8 and milk with her dinner while I downed a Diet Coke. Additionally, I have found myself consuming things like Easy-Mac while serving her only Annie’s Organic Shells and Cheese. Why is it that I don’t treat my body with as much respect as I think hers deserves?
• Second, I will consume things she does not: wine with dinner; an occasional margarita; chocolate chips straight from the bag—a vice I refuse to give up. And when my family dines out, I will not be ordering off the kids menu. (More often than not, Kate ends up eating off my plate anyway.) This challenge will pertain primarily to the breakfasts, lunches and dinners eaten at home.
• Finally, this challenge is not about weight-loss. I’ve been blessed with good genes and have maintained a healthy weight my whole life, and I am not looking to lose weight (yet….give me 20 years and a few more kids and we’ll talk again). I am viewing this opportunity as a way to increase my overall health and listen to my body’s needs in the simple way my toddler does every day.
If you’re interested , please join me on this journey at www.eatlikemytoddler.blogspot.com.
Leave a Reply