How I throw it away

I am definitely not perfect at this, but these are some strategies I use. The self-talk I use to throw out food is "I'll eat this again." At a restaurant when I have food left over and am full, I toss it (no doggie-bag) because "I'll eat there again." Plus I don't have a dog so I don't need a doggie-bag. I think somewhere in my brain I get the idea that, "If I don't eat it now or save it for later, then I won't ever have it again for the rest of eternity." That isn't true, the truth is I can have it later when I will enjoy it, rather than now when I am too full to enjoy it.

Having said that, I do like to give food away to others when I can and the food is in condition for someone else to enjoy. Most of the time the food ends up in the garbage or down the sink disposal. It seems wasteful to throw it out but really, it does no good to continue to eat something your body does not need.

So the situation starts with leftover food, then I start to think, "This leftover food was good so I should eat more of it or put it in a bag for 'later' (usually five minutes later). This was expensive so it is wasteful to get rid of it plus I want to get my money's worth; good thing I have a hollow leg." Immediately I STOP that thought pattern and CHALLENGE the truth of it, the thinking is always false: 

• I don't need more because I ate plenty,
• I don't need it "later"; I have eaten the calories I need for the meal and will have meals ready "later" to eat.
  
• No one else needs to have it "later", that is why it is leftover. Everyone is done with it and meals will be prepared "later" for when we are hungry again.
• It was good and I can make it (or have it) again later when I can enjoy it the most.
• Just because it wasn't all eaten, doesn't mean it wasn't "very good". Sometimes it was just "very rich" and people were satisfied with a small amount. I can make less next time.

Then I FOCUS on what I should do instead. 

• I don't need access to this food anymore, it can be given away or tossed in the garbage. If I can't think of a specific person to give it to, it is probably better to just get rid of it.
  
• By throwing it out I can clean up all the dishes to keep the house clean, and it is easier to clean off plates before stale food gets stuck to them.
• When at a restaurant I think, "By throwing out the food, I don't have to carry it around and carry it home in the car, or store it in the fridge. I can come back to eat here again another time. I got my money's worth because I am full and enjoyed the meal."

Some dishes use a lot of ingredients and make more than the portions I need for one meal. If I make a meal that has a large portion (like chili), I put away the extra portion at the start of the meal, not the end. I planned on making extra for lunch so I take out the lunch portion before I serve it so that I indeed have the lunch portion I planned to make.