Given the recent news about blockbuster calorie counts at concession stands, Rosie Schwartz offers some advice for beating the movie munchies
Has the latest news about the colossal calorie content of movie theatre popcorn sent you into a tailspin? After all, for many people, watching a flick without a bag of munchies is a tough task indeed. Or are you someone who relaxes in front of the television set at night nibbling endlessly on assorted goodies?
Both routines, depending on their frequency, can be the ruin of girth control efforts. And simply switching to healthier fare may not be the solution. Understanding what's at work here is the first step in changing some potentially-perilous habits.
Just think of Pavlov's dogs and you'll start to get the gist of the situation.
Russian scientist Ivan Pavlov showed that certain stimuli -which may have nothing to do with hunger - can make you want to eat. In his early research, technicians presented dogs with food and when they started to eat, they began to salivate. After the technician presented the food three or four times, the mere sight of the technician prompted the animals to salivate.
Pavlov also conducted his research using other stimuli like metronomes. The result: turning on the metronomes was all that was needed to make the animals want to eat. He called this a conditioned response.
Now think of yourself. Does sitting down in a movie theatre or just switching on the remote for the TV make you feel ready to munch? Or maybe it's curling up on your favourite chair with a good book that makes you think of eating.
Whatever your stimulus, it's likely leading to mindless eating. After all, how much are you really enjoying what you're having? If you're absorbed in a good movie or book, are you paying any attention to what and how much you're consuming? You could have an oversized bowl of popcorn and not even notice if someone else emptied half of it.
And when you consider what's in those containers of popcorn or candy at the movie theatre, ridding yourself of a conditioned response to eat when you get comfy before a movie is indeed a smart waist management strategy.
To recap, if you didn't hear the news (or blocked it out), the Centre for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) once again assessed what movie theatres are dishing out to patrons. And the picture was not pretty.
The consumer advocacy group asked the three biggest Canadian movie theatre chains - Cineplex Entertainment, Empire and AMC - about their popcorn, candy and pop and adjusted those numbers based on actual serving sizes. The results? A small popcorn with no topping had 480 calories, a regular had 780 calories and a large had 1,120 (half a day's worth of calories for most people). And with a large, you can get a free refill - roughly equal to 68 more Premium Plus crackers slathered with six more teaspoons of mayonnaise or half a pound of potato chips, the CSPI estimates.
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