tips for eating slow?

3wks out, starting on soft foods now.  Boy, eating fast is a hard habit to break!  I take small bites, chew them well, but keep taking one bite after another.  I know in time I will get it, but any little tricks that anyone used?  Besides duct tape?  LOL

For sure a bad habit to brake. I know for me my stomach lets me know I am going too fast. That's a quick reminder to me. Not that I have it under control yet either, but that is a reminder.

At the suggestion of someone on this forum, I placed a clock next to me and timed myself 2 minutes between bites.  Ok, let's be real.  Watching your food for 2 minutes, until the next bite, is like watching paint dry.  However, I used several distractions such as talking to my kids (I know, they were surprised at the conversation ), reading, updating my forum, and yes playing a game on my iPad. 

Yeah, I know.....we're supposed to focus exclusively on eating when we eat (i.e., no TV), but I needed the distraction.  After a week, I could do this without the clock.  It definitely slowed down my eating and made me chew more thoroughly.  I use the 2-minute habit without thinking now.

It helps me to set it down.  Whether it's what I'm eating or the fork/spoon.  If I set it down while I chew, I'm less likely to put another bite in my mouth as soon as I swallow. 

That's something I never thought about and definitely a bad habit of mine.  I'm going to start working on that now.  This board is awesome!

I too struggle with this everyday... Although tubatini Rex doesn't give me a problem when I eat...

This is something I continue to struggle with. It is especially difficult when those around you are in a rush at meal time. Kids have to get to games, spouse is off to work, etc.... I'm am trying to be more mindful. Conscious of the size of the bite I place in my mouth. Aware of my chewing and making sure I chew enough that my food passes more easily (especially the dense protein). And trying to acknowledge in my mind what flavor is there with each bite. I enjoy cooking and using all kinds of spices and have usually concentrated on bold flavors. Now as I TRY to slow, I find myself trying to make a game of noticing more complex or subtle flavors in the foods I make. Or simply enjoying the sweet goodness of summertime fruits.

Sit at the table with no distractions other than family.  Take a bite and put the spoon/fork down.  Once you are on dense protein this will be more important as you will be chewing, chewing, chewing before you swallow.  I notice if I sit in front of the tv then I just shovel it in.

I like to cut my food into bite size amounts before I eat so I do not get distracted and take a big bite like I was used to doing in the past.  This makes me eat slower and it keeps me mindful of the small slow bites I need to be doing.

From day one I have used the timer on my iPhone. I take a bite, start the stopwatch and wait two minutes for my next bite. At first, waiting the two minutes feels like you're torturing yourself. I promise you get used to it and while I don't need the timer to know when my two minutes is up, I still use it to keep myself accountable.

Two years later, I do not regret doing this consistently. Even when going out to eat and having people around me question or scaring/confusing the hell out of servers, I know timing has been a piece of the puzzle of what has helped me long term.