Hara hachi bu (腹八分目), is a Japanese phrase that instructs people to eat until they are 80 percent full. It’s no wonder the Japanese are all so slim! And it’s also only in Japan where you can find food sizes/portions that are smaller than the usual. It’s obvious especially at global brand names like McDonald’s and Starbucks. The Starbucks here carry a frappacino size that’s smaller than the “Tall” size, called “Short”, like a kid’s size version. It looks so cute seeing people hold it. And I love it. Sometimes I just want a taste of coffee, but yet finishing a Tall frap feels too much. I also found Snickers that’s like half the size of the usual “Fun-size” (which is already like one third of the usual Snickers). It’s so small, you can pop the whole thing into your mouth in one go, like one of those bon bon candy wrapped in paper. 

And the thing about hara buchi bu is that it’s not just about serving portions, but listening to the body. You got to be quite body-aware to eat to 80%. I read online that one way to do this is to eat till you don’t feel hungry, and stop. Or stop once you feel stomach pressure. Instead of stopping when “I’m full”, stop when “I’m no longer hungry.” And a study on the Okinawans (a island population in Japan) have shown that calorie restraint via hara buchi bu leads to longevity.

Besides the obvious diet and health benefits, that also made me think about all the other ways we consume, not just food, drinks or other substances we take in through our mouth, but all the things we consume through our five senses and for our mind - what we listen to, what we read and see, whose opinions we listen to, the thoughts we indulge in, who we hang out/sleep with, etc etc. All the ways we consume. Consumption in the broadest sense.

What if we practice hara buchi bu in all these other ways we consume? 

Imagine consuming only up till 80% of your personal capacity, for say Facebook, or gaming, or watching TV, or gossiping, or even work? Wouldn’t that be a more sane and sustainable manner to consume, instead of the all-or-nothing narrative now (see digital detox) which usually just makes relapses more likely.

Instead of all-or-nothing, what would consuming to say 80% of your capacity for Facebook look like? What bodily/mental indicators do we have to listen to, in order to stop at 80%? What’s the digital equivalent of “I’m no longer hungry?” How does working/reading/socialising till 80% feel like?