A 'Self-Monitoring Protocol' for Gradually Leveling Up Chewing Count and Food Hardness So You Don't Get Frustrated with '30 Chews Per Bite'

In health checkups or diet guidance, the advice (slogan) “let’s chew 30 times per bite” is the most popular, but at the same time, it is one of the goals with the “highest frustration rate.” The reason is extremely simple: “fast eating (swallowing without chewing)” is an “unconscious automatic program (habit)” deeply ingrained in the body over decades. If you suddenly try to overwrite it with sheer willpower, your jaw muscles will get exhausted, and meals will become painful.

To make the number of chews take root, just like muscle training, a protocol (instruction manual) to gradually (step-by-step) increase the “load (hardness) and repetitions,” as well as a mechanism to observe it yourself (self-monitoring), are indispensable.

Phase 1: Becoming Aware of “Unconscious Fast Eating” (Monitoring the Current Status)

For the first week, there is no need to forcefully try to increase the number of times. First, face (measure) the reality of “how much you are not chewing” with numbers.

• The Ritual of Measuring the Current Status: Prepare your meal as usual and put “only the first bite” into your mouth. Then, count the “number of chews” up to the moment your throat moves to “swallow” in a completely unconscious state.
• The Shocking Fact: Many fast eaters are shocked to realize that they only chew soft meals like curry or bread about “5 to 8 times” (surveys in E05, etc., also point out the low number of chews in modern people).
• Above all, being able to realize (cognitive-behavioral therapy-like awareness) at every meal, “I just swallowed after 10 chews per bite,” is the most important thing.

Phase 2: Forcing the Number of Chews Through “Physical Isolation of Chopsticks” (The +5 Chews Rule)

From the second week, apply a little load. However, instead of aiming for “30 times,” the goal is “to chew just 5 times more than the current number.”

• Chopstick Pacing: Once you put a bite into your mouth, impose a physical rule: “Always put your chopsticks (or spoon) on the chopstick rest,” and “put your hands on your knees.”
• The Battle with the Urge to Swallow: After chewing about 10 times, the brain and throat will send a strong signal: “Swallow already and shove the next food into your mouth!” By letting go of the chopsticks here, you physically cannot put the next food in, making it possible to keep the food in your mouth longer for those “+5 chews” (buying time to activate DIT: related to E03).

Phase 3: “Texture (Hardness) Hack” of Ingredients (Environment Design)

From the third week onwards, once you become able to control the number of chews on your own, this time you will hack the “structure of ingredients” to train your “jaw muscles (masseter muscles)” so that the number of chews naturally has to increase.

• “Browning” the Staple Food: From white rice to brown rice or rolled barley. From white bread to baguettes or rye bread. “Brown carbohydrates,” whose dietary fiber cell walls are robust, cannot be physically completely crushed and swallowed unless chewed at least 20 to 30 times.
• “Unkind Cutting” of Ingredients: When cutting meat or vegetables (especially root vegetables), intentionally chop them “twice the usual size (thickness).” By designing a “difficult-to-chew environment” yourself at the cooking stage, you reduce reliance on willpower during the meal.

Phase 4: Synchronizing Chewing and “DIT (Diet-Induced Thermogenesis)” (Self-Feedback)

In the final stage, instead of just counting numbers, focus your consciousness on the “changes inside the body” brought about by chewing (Mindful Chewing).

• Concentrate on the changes in the taste of the food as it is slowly and finely crushed (the sweetness as starch turns into sugar).
• Furthermore, as you continue to chew for about 20 minutes, you will catch a warm heat (Diet-Induced Thermogenesis: DIT) being generated from your stomach and intestines, and a sensation of blood flow beginning to circulate throughout your body (the feeling of activating the arousal network in E11).

When a paradigm shift occurs from “the painful task of just counting numbers” to “a pleasant routine to turn on your brain and metabolic switch (heat production engine),” the ultimate anti-aging habit of chewing will completely take root in your body as a lifelong asset.