If you had to walk around in your underwear would it stop you eating junk food?

This is a question I’m experimenting with right now.

If everyone could see the bits of me that I don’t like, would that be enough motivation to make me eat healthier or do more exercise?

This morning I was stood in front of the mirror in my underwear and thought ‘I wish I hadn’t eaten that cinnamon bun for breakfast’ – and in an instant there it was. Cause and effect. If I eat crap, I get wobbly bits I don’t like. But most of the time the effect is disguised by clothing so no-one can see it. And because no-one can see it I don’t do anything about it. So I decided to spend the rest of the day in my underwear, seeing if it effected the way I chose my food.

And it did. This post is my analysis of why I think it worked and could it work for the rest of the world?

*Science Warning* Just so you know, I’m not a scientist. Just someone with who gets enjoyment from sciencey-type-human-behaviour-type things.

Basically, You Care What Your Friends Think Of You

And your colleges. And your boyfriend or girlfriend. And even people you don’t even know yet. Most of us lose weight so that we feel good about ourselves. And what makes you feel good about yourself? Other peoples positive reactions to your behavior and your appearance. Yes we should all seek intrinsic happiness and not care what other people think, but the truth is that’s not the way humans work. Everyone of us has a complex social hierarchy determined by internal and external factors related to our morals, ethics and behavior. Everything we do is an outward projection (whether you realise it or not) of what you want the world to think of you – that’s why people post so much crap on Facebook. That’s why so many of us hit the ‘Like’ button even though we haven’t really read the link or looked at the photo. So we can passively maintain an affinity with people similar to ourselves.

Clothes are a part of this. As well as making a statement about your personality, they also help us cleverly emphasis the parts of our bodies that we like and hide the parts our bodies that we don’t like.  I wouldn’t consider myself to be over weight, but I do have some wobbly bits that I don’t like to look at in the mirror.

I Don’t Really Care How Much I Weigh. I Just Want To Look Good Naked

Is losing weight what we actually want to do? It’s not really what I want to do. No one can see the number on the scale or on the label of my pants. All I care about is that I look good in my pants and bra (or bikini, or dress, or shorts). Even if there is no-one else there to see me.

Walking about in my underwear meant that I couldn’t hide the little roll of fat under my belly button when I sat on the couch, and the way the insides of my upper thighs wobble a bit when I walk. It put all my body insecurities in the light (literally) and it made me even more conscious of them. Having this constant reminder helped me make better choices.

But then I put my clothes back on and instantly they were ‘out of sight & out of mind’. I had a lasagne sandwich for dinner.

So after spending a day in my underpants I guess I’ve learned two things:

1. That if no-one else can see it, it’s not really there. That what other people can see of me is more important than what I know is there.

2. If I did have to walk around in my underwear and couldn’t hide myself with clothes, I would definitely change the things I ate.

This post is related to another post called ‘Good Business is Bad Business for Obesity’ that you can read here.