[music]

When visitors come to Japan for the

first time, they often notice something

that surprises them. They look around at

the people walking through the streets,

riding the trains, and shopping in the

markets, and they realize [music]

that most Japanese people are quite

slim. This is true even though Japan has

some of the most delicious food in the

world [music] and even though most

Japanese people do not spend hours in

the gym lifting weights or running on

machines. This creates a puzzle that

many people want to solve. How do

Japanese people stay so slim without the

strict diets and intense exercise

programs that are so common in other

countries? The answer is not one single

secret. It is a collection of small

habits, ancient wisdom, and cultural

practices that have been part of

Japanese life for hundreds of years.

These habits are so natural to us that

most Japanese people do not even think

about them. They are simply how we live.

Today, I want to share with you 10 of

these practices that help Japanese

people maintain a healthy weight without

feeling like they're constantly fighting

against their own bodies. These are not

extreme methods or difficult rules. They

are gentle ways of living that you can

slowly bring into your own life. I hope

they help you find the same ease with

your body that so many Japanese people

enjoy. One, the ancient rule of eating

until you are almost full. There is a

teaching in Japan that comes from the

island of Okinawa, which is famous for

having some of the longest living people

in the entire world. This teaching is

called harah hachibu and it means that

you should stop eating when your stomach

feels about 80% full. This might sound

like a small thing but it makes a very

big difference over time. Most people in

modern society eat until they feel

completely full or even stuffed. They

clean their plates and sometimes go back

for more. By the time they stop eating,

their stomachs are stretched and

uncomfortable. But the body has a delay

in telling the brain that it is

satisfied. It takes about 20 minutes for

the signals from your stomach to reach

your brain and tell you that you have

had enough. This means that if you eat

until you feel completely full, you have

actually eaten too much. By the time

your brain catches up, you are over

full. The practice of harahachi solves

this problem. When you stop eating at

80% full, you might feel like you could

eat a little more. But if you wait 20

minutes, you will discover that you

actually feel perfectly satisfied. You

ate exactly the right amount. This

practice requires paying attention to

your body while you eat. You cannot do

it if you are rushing through your meal

or distracted by screens. You must slow

down, notice how your stomach feels, and

stop before you reach that overful

sensation. Over weeks and months, this

small habit prevents thousands of extra

calories from entering your body. And

unlike strict diets that leave you

feeling hungry and deprived, harachibu

leaves you feeling satisfied and

comfortable after every meal. Two, the

one soup and three sides tradition. In

Japan, [music] we have a traditional way

of structuring meals that is called ichu

sansai. This phrase means one soup,

three sides, and it describes how a

proper Japanese meal should be arranged.

A traditional Japanese meal consists of

a bowl of rice, a bowl of soup, and

three small side dishes. These side

dishes usually include vegetables, fish

or tofu, and pickled foods. Each dish is

served in its own small bowl or plate,

and each portion is quite modest in

size. This way of eating is very

different from the western style of

having one large plate filled with a big

portion of meat and maybe some

vegetables on the side. The ichu sansai

approach naturally creates variety and

balance in every meal. Even though the

total amount of food might be similar,

your mind feels like you have eaten a

feast because you have experienced so

many different flavors and textures. You

feel satisfied not just in your stomach

but also in your senses. The variety

also ensures that you get many different

nutrients from each meal. Instead of

filling up on one heavy food, you

nourish your body with a wide range of

vegetables, proteins, and fermented

foods. You do not need to eat Japanese

food to use this principle. Simply try

serving your meals as several small

dishes rather than one large plate.

Include a soup which helps fill your

stomach with warm liquid before you eat

the heavier foods. Make sure vegetables

appear in more than one of your small

dishes. This simple change in how you

present food can change how much you eat

without any feeling of [music]

restriction. Three, the wisdom of not

finishing your plate. In many western

countries, children are taught that they

must finish everything on their plate.

Leaving food behind is considered

wasteful or disrespectful. Parents often

tell their children about hungry people

in other parts of the world and insist

that plates must be cleaned. This

creates a habit that continues into

adulthood. People feel guilty if they

leave even a small amount of food. So

they eat past the point of fullness just

to avoid waste. In Japan, we have a

different relationship with this idea.

While we deeply respect food and do not

like to waste it, we also understand

something important.

Putting excess food into a body that

does not need it is also a form of

waste. The food does not help anyone

when it becomes extra weight on your

body. Japanese portions are smaller to

begin with, so there is less pressure to

finish everything. But even when food

remains, it is acceptable to leave it.

The food can be saved for later or

composted. [music] What matters is that

you eat the amount your body actually

needs, not the amount that happens to be

in front of you. This is connected to a

Zen teaching about being present and

aware. When you eat mindfully, you

notice when your body has had enough.

Honoring that signal is more important

than following a rule about empty

plates. If you were raised to finish

everything, this habit can be difficult

to change. Start by serving yourself

smaller portions. [music] Give yourself

permission to stop eating when you feel

satisfied, even if food remains.

Remember that your body is not a garbage

bin and eating more than you need does

not help anyone.

Four, making friends with vegetables.

The Japanese government recommends that

people eat at least 350 g of vegetables

every single day. This is about 12 oz,

which is more than most people in

Western countries typically eat. But

here is the interesting thing. For most

Japanese people, eating this many

vegetables does not feel like a chore or

a health requirement. Vegetables are

simply a natural part of every meal,

prepared in delicious ways that make

them enjoyable to eat. In traditional

Japanese cooking, vegetables are treated

with the same respect and care as meat

or fish. They are not just a side

[music] thought or a boring addition to

the plate. A dish of simmerred daicorn

radish can be the highlight of a meal.

Pickled vegetables add bright flavors

and beneficial bacteria. Leafy greens

are dressed with sesame and soy sauce

until they become something you actually

want to eat. This is very different from

the approach of boiling vegetables until

they are soft and tasteless than forcing

yourself to eat them because they are

healthy. When vegetables taste good, you

naturally want to eat more of them.

[music] And when vegetables fill a large

part of your plate, there is less room

for heavier foods that contribute to

weight gain. The secret is learning how

to prepare vegetables in ways that bring

out their natural flavors. Japanese

cooking uses techniques like quick

pickling, light sautéing with sesame

oil, simmering in seasoned broth, and

dressing with flavorful sauces. These

methods transform simple vegetables into

dishes that you look forward to eating.

Try to include vegetables in every meal,

including breakfast. Even a small bowl

of pickled vegetables or a cup of

vegetable soup adds to your daily total.

Over time, as you discover vegetable

dishes you truly enjoy, eating 350 g a

day will feel natural rather than

forced.

Five, the beauty of small portions. If

you've ever eaten at a traditional

Japanese restaurant, you may have

noticed that the portions seem quite

small compared to what you might receive

in other countries. Each dish arrives in

a small bowl or on a small plate, and

the amount of food looks almost

delicate. At first, visitors sometimes

worry that they will leave hungry. But

by the end of the meal, after eating

many small courses, they find that they

are perfectly satisfied. The small

portions added up to exactly the right

amount of food. This is the magic of

small portions. When you eat from a

large plate piled with food, [music] it

is very easy to eat too much without

realizing it. But when you eat from

small dishes, you are naturally more

aware of how much you are consuming.

Each small portion feels complete

[music] and you can decide after each

one whether you need more. There is also

a psychological effect at work here.

Research has shown that people feel more

satisfied when they eat the same amount

of food divided into several small

portions rather than served all at once

on one big plate. The mind interprets

multiple portions as abundance even when

the total quantity is the same. You can

use this principle without changing what

you eat. Simply serve your food on

smaller plates and in smaller bowls. If

you want more, you can always get a

second small portion. But you may find

that after finishing the first small

serving, you feel satisfied and do not

need more. In Japan, we also have many

small [music] packaged snacks that come

in modest portions. A small bag of rice

crackers or a few pieces of chocolate

satisfy the craving without leading to

overconumption.

Six, walking as a way of life. In Japan,

walking is not exercise. It is simply

how people get around. Most Japanese

people walk to the train station every

day. They walk through the station,

often climbing many stairs. They [music]

walk from the train to their workplace.

They walk to lunch and walk back. They

walk to do their shopping and walk home

carrying their groceries. All of this

walking adds up to thousands of steps

every day. And it happens so naturally

that people do not think of it as

exercise at all. It is just part of

normal life. This is very different from

a culture where people drive everywhere

and then try to make up for it by going

to a gym for an hour. The gym workout

might burn calories, but it cannot fully

replace the gentle continuous movement

that comes from walking throughout the

day. [music] The human body was designed

to walk. Our ancestors walked many miles

every day just to survive. When we sit

for most of the day and then do intense

exercise for a short time, we are

fighting against how our bodies

naturally want to move. Walking is

gentle on the joints, sustainable for a

lifetime, and requires no special

equipment or membership fees. It also

provides time for thinking, noticing the

world around you, and transitioning

between different parts of your day. If

your life currently involves a lot of

driving and sitting, look for ways to

add more walking. Park farther away from

your destination. [music]

Take stairs instead of elevators. Walk

to nearby shops instead of driving. Take

a short walk after meals, which also

helps with digestion. These small

additions of walking can make a

significant difference over time without

ever feeling like a workout.

Seven, the social expectation of health.

This is something that visitors to Japan

often do not see, but it plays an

important role in how Japanese people

think about their bodies. In Japan,

there is a social expectation that

adults will maintain a healthy weight.

This is not about looking a certain way

for fashion or vanity. It is about

taking responsibility for your own

health as part of being a mature and

respectable person. Companies in Japan

are required to measure the waistlines

of employees over a certain age. If

someone's waist is too large, the

company may face penalties and the

employee is encouraged to take steps to

improve their health. This might seem

strange or even uncomfortable to people

from other cultures, but it reflects a

belief that health is partly a social

responsibility.

Japanese people often feel a gentle

pressure from family, friends, and

colleagues to stay healthy. Gaining a

noticeable amount of weight might lead

to concerned comments from people around

you. While this can feel intrusive, it

also provides motivation that many

people find helpful. This social

awareness extends [music] to how food is

discussed and shared. Eating very large

portions or eating in an obviously

unhealthy way is considered a bit

embarrassing. People tend to eat more

moderately when they are with others.

You cannot change the culture around

you, but you can think about who you

spend time with [music] and how they

influence your habits. Surrounding

yourself with people who value health

and who eat in balanced ways can support

your own efforts. Sharing meals with

others who eat mindfully helps you eat

mindfully, too.

Eight, choosing foods that nourish.

Japanese cuisine naturally includes many

foods that support a healthy weight

without requiring any special effort or

calculation. Fish appears in Japanese

meals much more often than red meat.

Fish provides protein and healthy fats

without the heavy calorie load of beef

or pork. Salmon, mackerel, sardines, and

other fish are staples of the Japanese

diet. Fermented foods like miso, natto,

and pickled vegetables support digestive

health and provide beneficial bacteria.

A healthy gut is increasingly understood

to play an important role in maintaining

a healthy weight. Sea vegetables like

wakame and nori add minerals and fiber

with almost no calories. These [music]

are foods that simply do not exist in

many western diets, but are eaten

regularly in Japan. Tofu and other soy

foods provide plant-based protein that

is light and easy to digest. Green tea

is drunk throughout the day, providing

gentle energy and compounds that may

support metabolism. The Japanese diet is

also relatively low in sugar, especially

compared to modern western diets where

sugar hides in countless packaged foods.

Traditional Japanese sweets exist, but

they are eaten in small amounts on

special occasions, not as an everyday

habit. You do not need to completely

change how you eat to benefit from this

wisdom. Simply try to include more fish

in your meals. Explore fermented foods

like miso soup or kimchi. Choose water

or green tea instead of sugary drinks.

Reduce the amount of processed foods and

added sugars in your daily diet. These

shifts happen gradually and become

natural over time. Nine, eating dinner

early. In Japan, many people eat their

evening meal relatively early, often

between 6:00 and 7 in the evening. Late

night eating is less common than in some

other cultures, partly because of work

schedules and partly because of

traditional habits. This timing matters

for weight management. When you eat late

at night and then go to sleep soon

after, your body does not have time to

use that energy. The food sits in your

digestive system while you sleep and

more of it gets stored as fat. When you

eat earlier and then stay awake for

several more hours, your body has time

to digest the food and use some of that

energy. By the time you go to bed, your

stomach is relatively empty, which also

leads to better sleep. There is an old

Japanese saying that you should eat

breakfast like a king, lunch like a

prince, and dinner like a beggar. This

means that your largest meal should be

earlier in the day when you need energy,

and your smallest meal should be in the

evening when you're preparing to rest.

Many modern people do the opposite. They

skip breakfast, eat a modest lunch, and

then have their largest meal late at

night when they finally have time to

relax. This pattern works against the

body's natural rhythms. Try to finish

eating at least 3 hours before you go to

bed. If you currently eat very late,

start by moving your dinner time earlier

by just 30 minutes. Over time, shift it

earlier until you are eating your

evening meal while there is still

daylight. Your sleep will improve. Your

digestion will improve and your body

will naturally find it easier to

maintain a healthy weight. 10. The

deeper wisdom behind it all. When I

think about all of these practices

together, I realize that they share

something important in common. None of

them require fighting against your

[music] body or depriving yourself of

pleasure. They all work with your body's

natural wisdom rather than against it.

The samurai understood that true

strength comes not from forcing things

but from aligning with natural

principles. A swordsman who fights

against the weight of his blade will

quickly become exhausted. But a

swordsman who moves with the natural

flow of the weapon can fight all day

without tiring. The same is true for

maintaining a healthy body. When you

fight against hunger with strict diets,

you eventually lose because hunger is a

powerful force. But when you eat in ways

that naturally satisfy hunger with

appropriate amounts of nourishing food,

there is no fight at all. You simply

eat, feel satisfied, and stop. The Zen

masters taught that the middle way is

always the wisest path. Extremes of any

kind lead to suffering. Extreme

restriction leads to cravings and

eventual overeating. Extreme indulgence

leads to discomfort and poor health. But

a moderate path where you eat good food

in reasonable amounts and move your body

gently throughout the day can be

sustained for a lifetime without

suffering. This is the true secret of

how Japanese people stay slim. It is not

one dramatic change but many small

habits that add up over time. It is not

willpower but wisdom. It is not fighting

against the body but living in harmony

with it. You do not need to adopt all of

these practices at once. That would be

overwhelming and difficult to sustain.

[music]

Instead, choose one or two that feel

natural to you and bring them into your

life slowly. Perhaps you start by eating

until you are 80% full instead of

completely stuffed. Perhaps you add a

short walk after dinner each day.

Perhaps you serve your food on smaller

plates or try to include more vegetables

in your meals. Small changes made

[music] consistently over time create

large transformations.

This is the principle of kaizen.

Continuous improvement through tiny

steps. The Japanese [music] have used

this approach for centuries, not just

for health, but for every area of life.

Be patient with yourself. The habits of

a lifetime do not change overnight. But

if you keep walking the path, step by,

small step, you will eventually arrive

at a place of greater ease and health.

Thank you for learning about Japanese

wisdom with me today. I hope these

practices [music]

help you find peace with your body and

joy in nourishing yourself well. Take

good care of yourself.