It’s so easy to be distracted. We’ve all got a lot on our plates (so to speak) at any given time. It’s often especially so with eating. We eat in the car, we eat while playing with our phones or tablets, we eat while reading a book or magazine.
To help with what mindful eating is, it may be helpful to give some examples of mindless eating (or, what mindful eating isn’t). Do any of these habits sound familiar?
- Eating until you are too full and then feeling guilty.
- Emotional eating – eating when you are bored, stressed or anxious rather than physically hungry.
- Grazing on food without really tasting it.
- Mindlessly munching on snacks while zoned out in front of the TV.
- Eating a meal at the same time each day whether you are hungry or not.
- Skipping meals; not paying attention to your hunger signals.
The beauty of mindful eating (besides getting us back in touch with our natural selves), is that it is NOT a diet. It isn’t a fad. It costs you no money. There are no pills, pre-packaged food or giving up of entire food groups. You won’t starve or restrict. It helps you manage your weight, if that is a concern for you.
Mindful eating will allow you to enjoy your food. Every bite takes on a different sensation. You will be aware of your meal. You will be satisfied.
Geneen Roth, in her book Women, Food, and God, offers the following guidelines for kickstarting eating mindfully:
- Eat when you are hungry.
- Eat sitting down in a calm environment. This does not include the car.
- Eat without distractions. Distractions include radio, television, newspapers, books, intense or anxiety-producing conversations or music.
- Eat what your body wants.
- Eat until you are satisfied.
- Eat (with the intention of being) in full view of others.
- Eat with enjoyment, gusto and pleasure.
Give it a try.. let’s see what happens!
-Contributed by Trainer Michelle
