Mindful Eating
How many times have you heard that we are what we eat? I honestly believe this is true. We are not only what we eat, but also how we eat. There is a lot of research and books now talking about Mindful Eating. The way and how we eat has been changing so much for the past years. Mindful eating is not a diet. No radical cleanses, no eliminating certain foods, no clearing out your cupboards. Is a new approach to food, how we use it and how we feel about it.
This approach is about spending less time focused on our weight and the storylines around it. When embracing mindful eating, people learn to naturally find the weight that’s right for them and also the type of diet that suits them better. Conventional diet culture causes much of our stress around eating, bringing a lot of pressure, false expectations and tend to view food as a reward or punishment.
Mindful eating invites us to be present while cooking or eating, allowing us to enjoy food without any judgment, guilt or anxiety. It means focusing on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting your feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations in relation with food and all the process involved (the type of food, if you eat alone, how you eat, how you feel about food…). Slowing down the way we eat, we allow our body and mind to communicate and also offers the chance to listen to our body signals. Being aware when we choose emotionally comforting food vs. food that is nutritionally healthy.
Eating mindfully can help you to:
Reduce stress: Slowing down and taking a break from the hustle and bustle of your day.
Examine and change your relationship with food, being more aware when you turn to food for reasons other than hunger.
Increase enjoyment, finding pleasure from the food you eat, as you learn to slow down and more fully appreciate your meals and snacks.
Make healthier choices by focusing on how each type of food makes you feel after eating it.
Improve your digestion by eating slower.
Make a greater connection where your food comes from, how it’s produced, and the journey it’s taken to your plate.
Listening to your body.
Eating healthier is a learning experience and as we learn how to eat healthier and choosing wisely a greater variety of food, we are less inclined to binge on comfort foods, and more inclined to enjoy healthy foods.
Mindful eating inspires me to a gratitude practice. We are lucky because we have food on our plates every day. When we pause to consider that not everybody can eat every day, the hard work that involves that a meal has arrived on our plate, from the loved ones who prepared it, or the time we invest in the kitchen cooking with love for our family and friends, to those who stocked the shelves, to those who planted and harvested the raw ingredients, to those who supported them, it is hard to not feel both grateful and interconnected.
I do believe mindful eating should be taught at schools at a young age. If we learn how to have a healthy and positive relationship with food, we will be able to prevent so many eating disorders and health problems like obesity, diabetes among others and it has a great impact on health and wellbeing.
And remember that every time you eat is an opportunity to nourish your body and your soul.
Love yourself enough to live a healthy lifestyle.
Lots of love xx
