Mindful Eating

Let’s talk a bit about eating mindfully, it can be a challenge especially in our busy and chaotic world to focus on your food at mealtimes. By reading this post you will learn what mindful eating is, benefits of mindful eating, and a mindful eating exercise. As a dietitian nutritionist I hope this helps you build a healthy relationship with food.

What is mindful eating:

Since I broke my wrist in Vietnam I have had to focus more on mindful eating without distractions, like my phone, because I only had one hand to eat.

Mindful eating is basically placing your full attention on your food when you eat. You can focus on your body sensations, taste, texture, and thoughts around food while you are eating. It is mostly about being aware and mindful in the present moment. That means not watching TV, going on Instagram, or rapidly trying to scarf down food while driving.

Benefits of mindful eating: 

• Focus on the taste and appreciate your meal
• Better able to recognize when you are full
• Able to slow down when eating which optimizes digestion
• Get in touch with your body and notice how you feel after certain foods

Mindful eating tips:

Mindful eating is a helpful method if you want to be more attuned to your body and want to avoid fad and yo-yo dieting, which is recommended. It can help you lose weight at a slow and steady pace. Many people I have worked with fell into a pattern of not eating enough during the day, came home starving, and began to overeat and eat fast because they were so hungry. My recommendation is to eat more regularly, about every 3 to 4 hours and eat when you feel hungry not starving, this prevents overeating.

How to practice mindful eating: 

When you start eating, eat slow so you can tell when you are comfortably full. It typically takes about 10 minutes for your brain to tell your stomach that you are full. If you eat too fast then you can miss the subtle cue from your body telling you that you are full. It is okay to eat half of your plate then put your fork down and continue to eat once you notice you are hungry again. Another thing you can practice if you are a fast eater is to count 20-25 chews per mouthful to help slow down. By focusing on your body cues and setting up your plate in a certain way you are naturally cutting down on calories instead of having to calorie count. This is also a more sustainable and nonrestrictive method.

10 pillars of mindful eating

Reject Diet Mentality: Do you truly believe intuitive eating will work or are you still looking for your next diet?

Honor your hunger: Are you eating when you are hungry?

Make Peace with Food: give yourself unconditional permission to eat, no food off limits

Challenge the Food Police: your worth is not determined by what you did or did not eat

Feel your Fullness: eat until you feel comfortably full

Discover the Satisfaction Factor: does food give you satisfaction, do you enjoy what you eat?

Cope with your emotions without using food: are you eating out of boredom, anxiety, or stress?

Respect your body: accept that every body is unique, there will always be different sizes and shapes

Exercise- Feel the difference: how does it feel when you move your body?

Honor your Health- Gentle Nutrition: food choices that honor your health, it is what you eat consistently over time that matters

When working with me if you are interested in the intuitive eating approach we will go through multiple exercises and discussion to help you integrate it into your life. There are many exercises but below is one that is helpful.

Mindful Eating Exercise: 

Day 1:

1. Rank your hunger from 1-10 before eating (10 being starving)
2. Eat your meal how you typically would
3. When full rank your fullness from 1-10 (10 being stuffed)
4. Do you feel uncomfortably full, neural, or still hungry?
5. Did you do a sn activity while eating (phone, TV, etc.)?

Day 2:

1. Rank your hunger from 1-10 before eating (10 being starving)
2. chew 20 bites per mouthful and focus on food while eating
3. When full rank your fullness from 1-10 (10 being stuffed)
4. Do you feel uncomfortably full, neural, or still hungry?
5. Did you do anything while eating (phone, TV, etc.)?

Good luck in your mindful eating journey!