Would you like to feel more energy throughout the day, so you can live your life with more vibrancy? This is what my high-performing clients are looking for all the time. Mindful eating can do just that.
Food, and how we eat it, changes everything.
Mindful eating creates a space for joy, satisfaction and pleasure with our eating experience and it can also lead to increased well-being. Mindful eating can also lead to eating less. So although mindful eating is not a “diet”, it is a life-long skill which can be learned and used by anyone to enjoy an improved relationship with food. The healthy and relaxed eating patterns it creates lead to a more relaxed digestive system. It may at first sound unusual, but a harmonious gut is important to overall health. Why? It is filled with digestive bacteria that not only process your food, but have a vital role in regulating inflammation and immunity. They thrive and work most productively when the gut is in balance.
Mindful eating is about what, and how we eat. It helps improve digestion which is linked to improving our overall health. It is the easiest thing you can do to benefit your health.
We covered a lot of the “what” in part 1 of this series, but I’ll dig in a little deeper here where it relates to mindfulness specifically, as well as other Ayurvedic and Eastern medicine principles that aim to balance gut health.
So how do I start eating mindfully?
- Consider your food sources. Aim for fresh, whole foods, organic when possible with no or little processing. Generally, the more processed the food, the harder it is on our digestive system, and more stress it causes our bodies. Stress hormones are released and gastrointestinal difficulties and other issues can begin. When selecting foods, there is an ancient Chinese proverb that says “eating what stand on one leg is better than eating what stands on two legs, which is better than eating what stands on four legs” Hence, the one “legged” plants are better than chicken, which is better than cows/pigs/sheep. Fish are likely in the “two fin” category right next to chicken. Eating more of the “one legged”, moderate amounts of “two legged” and less of “four legged” things gives the template for a healthy eating plan.
- Enjoy the first bite, and savor it fully. Bring your full attention to eating. Indulge in the aromas, textures and individual tastes of everything you eat. Be present with your food, instead of your food being just a source of fuel. Chew each bite for as long as you can, rather than quickly biting and swallowing. This allows the digestive enzymes in the mouth to actively begin processing the breakdown of the food, making it even easier for the gut to digest later, and resulting in more nutrition being delivered to the body rather than flushed out.
- Start with small portions; you can always have seconds if you really need them—but wait at least a half hour before refilling your plate. This allows your brain to catch up with your digestion and signal if it is really still hungry. Sometimes eating off of a smaller plate can also help with food portioning, and portion satisfaction as a smaller plate will appear more full to the eye even with less food on it.
- Listen to your body and eat when you are hungry. Stop before you are full. Often, if food starts to lose its flavor, you have had enough. It has also been shown that for optimal digestion, eat a moderate sized meal in the morning, your largest meal at mid-day and small meal in the evening. Resting or exercising after meals is also beneficial. The proverb “after lunch, rest a while; after dinner, walk a mile” comes in handy as a tool for improving digestion.
- Eat at a table. Your desk at work is not a table. Neither is the car dashboard as you drive. A picnic blanket in the middle of the woods, however, is just fine (and something I would highly encourage).
- Eat with other people, but not with distractions. When you are watching TV or checking messages on your phone, you are not paying attention to what you are putting in your mouth. Studies have shown that you end up eating more this way, and getting less satisfaction from the food, so you end up craving more, and eating more later. Eating with people adds to the enjoyment of the meal, and the overall satisfaction of the process of eating.
- Spend as much time enjoying the meal as it took to prepare it. Many cultures fully embrace this idea, in tandem with items 5 and 6. If you have ever had Sunday dinner with a family in Italy, you know exactly what I mean. Cooking may start in the morning, with dinner starting mid-afternoon. The family will gather and eat and talk at the table for hours savoring it.
- Enjoy lots of water, just not when you’re eating. Water is a wonderful tool for hydrating the body and keeping the systems lubricated well. However, drinking water with meals can dilute the ability of enzymes in your saliva and bacteria in the gut from digesting food fully. To optimize digestion, stop drinking water 30 minutes before a meal, and don’t drink again until 30 minutes after the meal is over.
Before you next indulge in a meal, take a few moments to really think about why and how you are eating. Are you really hungry? Will this choice of food and how you eat it serve you well?
You can start eating mindfully today. It is the easiest healthy habit to create, and you may be amazed at how quickly it has an impact on your overall well-being. At your next meal, prepare your food, sit at the table, switch off the TV, close the social media app on your phone and take a moment to reflect on how grateful you are to be able to have a plateful of food. Then allow yourself permission to simply savor and eat. Enjoy!
For personal coaching on how to make distinctive positive changes to your life, or to talk with an Ayurvedic expert to advise you on an optimal plan based on your personal body type and lifestyle to aid in your digestion and wellness, please get in touch through the contact form by clicking contact us above. I look forward to hearing from you!