You are probably familiar with this scenario: as you binge-watch your favourite TV show, you are munching on snacks, and before you even realise it, the show is over, and there aren’t any snacks left – only that you don’t even remember when you finished them.
While there isn’t anything wrong with indulging in your favourite treats from time to time, not being present when eating won’t benefit your physical and mental health.
Eating mindlessly doesn’t happen only on the couch while watching TV. It can happen literally anytime, anywhere, whether you’re hungry or not. In fact, it’s common for many people to eat to satisfy emotional needs rather than hunger and cope with feelings such as sadness, loneliness, and even boredom.
On the contrary, mindful eating helps you build more positive eating habits, ultimately enhancing your well-being. Mindful eating is simply about eating in a conscious way, namely, paying attention to the sensory experience of eating, such as smells, taste, and textures of food, as well as noticing your bodily sensations, such as hunger and fullness levels.
Taking the time to eat slowly can work wonders for your mental and physical health, reducing IBS symptoms, helping treat eating disorders, and reducing stress.
The best part about mindful eating is that even if you have a busy lifestyle, you can still adapt the practice in a way that can support your well-being, even when life gets in the way.
Below, we explore 6 ways in which you can enjoy your meals with more awareness, so make sure to check them out!
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Show Appreciation for the Food You’re About to Eat
Before you start eating your meal, take the time to show gratitude for it. There were people who worked hard to grow the food, prepare it with care, and transport it, so be thankful for that and for the way it will nourish your body.
When having meals with loved ones, take the time to celebrate the joy of this shared moment as you enjoy food together.
Tuning into feelings of gratitude before eating is a great way to become more mindful of the experience, and if you need any support with this practice, the good news is that you can even find gratitude before meal sessions with experts (and some are entirely free!).
Engage All Your Senses
Deeping your attention so you can be present when having a meal can help you show appreciation for the food that nourishes your body.
Consider using all five senses as you eat: smell the spices in the soup, admire all the different colours of the salad, taste the fruit’s sweet freshness, feel the sauce’s creaminess, and listen to the pie topping’s crispness as you break into it.
If you’re the type to cook your own meals, the good news is you can also bring mindfulness practices into this activity. You can create a cooking ritual, which can be as simple as playing soft background music or lighting a candle to help you create a calm ambiance, as well as notice all the sensations as you cook.
Just try it, and you’ll see how mindfulness can change the entire experience!
Reduce Distractions While Eating
The kitchen should be your sanctuary, where you can enjoy your meals peacefully and relax over a meaningful conversation with loved ones. This room should be designed to inspire you, which is why you are probably aware of the value of finding the best UK kitchen suppliers when breathing new life into this space.
Every little detail matters, from the choice of the colour scheme to the way you organise the appliances.
Clearing the clutter and organising for simplicity will make the room a lot more inviting, and as you eat, you could even use calming sounds so you can remember to be more in the present moment.
Make sure to turn off your mobile device and TV to ensure they won’t distract you from eating mindfully. If you’re cooking and need your phone to read the recipe, you can put it on do-not-disturb mode to ensure notifications are at bay.
Pause Between Bites
You were probably told to chew your food slowly when you were a kid. Well, you should consider this advice now as well because it allows your stomach to send information to your brain when you are full, which can help with digestion and enable you to savour the textures and flavours of the food.
Not to mention that eating too fast can cause overeating, making you feel unwell and too full. So, our recommendation is to slow down and pay full attention to the experience of eating – noticing how various foods make you feel will help you make more thoughtful choices with your meals.
Choose Nourishing Foods
Speaking of thoughtful food choices, remember to be kind to your body, try to reduce processed foods as much as possible, and replace them with wholesome foods such as vegetables and fruits. They taste delicious and help boost your minerals, vitamins, and fibre intake, alleviating stress and even warding off depression.
Even a few swaps daily can make a tremendous difference, so make sure to get into the habit of eating more veggies and fruits-you will reap excellent benefits!
Check in with Yourself After Eating
Once you have finished eating, take a moment to ask yourself how you feel and check in with yourself to determine if the meal was satisfying.
Doing this will help you recognize what you’re doing and boost your mindful eating journey in the future. Besides, paying attention to the way you feel after eating a specific food can help you figure out if you want to continue eating it in the future or not.
The Bottom Line
By now, you have probably understood that mindful eating can make a tremendous difference in your relationship with food.
Unfortunately, eating has turned into a mindless act, which happens quickly many times, but this can be problematic given that your brain needs time to register that you are full.
Thankfully, you can make eating an intentional act instead of an automatic one by slowing down and restoring your attention to the present moment. These tips will help you start your mindful eating practice so you can make the most of all its amazing benefits!
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