What is Mindful Eating?
Mindful eating is the practice of being conscious as you consume your food. Instead of eating while watching T.V, scrolling through your phone, typing on your computer, you are present as you chew your meal.
What are the Benefits of Mindful Eating?
- It reduces stress.
- It reduces food cravings.
- It increases the enjoyment of food.
- It reminds you to enjoy the present moment.
- It allows you to control your food, instead of letting it control you.
- It reduces the amount of food you eat, therefore supporting weight loss.
- It prevents binge eating, which helps improve your relationship with food.
- It allows you to chew your food slowly, therefore improving your digestion.
- It is overall better for your overall health, mentally, emotionally, and physically.
- It creates a ripple effect on those around you, influencing them to improve their health.
How To Practice Mindful Eating?
- Slow Down: this will help remind you to eat more mindfully.
- Take A Couple Deep Breaths before eating to ground yourself before meal time.
- Savour Every Bite: focus on your senses while eating; how does it look, taste, smell, sound, and feel?
- When you catch yourself unconsciously eating mid-meal, it’s okay. Accept it, let go, and move on. Try this practice of eating mindfully at your next meal, and be patient with yourself. This habit will take a while to develop, but it will benefit you for the rest of your life.
When you begin to eat mindfully your life will change for the better. Because let’s be honest, how often do you truly experience your food?
Is Mindful Eating something you’d like more guidance on? Please comment directly below or feel free to reach out to me via email at alex@naturallynourished.ca or DM me on IG or FB.
