Advantages Of Mindful Eating 6 tips

Written by Julie Silfverberg

Raisin

Weight management is something many people struggle with. Do you? 

One reason why the diet industry is so big is that dieting doesn't work. In fact the vast majority of people who lose weight on a diet quickly regain it and more. This is  because many people are looking for a silver bullet, an almost instant way to get slim. It usually doesn't occur to them that accumulating the weight has taken a long time. Creeping up month by month, one kilo slips on here, one kilo slips on there and then sometimes after a couple of years you suddenly realise now "I'm too big". The catalyst may be that someone has said something, that nothing in the wardrobe fits comfortably any more, a new job, relationship or simply they see themselves as if for the first time and up pops the realisation. So how can you make the change easier for yourself? 

---

Mindful eating -tip 1: Take time out

Make an agreement with yourself that you will take time out to eat. As you think about it now...you may find that you often eat on the hoof or in the car as you dash through your day. STOP now and choose to allocate time for eating and only eating without distraction.

Mindful eating -tip 2: Sit down, breathe

Sit at a table; dining or kitchen table, in other words a table where eating is, in theory, supposed to take place. Sit in a dignified manner with your spine erect and take a deep breath in through your nose filling your lungs with fresh energising air and breathe all the way out so you are emptying your lungs fully and as you do let go any troubles you might have been holding on to. 

Mindful eating -tip 3: PAy attention

Give what you are eating 100% of your attention. Focus on it. Look at it so that you really see it. Notice the colour, shape and texture of each individual thing. See the whole and all the individual parts that make up the whole. See it as if it is the first time you have ever seen it. Explore it with your eyes.

mindful eating -tip 4: Savour it

Become aware of the aroma of each item before you put into your mouth. Inhale the scent and become aware of the variety of scents like never before. Enjoy noticing now all that you hadn't noticed in the past. As you bite into it feel the resistance as your teeth bite down on it and become aware of the springiness or the give. Feel the texture with your tongue and whether or not the piece releases juice or moisture into your mouth. Also notice your own saliva as it is produced to assist in the breaking down of the food making it more digestible and easier to swallow. Finally become even more aware of the differing tastes in you mouth as the food move around your various taste receptors as they become stimulated. Enjoy all these sensations.

Mindful eating -tip 5: slow down

As your awareness increases through your paying attention in ways you possibly haven't done before you may realise you are eating more slowly that before. And slow is good as it too aids digestions which means you get more nutritional benefit from the food and the transit through your system is smooth. At the same time as you consider being mindful you can choose to eat even more slowly savour more and continuously increase your sensibilities. 

Mindful eating -Tip 6: Be aware of satiety

Definition of satiety: The condition of being full or gratified beyond the point of satisfaction; surfeit. 

When you bring mindfulness to your eating you might discover that you can't eat as much as you have done in the past because you are also paying attention to the feeling of food in your stomach which means now you can notice when you are satisfied and so stop eating sooner than you used to.

Needless to say this contributes to your ability to manage your weight because you realise instead of feeling deprived eating less food you are actually very satisfied. Thus your weight starts to melt away as if by magic.