How to eat more mindfully

I am pretty good when it comes to eating healthy food, but there is one thing I really have to work on: mindful eating. I tend to eat very fast and, most of the time, I don’t focus on what I am eating. Either because I am talking, reading or sometimes, when I eat alone, watching something, but I am working on changing that.

First of all, let’s define what mindful eating is: it is paying close attention to the food you are eating, but also how that food makes you feel. The way we eat is a reflection of our state of mind. When we are tired we tend to eat more carbs because our body craves them, a way to solve that is by sleeping better or addressing any sleep issues we might have. Maybe we are stressed about something so meditation can help us with that. 

Mindful eating is not just about what you are eating, but how you are experiencing your meal. Are you paying attention to your food while you are eating? Are you focusing on every single bite, or at least some of them, or are you simply gorging it down? Are you savoring your food or at the end of the meal you forgot what you were eating? It happens to me quite often that I am thinking about something else and I completely forget what I am eating. 

Mindful eating simply means applying the concept of mindfulness to the act of eating.

Here is how to put it into practice:

• Eating slowly and focusing on the food without being distracted 

• Eating with all the senses: color, smell and taste

• Listing to your body for signs of fullness 

• Understanding if you are eating because you hungry or for other reasons 

• Focusing on how that food makes you feel afterwards

• Cherishing the food you are eating

Focusing on the food and savoring it, it’s mindful eating.

When I eat alone, I often find myself engaging in more than one activity while I am eating, like watching something or reading from my laptop while holding the plate. Although I cherish the food I eat, I often eat it too fast and I don’t spend enough time savoring it. I enjoy grocery shopping and preparing my meals, using spices and high quality ingredients, but I definitely have a lot of work to do when it comes to the pace of my eating and the focus.

Food is very important, not only because it’s fuel for our body, and, exactly like a car, if you want it to take you places efficiently you need to give it high quality fuel. Junk food can lead to lethargy and depression; eating too fast, or being distracted while you are eating, does not allow the brain to register any signs of satiety. Now that you know, next time you are sitting down for a meal, transform it from being another automatic daily act into a mindful activity: try to look at your food, smell it, savor each bite slowly and observe how you feel afterwards. 

Try it and let us know how you feel!