Mindful Eating
Is HOW you eat as important as WHAT you eat?
Wellness Wednesday is Tru Valu Supermarket’s weekly exploration in optimising your health and well-being. This week we explore what it means to eat with meaning and mindfulness — which alone can make a huge impact on your well-being.
To catch up on missed articles click on the relevant week as follows:
1. Better Health Through Food : click here
2.Macro & Micro-nutrients : click here
3. Balancing Meals & Snacks : click here
4. Meal Plan Like a Pro: click here
5. Understanding the Nutrition Facts Label: click here
What is Mindfulness and Mindful Eating?
Understanding nutrition and how to use that information can be helpful, however it’s just as important to listen to our natural instincts with regards to food and our ability to recognise and respond to our hunger, fullness, and satisfaction cues. Mindfulness, a practice based on Zen Buddhism, is to intentionally pay attention without judgment in the present moment. It allows us to be aware of our thoughts, emotions and physical sensations. Thousands of people have found the practice of mindfulness to help them live more intentionally and manage chronic pain, disease, depression, sleeping problems, and anxiety.
When we practice mindful eating we are intentionally paying attention to our physical hunger and fullness cues and we can use this to guide our decisions on eating the amount that is right for you. Mindful eating asks us to tune in without judgment, to the thoughts that guide eating choices, and to be aware of the sensory experience (taste, touch, smell, sound, sight) of eating. By removing judgment from the eating experience, you can become curious and identify any negative thoughts or emotions that may come up around eating certain foods. It gives you the opportunity to see which foods you actually enjoy, dislike, or are neutral about. It is a great tool that can be used to make you more aware of your eating choices and behaviors.
How to Eat Mindfully
If you are new to mindful eating here are some exercises you can try:
- Start with one meal a day to practice your mindful eating skills with. Initially it may feel too time consuming to practice with every meal. Eventually, with enough practice, mindful eating skills will become second nature.
- Eat slowly. If you’re a fast eater, practice putting your fork down in between bites or pausing to take breaths. Take the time to savour your meal. When you take the time to slow down, you’re making the act of eating an intentional choice rather than an automatic one.
- Remove or reduce any distractions. Distractions such as watching tv, being on your phone, or replying to a work email on your computer should be avoided while eating. If you’re accustomed to eating through your lunch break at work, clear a space at your desk, turn off your computer screen, and focus on your meal.
- Focus on how the food is making you feel. Am I enjoying this? What are the flavours in this? Am I enjoying the texture, the smell? What’s my fullness level like right now? How am I feeling after this meal?
- Be aware of any thoughts that may arise while you are eating. Are any feelings of stress or guilt arising? Are you able to let go of thoughts about what or how much you should be eating?
Most importantly, there is no right or wrong way to practice mindful eating; everyone’s eating experience is unique to them. As this may be a fairly new concept to some, it is important to have patience and to be kind to yourself as you will be learning a new skill that takes time.
If you are interested in following a guided mindful eating exercise, follow this exercise by Duke Integrative Medicine (Mindful Eating Exercise , n.d.).
Information this week by: Kirstyn Church, an Associate Nutritionist with Nutrition Consulting Services. Tru Valu Supermarket is one of the leading grocery chains in Trinidad and Tobago with five stores and the best customers. Have a question? Email us truvalusupermarkets+wellness@gmail.com. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram too!
