[4 minute read]
If you’re eating while you’re reading this (and trying to fire off an email), mindful eating is for you. If you’re wondering how what you’re eating fits into the latest diet you’re trying, mindful eating is for you. If you’re going to judge yourself and body-shame after you finish eating whatever it is you’re eating, mindful eating is for you.
What Mindful Eating Is
Mindful eaters take the practice of mindfulness and apply it to their daily eating patterns, paying particular attention to the thoughts, feelings, and internal body cues that inform their food choices. These internal sources of information get drowned out by the fast pace of life for many of us. We can’t even remember what we ate for lunch or how it felt to consume that food because we were eating while accomplishing something else. And often, we’re persuaded to eat by factors that have nothing to do with genuine hunger and satiety. These include aggressive marketing tactics, attractive food packaging, and even the simple fact that food is around us all of the time. Add to that the unpleasant feelings or emotions we try to avoid by eating, and it’s hard to “hear” the body’s signals. With enough practice, the good news is that we can regain connection with our internal cues and sensations and make more intentional and satisfying choices about what, when, and how much to eat. As we tune into our bodies, we can learn to appreciate them more instead of focusing on how they don’t measure up to our ideals.
What Mindful Eating Isn’t
Mindful eating is not a diet. So if The Atkins, The Blood Type, The DASH, The Dukan, The MIND, The Mediterranean, The South Beach, The Zone, keto, paleo, low fat, low carb, carb cycling, intermittent fasting, and juice fasts have all left you frustrated, rest assured that's not required when it comes to this. Mindful eaters aren't required to count calories or obey a set of rules about what and what not to eat. Instead, they focus on bringing their full presence to the table and attending to what is inside of them without judgment or compulsion. In time, they grow in their ability to control urges to binge eat, overeat, or eat for emotional reasons. Also, they tend to enjoy food a lot more. Ultimately, mindful eating can give people more compassion, awareness, and joy when it comes to their relationship with food. It can also give them a greater appreciation for their bodies. No calorie-counting spreadsheet or weight scale can measure such internal “outcomes,” but they make all the difference when we take a seat at the table.
Food For Thought
At Oats Overnight we don’t sell magic remedies for weight loss or instant body transformation. We create premium, nutritious food that helps our customers reach attainable goals, one morning at a time. Join us as we journey together towards greater health, success, and joy.
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