Today you are going to eat with all of your senses and be
more mindful of every bite so that you can taste and savor the food. You are
going to sit down, slow down, chew thoroughly, and eat without distractions –
turn off the television, put down the book, and just purely focus on the dining
experience.
The problem with our diet-crazy culture today is that we
have become imprisoned and fearful of food to the point we treat it as the
enemy as opposed to being grateful for the energy we are feeding our body. We
have lost touch with the intuitive way of eating. Food controls the individual
rather than the other way around. We need to change our approach to food – we need
to eat with mindfulness. Food is meant to be enjoyed.
In today’s modern world, mindless eating and mindless living
are all too common. We mindlessly race through our day, trying to fit in as
much as we possibly can. The pace of our lives is hectic and spinning out of
control, we are always looking for ways to do things faster. We eat while we
check emails, talk on the phone, drive to work, shop and watch television. It’s
become the norm to mindlessly do two, three or ten things at once. We have less
time to stop, focus and reflect on ourself, thus losing touch with our inner
self – our thoughts, feelings, and consciousness.
Some of us find that it is too inconvenient and difficult to
eat a wholesome home cooked meal. Therefore major food outlets have cashed in
on selling “convenience food” marketing it as quick and easy, giving you more
time in your day.
These foods are packed in boxes and coated with the manmade
version of natural flavour. These foods epitomize the new food-marketing
concept of “convenience” There are no crumbs and no fuss, no mess to clean up
and nothing to interrupt. It’s just a quick zap in the microwave, five minutes
to mindlessly wolf down and then back to the mindless chores of the day.
Most of the time, we are eating on autopilot, eating on the
run, eating away our worries or anxieties from the day’s demands, stresses,
annoyances, and “to do” lists.
If we are not conscious of the food we eat, if we are not
actively thinking about the food we eat, how can we taste it and get the
pleasure from eating it? How can we appreciate it? And how do we know what it
is doing to our bodies?
After reading the book “Savor” by world renowned Zen master Thich
Nhat Hanh and Harvard nutritionist Dr. Lilian Cheung, my views on eating have
completely changed. Eating is now a mindful practice, one where I unite my body
and mind in the present moment.
The purpose of a meal is to nourish your existence. It feeds
your body, and when you eat it mindfully, it will feed your soul and ignite
your spirit. Eating with mindfulness is a meditation and one that will awaken
you. With this awareness and insight, you begin to have a greater feeling of
gratitude and appreciation of the food you eat, and your connection deepens
with nature and all others. Food becomes more real and vibrant to you, and your
life becomes more real and vibrant.
The greatest beauty of a meal is that it represents the
wonderful presence of life. Food is united with all that is. When you choose to
eat with mindfulness, you unite with the universe; you can see the miracle in your
meal. You can see the farmer who loved and tended to the crop; the seed that
became the plant, the blossom that became the fruit; the fertile earth, the
sun, the clouds, and the rain. Without the combination of any of these, your
meal would simply not exist.
Why eat with
Mindfulness? When you eat mindfully you show gratitude for your food. You
choose to appreciate and live in the moment. You become fully engaged in the
here and now. By living in the moment, you appreciate what the food offers you,
and you become more alive.
Mindful eating helps you to lose weight and become healthy;
it inspires you to choose healthy foods and to stop when you are full. Mindful
eating is about respecting your body, your food and your world.
Mindful eating makes your food taste so much better; because
eating becomes a sacred ritual, one that is full of pleasure.
Practicing mindfulness will help you reconnect with yourself
and become healthier in mind, body, and spirit now and in the future.
How do you eat with
mindfulness? The time has come to have a taste of mindfulness and start
savouring your food. Next time you eat, choose your food mindfully by thinking
to yourself. Will this nourish me? Will it repair and rebuild my cells? Will it
make me feel good? If the answer is yes, then please proceed.
Now before you take your first bite, and start devouring it
thoughtlessly, PAUSE FOR A MOMENT. Ask yourself, are you preoccupied with other
thoughts, such as thinking about ‘why he didn’t call you’, ‘what bills you have
to pay’, ‘why did my boss say that’. Bring your awareness back to what you are
going to eat, so that you can savour the delights that this meal offers you.
It’s time to stop eating on auto pilot and to start savouring the simple act of
eating.
Be still while eating, make it a luxurious ritual. Don’t eat
while driving. Don’t eat while you are walking. Don’t eat while you are
reading. Just be still and be in the moment. Savour what you are eating; enjoy
what it offers you - the sweetness, flavour, aroma, freshness, nutrition and
texture. Appreciate its beauty and what are the colours?
Smile as you take a bite, chew with awareness, concentrate
solely on eating, make sure nothing else is filling your busy monkey mind. No
projects, no deadlines, no worries, no “to do” lists, no past or future
tripping.
In this moment it is just you, the food and the simple act
of eating.
Some food for
thought. Thanks to the book “Savor” I now have a mindful eating ritual. I
have five contemplations that I mindfully focus on while eating. Read the
contemplations below and savor them during your next meal or write your own
The Five
Contemplations
1. This food is a
gift from the universe: the earth, the sky, and from human kind
2. I will eat with
mindfulness and gratitude, I am fortunate to be blessed with such abundance and
nourishment.
3. I will eat with
awareness, and stop once I am full.
4. I will eat with
compassion, I choose to eat in a way that I reduce the suffering of living
beings, preserve our planet, and reverse the process of global warming.
5. I accept this food
so that I may nurture and nourish myself; this food will bring me strength so
that I can serve my community, friends, family and all living beings.
Savour the flavour and let eating become a joyous experience
by practicing the art of mindful eating today…to get you started get access to my beautiful friend, New York yoga instructor Nadya’s mindful eating meditation. To get access just simply sign up to my free Eat Pray Love Detox. To
learn more about Nadya visit her at Spinach and Yoga.
Stay happy and mindful
Claire xx
