Mindful Eating

Top 10 Mindful Eating Books

September 23, 2020 by moliver3

Mindfulness has been a popular practice these days especially when the majority are required to stay inside their homes. One way of practicing mindfulness is through mindful eating. Mindful eating is one of the powerful ways of meditating by focusing on your food. We listed down books that are proven to work and can help you during your mindful eating journey.

Mindful eating is a practice of mindfulness. It was said that this concept was from the Buddhist. It is a known form of meditation that will help you recognize your emotions and feelings properly and cope up with it by combining food and meditation. During Mindful eating, one is expected to put their full focus on the process and experience when eating. Mindful eating involves:

Eating slowly.
Minimizes distractions prior to starting.
Listening to the cues of your body for hunger.
Eating only until you are full enough.
Distinguish true hunger from non-hunger triggers for eating.
Engaging your senses by focusing on what you see, what you smell, the sound you make, the flavor and the texture of the food.
Coping with your problems that is the cause of your anxiety with food.
Eating properly to maintain overall health and well-being
See how the food affects your feelings and even your figure.
Appreciate the food you are eating.

Mindful Eating Books

1. Eating Mindfully By Susa Albers Psy.D

The book is currently on its 2^nd edition. It is one of the first books written regarding mindful eating that was created for the view of a psychologist who is practicing her profession. All the writings on the book were based from her experiences in the clinics, real-life stories and even research.

2. Body Kindness: Transform Your Health From The Inside Out – And Never Say Diet Again By Rebecca Scritchfield

Food diet may have been one of your choices when it comes to losing weight but some who researched thoroughly may find themselves looking at books about mindful eating. Unlike the others, this book explores many facets of self-care and support one’s journey to heal with the use of food. It is explained through a conversational way where you will feel like you’ve been talking to her seriously with your struggle and problems in life. The author, Rebecca, has been a practicing counselor for years and this will be seen in her book as she shares her experiences and personal stories.

3. Intuitive Eating: A Revolutionaty Program That Works By Evelyn Tribole And Elyse Resch

This book is not just about mindful eating, but it is a more intuitive way of eating. Intuitive eating is more of a process of changing how you view food and eating. It tells the readers how intelligent the human body is and how it doesn’t need the measurement, calorie counting, weight taking to achieve the healthy body that you want. Listening to your body may be the best way of understanding it and following its desires may lead you to your healthiest self. The facts stated in this book are also backed up by science, not just another hearsay or a story made up by the authors.

4. Mindless Eating: Why We Eat More Than We Think By Brian Wansink

Mindful eating is better understood when you learn about mindless eating. Brian Wansink was dubbed as “The Sherlock Holmes of Food” because of his fascinating and clever ways with food. He shared it on this book where he focuses on the mindless eating environment and researches regarding how the groceries, restaurants, and other products mindlessly lead us into eating more than we think we already do. The book has also scientific evidence which validates all of the authors claims.

5. Eat What You Love, Love What You Wat With Diabetes: A Mindful Eating Program Thriving With Prediabetes Or Diabetes By Michelle May MD

Unlike the other books who catered to the general population, this book on mindful eating focuses on people who are prone to acquiring diabetes, are pre-diabetic and those who are diagnosed with diabetes. Michelle May is a practicing doctor and has a first-hand experience with these patients. She knows best how important the mind is in having the discipline and achieving the goal of a healthy self.

6. Meal By Meal: 365 Daily Meditations For Finding Balance Through Mindful Eating By Donald Altman

It was said that mindful eating is a Buddhist concept. Donald Altman is not only a practicing psychotherapist but also a former Buddhist monk. He was able to incorporate the knowledge and practices of Buddhism in his book. It does not only provide a year worth of daily meditations but also provides inspirational quotes and tips on mindful eating.

7. Harvest For Hope: A Guide To Mindful Eating By Jane Goodall, Gary McAvoy and Gail Hudson.

These trio are renowned scientist who take a hard look at the food that we produce and eat. They were able to incorporate the science of eating to changing the individual and the environment positively. They also looked at how the making of food and products has a factor in achieving a good mindfulness.

8. The Self Compassion Diet By Jean Fain MSW

It may say the word “Diet” in the title but it is not really a diet book. It is a compassionate book on mindful eating where self-compassion was used as a great factor in eating mindfully. Jean Fain is not only a psychotherapist but also a teacher at Cambridge Health Alliance. Like the others, she shares her knowledge and experiences in handling patients in her book.

9. The Joy of Half a Cookie: Using Mindfulness to Lose Weight and End the Struggle with Food by Jean Kristeller, PhD

The author’s Mindful Eating Training programs shows how mindfulness techniques can transform your relationship with food. The book is filled with different effective practices that will lead you to healthier choices with food. It is also a tool to help you “tune in to your own hunger experiences” and begin your journey to awareness and mindful eating.

10. Savor: Mindful Eating, Mindful Life by Thich Nhat Hanh and Lilian Cheung

Thich Nhat Hanh is a renowned Zen Buddhist master which Lilian Cheing is a Harvard nutritionist. This powerful duo collaborated to make this book on mindful eating. It is what everyone is hoping for: a mix of mindfulness and proper nutrition. It does not only teaches you to achieve full awareness when eating but also pay attention to your eating habits to eat healthier. They were also able to put some healthy alternatives to the popular food and practical exercises on mindful eating.

Let us know if you read any of this book and found your way to better health. Mindful eating is a practice of the mind and the body and is not a diet regimen.

Can Mindfulness Help With Weight Loss?

September 23, 2020September 13, 2020 by moliver3

During this quarantine, there are a lot of people who spent their time mostly at home. Many browse the internet and often found themselves watching YouTube videos especially those inspiring workout videos. They are really inspiring to watch but not everyone has the motivation to do the work. Mindfulness is a great alternative in losing weight, without having to exert much effort like in working out.

Mindfulness

Mindfulness is a way of being present and fully focused on whatever it is that is happening at the present moment. With mindfulness, you remove all the possible distractions around you and free yourself from it while focusing about your thoughts and feelings during meditation.

Some say that mindfulness is also a training. It is a way of training us to pay close attention to ourselves by not worrying about the challenging past, the unexpected present and the unknown future. These three things are the most common cause of stress for any individual who’s living their life.

Take note though, that mindfulness is not like Buddhism or any kind of religion. It does have a belief system and the science of mindfulness are mostly based on research. Meaning, many scientists were able to prove the benefits of mindfulness in many aspects of our lives.

Mindful Eating

There are many ways on how to practice mindfulness. You may not even realize it, but you may be doing it every day. The practice of mindfulness has a lot of different exercises. Some of which can actually help you with your weight loss. The most popular one is Mindful Eating.

The Digestive system is composed of complex processes that somehow send signals to the brain to register satiety. If a person eats too fast and overeats, these might send signals to the brain causing them to feel fullness. Being distracted while eating may also slow down the digestive process causing us to have indigestion and this might lead to us not getting enough nutrition from the food that we are eating.

Mindful Eating, also called as “intuitive eating” is when a person brings themselves on a state of awareness while eating. Mindful eating is a way of bringing your full attention on your food: how it smells, taste, the color, and even the sensations you felt while eating. It is a way of appreciating the process of eating and allowing it to enter your mind and body. Mindful Eating is not a weight-loss cure in itself, but it is a part of a bigger approach that can lead a person to eating healthy leading to their goal to lose weight.

Mindfulness and Eating

Mindfulness can actually work when you use it the right way. It may not work as much as other diet therapies, but it is one way of figuring out how to eat right. This does not only help your mind but also keeps your body fit and healthy.

1. Before eating anything: Pause and Think.

A big part of mindful eating is thinking about why you chose the food and why are you eating it. Before you start eating feel your body: Is your stomach growling? Are you attracted to your food? Can you feel your mouth salivating? Consider all of these factors before eating. Pausing prior to eating allows us to make eating more purposeful and allows us to focus more on what we are doing.

2. Take a Bite and Chew

Get a piece of that food and slowly put it on your tongue. Savor every sensation that you felt while the food was in your mouth: What does it taste? Are the flavors amazing? Does it change your mood? Did you feel the sensations flowing through your body as you chew?

Do not slurp or inhale your food in front of you. This does not only look good, but it can actually affect your digestion causing it to slow down. Also, you will miss out the different flavors and the texture of the food as you are too busy satisfying your hunger. Chewing properly is a part of mindful eating as it allows you to totally experience the process of eating itself. Make sure to completely chew your food before you swallow it.

3. Drink Water before Meals

Some researches advice people to drink water before having meals as this is also one way of preventing yourself from overeating. It is usually easy to do and eventually becomes a habit as time goes by. Also, drinking water prior to meals allows you to have some time to clear your thoughts and focus on the upcoming process of eating.

4. Choose Colorful and Flavorful Foods

The eyes not only guide us to see around us but also shows us to the wonders of life. Choosing a colorful and flavorful meal composed of unprocessed foods has a great importance in Mindful Eating. Naturally healthy and whole foods have unique flavors that you cannot get from eating processed foods.

5. Do not be distracted

If possible, close any gadgets that you have that might interfere with your meditation. You should only be able to focus on what you are eating. Also, by doing this, you will not be easily distracted, and your full attention will be on the process of eating only.

Research shows that the noise your food makes when you eat can actually influence how much food you consume. The sound can either make you eat a lot or less. People who often eat with their earphones on is prone to overeating.

6. Count to Twenty

Did you know that it takes about 20 minutes for the digestive system to actually send signals to your brain to tell it that you are full? In this small window of time, you might find yourself overeating. Consider taking a break in a buffet before getting another plate for your round two. The waiting period gives time for your body to process the food that you ate.

Everyone wants to lose weight, but we all know that it includes a lot of work before it can be achieved. Mindfulness is only one of the ways that you can use to lose weight. This should be combined with exercise can help attain your goal to be fit and fab this quarantine.

Ten Quick Mindfulness Exercises

July 15, 2020July 11, 2020 by moliver3

With the recent events, many people are forced to stay at home and wait on what will happen. The fear of the unknown starts to bother us and sooner or later we found ourselves anxious. We listed down mindfulness exercises which helps you pause and reset your focus on what’s important in your life.

Mindfulness Exercises

START YOUR DAY RIGHT. The unconscious brain is the one who is responsible for all the decision-making and behaviors that we do. Practicing mindfulness as early as you woke up helps strengthen the connection between the higher and the lower brain centers. Doing so, you will see a change in how you deal with your day. You should practice this before doing anything such as checking your phone or even getting out of bed.

Upon waking up, sit on your bed or on a chair in a relaxed manner. Keeping your posture in check. Feel the sensations that overwhelms your body. Make sure that your spine is straight, and you are not straining your back.
Three deep breaths. This goes a long way. Breathe in through your nose and breathe out through your mouth. Follow the rhythm of your breathing and focus on it. Feel your chest as it rises and fall during each breath.
Keep in mind how you want your day to go. Set an intention for the day for example, “Today, I will be more patient with other and I will try to spread kindness in any ways I can”. Throughout the day make sure to keep yourself in check. Don’t hesitate to pause when needed and clear your mind. This helps a lot when you are tired and need to focus on things.

PRACTICE MINDFULNESS WHEN EATING. Who knew that you can also practice mindfulness when you are enjoying a meal? Eating is one of the most enjoyable things that us, human beings, do every day. Everyone is looking forward for lunch and breaks in between school and work.

Eat and suffice your hunger. Make sure to choose mindfully what to eat, when to eat, how much you should eat. This quick exercise may not be considered as mindfulness for your, but it is a simple practice of it that guides you in understanding what your body really needs. Do not force yourself to eat certain foods that you don’t like. Doing so will lessen your enjoyment of your meal and might make you feel uncomfortable for the rest of the day.
Peacefully finish your meal. Do not be in a hurry to finish your food. Slow down and savor the flavor of the food you are eating. This enhances digestion by making your body relaxed.

PRACTICE MINDFULNESS ANYWHERE YOU ARE. The brain is composed of a complicated wiring that is responsible for our thoughts, feelings and intelligence. It is overwhelmed with so much job that sometimes it slows down.

Do new things. Doing new things can help rewire and excite your brain making it stronger. If you want to try yoga, go ahead and put a mat on the floor to entice you to meditate. Seeing it multiple times a day will trigger your brain and be in charge. Sooner or later you will see yourself meditating every day.
Create new patterns. When your brain is used to a pattern that you’ve been doing for the longest time, it slows down as time goes by. Try to create new patterns and incorporate mindfulness in your everyday. For example, before waking up make sure to take a minute for yourself and have 3 deep breaths.
Try workouts. Working out is not only a way of burning the calories that you’ve gained from eating but also it is known for improving someone’s over-all health. Choose from the variety of exercises that are available. You can try yoga if you are a newbie. Make sure to warm up first for at least 5 minutes before starting anything. Concentrate on matching the rhythm of your body and your breathing. This aligns the activity of the brain, heart and the nervous system. After exercising, steadily cool down and feel the energy of your surroundings.
Mindfulness when driving. Before starting any activity, take deep breaths. The inhaled oxygen awakens your body and mind preparing you for the hustle and bustle while driving. To have a sense of safety and ease, when you are put to stop, look at your surroundings or the other cars around you. You may be lucky enough to see a miracle happening or an act of kindness.
Mindfulness when talking to people. When you met someone for the first time, you often look at their eyes, their expression, how they talk and even their postures. You will notice these small details within a short period of time. Take deep breaths and feel the sensations of your body as you start interacting with someone. If you feel like your mind is wandering, accept it and bring back your focus to the one you are talking to.

It is amazing how mindfulness can be practiced in almost about everything. Meditating does not need to take long hours, sometime a breath or two is all you need. It is enough to calm yourself down and provide you the peace that you needed within a full day.

References:

https://www.mindful.org/take-a-mindful-moment-5-simple-practices-for-daily-life/

http://www.ihi.org/communities/blogs/10-mindfulness-exercises-for-the-health-care-workplace

https://psychcentral.com/blog/1-minute-mindfulness-exercises/

https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/consumer-health/in-depth/mindfulness-exercises/art-20046356

https://www.mindful.org/10-ways-mindful-work/