Are you trying to lose weight? Practice mindfulness when you eat. It’s the best thing you can do for your waistline. When you’re mindful, awareness gets a chance to shine. You’re forced to think about doing something when you’re doing it. This allows you to choose the best and healthiest approach. This is significant in terms of food since you make several food-related decisions every single day. Mindless eating can stand in the way of wise choices, so it’s up to you to stop it.
3 Amazing Benefits Of Mindful Eating
1. Mindful Eating Helps With Healthier Choices
Not all calories are equal. The source makes a huge difference! If you want to shed the pounds, you need to eat nutrient-dense foods, and mindfulness can make it happen. For example, eating while watching TV is a form of distracted eating. When you’re focused on a screen, it’s easy to thoughtlessly munch on snacks.
Frequent screen time is linked to high intake of fried foods, snacks, sweets, and physical inactivity. You’ll also be tempted to eat convenience meals instead of actually cooking food.1 2 Of course, hunger and cravings are normal, but it’s all about how you satisfy those feelings. Mindful eating will limit impulsive food choices, making room for healthier decisions.3
2. Mindful Eating Helps With Portion Control
Weight loss doesn’t stop at what you eat. How much you eat also matters. If you don’t pay attention to portions, weight gain will be just a bite away. Mindful eating makes you listen to internal cues, like hunger, and overrides external cues, such as social gatherings and distracted eating.4 This helps you eat until you’re satisfied, not just because you want to eat.
Unsurprisingly, mindfulness is linked to a greater feeling of fullness. It also promotes a consistent level of hunger, making it easier to achieve. Mindless eating, however, has the opposite effect.5
3. Mindful Eating Helps In Better Digestion
The first two benefits, put together, enhance digestion, which is a key factor for weight loss. A healthy digestive system will help your body absorb the nutrients that it needs. Mindful decision making is a game changer. It steers you away from foods that harm digestion, like sugary, fatty, and salty meals. Instead, you’ll be more likely to choose alternatives that actually help digestion. High-fiber foods and probiotics are perfect examples.
How To Practice Mindful Eating
What You Must Do In Mindful Eating
- Cook as much as possible.
- Focus on the food and nothing else.
- Eat at the table.
- Limit meals on the go. As tempting as it might be, do not go for quick meals when in a rush.
- Replace stress eating with relaxing activities.
- Replace bored eating with chores, errands, or hobbies.
- Maintain a regular eating schedule.
What You Must Not Do In Mindful Eating
- Depend on boxed, frozen, and convenience meals.
- Eat in front of a screen. This includes televisions, computers, and smartphones.
- Eat while driving.
- Continue eating after you’re full.
- Eat when you’re bored or stressed.
Mindfulness doesn’t develop overnight. It takes practice, time, and more practice. Be patient with yourself and you will see results.
References
