Mindful eating

oat_bran

Does anyone have any tips or resources on how to eat more mindfully?

I'm a very fast eater. I notice that at times I eat compulsively fast, almost inhaling my food. I also tend to not really think about the food I'm eating while I do that. I tried to focus on what I'm eating but my thoughts drift off constantly. And I think that this leads me to not registering that I'm full and overeating.

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cmriverside

Sit at the table, set the table. Don't read, watch TV or have an electronic device with you. Give thanks for the food. Look at each bite. Put the fork down between bites. Chew more.

brightresolve

tl;dr: yep, it's cico, but mindfulness helps.

This is an interesting question and one I've thought about. Years ago, I tried to follow Judith Beck's suggestions in one of her several books on cognitive behavior therapy and eating. I ate without reading, TV, phone, or computer to distract me, I sat down with a dish (i.e. no grazing in the kitchen), paid attention to every bite, and so on. This helped me recognize the link I have between reading and unconscious face-stuffing, but after a couple of successful months I slipped back into my old ways and weight.

At the moment I am eating breakfast while posting, haha! I have to agree with @YepItsKriss: serving myself only what fits in my goals for the day and logging on MFP have been the most effective way for me. No guesswork. My kitchen scale keeps me honest.

However, I do think paying attention to my food, sometimes praising a dish out loud, and focusing on the enjoyment of eating helps me see what I am doing now (counting and logging for slow steady loss) as self-care, not deprivation.

cmriverside

...and the sad news is that no matter how mindful you get it still takes longer to prepare and clean up than to eat. That five minutes of eating? It just is what it is.

That's one reason a pile of vegetables is helpful. It slows down the experience by a lot and lets my brain catch up to my stomach.

witcherkar

I count. Every chew. I count how many chews it takes to finish a bite and that makes it very mindful for me. My mind will drift off too. And while im counting drop the fork and you can use your foot or hand to tap to your counts in your head as well

oat_bran

YepItsKriss wrote: »

Eating within my calories i find i never get to the point of over eating since the portions are regulated by my calorie goal, so i can either eat slow or fast or swallow it whole, my satiety will be the same.

brightresolve wrote: »

tl;dr: yep, it's cico, but mindfulness helps.

This is an interesting question and one I've thought about. Years ago, I tried to follow Judith Beck's suggestions in one of her several books on cognitive behavior therapy and eating. I ate without reading, TV, phone, or computer to distract me, I sat down with a dish (i.e. no grazing in the kitchen), paid attention to every bite, and so on. This helped me recognize the link I have between reading and unconscious face-stuffing, but after a couple of successful months I slipped back into my old ways and weight.

At the moment I am eating breakfast while posting, haha! I have to agree with @YepItsKriss: serving myself only what fits in my goals for the day and logging on MFP have been the most effective way for me. No guesswork. My kitchen scale keeps me honest.

However, I do think paying attention to my food, sometimes praising a dish out loud, and focusing on the enjoyment of eating helps me see what I am doing now (counting and logging for slow steady loss) as self-care, not deprivation.

I do prepare my food and count everything before I sit down eating, of course. However, sometimes I finish eating really fast and I still fill hungry, and at times I decide to eat something else because I think I'm hungry and not eating now will just lead to more hunger and overeating later on. But really I just needed to eat slower. And the habit of eating mindlessly and too fast makes it hard not too overeat when eating out and you don't know the exact calories or in super stressful situations or during the periods of increased PMS hunger when I often feel almost out of control of what I'm eating. I'm just trying to develop a a life long habit of mindful eating and healthier attitude towards food and eating

But anyway, thanks for the tips!

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kommodevaran

I think some tips to eat more slowly are bordering disordered eating - exactly what mindful eating was supposed to prevent/amend. I eat fast, but mindfully, when the food is good. I enjoy cooking too. I don't think about cooking as a chore, boring, a waste of time anymore, I spend it "connecting" to the food, visualizing the meal, looking forward to it, working up an appetite. It's not just "fun", cooking is a very basic skill, but an important skill, I enjoy the process of transformation; I think it makes me appreciate the meal more, I feel grateful for the effort from all the people (and sacrifice from the animals) that contributed to my meal, it makes me feel empowered and competent, independent and at the same time proud of taking part in that chain.

Satiety will eventually catch up, or maybe not, I usually want more, that's how I am, and it's healthy appetite in my book; anyway, it's no big deal - I have measured and portioned and served myself "enough but not too much", so I feel confident I'm neither over- nor undereating.

cmriverside

I'm still hungry after I eat too. It takes 20 minutes for the stomach to communicate "Full" to the brain. I think this is a cruel joke God plays on us.

So, set a timer?

I think the eating out part will come in time. You'll realize two things: 1. One big meal isn't going to sidetrack your progress. 2. You'll have a much better idea of how much to eat after logging your meals at home for a while. The restaurant food will look like a HUGE amount of food. Because it is.

RodaRose

Instead of eating in front of the t.v. or on the run, sit down at the table and focus on the food.
Being mindful in other areas of your day will help with food-mindfulness.

GottaBurnEmAll

I practiced slow mindful eating of small bites when I first started losing weight as a means to get me used to eating less food. I chewed every mouthful so thoroughly, and it's become an established joke in the family how long it took me to eat.

To some extent, those days lingered a bit because I am a slower eater than I used to be, but since I've been at this three years, I pretty much rely on the control of my calorie limit and logging to keep things in check. I also pad my meals with lots of low calorie vegetables to help fill me up.

One of the things I do to help with that feeling of being still hungry after eating if and when it happens (it doesn't always, and it always passes) is to make a cup of herbal tea. Zero calories. It gives me something to take in and it feels filling and sipping it passes the time that it takes for the actual food that I've eaten to make me feel full.

Orphia

"Mindful eating" always seems to me to be some sort of racist mythologising, and a buzzword for the mountain of dietary information that is better summed up by "CICO".

It seems to be yet another way for people to stress and worry about food, and feel guilty. Oh, noes, am I mindful and spiritual enough?

Pfft.

bbell1985

No clue. I'm either logging my food or eating like an *kitten*.

jgnatca

Try eating with chopsticks, especially if you are bad at it.

Look up the mindful raisin exercise.

davidylin

I've been trying to do this recently. One tip I have for mindful eating is to think about what you're eating long before you sit down at the table (also, sit at a table, hopefully with other people eating the same thing). For me, thinking about my food makes it that much more satisfying when I eat it.

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Lillymoo01

I can't do mindful eating. I enjoy my food but am always doing other things at the same time and I hate my food going cold. I just know that what is on my plate meets my calorie requirements so eat it all. Sometimes I am still a bit hungry afterwards but know that it takes 20 minds for the brain to catch up with the stomach with that fullness feeling.
Got to do what works for you. Saying that I would love to be able to do more mindful eating because it would mean relying less on counting calories and more on intuition long term.

J72FIT

oat_bran wrote: »

Does anyone have any tips or resources on how to eat more mindfully?

For me it's always about getting back to my breathing. Before I eat, I take some deep mindful breaths to get centered...

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jgnatca

You can double the pleasure with a fraction of the food. Dopamine is the anticipation hormone remember. If you are focusing on the meal you anchor the memory. You can then recall the meal with a mere whiff afterwards.

I spent twenty minutes with a bagel that extended my pleasure for months.

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ugofatcat

Brain Wansink has a great book called "Mindless Eating" and he has a lot of tips.

You could try putting your fork down in between bites and hands in your lap. Also, it is helpful to always eat at the table. Try to avoid TV, phones, and other distractions.

When I did a mindful eating self study, they suggested chewing each bite of food, focusing on the flavor and texture. They also suggested pausing halfway through the meal and asking yourself if you are still hungry.

If you are still hungry after you eat, try drinking some tea (unsweetened or herbal brewed) to give your self time to register if you are still hungry or not.

FallenAngelErato

@cmriversidecmriverside i agree completely, relax maybe take a deep breath before starting, is it because you have to go some place or at work? It took me a while to slow down my whole life was hurry hurry things to do, i don't even listen to music and i have found i usually under eat now not that that i good but I'm getting there, i love to chew slow and taste the food now and always have fast snack near by so i don't just swallow my food cuz so hungry

JaydedMiss

giggling at the fact im reading this thread, as i eat my third icecream cone. lol

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85Cardinals

That's when the zombies eat your brains instead of your flesh.

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davidylin

YepItsKriss wrote: »

This just sounds like a version of my eating disorder but sprinkled with glitter.

Glitter shows up in a lot of places because it's actually pretty effective. You may also appreciate that there's pretty significant scientific interest in the concepts of mindful eating/mindfulness.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/mindful-eating

NIH has funded a number of studies and larger studies are in the works, as well as verification studies overseas.

Now, this is a psychological approach, so it is mostly hokum, but never underestimate the power of shiny.

Dnarules

I'm using a program that encourages mindful eating. I'm not good at it, but it has been useful. I found I was sometimes eating in minutes without even processing. I have slowed down, and it has helped me. I think about what I an eating now. I do calorie count to keep me honest. But I am not sure that is enough.

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