You may have heard of some people talking about how mindful eating helped them lose weight. They claim that it is helpful in being conscious of your dietary habits. Most likely, you’ve heard that weight loss is 75 percent diet and 25 percent exercise. Imagine the high percentage our food intake affects our weight gain and weight loss!
Then it is the best time for you to consider mindful eating!
But what does it really mean.
You may be looking for the best tips to start mindful eating.
Want to know more about it?
Keep reading and we’ll give you the best tips to start mindful eating that are proven effective.
What is Mindful Eating?
Mindful eating is similar to when you practice mindfulness meditation, you are focusing on the present. You are eating with intention by really paying close attention to every bite, every taste, and every smell. Before you choose what to eat, think about the entire experience, including how you will feel afterward. Focus on your own hunger and decide if you truly are hungry, then use mindfulness to figure out where to eat and what you want to eat. When you pay close attention, you realize when you are hungry and what you are craving, without counting calories or stressing about carbs.
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6 Best Tips to Start Mindful Eating
Get Rid of Distractions
Meals in front of televisions, NO! Meals in front of computers, another NO!
This habit has wrecked eating habits and made family dinners a thing of the past for most Americans. In Europe and Asia, people still sit down as a family for meals, which is precisely why those countries have less obesity than America.
Strategic Positioning
After turning off the TV, the computer and putting your phone on silent mode, one of the best tips to start mindful eating is to strategically sit in a position where you won’t see a notification from your computer or from your phone.
Always sit at a nicely set table, free from books, gadgets and phones and away from the television, computer or any other thing that may constitute a distraction. Rather than putting bowls and platters on the table, fill your plate from the stove or countertop with smaller portions than you’re used to.
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One technique that mindful eating enthusiasts advocate is to put less food on your fork or spoon. This one little trick will give you more bang for the buck at your meals by providing more bites, but less food – and calories.
Drop the Knife… and the Fork
Don’t pick up your knife and fork again until you’ve chewed and swallowed the last bite you put in your mouth. No matter how much food is left on the plate – stop when you feel full and satisfied.
The fact that you’re eating slower gives your brain time to register the contents of your stomach and stops you from wanting more when you’re full. Your digestive system will become more efficient in channeling your nutrients to the proper areas and getting rid of the intake of fat that you don’t need rather than storing it.
Change the Way You Serve Yourself
It sounds so simple but this is one of the best tips to start mindful eating that people are struggling with. If you don’t serve yourself large and calorie-laden portions, you’re bound to lose weight. But our society doesn’t run on tiny portions. Even the dishes we use now are twice as large as those our grandparents ate from.
As a society, we’re consuming more food than ever – and exercising less. As a result, we’ve become a society of obese people who yo-yo back and forth on diet and exercise plans which render our bodies and minds confused and make losing weight even more difficult.
Changing the way you serve yourself is part of the mindful eating concept that advocates you being aware of everything you put in your mouth and everything around you as you’re eating.
Be Aware of the Ambiance
Dish size is important, but the ambiance of where you eat is essential if you’re going to take full advantage of the mindful eating concept. We can’t all eat in the atmosphere of Downton Abby each night, being served by butlers and servants. But you can take what you have and make it into a place of serenity and peace to eat your meals. The fact is that most people now take their meals in front of the television, computer, in bed, standing up on a commuter train or in casual restaurants that serve huge portions of deep fried foods on plastic trays.
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And Last but Not the Least, Enjoy
The mindful eating concept must also incorporate a joy of eating. Meals have historically been a time to enjoy family and friends and take part in the bounty that the earth has provided.
Today, the joy of eating seems to have lost its sheen and brought down to foods we crave rather than savor. Consumed on the run or while being entertained, food has lost the original happiness and celebratory mood that it used to bring to the table.
What can you say about the best tips to start mindful eating? Do you think it is achievable? Why don’t you give it a try! Then if it has proven results, share the best tips to start mindful eating to a friend!
