When did you last think — really think — about the food you ate? Practicing mindful eating is about taking ownership of your relationship with food, its role in your life, and how you shape your health with each bite.
Every bite you take impacts your body, whether you’re meeting nutrition needs, self-soothing, or satisfying cravings. Eating with intention is a powerful way to improve your eating habits and digestion, reduce stress, and enhance your relationship with food.
Read on to discover the best ways to incorporate intentional meals into your lifestyle and develop a healthier relationship with food.
What is involved in mindful eating?
Eating with intention means paying attention to your body’s needs, the food you eat, how you eat, and what you feel while nourishing your body.
Every morsel becomes meaningful, valuable, and purposeful. Mindful eating takes time, and in a world filled with TV dinners and lunches behind the PC, you may feel there’s no way to fit it into your day.
However, conscious eating is about more than how long it takes. It involves your senses and feelings. When you engage in mindful eating, you eat to sustain your mind, spirit, and body. You eat with intention and attention.
Benefits of mindful eating
The benefits of intentional mealtimes are well worth exploring and include:
- Reducing the risk of digestive disorders: Eating slowly and intentionally may help reduce your risk of contracting chronic digestive illnesses, which affect 20 million Americans.
- Aiding digestion: Having more time to thoroughly chew each mouthful and meet the recommended 20-40 chews per bite encourages better digestion because it increases saliva enzyme production.
- Developing greater food awareness and gratitude: You have time to consider where your food comes from and feel more grateful for it.
- Improving your immune system: When you stop and think before eating a bowl of Cheerios for dinner, you will likely make better food choices. Better nutrition makes it easier for your body to fight infections.
Steps to eat mindfully every day
If you believe you need to sit on the floor in the delicate lotus position to eat an intentional meal or engage in mindful eating, guess again. Implementing intentional eating principles requires just a few conscious choices and time.
To start eating with intention, follow these steps.
1. Create a calm eating environment
Consider where you eat. Switch off distractions like the TV, and ban mobile devices from the table. If you play music, it should be soft and calming. If you have children, lead by example — your intentional eating habits positively influence your kids’ mealtime habits.
Before serving your meal, check whether your eating environment is quiet, calm, and free of negative influences. Ensure your whole family has space to sit comfortably in this uncluttered environment. If you serve more than one course, avoid placing the next course in sight to prevent anticipation from ruining the current course.
Meal conversations are valuable, but you may want to refrain from upsetting topics like politics or the day’s dramas. Instead, use this time to speak about uplifting things or the food itself. Good company is the best “gravy” for any meal.
Consider using an essential oil humidifier to improve the air quality where you eat. Cleaner air may help you focus and eat more intentionally.
2. Make each bite count
If you tend to gobble your food, take a moment to really think about how you load your fork or spoon and savor each bite. What are the flavors, and how does the texture feel in your mouth?
Make sure to chew each bite completely before swallowing. Place your eating utensils on your plate between bites instead of loading the next mouthful while you chew. Doing so tells your body to wait until it’s received each bite before planning the next.
Try this method:
- Load your utensils.
- Count to three.
- Place the morsel in your mouth and count to three.
- Exhale, begin chewing, and count to 10.
- Inhale and chew for another 10 counts.
- Exhale and swallow.
- Pause for a count of five.
- Load your utensils and repeat.
3. Listen to your body’s hunger cues
Two hormones work together to regulate hunger. Ghrelin — also called the hunger hormone — tells your brain you are hungry, while leptin signals your brain that your stomach is full.
Mindful eating can positively impact your ghrelin and leptin levels. Taking the time to eat when you’re hungry and enjoy food slowly helps you avoid overeating. Unbalanced hormone levels can make you feel hungry even when you’ve eaten enough.
Additionally, staying hydrated is crucial. Dehydration can disrupt the communication between your brain and stomach, leading to further imbalance.
Eat slowly, using the counting method in step two. If you still feel full after eating a modest plate, sip half a glass of water. If you still experience hunger, slowly eat another spoonful and check in with your body.
4. Focus on your plate
Intentional habits mean focusing on what’s on your plate, not the next meal. You let yourself enjoy the colors, tastes, aromas, and textures of the meal in front of you.
Take the time to consider where your meals come from, who makes them, and how they reach your table. Appreciating these details can help you build a healthier relationship with food.
Use meal times to reflect on the meal. Did you use a family recipe or thank the person who prepared it? Why did you choose this meal?
You can also assess the quality of the food on your plate. Is it nutritious? Will it nurture your body? Will you feel satisfied once you’re done eating?
Here are some tips:
- Serve meals on nice plates.
- Choose smaller plates to avoid overeating.
- Garnish your food tastefully.
Remember — each plate offers an opportunity for mindfulness.
5. Discover gratitude
Few people eat with gratitude. When you take food for granted, you may notice increased dissatisfaction and unhappiness.
Practicing gratitude is more than a quick prayer at mealtimes. It’s a genuine appreciation for the nourishment food provides. It’s about being thankful for the people who prepared the meal. A moment’s reflection of feeling blessed to have a meal is worth the time.
So, consciously express your appreciation for the food in front of you before, during, and after the meal.
6. Cultivate a mindful kitchen and cooking methods
Expand your mindful eating practice into your kitchen and cooking methods. Shop intentionally and purchase high-quality ingredients that offer valuable nutrition.
While frozen meals can be great in a pinch, these convenience meals are not nutritionally wholesome, and it’s difficult to feel gratitude for something you’ve frozen for months, microwaved for a few seconds, and then served. The art of personally cooking with raw ingredients is a powerful way to improve your mindfulness habits.
Shop for fresh ingredients, follow nutritious and tasty recipes and set aside time to cook nutritionally dense meals without rushing.
Bring mindfulness to your food habits
When you eat mindfully, you make better choices for your mind and body. While you may not always have time to spend an hour on each meal, you can still take a few moments to express gratitude for your food and to chew every bite slowly.
