The Practice and Benefits of Mindful Eating

‘IT's the Season for Eating, Treats, Parties and Festivities

My Own creation of Leftover Turkey Casserole*

Mindful eating is the practice of eating with the express purpose of savoring every flavor, aroma, and texture of food, as usually accomplished through aesthetic appreciation of the food and slow,  and contemplative ingestion.

I received the following E-mail from the Knights of Columbus as a member ( http://sacramento.kofc953.org/welcome/ ).I love to share it with you since it is very timely topic as .....

‘IT's the Season for Eating, Treats, Parties and Festivities

1. Take Charge of Your Eating

Do you feel you’re in control of your eating, or do you find yourself giving in to cravings and then feeling worse afterward?  Emotional eating and food cravings are the top reasons people have trouble losing weight.  Often cravings are for high sugar, high fat, and/or high sodium foods that can wreak havoc with your health.  Try these tips to take charge of your eating and reduce food cravings:

Don’t shop at the grocery store when you’re hungry.  Plan your meals in advance and shop from a list to reduce the temptation of impulse purchases.

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Drink plenty of water.  If you feel hungry, drink a glass of water first. Sometimes thirst can be mistaken for hunger.

Eat nutritious meals and snacks throughout the day.  Avoid getting to the point when you’re so hungry you’re likely to binge-eat.

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Get enough sleep.  People who are chronically sleep-deprived are more likely to become overweight or obese due to hormone disruptions.

Learn ways to manage stress.  Stress raises blood levels of cortisol, a hormone that can make people gain weight.  Stress can also prompt emotional overeating, especially of unhealthy foods.  Meditation, mindful eating, and exercise can help reduce stress.

2. The Benefits of Mindful Eating

As we prepare for a new year, many of us resolve to eat better and achieve or maintain a healthy weight.  When you practice mindful eating, you’ll begin to make more deliberate choices about food and adopt healthier nutrition habits.

There are physical and emotional benefits of mindful eating, including:

Greater awareness of your personal triggers for mindless eating, such as feelings and emotions, social pressures, and certain foods.  Are you eating when you’re not really hungry?  When you start recognizing the emotional issues you have around food, you can choose healthier behaviors instead.

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Increased enjoyment of meals.  When you take the time to eat slowly and savor your food, you give your body the chance to register when you’re sated.  You’ll learn to eat when you’re hungry and stop when you’re full.

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Practicing mindfulness can prevent eating binges.  You’re less likely to overeat or eat unhealthy foods when you start to think of food as fuel for your body and begin to enjoy the taste of healthy food.

You become more aware of how the food you eat affects your mood and energy levels throughout the day.

You might even find that you eat less, but you enjoy food more and feel a greater sense of appreciation at each meal.

3. Using Mindfulness to Take Charge of Your Eating!

Changing your mindset towards food means paying close attention to your emotions and your body’s cues.

Do you ever find yourself mindlessly eating while you’re watching TV or reading, or are otherwise distracted?  Research suggests that being hurried or not paying attention to a meal tends to make people eat more.  Mindless eating can also be a response to feelings and emotions such as boredom, loneliness, sadness, and stress.  During the holiday season, it can be especially difficult to maintain healthy eating habits.

Changing your mindset towards food means paying close attention to your emotions and your body’s cues.  Are you eating because you’re hungry or because you’re feeling stressed?  When you slow down and make eating an intentional act, you’ll make more conscious choices instead of operating on auto-pilot.  You’ll become more aware of the triggers that make you want to eat or crave certain “comfort foods,” even though you might not be physically hungry.

4. Here are some tips to practice mindful eating:

--- Eat slowly while sitting down, with minimal distractions.  Use your senses to savor the meal, noticing colors, smells, flavor, and texture.

--- Notice how the food makes you feel as you taste it, and how you feel throughout the day.

--- Pay attention to your body’s signals.  It can take twenty minutes or so for your brain to register that you’re full.

--- When you have a food craving, especially for junk food, think about what emotions or needs are triggering the craving.  For example, if you want to snack because you’re bored, take a walk or engage in some other activity instead.

Mindful eating takes practice, but over time you’ will become better at distinguishing between emotional and physical hunger, and make healthier food choices.

Merry Christmas to all our Brother Knights and their families.

Vivat Jesus

From our Health Services Program Director Br. Richard Westerfeld.

* Recipe for My Turkey Casserole: 

https://myfavoritepinoydishes.blogspot.com/2019/11/my-own-version-of-left-over-turkey.html 

Meanwhile, enjoy Kulas video of Pancit in Laylay, Marinduque just recently

https://www.facebook.com/becomingfilipino/videos/984770535243123/