The Mindful Eating Workbook: Simple Mindfulness Practices to Nurture a Healthy Relationship with Food by Vincci Tsui RD

Author:Vincci Tsui RD [Tsui RD, Vincci]
Language: eng
Format: azw3
Publisher: Althea Press
Published: 2018-12-18T00:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER FOUR

AT THE TABLE

Now that you’ve read about the basics of mindfulness and mindful eating, explored the role of your body and brain and how it affects your eating, and reviewed some related concepts and tried out the exercises, it’s time to put it all together. This chapter takes you through a “mindful meal”—from preparing the food to swallowing the last bite. We’ll also discuss some of the judgments about food and eating that tend to creep in when we talk about enjoyment and nutrition.

The Joy of Eating

Two things are often overlooked in discussions about food and eating: joy and pleasure. In previous chapters, we’ve discussed how diet culture has led us to believe that joy and pleasure in eating is a “bad” thing. Like exercise, many diets promote a “no pain, no gain” approach to eating, making people feel more superior, pure, and clean when they are able to follow multiple dietary rules and restrictions.

This is one of the reasons why diets don’t work—they’re miserable! If pleasure motivates us to keep doing something, it makes sense that when something isn’t enjoyable, we stop doing it. To turn our eating behaviors into habits, we need to find the joy, the pleasure, and the reward.

SAVOR THE FLAVOR

In many instances, mindful eating can enhance the eating experience. When we are present and use our senses to take in the food we’re eating without judgment, we have the opportunity to really taste and get to know our food, instead of eating on autopilot. Many of my clients say that this has helped them get more satisfaction from their eating and learn something new about their connection with food and with their bodies.

Sometimes the satisfaction doesn’t necessarily come from the flavor of the food. Other factors that might give us satisfaction include:

•The process of getting and preparing the food

•Supporting a producer or company we like with our dollars

•Enjoying food prepared by a loved one

•Sharing a meal with family and friends

•Getting good service at a restaurant

•Trying a new food or dish

•Eating a food that evokes certain emotions or memories

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